Travels in the Blogging World

+Took my first trip on the Magic bus network because connections with Intercity weren't so good to go from Dunedin to Lake Tekapo. Was pleased to have a Maori driver. +First stop on the Magic bus was Baldwin Street! I went there yesterday! :-) +Visited the Moeraki boulders, spherical boulders on the beach. +Stopped in Oamaru, known for blue penguins (too early in the day to see them) and historical commercial buildings (time of day doesn't matter with the buildings, so got to see those). +Bought Edmonds Cookbook, supposedly THE New Zealand cookbook to buy if you buy only one. +Drove along the Waitaki Valley, home of hydroelectric dams and canals (never knew there were such things). +Also is home of salmon farms, built in the canals. +Stopped by Lake Pukaki, a beautiful blue color. +Spent afternoon and night in Lake Tekapo, again a beautiful blue lake. +Visited the Church of the Good Shepherd and saw the statue of the collie dog, tribute to all the collie dogs which made sheep farming possible in the region. +Spectacular views of lake and snow-capped mountains from everywhere in town and from the youth hostel. +Feasted on bangers and mash, which came with a glass of free NZ wine. +Next day, walked more around the lake. The sun was shining! Beautiful. +Caught bus to Mt. Cook. +At risk of being repetitive, the drive was beautiful, snow-capped moutains and lakes. +The bus was glass-topped so you could see the mountain tops. +Youth hostel in Mt. Cook has wonderful views of Mt. Cook. +Walked around Mt. Cook enjoying the sunshine and views of spectacular mountains. +Mt. Cook is highest point of NZ: 12,316 ft. +Visited Sir Edmund Hillary Center. Sir Edmund alongwith Tenzig Norgay was the first man to summit Mt. Everest. Enjoyed the center very much, in particular a movie documentary about his life. He's from NZ and did some climbing on Mt. Cook. +Today I saw a black person and realized I've only seen three black people while on the South Island. Main population is white, Asian and Maori. Other travellers I meet are white or Asian. Quite different from Long Beach, which has people from everywhere! +Enjoyed a cup of hot chocolate at the Hermitage Hotel looking right up at Mt. Cook in beautiful blue cloudless skies. +There are mail boxes here which are for international mail only. +The Lake Tekapo and Mt. Cook region has some military folks such as SAS and Green Berets doing alpine training. +Maori name of Mt. Cook is Aoraki, which means Cloud Piercer or is name of one of the sons of the creator (depending on which guide book you read). +The stars on the NZ flag are the Southern Cross constellation.