Back a few months ago, my friend Gary mentioned that when the Santa Ana winds are giving North Americans a milder than usual climate, that the southern hemisphere can often see the opposite effect. I wondered at the time if that meant that when visiting New Zealand, it could be a yucky summer and he thought it could. Hmmmm...
So far, since being here, it has been summer-like weather about a total of 1 day. And we've been here for 11 days. It has been cloudy, cool, and often wet (although never pouring rain) or at least damp. But yesterday was the most interesting.
At breakfast, our host at Shakespeare House B and B in Te Anau asked what our plans were and we mentioned that we were heading for the Glowworm Caves. He suggested we dress warm because the caves could be quite cool. Little did we know that it was actually going to be the ride down to the caves on a boat that would be blistering cold. It felt like being in a snowstorm without the snow. The wind out on the lake was incredibly strong, to the point where the tour commentator suggested that anyone on the top deck outside (us of course) make sure they hang on to everything that wasn't attached to make sure it didn't blow away. Yup. This is summer? The sunny south? At least it didn't rain.
The Glowworm caves were amazing, even though I had seen them before. In many ways, it was even better this time. I knew what to expect, and I knew that I needed to "fill my eyes" as Linda says, and try to remember everything I see. There are no cameras of any kind allowed to be used in the caves, so everything we see we will need to try and remember. So as we see the delicate "fishlines", like incredibly tiny strings of diamonds, and the lights from countless glowworms, including some larger bright ones and some smaller not so bright ones, it really does look like stars in the sky. It even looks like some constellations at times. I see Orion, and the Little Dipper, Andromeda, and even my own sign, Cancer. They glow greenish (to my eyes) and the effect is so magical, it almost brings tears to my eyes. The thought that passed through my tiny brain is "Thank you God for giving these magical tiny creatures to a people and country that will care for them and protect them". I imagine that in many countries, they would be exploited until they are extinct. But here, they are well cared for, and much work is being done to preserve their habitat.
After returning to Te Anau, we opt for lunch, and I'm hopeful that we can find the place that I remember from my last visit to this lovely town. The name escapes me, until I notice a small alley with a sign that points toward a restaurant. It looks familiar so we check it out. As soon as we enter, I recognize the decor, and it seems that the tables have not even moved in 7 years. This was the place that I first had Pavlova, that lovely dessert that I have pined for ever since. The weather has finally brightened up, and warmed up, so we sit outside. Lunch is fabulous, and although we had tried pavlova at the New Years Eve get together at Gary and Bridget's, I insist that we have it here, as I'm convinced it will be different. Better. And it was. Amazing. Light and fluffy and marshmallow-y on the inside, and slightly crunchy on the outside like a meringue cookie. With fresh, in season, blueberries to boot.
After lunch, we do a bit of souvenir hunting, and then we are off to Queenstown. The weather has turned gray and cool again as we drive northward, but we stop occasionally anyway to grab some shots. The ever-present sheep are everywhere, and the terrain changes as we drive, from mountains to plains and valleys and back again to mountains. We even see an alpaca farm.
As we get closer to Queenstown, I find myself remembering much of the route, obviously it had made an impression on me. I even take a couple of the same shots. Seemingly with the same weather. Hopefully this time, I can improve them a bit better with the new knowledge I have of photography and the software to use to clean up the photos.
Finally we are in Queenstown, and Google maps has been pointed to our resting place for the next few days. One thing to note when booking accomodation is that sometimes, it's worth it to pay a bit more. Just sayin'. Driving along, and miss google maps telling me to turn right then left then right then left makes sense in a city that is basically built on the side of a mountain range and around a lake. But when it tells us that we have reached our destination, and there is a 30 degreen hill in front of us, well, it's a bit disconcerting. Keep in mind, when we arrived in Christchurch, the car rental place had indicated they were all out of Corollas, and wondered if we would be ok with a free upgrade to a Highlander 4x4, which of course we were, we didn't realize WHY. Both of us believing strongly that everything happens for a reason, we had no idea that a 4x4 would be required just to get to one of our hotels. Even this huge thing that is meant for climbing is whining at the steep hill we go up. Then, there's no visible parking. A kind gentleman who has just arrived as a guest points us toward a second lot, that is in behind the building, but the squeeze is tight, and I have to drive quite slowly to maneuver between the building and the retaining wall to get to that second lot. We get the very last spot it seems, at least, the last spot that this big beast will fit into.
