Project Honeymoon - Day 20: Fly back to Auckland and catch The Rocky Horror Show

Packing - My packing skills are put to the test getting the wine in snuggly and securely.  Hubby and I fell in love with a brand of instant soup and they made for good padding.

Packing the Wine with Soup

Flying Over New Zealand - Our domestic flight only requires a small plane.  I get to sit by the window this time since Hubby got the window seat on our international flight.  I got a good shot of Queenstown from above including the gondola we rode the day before.  I hoped to get a good shot of the islands, but there were too many clouds...oh well.

Our Plane

Queenstown (with Gondola)

Over New Zealand

The Rocky Horrow Show - I haven't seen the movie (The Rocky Horror Picture Show) yet, but when we saw the Civic Centre was playing a live theatre version, we had to go.   The concierge at our hotel told us the show is pretty interactive.  I didn't know what she meant.  Hubby explained to me that not only do people dress up, but they also bring props like rice, lights, etc. and there are also lines people can shout out to the actors.  We were in for quite the show.  People totally got glammed up...it was awesome!  The show was so much fun and we all got up and danced at the end to the encore of "Let's Do the Time Warp Again".  What a blast...and such a perfect way to spend our last night in Auckland.  Note: Photos of Hubby and I have been altered to protect our identities...LOL.

The Rocky Horror Show at The Civic Centre

Me with Glammed up Doorman...er, Doorwoman

Hubby with enthusiastic theatre goers

Project Honeymoon - Day 19: Downtown Queenstown

Gondola Ride - The thing to do in downtown Queenstown (other than shop) is take the gondola ride up the mountain.  This ride is much smaller than the one at Grouse Mountain, but the view is just as nice.  One thing we definitely don't have at the Grouse gondola are sheep...only in NZ.

Sheep under the Gondola

Paragliding - You can tandem paraglide off the mountain.  A viewing deck at the top lets you see people as they run and take off.  Now that looks like a lot of fun compared to bungy jumping.  Maybe Hubby and I will give it a try back home; as Hubby said, our mountains are bigger.

Paragliders in the distance

Luge - For $15 more you can add two luge rides to your gondola ticket.  A ski lift takes you and the carts up to the start of the tracks.  Everyone must do the scenic track first before going on the advanced track.  Hubby seemed skeptical about how fast we'd be able to go which would directly relate to how much fun he would have.  Fortunately, the ride was not disappointing,  You can actually go pretty fast and if you're not careful around the sharp turns you could totally wipe out on the boards.  The advanced track has cool drops which really allow you to gain speed.  Hmmm, if only we had millions of dollars to open one of these back home...LOL.  They actually already have one in Montreal.

Ski lift carrying people and luge carts

Luge

Devil Burger - Reception at our accomodation was not lying about how huge the burgers are at Devil Burger.  In hindsight, Hubby and I should have just shared one burger between the two of us...oh well, we're on vacation.

Big burger!

Project Honeymoon - Day 18 - Arrowtown & Bungy Jumping

Hot, Sunny Day - Finally, I can wear the summer dress that I packed!  The majority of the weather on our trip has been cool and I've been wearing long pants and my wind-proof fleece almost every day.  At last, I can wear a dress on our honeymoon.

Arrowtown - Reception at  our accomodation recommended this cute little place just a  10 minute drive west of Queenstown.  It's reminiscent of Steveston Village back home, but smaller.  The buildings are historical and have been made into boutique shops and cafes.

Arrowtown Post Office

Chinese Village - Just a short walk away from central Arrowtown is Chinese Village.  In the late 1800s, Chinese moved here in hopes to make a living panning for gold and send money home to their families.  They built themselves small houses just big enough for them to sleep.  The area is now a heritage site which the NZ goverment maintains.

Hubby in front of a house in the Chinese Village

Bungy Bridge - Queenstown, NZ was the birthplace of bungy jumping.  Neither Hubby nor I are interested in bungy jumping, but we're game for taking pictures of people who are.  The viewing deck at the bungy bridge made for the perfect place to take photos.  At $185 a jump and getting jumpers through every 15 minutes or so, Hubby and I realised these guys must be making a lot of money.  Hmmm, if only we could run our own bungy jumping business, LOL.

Guy jumping feet first...yikes!

