Its that time of the year again - the annual visit from my brother! :)
He's just up for a couple of days, but its nice to get to see him, even if I am having to work during the day. I think we're going Greek tonight, if I can ever get Christos Taverna on the phone to book a table! (This does mean, considering how long we normally take for dinner there, that Naomi will have to choose between us taping Big Brother (boo!) or CSI:Miami (yay!). Considering Horatio Caine is TV's leading man's man, I don't think there's any contest, but The Boss might see it different!)
Went to see The Simpons Movie last week. It was okay-ish, but nowhere near as good as it could have been. First half hour or so was really funny, and I was giggling at other bits, but just not enough. DunK rating : 2 stars.
I'm hoping to go and see Transformers this week, but it'll depend on what else is happening. Might try to go on Thursday, if I've got time.
I've gotten heavily back into Star Wars thanks to the launch of the new Saga Edition of the Star Wars Roleplaying Game. Been watching the films, playing Knights of the Old Republic and running adventures for my group. (I might even have a go at Jedi Knight 2, even though I'm not fond of first-person shooter style games!). I believe my good buddy Mr Norris is going to run a Star Wars adventure for the group in a week or two, so I'm going to have to come up with a character idea to play. Any suggestions as to what? (We have a soldier, a techie, a pilot, a Jedi and an Astrotech Droid. Campaign is set in the period between episodes III & IV).
Been hearing a lot about the new Star Wars computer game that's going to be launched next year (Lucasarts Official Site) - looks really good. Might have to fork out some dough for that one when it comes out. Of course, I'll first need to get a new graphics card, and my PC only takes AGP ones. Really will need a fairly top-of-the-line card. Luckily its my birthday later this month, so I should have around £200 to spend on it. Any suggestions?
Right, enough general waffle for one day. Time for the off!
Tuesday, 7 August 2007
Monday, 25 June 2007
Fantastic Four : Rise of the Silver Surfer
Be warned, there will be spoilers in this posting. If you haven't seen FF2 yet, don't read on! (Unless you don't plan on seeing it, or don't care if you read spoilers, in which case enjoy!).
So Naomi and I went to see the new Fantastic Four movie at the weekend, and I have to say that I really rather enjoyed it. Considering that the first FF film was fairly poor, how have they managed to make a second film which is not only better than the first, but also better than the latest Spiderman movie?
Here's what I think.
Firstly, and possibly most surprisingly, its down to the actors. I think all four have really got to grips with their characters more than in the previous film. They understand the characters better, and that is shown in their performances. (One gripe - as Naomi pointed out to me, for a lot of this film Jessica Alba's character should probably be renamed The Permatan Woman rather than The Invisible Woman - not a pretty sight, and certainly not a good look for the otherwise beautiful Jessica).
Secondly, the characters are written well, compared to the first film. Mr Fantastic isn't quite so nerdy, Human Torch has his flamboyant nature toned down, Sue Storm is a lot less whiney, and Ben Grimm is less moody and more fun.
Finally, the story (overall) is reasonably good. The plot moves forward at a reasonable pace, and the character interaction with the villains of the piece are suitable, if a little forced.
All that said, there are several fairly sizeable plot holes, and some general gripes I have.
Most importantly is how Galactus is defeated. Why didn't Silver Surfer do that to him as soon as he became Galactus' herald? It would have saved his own world and he wouldn't have had to help Galactus destroy countless other worlds. My only thinking behind it was that Galactus wasn't destroyed (which would make more sense), but perhaps Surfer managed to just transport him to another part of the universe. In which case, he'll be back, and he'll be pissed!
The whole power transfer thing was done fairly well, although its a bit of a tired and dated concept. That said, it made NO sense that Johnny could take on the powers of all other three at the same time to fight Dr Doom. Surely the powers would just transfer around the group? And even if it did make sense, Johnny doesn't have the intellect to realise it would work - Reed would be the only one likely to come up with that idea.
My other big criticism was the use of Doctor Doom. The basic premise was fairly sound, with the military calling him in to work with Reed to stop the Surfer. However the biggest problem was the reason for his fighting the Fantastic Four after taking control of the surf board. His intellect is supposed to be equal to Reed's, and having been told that the board was drawing a power that would destroy the world, I don't think he'd have been quite as eager to keep the board (his main motivation, after all, is ruling the world/country/whatever, and he can't do that if Earth is destroyed).
That all said, it was a fairly enjoyable 92 minutes, and while I wouldn't necessarily go and see it again, if I was forced to sit through any one of the films I have seen this year so far, I think this one would probably be my choice.
(That probably won't last long, considering other films coming out this year, but its certainly given Spidey a kick in the pants!)
So Naomi and I went to see the new Fantastic Four movie at the weekend, and I have to say that I really rather enjoyed it. Considering that the first FF film was fairly poor, how have they managed to make a second film which is not only better than the first, but also better than the latest Spiderman movie?
Here's what I think.
Firstly, and possibly most surprisingly, its down to the actors. I think all four have really got to grips with their characters more than in the previous film. They understand the characters better, and that is shown in their performances. (One gripe - as Naomi pointed out to me, for a lot of this film Jessica Alba's character should probably be renamed The Permatan Woman rather than The Invisible Woman - not a pretty sight, and certainly not a good look for the otherwise beautiful Jessica).
Secondly, the characters are written well, compared to the first film. Mr Fantastic isn't quite so nerdy, Human Torch has his flamboyant nature toned down, Sue Storm is a lot less whiney, and Ben Grimm is less moody and more fun.
Finally, the story (overall) is reasonably good. The plot moves forward at a reasonable pace, and the character interaction with the villains of the piece are suitable, if a little forced.
All that said, there are several fairly sizeable plot holes, and some general gripes I have.