The room is not luxurious, but it's clean and we find the bar for a quick pizza before heading to bed.
This morning started off partly sunny and fairly warm. Finally summer! But we take jackets just in case, and since the forecast is for rain, we opt to take our time and just take a day off to do some shopping. There is so much to do in Queenstown, but we've been going at it pretty hard, and we need a break. My friend Ian has recommended a place called Ivy and Lola's for breakfast or lunch, and so far, he has been dead on. Although the walk seems daunting (if the car whined about coming up the hill to the hotel, we are likely to as well) but since it's reasonable, we can at least walk down, and then bring an Uber or taxi back up if required. Off we go, Ian is right again, and we revel in a marvelous brunch, one is a brioche french toast, the other is a smoked potato and feta croquette with poached eggs and hollandaise. Fantastic.
We buy a few treasures, mostly wander about, are entertained at a pub where we stop for a drink by a couple of happy drunks who get cut off and asked to leave, then discover a fellow Canadian working at a liquor store where we stop for a bottle of wine to share later. By now, the weather has finally cleared (it was raining as we ate brunch), and warmed up quite a bit. Head back to the hotel, then decide to go to Arrowtown for a bit of supper, not much required after the huge brunch. The Blue Door was recommended by Ian, and now by us. Fantastic. Definitely coming back here on my next visit to NZ!!!
We wander about Arrowtown for a bit, and discover a lovely cottage for sale that was a B and B at one point, but looks to be somewhat abandoned. If only. Gotta check those lotto tickets. Such a beautiful little town, a little bit like Niagara on the Lake, a little St. Jacobs, a little bit Fergus/Elora. All the shops are closed, but we have nothing planned for tomorrow morning, so we could come up here for a little bit, since there is a yarn shop....(those who know me understand this).
We end the day by discovering a fairly decent spot to shoot the sunset, but unfortunately, the sunset doesn't turn out to be much but cloud. One shot that's not too bad, but will need to take some more, hopefully tomorrow evening will pan out.
Tomorrow is LOTR tour in the afternoon, and hopefully the gondolas/skyline adventure in the evening. Perhaps it will be nice out!
So far, since being here, it has been summer-like weather about a total of 1 day. And we've been here for 11 days. It has been cloudy, cool, and often wet (although never pouring rain) or at least damp. But yesterday was the most interesting.
At breakfast, our host at Shakespeare House B and B in Te Anau asked what our plans were and we mentioned that we were heading for the Glowworm Caves. He suggested we dress warm because the caves could be quite cool. Little did we know that it was actually going to be the ride down to the caves on a boat that would be blistering cold. It felt like being in a snowstorm without the snow. The wind out on the lake was incredibly strong, to the point where the tour commentator suggested that anyone on the top deck outside (us of course) make sure they hang on to everything that wasn't attached to make sure it didn't blow away. Yup. This is summer? The sunny south? At least it didn't rain.
The Glowworm caves were amazing, even though I had seen them before. In many ways, it was even better this time. I knew what to expect, and I knew that I needed to "fill my eyes" as Linda says, and try to remember everything I see. There are no cameras of any kind allowed to be used in the caves, so everything we see we will need to try and remember. So as we see the delicate "fishlines", like incredibly tiny strings of diamonds, and the lights from countless glowworms, including some larger bright ones and some smaller not so bright ones, it really does look like stars in the sky. It even looks like some constellations at times. I see Orion, and the Little Dipper, Andromeda, and even my own sign, Cancer. They glow greenish (to my eyes) and the effect is so magical, it almost brings tears to my eyes. The thought that passed through my tiny brain is "Thank you God for giving these magical tiny creatures to a people and country that will care for them and protect them". I imagine that in many countries, they would be exploited until they are extinct. But here, they are well cared for, and much work is being done to preserve their habitat.