Bathroom signs at the Bungy Bridge

Project Honeymoon - Day 17: Drive to Queenstown

Fox Glacier

Our Last NZ Drive - And it's another long one...6 hours.  Looking forward to our 3 night stay in Queenstown which is our final NZ destination.   From there we fly back to Auckland and then fly home.

Fox Glacier - This glacier is actually bigger than the Franz Josef Glacier we hiked yesterday.  We're able to find a lookout point to get a photo.  It's hard to conceptualize the size of the glacier in my photo.  Hubby took photos with his SLR and was able to zoom in on a helicoptor enough that it appeared as a little black dot in the distance.

Beautiful Beach - The drive is scenic as usual.  Hubby and I spot an amazing beach in the distance.  The water is blue with white sand and amazing large rocks.  It's picture perfect...too bad we were behind a huge bus that kept on getting in the way of my shot...grrr.

Beautiful Beach with Bus in theway...argh!

Beach Stop - We see a rest stop close to the beach and hope we can get some good photos.  Unfortunately, this doesn't seem like the same beach (less rocky), but the huge waves make it interesting.

Big Waves

Amazing Apartment! - Our Queenstown accomodation turns out to be the best one of the entire trip.  We booked ourselves an apartment on the lake.  Both hubby and I are stunned with how incredible the place is.  It's bigger than our apartment back home!  We love the kitchen and the view is amazing.  There's even a dishwasher and ensuite laundry.  Great place to chill out for the next 3 nights.

Our Lakeside Queenstown Apartment

Kitchen

Dining Room

Bedroom

The View

Project Honeymoon - Day 16: Hiking on the Franz Josef Glacier

Getting Geared Up - Our tour operator provides all the necessary gear: waterproof pants, jackets and boots, gloves, socks, hats, and crampons.  Luckily for Hubby and I we came prepared with pretty much everything but the crampons so we get to chill out for a bit while everyone else gets ready.

Group 1, 2, 3, or 4 - There's about 50 of us taking the half-day hike up the glacier and 4 guides.  We're instructed to choose a group based on how gung-ho we are.  Hubby and I go for Group 1, not only because it's the adventurous group, but because the guide himself looks the most rugged and experienced.  I figure if I were to fall into a crevasse, this guy would likely be able to save me...LOL.  He's so brawny that he's wearing only shorts and a t-shirt while we're all decked out in full head-to-toe gear.  Did I mention that it's raining?

Our Guide T-shirt & Shorts

Hike to the Base of the Glacier - Because we're the first group, we set out first.  I begin to reconsider whether it was a good idea to have chosen Group 1 because I'm practically jogging the trail to keep up.  Hubby is fine.  Damn my short legs.  The base of the glacier is about 30 minutes away.  Luckily the cardio kick-box class I've been taking back home was paying off; eventhough I had to jog a bit, I wasn't getting winded.

Hike to the Base of the Glacier

Crossing the Yellow Line - The only way you can actually hike on the Franz Josef Glacier is on a tour.  Otherwise, the yellow lines are as far as you can go.  Our guide holds down the lines for us as we step over.

Crossing the Yellow Line

Crampons On! - When we reach the icy part of the glacier we put on our crampons.  Crampons are awesome!  I'm a scaredy-cat when it comes to walking on ice and these made all the difference.

Crampons On!

On the Glacier - The glacier is a fantastic blue due to the way light is filtered through.  We're able to take a few shots as our guide preps our hike through.  He's armed with an axe which he uses to clean up the steps.  He also checks and adjusts each guide line for safety.  It's pretty amazing to be hiking on top of a glacier.

Our Guide Fixing the Guide Line

Blue Ice

On the Franz Josef Glacier

 Glacier Hot Pools - On our half day glacier tour, 2 hours of it was actual hiking on the glacier.  That was enough for Hubby and I.  There's also a full day tour, but we didn't want to take it too strenuously.  I could feel my legs were already getting sore.  Fortunately, our tour included admission to the Glacier Hot Pools.  What a great way to relax tired muscles.  There are 3 different temperatures to choose from: 36, 38, or 40 degrees.  Hubby and I started at 36 then moved to 38 and then 40.  The hottest pool was so nice, but I can only stay so long in hot water until I feel stuffy.  We spent the rest of our time in the 36 degree pool.  So relaxing!