Most importantly is how Galactus is defeated. Why didn't Silver Surfer do that to him as soon as he became Galactus' herald? It would have saved his own world and he wouldn't have had to help Galactus destroy countless other worlds. My only thinking behind it was that Galactus wasn't destroyed (which would make more sense), but perhaps Surfer managed to just transport him to another part of the universe. In which case, he'll be back, and he'll be pissed!
The whole power transfer thing was done fairly well, although its a bit of a tired and dated concept. That said, it made NO sense that Johnny could take on the powers of all other three at the same time to fight Dr Doom. Surely the powers would just transfer around the group? And even if it did make sense, Johnny doesn't have the intellect to realise it would work - Reed would be the only one likely to come up with that idea.
My other big criticism was the use of Doctor Doom. The basic premise was fairly sound, with the military calling him in to work with Reed to stop the Surfer. However the biggest problem was the reason for his fighting the Fantastic Four after taking control of the surf board. His intellect is supposed to be equal to Reed's, and having been told that the board was drawing a power that would destroy the world, I don't think he'd have been quite as eager to keep the board (his main motivation, after all, is ruling the world/country/whatever, and he can't do that if Earth is destroyed).
That all said, it was a fairly enjoyable 92 minutes, and while I wouldn't necessarily go and see it again, if I was forced to sit through any one of the films I have seen this year so far, I think this one would probably be my choice.
(That probably won't last long, considering other films coming out this year, but its certainly given Spidey a kick in the pants!)
Wednesday, 20 June 2007
Fantastic News!
We've been home for quite a while now, so I thought it was about time I posted about our amazing news.
Naomi & I are going to be parents!
We actually found out the day before we left for honeymoon, but as we didn't have time to see the midwife before we left, we decided to keep things quiet until we got back. So we've spent the last few months going around telling everyone! :)
I've got to admit to being a little nervous about it all, but only a little. I'm hugely looking forward to being a father, and can't wait for October to arrive! We're due right at the end of October (which means no Halloween celebrations this year!), and are both really excited. The summer is just going to whizz past! (Summer? In Aberdeen?! Its pouring down outside at the moment!)
I'm actually more nervous about having to drive - I'm still taking lessons (well, I'm trying to get my lessons going again. My instructor has been rather busy the last couple of months!), and I'll need to be able to drive to get around with the baby (and Naomi has no plans to take her test again until I've already passed!). I don't know why I'm nervous about this - whenever I'm in the car for a lesson I'm fine, but I always feel nervous thinking about driving. I'm sure I'll be fine with it though.
(One of my colleagues is going on a week-long intensive driving course next week, so I'll be interested to hear how she got on when she comes back to work the week after).
In other news, we met up with my whole family last week for my Grandad's 100th birthday. 100 years old, and still going strong! I'm not sure what the secret of his longevity is (although we suspect that his taking one little dram of whisky every night may have helped - he loves his whisky, although everything in moderation). He's quite an amazing man. He's still very quick of mind, with only his body slowing him down as it ages, something noone can really avoid!
It was fantastic to have the whole family together for a meal to celebrate - I think its the first (and possibly only) time that we have all been together, considering how spread across the UK we are becoming.
He had many other celebrations over the course of the week, with various groups holding events for him, from the bowling club to the church, and even the Liberal Democrats (for whom he has actively campaigned in the past) are throwing him a party later in the month.
It just shows how well thought of he is, both in his local community and throughout the Highlands. It makes me quite proud to be his grandson.
We were also able to let him meet his first great-grandchild (my cousin Sasha pipped us to the post on that one, having given birth to Jamie back in January this year). I've got a lovely photo of Grandad with Jamie on his knee! :)
So its been a busy few months for us. I'm going to try not to leave it so long between posts in the future, but who knows how successful that resolution will be!
Until next time :)
Naomi & I are going to be parents!
We actually found out the day before we left for honeymoon, but as we didn't have time to see the midwife before we left, we decided to keep things quiet until we got back. So we've spent the last few months going around telling everyone! :)
I've got to admit to being a little nervous about it all, but only a little. I'm hugely looking forward to being a father, and can't wait for October to arrive! We're due right at the end of October (which means no Halloween celebrations this year!), and are both really excited. The summer is just going to whizz past! (Summer? In Aberdeen?! Its pouring down outside at the moment!)
I'm actually more nervous about having to drive - I'm still taking lessons (well, I'm trying to get my lessons going again. My instructor has been rather busy the last couple of months!), and I'll need to be able to drive to get around with the baby (and Naomi has no plans to take her test again until I've already passed!). I don't know why I'm nervous about this - whenever I'm in the car for a lesson I'm fine, but I always feel nervous thinking about driving. I'm sure I'll be fine with it though.
(One of my colleagues is going on a week-long intensive driving course next week, so I'll be interested to hear how she got on when she comes back to work the week after).
In other news, we met up with my whole family last week for my Grandad's 100th birthday. 100 years old, and still going strong! I'm not sure what the secret of his longevity is (although we suspect that his taking one little dram of whisky every night may have helped - he loves his whisky, although everything in moderation). He's quite an amazing man. He's still very quick of mind, with only his body slowing him down as it ages, something noone can really avoid!
It was fantastic to have the whole family together for a meal to celebrate - I think its the first (and possibly only) time that we have all been together, considering how spread across the UK we are becoming.
He had many other celebrations over the course of the week, with various groups holding events for him, from the bowling club to the church, and even the Liberal Democrats (for whom he has actively campaigned in the past) are throwing him a party later in the month.
It just shows how well thought of he is, both in his local community and throughout the Highlands. It makes me quite proud to be his grandson.
We were also able to let him meet his first great-grandchild (my cousin Sasha pipped us to the post on that one, having given birth to Jamie back in January this year). I've got a lovely photo of Grandad with Jamie on his knee! :)
So its been a busy few months for us. I'm going to try not to leave it so long between posts in the future, but who knows how successful that resolution will be!
