Monday January 6 & Tuesday January 7

The alarm did not go off, so with 5 minutes after we were scheduled to be picked up Tom and Georg did some fast moving. They charge you if you show up or not, so we hustled. Fortunately the driver was in the hotel lobby waiting for us. We eventually arrived at this big soccer field and the 20 or so riders have to help get the balloon and basket off the truck, unroll it, inflate it and then you finally jump into the basket as it is lifting off the ground (the pilot actually needed our weight to bouy the basket back to the ground) for your ride. BTW, when you see us or talk to us next ask us about the origination of the word "pilot" It was incredible-so quiet and peaceful. After about an hour we landed in some random farmer’s field. The ground crew goes to the farmer’s door with a bottle of champagne and ask if they can go get their balloon. Most farmers say yes, so then we jump out (OK, not so gracefully), roll the balloon back up and wrestle it back into the big bag, hoist the basket onto the truck and bounce out of the field. Oh yes, don’t forget to scrape the cow patties off your shoes! Georg is to the left of the balloon, holding it open so the hot air gets inside. Tom is helping fold it up.
The rest of the day we did some creative packing-gotta make room for the cool stuff we bought.
This was one great trip. Each and every one of you should be lucky enough to visit this beautiful country. And take us with you!
TGT

Monday January 6, 2008

Monday January 6, 2008

Today was met with some failure and some successes. We planned a hot air balloon trip; we had to call at 4:00 am to see if our flight was a go or not, and unfortunately for us the flight was cancelled. We rescheduled for tomorrow... The silver lining in this cloud was that were able to sleep in! Around 9am we all went to the botanical garden in Hagley Park across the street from our hotel. Very nice rose garden and water gardens. Thelma pushed her wheelchair all over the paths and got some good exercise. We did a bit of sightseeing downtown. The center of the city is a very nice stone cathedral and big square. We took another stroll and did a bit of punting on the Avon river-little flat bottom boats are sort of poled up and down the river by a guy in a straw hat. The fun part was getting Thelma out of the boat, but many amazing things have been accomplished on this trip.
For dinner we were on an old tram circling the city center. The tram goes down the track and the chef prepares a yummy meal while we waved at the people on the street. We all thought the tram dinner was a trip highlight.

Sunday January 5, 2008, Christchurch

Got here yesterday and had a bit of time to scope out the town and then collapse until we leave-Hah! There is so much to do here. This is the town that prides itself on being most "English” city in NZ. Lots of gardens and stone buildings-they even have a river called the Avon.
Today Tom and Georg went on the long anticipated LOTR tour to see Edoras. The bus ride was 2 ½ hours long-this place is way out in the back of beyond. At one point we came around a bend and there was the mountain. Very cool. We climbed to the top and did a bit of scouting around (Georganna is now the proud owner of a rusty screw from the Golden Hall they built for the movie). We got to take photos and then had a champagne lunch in a sheep shearing shed (kinda weird combination) and back down the very rough road and out of Middle Earth. The van is 6 wheeled with a snorkel and the way they have to go through streams they need it. Fun.

Queenstown to Milford Sound

New Years day found us driving to Queenstown amidst the most beautiful weather we have had to date. Queenstown is a resort area near a lake and ski resorts, a bustling little town with fantastic views and a wholesome air to it. We stayed two nights at a lovely hotel, took a gondola ride above the city and rejuvenated. Tom and Georg went on a Shotover Boat adventure ride-they put you in a low-draft boat, go 85km an hour up and down the between very narrow river banks, speeding appallingly close to the rocks, and doing 360 spins just for fun. Quite the adrenaline rush.

FOR LORD OF THE RINGS FANS:
Wednesday gave us the chance to do what we came to NZ for: to go on a Lord of the Rings tour. We rode in a 4-wheel drive vehicle to see the Seat of Seeing where Boromir tried to take the Ring from Frodo. This property is actually owned by Peter Jackson. We also saw the valley of Orthanc where Saruman resided and did his evil. We had tea where the ambush by the Urakai was carried out, and where Boromir was slain. This location was also where they filmed much of Lothlorien )(see woods photo. We also were able to see the place where Sam first saw the Oliphant. We also were exposed to much of the “behind the scenes” filming stories, and we left feeling enormity of the modern-day film making business. To see the spot where Gandalf rode Shadowfax through trees to Minas Tirith and that it took hundred of people, many hours, dozens of trailers, equipment and probably a couple hundred-thousand dollars worth of supplies to film a 2-5 seconds worth of the movie brought home just how complicated and involved the movie industry is. NOW I understand why the credits at the end of a movie last so long.

On Thursday, we drove to Milford Sound for a cruise of the fjord. As we approached the area the weather turned ugly. The amount of rain was staggering but the resulting effects on the landscape were breathtaking. Prior to this day we would pull off the side of the road to photograph a waterfall and today began as no exception, but as the minutes and kilometers passed, we soon became overwhelmed with the sheer numbers of waterfalls and the vast quantity of water flowing through them. Words cannot do justice to the sight. I am certain that our amateur photography skills couldn’t capture the wonder of the beautiful transfer of water from the frozen rivers above the cliffs to the river below.

When we arrived at the terminal to board the tour boat the rain was coming down in torrents. Tom and Thelma got soaking wet within the 30 seconds it took to transfer from the car to the terminal building UNDER a covered walkway. Poor Georganna was in charge of parking the car about ¼ mile away and even with the use of a hooded raincoat was miserable by the time she joined us. Fortunately by the time we boarded the weather cleared to give us a spectacular day. The nearly sheer cliffs were pouring water from the top thousands of feet above. We sailed along the fjord, then out into the Tasman Sea, then back to the head of the fjord. We even saw some NZ fur seals sunning themselves on the rocks. The trip back to the interior was just as beautiful, but sunny this time and we made many photo stops. Tom is in a field of lupine in the photo. That night we stayed in a tiny little resort town called Te Anau. Not much time spent there, but they have a great Chinese restaurant!

Friday was back through Queenstown and north to Lake Tekapo. We stopped in Queenstown to meet our wonderful Travel Agent, Karen Roxburgh. Oh, yes, and to stop at one more fabric shop Georg spotted with her eagle eye.

Tomorrow is on to Christchurch for four nights.

TGT

Queenstown

Done a few miles since we last had time to connect.

We drove to Punakaiki on the coast-very weird formations they call "Pancake Rocks", big blowholes and surge pools amongst these otherworldly rocks. It rained (again) but we timed it just right so Thelma could go out on the trail-they have many paved trails so she can get to see more. We partook of the Sunday Dinner at the only cafe in the "town"-roast beef, pork, and lamb with all the trimmings. Very good home cookin'.

Then on to Franz Josef Glacier-Strange to see a glacier all the way down into the rainforest. Thelma got to see it fromthe viewspot on the road, and then Tom and Georganna walked up the riverbed for about a mile and got quite close. Warm, sunny day, and a big mountain of ice right there. they do heli-tours and glacier walks, complete with crampons and ice axes, but we declined.

Yesterday we left the west coast (Georganna's favorite so far) and drove inland to Queenstown, which is tourist central of the Soth Island. We are south of the 45th parallel, so it stays light out til after 10pm and is daylight before 6 am. They do a lot of partying here as it is so light out so long. The town is smack on a big lake and then they have this gondola that goes straight up the side of a mountain so you have a real bird's eye view of the whole area. They stopped the gondola so Thelma could get on and off, and we got almost a 360 degree view.

Tomorrow is the Shotover boat and the first Lord of the Rings tour.

Later!

TGT