After returning to Te Anau, we opt for lunch, and I'm hopeful that we can find the place that I remember from my last visit to this lovely town. The name escapes me, until I notice a small alley with a sign that points toward a restaurant. It looks familiar so we check it out. As soon as we enter, I recognize the decor, and it seems that the tables have not even moved in 7 years. This was the place that I first had Pavlova, that lovely dessert that I have pined for ever since. The weather has finally brightened up, and warmed up, so we sit outside. Lunch is fabulous, and although we had tried pavlova at the New Years Eve get together at Gary and Bridget's, I insist that we have it here, as I'm convinced it will be different. Better. And it was. Amazing. Light and fluffy and marshmallow-y on the inside, and slightly crunchy on the outside like a meringue cookie. With fresh, in season, blueberries to boot.
After lunch, we do a bit of souvenir hunting, and then we are off to Queenstown. The weather has turned gray and cool again as we drive northward, but we stop occasionally anyway to grab some shots. The ever-present sheep are everywhere, and the terrain changes as we drive, from mountains to plains and valleys and back again to mountains. We even see an alpaca farm.
As we get closer to Queenstown, I find myself remembering much of the route, obviously it had made an impression on me. I even take a couple of the same shots. Seemingly with the same weather. Hopefully this time, I can improve them a bit better with the new knowledge I have of photography and the software to use to clean up the photos.
Finally we are in Queenstown, and Google maps has been pointed to our resting place for the next few days. One thing to note when booking accomodation is that sometimes, it's worth it to pay a bit more. Just sayin'. Driving along, and miss google maps telling me to turn right then left then right then left makes sense in a city that is basically built on the side of a mountain range and around a lake. But when it tells us that we have reached our destination, and there is a 30 degreen hill in front of us, well, it's a bit disconcerting. Keep in mind, when we arrived in Christchurch, the car rental place had indicated they were all out of Corollas, and wondered if we would be ok with a free upgrade to a Highlander 4x4, which of course we were, we didn't realize WHY. Both of us believing strongly that everything happens for a reason, we had no idea that a 4x4 would be required just to get to one of our hotels. Even this huge thing that is meant for climbing is whining at the steep hill we go up. Then, there's no visible parking. A kind gentleman who has just arrived as a guest points us toward a second lot, that is in behind the building, but the squeeze is tight, and I have to drive quite slowly to maneuver between the building and the retaining wall to get to that second lot. We get the very last spot it seems, at least, the last spot that this big beast will fit into.
The room is not luxurious, but it's clean and we find the bar for a quick pizza before heading to bed.
This morning started off partly sunny and fairly warm. Finally summer! But we take jackets just in case, and since the forecast is for rain, we opt to take our time and just take a day off to do some shopping. There is so much to do in Queenstown, but we've been going at it pretty hard, and we need a break. My friend Ian has recommended a place called Ivy and Lola's for breakfast or lunch, and so far, he has been dead on. Although the walk seems daunting (if the car whined about coming up the hill to the hotel, we are likely to as well) but since it's reasonable, we can at least walk down, and then bring an Uber or taxi back up if required. Off we go, Ian is right again, and we revel in a marvelous brunch, one is a brioche french toast, the other is a smoked potato and feta croquette with poached eggs and hollandaise. Fantastic.
We buy a few treasures, mostly wander about, are entertained at a pub where we stop for a drink by a couple of happy drunks who get cut off and asked to leave, then discover a fellow Canadian working at a liquor store where we stop for a bottle of wine to share later. By now, the weather has finally cleared (it was raining as we ate brunch), and warmed up quite a bit. Head back to the hotel, then decide to go to Arrowtown for a bit of supper, not much required after the huge brunch. The Blue Door was recommended by Ian, and now by us. Fantastic. Definitely coming back here on my next visit to NZ!!!
We wander about Arrowtown for a bit, and discover a lovely cottage for sale that was a B and B at one point, but looks to be somewhat abandoned. If only. Gotta check those lotto tickets. Such a beautiful little town, a little bit like Niagara on the Lake, a little St. Jacobs, a little bit Fergus/Elora. All the shops are closed, but we have nothing planned for tomorrow morning, so we could come up here for a little bit, since there is a yarn shop....(those who know me understand this).
We end the day by discovering a fairly decent spot to shoot the sunset, but unfortunately, the sunset doesn't turn out to be much but cloud. One shot that's not too bad, but will need to take some more, hopefully tomorrow evening will pan out.
Tomorrow is LOTR tour in the afternoon, and hopefully the gondolas/skyline adventure in the evening. Perhaps it will be nice out!
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