Until next time :)
Friday, 30 March 2007
Christchurch and home
We're home.
Figured I should post what we've been doing since Queenstown, though, so here goes.
The bus trip to Christchurch was quite good, as we happened to have a lot of people on our bus that we'd travelled with earlier in the holiday. It was great to catch up with everyone and get all the stories of what they'd been up to since we'd last seen them.
The hostel we stayed in at Christchurch was pretty good, and fairly central. The only trouble was, we had six days there, and there was very little to do in Christchurch. Actually, that's probably not true, but there was very little that we wanted to do while we were there. Being the last few days of our holiday, we were very keen on the "relax and enjoy" aspect of being away from home! As such we spent most of the time sleeping (how I relax) and shopping (how Naomi relaxes), with the odd meal and cinema visit thrown in for good measure.
It did mean though, that by the end of our stay we were beginning to get a little bored and were in some ways quite happy to be heading home.
Our flights back to the UK were fine - we were very glad we chose to have a 12-hour stop-over in the airport terminal's hotel in Singapore to break the journey up, mind you. Saved us from massive jetlag when we got home!
Home is much the same as its always been - we've spent a few days going to bed early and waking up early as our bodies adjust to the new timezone. Got back on Monday night and were straight in at work on Tuesday morning, which has actually been good as its helped us adjust better to being back!
Overall, we've had a fantastic holiday. It was made all the better by all the people we met on our journeys, so we really should say a massive thank you to Noosha, Simon, Charlotte & Lucy, Magdalena, Barbara, Sabrina, Ellie & the Canadians, Dave, Anne & Patric, Sandra and everyone else that we got to know on our time away. Also a massive thank you to our Kiwi Experience drivers - Andy, LJ and Bods. These guys really do go out of their way to help you enjoy your travels with them, and that raised the holiday above the level it would have been if we had organised our travels ourselves.
We've had an amazing time, and I suspect we may go back to New Zealand at some point in the future, but for now its just good to be home.
Figured I should post what we've been doing since Queenstown, though, so here goes.
The bus trip to Christchurch was quite good, as we happened to have a lot of people on our bus that we'd travelled with earlier in the holiday. It was great to catch up with everyone and get all the stories of what they'd been up to since we'd last seen them.
The hostel we stayed in at Christchurch was pretty good, and fairly central. The only trouble was, we had six days there, and there was very little to do in Christchurch. Actually, that's probably not true, but there was very little that we wanted to do while we were there. Being the last few days of our holiday, we were very keen on the "relax and enjoy" aspect of being away from home! As such we spent most of the time sleeping (how I relax) and shopping (how Naomi relaxes), with the odd meal and cinema visit thrown in for good measure.
It did mean though, that by the end of our stay we were beginning to get a little bored and were in some ways quite happy to be heading home.
Our flights back to the UK were fine - we were very glad we chose to have a 12-hour stop-over in the airport terminal's hotel in Singapore to break the journey up, mind you. Saved us from massive jetlag when we got home!
Home is much the same as its always been - we've spent a few days going to bed early and waking up early as our bodies adjust to the new timezone. Got back on Monday night and were straight in at work on Tuesday morning, which has actually been good as its helped us adjust better to being back!
Overall, we've had a fantastic holiday. It was made all the better by all the people we met on our journeys, so we really should say a massive thank you to Noosha, Simon, Charlotte & Lucy, Magdalena, Barbara, Sabrina, Ellie & the Canadians, Dave, Anne & Patric, Sandra and everyone else that we got to know on our time away. Also a massive thank you to our Kiwi Experience drivers - Andy, LJ and Bods. These guys really do go out of their way to help you enjoy your travels with them, and that raised the holiday above the level it would have been if we had organised our travels ourselves.
We've had an amazing time, and I suspect we may go back to New Zealand at some point in the future, but for now its just good to be home.
Sunday, 18 March 2007
Queenstown - Skydive attempt number 3...
So, on Friday, I threw myself out of a plane!
I FINALLY managed to do my Skydive, and it was worth every second of waiting for it! I happened to be booked onto the same dive time as Anne and Patric, two of the group that were travelling with us on the Kiwi Experience bus, so the three of us went up together as a group.
The plane was tiny - with the three of us, three professional skydivers and three cameramen, we were crammed like sardines into the back of the plane. I was completely relaxed the whole way up, and even when I saw Patric and then Anne disappear out of the plane I didn't seem to have any feeling of nervousness.
Then it was my turn...
My tandem skydive partner, Peter, was strapped to my back, and my cameraman (whose name I never did get) stepped out of the plane and hung on to a bar on the outside, while Peter positioned us on the edge of the doorway. Of course this meant that he was sat on the edge while I dangled with nothing below me and only Peter keeping me safe from a 12000 foot fall.
Then Peter moved forward and we started a 12000 foot fall!
I'm not (entirely) ashamed to admit that I screamed like a girl for the first five or six seconds (Norris, you would have been proud!), but that quickly turned into a more manly "Woo-hoo" when I remembered there was a video camera pointed at me! The freefall lasted about 45 seconds, of which I spent about 40 seconds trying hard to catch my breath, and almost completely forgot to do any poses in mid-air for the photos the cameraman was taking. I'm ashamed to say I did close my eyes briefly, but then realised how stupid that was and opened one eye so I could see what was happening. The other eye very quickly followed!
Once we got to a certain point (I have no idea how far we fell in freefall), Peter opened the parachute and we seemed to shoot upwards, although this was only the drag slowing us down and the fact that the cameraman fell away rapidly. After that we spent the next few minutes floating down and taking in the scenery. Peter pulled off a few tight mid-air turns for a bit of a thrill (cue another, very short, girlie scream from me!), and eventually brought us in for a very graceful (for me!) landing.
