While there may not be much to write I must start by telling you that Wanaka and Queenstown might be my favourite places in New Zealand. I know "don't be hasty master hobbit" but they were so nice! If I live anywhere in New Zealand ever it might be either of these two places!
We drove Eggie through the mountains to Wanaka. It's a small tone built around this huge lake! The region lies in a glacial basin near Mount Aspiring. The drive into Wanaka has been my favourite in all of New Zealand. It was just so beautiful! The site we stayed at in Wanaka was a lot nicer than the classic DOC sites we have been staying at and had an amazing view of Lake Wanaka. Our neighbors were so lovely as well. Danielle and I parked the van near them and kept trying to place their accents. Finally we just asked where they were from. Originally they are Canadian but have raised their children traveling all over the world (he mentioned Malaysia, Korea, Australia and soon the US). The youngest was a girl of four who befriended us. She took us searching for bunnies and gave us protection sticks. She brought us chocolate bars and even asked her mom if her new friends could come over to their campervan for dinner the next day! It was just so much fun! We woke up early the next day for a dip in Lake Wanaka. It was chilly, but the breathtaking view made us soon forget we were cold.
The town of Wanaka was also really nice. It has a beach front of the lake through the main strip and lots of restaurants and shops to browse through. They even had a craft market that day, so we ventured through and Danielle bought a beautiful Kiwi bird painting. We saw the line tree - a tree growing off shore in the lake and enjoyed the sunny day!
From there we headed to Queenstown and what an adventure that has been. First, just to set the tone for how much I enjoyed Queenstown, we set up camp at a DOC campsite called 12 Mile Delta. It also happens to be the filming location for Ithilian in Lord of the Rings! It's where Sam sees the Oliphant and cooks the rabbit stew while arguing with Smeagol about taters! That night I made Linda in the camper van! (Yes Linda in Ithilian! And for all you who don't know Linda, she's a real treat!) We went swimming again in beautiful Lake Wakatipu. Again a beautiful lake with mountains in the background! I love it and it is definitely a life I could get used to! Looking out the back window of the van the view was so beautiful I had one of those moments where you panic and think you're on the Truman Show because it's just too beautiful to be real.
Queenstown is a really cool town as well. It's got a lot of information and tourism but it built along the coast of Lake Wakatipu. It's hilly and colourful with a very small population. It's the home of Fergburger (this famous burger company that has the biggest crowd and even bigger burgers!) They were absolutely delicious and worth the wait!
It is also the home of bungy jumping. I decided not to go, partially because it's expensive and partially because Danielle told me that her friend did it and her eyes bulged out of her head slightly! I already have huge eyes, I don't need them popping out thank you!
I'll do it one day but today was not that day. Danielle did it though! We drove out of town and she checked in for her jump. I watched from the gallery as scared person after scared person kind of fell off the platform. Which baffles me! If you're scared you should jump! You'll have more fun and you won't hurt yourself because you go head first instead of feet first then flipping! Danielle was up though and that girl gave 'er! She dove..... literally! Her toes pointed and everything! I was so proud! (As were the crowds of people watching who congratulated her on her way back up!)
Well we are headed out of Queenstown now. Again, not much to write but definitely my favourite place so far. Not really sure how that worked out.
