Nieuw Zeeland continued

Te Anau in the south of the land sure is purdy. Made the trip out to Doubtful Sound, which is a huge fjord. Glaciers carved out huge valleys millions of years ago and when all the ice disappeared, it left the way open for water to fill in the resultant hole in the ground. Yes folks ....thats a fjord. The glaciers were hundreds of metres high. We sailed through crystal clear waters and were entertained by dolphins, penguins and sea-lions. At one stage, the captain of the boat asked everyone on the boat to be completely quiet for 5 minutes, and he turned off the engines and generator. Tranquility and beauty in harmony....it is possible kids.
Queenstown is a town for adventure seekers. The ones who like to bungy jump, climb mountains, do extreme sports. At night, all the beefcakes lug down jugs of beer in the one pub, and entice the girlies with tales of bravado on the piste. I found an Indian restaurant and was very happy. My adventuring extended as far as taking a speed raft thingy through the rivers and The Remarkables - mountain range used as location spot Lord (or should that be Bored) of the Rings. Man everything in this country is Bored of the Rings. They have milked that particular association to death. Saw a eaterie in Auckland called Lord of the Kebabs - for jeez sakes!



Did some glacier walking at Franz Josef glacier. A magnificent sight when viewed from down in the valley, but when you hit that huge slab of ice its a monstrously great vision. It streteches for about 6-7 kms up up up. We had a norwegian guide walk us up the glacier. Mountain boots with spikes attached. Sherpa Ajay taking a giant stride for humanity! I could keep saying how beautiful, stunning, wondrous New Zealand is, and I will.
Stayed in Haast - one horse town. The piano stopped playing in the bar when I walked in there. Drove up through Arthur's Pass on way back to Christchurch. Picked up 2 hotchers....turned out to be 2 Israelis who had finished in the army! Shit! If I'd known that before, they would have been still hitching there! But it turns out they were forced into the army against their will.
People...go to New Zealand!!!!