The whole experience was just amazing, and I'm certain now that I would definitely do it again, as I would know more of what to expect and probably enjoy it even more than I did.
I spent the next two days with a huge grin on my face!
The following day, while not as exciting, was still really good. I went on a Lord of the Rings tour around the Queenstown area. (Naomi decided that one LotR tour (in Wellington) while on honeymoon was quite enough, so didn't come with me). Our guide Trisha was a lot of fun and showed us some really fantastic areas. She also had quite a few replica props from the films, which we got to play with (take a look at my photo site to see some of these). The group that I was with were really good, especially the nutty Katrina from Germany who got photos of herself in some locations which Trisha told us noone else had thought to get photos in before! (We enjoyed watching her pretend to be a dwarf with three wargs trapped on top of her, particularly!) There was a couple from England, Ian and (I want to say Sheila, but I'm really sorry, I forgot your name!), another girl from Germany (whose name I have also forgotten - I'm so bad!), and Lin from Thailand. It was a fun group and we had some great times recreating different scenes from the films.
All in all, definitely worth the money. (Oh, and Trisha, you can buy the elf ears in the toy store in Queenstown!).
Today we went up on the Gondolas and went Luging, which was also very good fun. On the way back down we found an indoor 18-hole crazy golf course, so we had a quick round on that (I won!), before dinner, and now we're on our way back to the hostel. Hoping to watch the final Lord of the Rings film tonight, if we have time and the tv room is free, as we've watched the other two at different YHAs on our way down the south island, so really want to complete the set while we're here!
Tomorrow we get the bus up to Christchurch, so might try and post again from there before we head home. The end is in sight.... *sob*
I FINALLY managed to do my Skydive, and it was worth every second of waiting for it! I happened to be booked onto the same dive time as Anne and Patric, two of the group that were travelling with us on the Kiwi Experience bus, so the three of us went up together as a group.
The plane was tiny - with the three of us, three professional skydivers and three cameramen, we were crammed like sardines into the back of the plane. I was completely relaxed the whole way up, and even when I saw Patric and then Anne disappear out of the plane I didn't seem to have any feeling of nervousness.
Then it was my turn...
My tandem skydive partner, Peter, was strapped to my back, and my cameraman (whose name I never did get) stepped out of the plane and hung on to a bar on the outside, while Peter positioned us on the edge of the doorway. Of course this meant that he was sat on the edge while I dangled with nothing below me and only Peter keeping me safe from a 12000 foot fall.
Then Peter moved forward and we started a 12000 foot fall!
I'm not (entirely) ashamed to admit that I screamed like a girl for the first five or six seconds (Norris, you would have been proud!), but that quickly turned into a more manly "Woo-hoo" when I remembered there was a video camera pointed at me! The freefall lasted about 45 seconds, of which I spent about 40 seconds trying hard to catch my breath, and almost completely forgot to do any poses in mid-air for the photos the cameraman was taking. I'm ashamed to say I did close my eyes briefly, but then realised how stupid that was and opened one eye so I could see what was happening. The other eye very quickly followed!
Once we got to a certain point (I have no idea how far we fell in freefall), Peter opened the parachute and we seemed to shoot upwards, although this was only the drag slowing us down and the fact that the cameraman fell away rapidly. After that we spent the next few minutes floating down and taking in the scenery. Peter pulled off a few tight mid-air turns for a bit of a thrill (cue another, very short, girlie scream from me!), and eventually brought us in for a very graceful (for me!) landing.
The whole experience was just amazing, and I'm certain now that I would definitely do it again, as I would know more of what to expect and probably enjoy it even more than I did.
I spent the next two days with a huge grin on my face!
The following day, while not as exciting, was still really good. I went on a Lord of the Rings tour around the Queenstown area. (Naomi decided that one LotR tour (in Wellington) while on honeymoon was quite enough, so didn't come with me). Our guide Trisha was a lot of fun and showed us some really fantastic areas. She also had quite a few replica props from the films, which we got to play with (take a look at my photo site to see some of these). The group that I was with were really good, especially the nutty Katrina from Germany who got photos of herself in some locations which Trisha told us noone else had thought to get photos in before! (We enjoyed watching her pretend to be a dwarf with three wargs trapped on top of her, particularly!) There was a couple from England, Ian and (I want to say Sheila, but I'm really sorry, I forgot your name!), another girl from Germany (whose name I have also forgotten - I'm so bad!), and Lin from Thailand. It was a fun group and we had some great times recreating different scenes from the films.
All in all, definitely worth the money. (Oh, and Trisha, you can buy the elf ears in the toy store in Queenstown!).
Today we went up on the Gondolas and went Luging, which was also very good fun. On the way back down we found an indoor 18-hole crazy golf course, so we had a quick round on that (I won!), before dinner, and now we're on our way back to the hostel. Hoping to watch the final Lord of the Rings film tonight, if we have time and the tv room is free, as we've watched the other two at different YHAs on our way down the south island, so really want to complete the set while we're here!
Tomorrow we get the bus up to Christchurch, so might try and post again from there before we head home. The end is in sight.... *sob*
Thursday, 15 March 2007
Wanaka - Skydive Strike 2
The fates are conspiring against me, of this I'm now certain.
When we left Franz Josef, our driver Bods passed around the signup sheet for doing a skydive in Wanaka. He told us that, with the weather as it was, there was almost no chance to do it that day, but there was a very slim chance that we could do it the following morning before leaving Wanaka, so three of us put our names on the sheet and crossed our fingers.
As we drove south, the weather steadily improved until, when we stopped for lunch, the clouds were few and far between, and the sun was shining down. As we drove to Wanaka, Bods informed us that he'd spoken with the Skydive people, and they were ready to take us when we arrived in Wanaka at 4pm. So we got off the bus when we arrived (at around 3.45pm) and hung around outside the hostel to be picked up.