Project Honeymoon - Day 15: Drive to Franz Josef (Through Arthur's Pass)

Kura Tawhiti Conservation Area

6 Hour Drive to Franz Josef - This is one of our longest drives.  Our last drive to Queenstown will also be 6 hours.  Unfortunately, there is no direct route from Christchurch (east coast) to Franz Josef (west coast).  Either you have to go up and then back down or down and then up.  We take the up-down route through Arthur's Pass which we hear is breathtaking.

Climbers Paradise - Hubby spots massive boulders up ahead and we find ourselves at the Kura Tawhiti Conservation Area.  If you're a climber, you'd look at this place and feel like you died and went to heaven.   The path from the parking lot to the boulders takes about 10 minutes.  We're envious when we see a group of three guys prepared with their own crash pads.  Hubby and I don't have any of our gear, but that doesn't stop us from trying a few of the "safer" boulders.

Hubby on a Boulder (black camera bag resting below)

Cows! - We spot a field of cows close by and Hubby gets close to a cute calf who poses for his camera.

Calf Posing for Hubby

Don't Feed the Kea - The drive through Arthur's Pass is beautiful.  We stop at a lookout point to take a photo.  At the railing there's a sign that says "Don't Feed the Kea".  Before I can even wonder what a Kea is, a plump bird appears from under a bush.  Two more of these birds then emerge and they're all defintely comfy with humans and not afraid to come close to you.  Kea are NZ's version of the parrot and when they fly their wings have pretty red feathers.

View From the Lookout

Friendly Kea

Eating In - To save money on food, we decide to take advantage of the full kitchen in our Franz Josef accomodation.  Tonight's menu: mini-meatloaves, pasta with tomato sauce, and side salad.  Simple, but yummy!

Cooking Mini-Meatloaves

Project Honeymoon - Day 14: Hot Air Balloon Ride over Christchurch!

Van with Basket in Tow

Early start at 4:00am! - Every morning the hot air balloon pilot checks the weather to ensure safety.  At 4:00am we're supposed to call the flight information line to see if the flight is a go or not.  Based on weather conditions flights occur only 50-60% of year.  On average, passengers have to try about 3 times before they actually fly.  Luckily, today was a good fly day and Hubby and I got in on our first try.  To our delight, the message says our flight is on.  Now we have to get ready for our 4:40am pickup.  A van picks us up with a trailer in tow carrying our basket and balloon (folded up) and drives us about 45 minutes to an open field in Oxford.






Hot Air Balloon Setup - There are two balloons flying today which can carry up to 12 passengers each.  We're all encouraged to help out.  Once the basket is off the trailer, we unfold the balloon and begin to fill it up with air using a large fan.  Once there's enough air in the balloon, our pilot turns on the burners to fill the balloon with hot air.   The process takes about an hour.  When the balloon is ready, the pilot calls us in with an "All aboard!".

Balloon Unfolded

Holding the Balloon Open for Inflating

Balloons Inflating

All Aboard!

Ready for Takeoff!

The Flight - The flight is smooth and serene as we float high into the air.   The vans that picked us up quickly disappear into the distance.   Our pilot gauges the wind and takes us over fields.  The view is spectacular!  The cattle below are so tiny; oddly enough you can clearly hear all the moo's, baa's and woof's from all the animals.   The pilot communicates over radio with the drivers of the vans which picked us up to let them know where we're headed and where we might land.  It didn't occur to me until then that we wouldn't be landing in the same spot we took off...makes sense!  We enjoy the lovely view for about an hour.

Up Up & Away!

The Landing - Our pilot spies a piece of farm land with no animals.  He said sometimes he has no choice depending on the wind.  Ideally, a landing site is an open field without animals and can be accessed by the van.  After we land, the farm owner comes by to say hello; she's actually quite amused that we landed on her farm.

Shadow of Our Balloon Just Before Landing

Hot Air Balloon Teardown & Champagne - We wait for our pilot's signal before we climb out of the basket.  If we get out too early, the balloon could launch again.  Once the inner panel is opened, the hot air releases and the balloon begins to deflate and we're given the cue to climb out.  We then all work together to flatten, fold, and pack the balloon up and onto the trailer.  To celebrate our flight and our hard work we toast with glasses of champagne.  Our hot air balloon experience ends back at our hotel at 10:00am and both Hubby and I are pooped!

Deflating the Balloon

Folding the Balloon

Balloon is Packed

Champagne!