New Zealand - from Taupo to Queenstown

We left Taupo with a bit of a disappointment since basically all the activities got cancelled due to bad weather. On our way to Wellington we stopped to see the mountains – especially Mt. Ruapehu (The Sleeping Giant) was impressive with its snow covered surroundings. Second stop on the way was at Gravity Canyon at Taihape where we did again some extreme activities. I tried so called Flying Fox but I have to say that it was kind of walk in the park, no major rush there. Bungy and the swing are much better choices to get your socks off. I’m also a bit disappointed that pictures/videos are not included in the price of activities that cost over 150 dollars (100 €).

We got to Wellington late afternoon and headed for lunch and some drinks – it was Wednesday so students were out and it was very good wibe going on at The Establishment where we were hanging out. Next day we did city tour that included breakfast at Maranui (Islands Bay), visit at Weta-studios and Mt. Victoria viewpoint. After that I also did some training at excellent local gym called Exodus and visited the Te Papa museum which was ok but did not change the way I feel about museums (stay away is the best policy).  After night out at Wellington we headed to Interislander ferry that took us to South Island. 

First stop at Picton for lunch and then to Kaikoura for the night. Next day most of our group went for dolphin swim – me and couple of others stayed on the land and did the Kaikoura Peninsula Walkway which is an easy 3 hour hike with some quality scenery. In the afternoon we turned our caravan towards the unlucky Christchurch that is being rebuilt after the earthquakes in 2010 and 2011 that basically destroyed the city.

We stayed at very interesting Jailhouse Accommodation which is built inside of an actual old jailhouse. I also did a quick workout at nearby Hagley Park which had great grass areas for running. Next morning we did a city tour and saw some of the destruction done by the earthquakes. It is estimated that rebuilding will take 15 years!  From Christchurch we drove to absolutely beautiful Lake Tekapo where we enjoyed the views of some alpine waters & mountains. This morning we drove  to Queenstown where we first enjoyed some budget activities by taking the gondola up to the viewpoint and driving the luge which was really fun. Later we had dinner at the famous Fergburger which makes absolutely killer burgers. Now some sleep before taking the bus to Milford sound and back tomorrow. Day after tomorrow we'll do some extreme sports in form of Nevis bungy and Wanaka skydive.