At 3.55pm it started raining.
*sigh*
We were told that there was no way for us to do it then, but possibly the next morning if the weather picked up.
I awoke the next morning to torrential rain.
*sigh*
So Franz Josef - strike 1. Wanaka - strike 2. However, on writing this, I sit in Queenstown with a skydive booked for tomorrow afternoon (Friday). We are forecast for torrential rain on Saturday (when I'm supposed to be doing another Lord of the Rings tour - although not subjecting Naomi to it this time!), but I have no idea of the weather for tomorrow.
(I've just looked on the NZ Met Office site, and it looks like it'll be dry but with thickening clouds, and that might be enough for it not to happen, so keep your fingers crossed for me!)
Assuming it all goes to plan, I should be jumping some time between 1.30 and 3.30pm local time (that's around 12.30 - 2.30am UK time).
Anyway, onto other things.
We arrived in Queenstown yesterday, stopping on the way at the original Bungy site where quite a number of people on our bus proceeded to tie elastic to their ankles and throw themselves head-first (usually) off a bridge. Skydiving is one thing, but I don't think I am all that fussed about doing a Bungy. Have to say, though, watching them all do it made it seem like an awful lot of fun...
(Don't worry guys, I haven't forgotten about the videos I took of you all! I'll have them up on the video section of my site when I get home! No promises about the quality of the video, but I've done my best!)
Queenstown itself is quite nice, although smaller than I expected. As one of the guys on the bus commented, it does heavily resemble a ski resort. There seem to be loads of activities to do here, and I suspect the town relies very heavily on the tourist trade to keep its economy going.
We're staying at the Lakefront YHA, and I have to say that its probably one of the better YHAs we've stayed in. All of the YHAs have been good, and we've been very happy on the whole. Wellington has been the best one so far (although lacking a tv in the room, which some had). Queenstown probably rates as number 2, other than the size of the room (we have a double, and the room is only slightly bigger than the double bed in it!).
We spent today being lazy - its our first lie-in since Wellington, so we made the most of it! We wandered around town (Naomi was very good and didn't even do much shopping!).
We kept bumping into people we had met on other Kiwi buses (buses other than the one we had arrived in Queenstown on). Its really great to catch up with people and find out what they've been up to, especially as (in at least one case) we hadn't seen them since we left Taupo in the North Island around two weeks ago (I think - I've kinda lost track of time, I must admit!).
Anyway, the next couple of days are going to be pretty interesting for me, and very relaxing for Naomi (other than worrying about me killing myself in the Skydive!), so I'll probably post again before we leave for Christchurch on Monday morning.
When we left Franz Josef, our driver Bods passed around the signup sheet for doing a skydive in Wanaka. He told us that, with the weather as it was, there was almost no chance to do it that day, but there was a very slim chance that we could do it the following morning before leaving Wanaka, so three of us put our names on the sheet and crossed our fingers.
As we drove south, the weather steadily improved until, when we stopped for lunch, the clouds were few and far between, and the sun was shining down. As we drove to Wanaka, Bods informed us that he'd spoken with the Skydive people, and they were ready to take us when we arrived in Wanaka at 4pm. So we got off the bus when we arrived (at around 3.45pm) and hung around outside the hostel to be picked up.
At 3.55pm it started raining.
*sigh*
We were told that there was no way for us to do it then, but possibly the next morning if the weather picked up.
I awoke the next morning to torrential rain.
*sigh*
So Franz Josef - strike 1. Wanaka - strike 2. However, on writing this, I sit in Queenstown with a skydive booked for tomorrow afternoon (Friday). We are forecast for torrential rain on Saturday (when I'm supposed to be doing another Lord of the Rings tour - although not subjecting Naomi to it this time!), but I have no idea of the weather for tomorrow.
(I've just looked on the NZ Met Office site, and it looks like it'll be dry but with thickening clouds, and that might be enough for it not to happen, so keep your fingers crossed for me!)
Assuming it all goes to plan, I should be jumping some time between 1.30 and 3.30pm local time (that's around 12.30 - 2.30am UK time).
Anyway, onto other things.
We arrived in Queenstown yesterday, stopping on the way at the original Bungy site where quite a number of people on our bus proceeded to tie elastic to their ankles and throw themselves head-first (usually) off a bridge. Skydiving is one thing, but I don't think I am all that fussed about doing a Bungy. Have to say, though, watching them all do it made it seem like an awful lot of fun...
(Don't worry guys, I haven't forgotten about the videos I took of you all! I'll have them up on the video section of my site when I get home! No promises about the quality of the video, but I've done my best!)
Queenstown itself is quite nice, although smaller than I expected. As one of the guys on the bus commented, it does heavily resemble a ski resort. There seem to be loads of activities to do here, and I suspect the town relies very heavily on the tourist trade to keep its economy going.
We're staying at the Lakefront YHA, and I have to say that its probably one of the better YHAs we've stayed in. All of the YHAs have been good, and we've been very happy on the whole. Wellington has been the best one so far (although lacking a tv in the room, which some had). Queenstown probably rates as number 2, other than the size of the room (we have a double, and the room is only slightly bigger than the double bed in it!).
We spent today being lazy - its our first lie-in since Wellington, so we made the most of it! We wandered around town (Naomi was very good and didn't even do much shopping!).
We kept bumping into people we had met on other Kiwi buses (buses other than the one we had arrived in Queenstown on). Its really great to catch up with people and find out what they've been up to, especially as (in at least one case) we hadn't seen them since we left Taupo in the North Island around two weeks ago (I think - I've kinda lost track of time, I must admit!).
Anyway, the next couple of days are going to be pretty interesting for me, and very relaxing for Naomi (other than worrying about me killing myself in the Skydive!), so I'll probably post again before we leave for Christchurch on Monday morning.
Sunday, 11 March 2007
Wellington - Franz Josef
So, last time we posted, we were still in Wellington. A lot has happened since then!
We left Wellington on the Interislander ferry to Picton on the south island. There we met our new bus, and our driver Bods. After a stop-off in The Village Winery near the Marlborough Sounds for a free wine-tasting, we arrived in Nelson. Bumping into our friend Simon (who we had journeyed down through the North Island with), we proceeded to spend the evening educating some of his other friends in Lord of the Rings by watching The Fellowship of the Ring (and annoying other hostel guests who couldn't get to watch Grey's Anatomy and Coronation Street!).
Next morning we headed to Westport. We had an hour or so at the Nelson Lakes National Park, where we went for a walk through the bush and along the edge of Lake Rotoiti. We then drove through Buller Gorge, where some people stopped to do a jet boat ride before arriving in Westport. (I'd already done the fast boat Excitor up in Bay of Islands, so we didn't bother!).
We had a bit of excitement that night when the YHA owner caught some kids breaking into the hostel to steal beer from the fridge! A few of us stayed with her until the police arrived and escorted the offenders off the premises.
On leaving Westport we went for a walk along Cape Foulwind, which led us to a seal colony. The seals were out in force, and were trying to teach their pups to swim, which was great to watch. The pups kept chasing each other over the rocks and into the water! Naomi reliably informs me that the seals were rather smelly, but my insensitive nose never noticed!
The walk along to the colony reminded us a lot of the walk we took with Jill and Brad when they came to visit, down in Stonehaven along to the castle on the coast. Walking along small trails right on the edge of the cliffs, the scenery was so similar to our Scottish east coast that we might have forgotten we weren't at home if it hadn't been for the glorious sunshine and searing heat!
Our next stop that day was to Punakaiki - the Pancake Rocks. These are limestone formations which, for reasons which have not yet been determined by The Scientists, form in layers that look like stacks of pancakes, hence the name. The formations seem very similar to the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland (but neither of us having been there, we can't say for certain!). We had chips and gravy for lunch at the cafe there, which was WELL FINE!
We were supposed to take the bus from there to Greymouth, but about 20 minutes outside of the town, we had a slight....incident. And older driver ahead of us decided to turn off the road really slowly. The van behind her couldn't break in time and had to swerve to the other side of the road to avoid her. Our driver slammed on his breaks (which didn't seem to work very well) and had nowhere to go except to try and squeeze in between the two. This resulted in some scratched paintwork on our bus and on the van, but the corner of our bus also created a large, bus-shaped dent in the back of the older driver's car, and caused her entire back windscreen to shatter.
Noone was hurt, although the car driver was a little shaken, but it did mean we spent an hour or so on the side of the road while the police investigated and a new bus was sent to pick us up. We spent the time enjoying the sun and watching the four police cars, ambulance and fire engine all getting on with their work. The girls were particularly taken with one younger, attractive fireman, and I think he was beginning to think he was a celebrity, the number of photos that our group took of (and with) him!
A bus arrived and deposited us in Greymouth, where we spent the next couple of hours until a replacement bus could come and take us on to Lake Mahinapua, where we were to spend the night at Poo Pub (otherwise known as the Mahinapua Hotel). Our hosts and the driver cooked us a massive barbecue of steak, venison, pasta and veg, and we then had a fancy dress party, with all the guys having to dress as women, while the women could dress however the wanted (a few of the girls took the opportunity to all dress up as our driver Bods!).
The night was a lot of fun - Naomi and I took a walk down to the beach and also to the lake before dinner, and enjoyed the mixture of massive long sandy beaches and lakeside scenery, all against the snow-capped backdrop of Mount Cook.
The only complaint was the slimy walls in our room, which gathered much condensation over the course of the night. (This was the only place on our trip in which we were in a dorm).
Leaving Lake Mahinapua behind, we headed for the Bushman's Centre, where Naomi had breakfast while I took photos of their pet Pig and Possums. From there we proceeded to Franz Josef, where we planned to hike up the glacier and do a skydive. Our plans were turned on their head a little by the weather. While it was fine and sunny when we arrived at 1pm, by the 6pm skydive time, the clouds had closed in and the jump was postponed.
We arrived at the glacier centre at 8.45am on Monday morning, and were taken by helicopter up onto the Franz Josef Glacier, where we then started what should have been a two-hour hike. After about 40 minutes, though, the clouds came down so heavily that our guides couldn't see far enough down the glacier for it to be safe, so we had to head back to the "helipad" (an area on the ice marked with some stones to show the pilot where to land) and we were flown back to the Franz Josef township. It was still well worth the money we paid for the trip, even just for the helicopter rides alone!
Since we got back, the weather has followed us down off the glacier, and as we sit in a nice red bus, refurbished as an internet centre, the rain is pouring down all around us. Chances of my getting skydive now are somewhere between slim and none (and slim just left the building...or the bus!). I'm going to look into the possibility of doing one further south in Wanaka or Queenstown, as those are our next stops, but perhaps it just wasn't meant to be.
This time....
We left Wellington on the Interislander ferry to Picton on the south island. There we met our new bus, and our driver Bods. After a stop-off in The Village Winery near the Marlborough Sounds for a free wine-tasting, we arrived in Nelson. Bumping into our friend Simon (who we had journeyed down through the North Island with), we proceeded to spend the evening educating some of his other friends in Lord of the Rings by watching The Fellowship of the Ring (and annoying other hostel guests who couldn't get to watch Grey's Anatomy and Coronation Street!).
Next morning we headed to Westport. We had an hour or so at the Nelson Lakes National Park, where we went for a walk through the bush and along the edge of Lake Rotoiti. We then drove through Buller Gorge, where some people stopped to do a jet boat ride before arriving in Westport. (I'd already done the fast boat Excitor up in Bay of Islands, so we didn't bother!).
We had a bit of excitement that night when the YHA owner caught some kids breaking into the hostel to steal beer from the fridge! A few of us stayed with her until the police arrived and escorted the offenders off the premises.
On leaving Westport we went for a walk along Cape Foulwind, which led us to a seal colony. The seals were out in force, and were trying to teach their pups to swim, which was great to watch. The pups kept chasing each other over the rocks and into the water! Naomi reliably informs me that the seals were rather smelly, but my insensitive nose never noticed!
The walk along to the colony reminded us a lot of the walk we took with Jill and Brad when they came to visit, down in Stonehaven along to the castle on the coast. Walking along small trails right on the edge of the cliffs, the scenery was so similar to our Scottish east coast that we might have forgotten we weren't at home if it hadn't been for the glorious sunshine and searing heat!
Our next stop that day was to Punakaiki - the Pancake Rocks. These are limestone formations which, for reasons which have not yet been determined by The Scientists, form in layers that look like stacks of pancakes, hence the name. The formations seem very similar to the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland (but neither of us having been there, we can't say for certain!). We had chips and gravy for lunch at the cafe there, which was WELL FINE!
We were supposed to take the bus from there to Greymouth, but about 20 minutes outside of the town, we had a slight....incident. And older driver ahead of us decided to turn off the road really slowly. The van behind her couldn't break in time and had to swerve to the other side of the road to avoid her. Our driver slammed on his breaks (which didn't seem to work very well) and had nowhere to go except to try and squeeze in between the two. This resulted in some scratched paintwork on our bus and on the van, but the corner of our bus also created a large, bus-shaped dent in the back of the older driver's car, and caused her entire back windscreen to shatter.
Noone was hurt, although the car driver was a little shaken, but it did mean we spent an hour or so on the side of the road while the police investigated and a new bus was sent to pick us up. We spent the time enjoying the sun and watching the four police cars, ambulance and fire engine all getting on with their work. The girls were particularly taken with one younger, attractive fireman, and I think he was beginning to think he was a celebrity, the number of photos that our group took of (and with) him!
A bus arrived and deposited us in Greymouth, where we spent the next couple of hours until a replacement bus could come and take us on to Lake Mahinapua, where we were to spend the night at Poo Pub (otherwise known as the Mahinapua Hotel). Our hosts and the driver cooked us a massive barbecue of steak, venison, pasta and veg, and we then had a fancy dress party, with all the guys having to dress as women, while the women could dress however the wanted (a few of the girls took the opportunity to all dress up as our driver Bods!).
The night was a lot of fun - Naomi and I took a walk down to the beach and also to the lake before dinner, and enjoyed the mixture of massive long sandy beaches and lakeside scenery, all against the snow-capped backdrop of Mount Cook.
The only complaint was the slimy walls in our room, which gathered much condensation over the course of the night. (This was the only place on our trip in which we were in a dorm).
Leaving Lake Mahinapua behind, we headed for the Bushman's Centre, where Naomi had breakfast while I took photos of their pet Pig and Possums. From there we proceeded to Franz Josef, where we planned to hike up the glacier and do a skydive. Our plans were turned on their head a little by the weather. While it was fine and sunny when we arrived at 1pm, by the 6pm skydive time, the clouds had closed in and the jump was postponed.
We arrived at the glacier centre at 8.45am on Monday morning, and were taken by helicopter up onto the Franz Josef Glacier, where we then started what should have been a two-hour hike. After about 40 minutes, though, the clouds came down so heavily that our guides couldn't see far enough down the glacier for it to be safe, so we had to head back to the "helipad" (an area on the ice marked with some stones to show the pilot where to land) and we were flown back to the Franz Josef township. It was still well worth the money we paid for the trip, even just for the helicopter rides alone!
Since we got back, the weather has followed us down off the glacier, and as we sit in a nice red bus, refurbished as an internet centre, the rain is pouring down all around us. Chances of my getting skydive now are somewhere between slim and none (and slim just left the building...or the bus!). I'm going to look into the possibility of doing one further south in Wanaka or Queenstown, as those are our next stops, but perhaps it just wasn't meant to be.
This time....
Wednesday, 7 March 2007
One Ring to Rule Them All...
Wellington is a windy place. Not just the people (although the food we've been eating has been making us fart quite a lot), but its a real wind-trap - reminds me of Gallowgate back home!
We spent yesterday catching up on rest and chores (such as laundry). We were even lazy for food - we got a pizza from Dominos rather than cooking or going out for dinner!
Today, however, we went on the Lord of the Rings Tour around Wellington. We were picked up by our driver Nathan at around 9am and spent the day visiting various locations around the Wellington area where Lord of the Rings was filmed. We started on Victoria Hill, seeing where certain forest scenes from "Fellowship of the Ring" were shot, and got the opportunity to recreate that famous scene where Frodo becomes aware of the Ring Wraiths chasing him (take a look at my photo site for the results!).
After that we visited the Chocolate Fish Cafe where all the stars went for coffee while they were filming in New Zealand. (its about 5 doors down from Peter Jackson's own home!). They do rather good ginger bread cake, let me tell you!
After driving past the various (rather low-key) studios that they have around here, we then went on to visit the locations where they shot Helms Deep, Minas Tirith, Rivendell and several others. Again, we got to recreate certain famous shots, such as the publicity photos of Orlando Bloom as Legolas, and the scene where Gandalf and Saruman walk through the gardens of Isengarde, discussing the One Ring (again, take a look at the photo site!).
The whole tour took an entire day, and was made all the better by our driver and guide Nathan, who was actually cast as an Elf in the Helms Deep scenes, so was able to tell us a lot about what went on in the filming of the trilogy. He was an excellent guide, and I would well recommend doing the trip to anyone who came to Wellington!
Tomorrow, we leave North Island, and we head across the water to South Island and the second leg of our journey...
We spent yesterday catching up on rest and chores (such as laundry). We were even lazy for food - we got a pizza from Dominos rather than cooking or going out for dinner!
Today, however, we went on the Lord of the Rings Tour around Wellington. We were picked up by our driver Nathan at around 9am and spent the day visiting various locations around the Wellington area where Lord of the Rings was filmed. We started on Victoria Hill, seeing where certain forest scenes from "Fellowship of the Ring" were shot, and got the opportunity to recreate that famous scene where Frodo becomes aware of the Ring Wraiths chasing him (take a look at my photo site for the results!).
After that we visited the Chocolate Fish Cafe where all the stars went for coffee while they were filming in New Zealand. (its about 5 doors down from Peter Jackson's own home!). They do rather good ginger bread cake, let me tell you!
After driving past the various (rather low-key) studios that they have around here, we then went on to visit the locations where they shot Helms Deep, Minas Tirith, Rivendell and several others. Again, we got to recreate certain famous shots, such as the publicity photos of Orlando Bloom as Legolas, and the scene where Gandalf and Saruman walk through the gardens of Isengarde, discussing the One Ring (again, take a look at the photo site!).
The whole tour took an entire day, and was made all the better by our driver and guide Nathan, who was actually cast as an Elf in the Helms Deep scenes, so was able to tell us a lot about what went on in the filming of the trilogy. He was an excellent guide, and I would well recommend doing the trip to anyone who came to Wellington!
Tomorrow, we leave North Island, and we head across the water to South Island and the second leg of our journey...
Monday, 5 March 2007
Scaling Mount Doom (Honeymoon Days 12-...oh, who cares!)
It seems like an age since we last posted anything, although its only been about a week. Its been a busy week though. I hope I can remember all we've done since Whitianga!
After leaving there we moved on to Rotorua, although not before passing through Hobbiton, otherwise known as Matamata. (check our photo site if you don't believe me!). Rotorua has one major characteristic that you notice immediately upon entering the town - it stinks of rotten eggs! Actually, this is the sulphur and what-have-you that is produced by the geysers in the national park there, as Rotorua is part of the heavily volcanic area of New Zealand. In the evening we were taken to a small Mauri village where they give tourists an idea of the Mauri culture. It was a fantastic evening, with demonstrations of Mauri cooking, a show of Mauri music and dancing, and then a fantastic roast dinner. We were driven out there by our Mauri driver for the evening, Merv, who along with the drivers of the other four buses, really made us all feel at home and part of the tribe. This even included us singing songs from our own countries on the bus ride back to the hostel. We were let down by some of the Canadians on our bus, who couldn't think of anything Canadian to sing, but we gave a performance of "The Northern Lights of Old Aberdeen" with great gusto (which, for anyone who has heard me sing, is loud if not tuneful!). Merv then led us in a rendition of "She'll be coming round the mountain", and it quickly transpired that the other buses must have been singing the same song, as two other buses joined us in making a wagon train circling a roundabout for the remainder of the song!
The following morning we took a walk around Te Puia, an area near Rotorua famous for its geysers and boiling mud pools. This is the main source of the egg smell! That made for a very pleasant journey on the bus afterwards down to Waitomo.
Waitomo is particularly known for its black water rafting - basically white water rafting but through pitch-black caves. Naomi gave this a go the next morning, riding the river through the caves on a tyre! I was slightly less adventurous, taking a walk through the limestone caves (the same ones Naomi was rafting through!). I felt justified in this, as I had gone quad biking when we had arrived in Waitomo, which was brilliant fun. We were taking the quads up various hills and narrow tracks, and got some spectacular views of the whole area.
After Naomi recovered from the rafting, we journeyed south to Taupo, where we would spend an extra day (hey, our driver LJ deserved a day off after being "Awesome" the whole way down from Auckland!). While Naomi spent the day resting and recovering from all the travelling, I went for a "short walk" up Mount Doom! This was an 8-hour hike up Mount Ngauruhoe (the volcano used as Mount Doom in the Lord of the Rings films) and its neighbour Mount Tongariro. It was an absolutely amazing day, with spectacular scenery. Myself and three of the others on our bus, Magdelena, John and Anna) got so far up before bumping into Barbara, a 77-year-old from Elgin (who was also on our bus). We stayed with her most of the journey, and were amazed at just how much she accomplished (not only that day, but over her whole journey, having sky-dived, gone hang-gliding, black-water rafting, white-water rafting, and was preparing to do a bungee jump when she got to Queenstown!). The hike was, she told us, definitely the most challenging thing she had done, just because the walk was really quite difficult in places. John and Anna had to go on ahead (they were doing a skydive that afternoon and need to get back), so Magdelena and I opted to stay with Barbara and help her with those (very few) bits that she struggled with, so we would all get back for the 4.30 final bus. Which we managed.
I was really pleased with how well we all did that day - it was such an amazing experience, and I'm just glad I was able to do it.
On Sunday we drove down to River Valley, a secluded little spot with a fantastic hostel, completely isolated from everything else. We spent our time here just chilling out and relaxing, although a few people (Barbara included) went horse riding early the next morning. Its an idyllic little spot, right on the edge of the river, and made for a nice break from all the more activity-based places.
Finally yesterday we arrived in Wellington where we had to say farewell to LJ and most of our bus-mates. We've really enjoyed the journey down from Auckland, but a lot of people are continuing down to the South Island tomorrow, while we are going to spend a few days in Wellington recharging our batteries.
After leaving there we moved on to Rotorua, although not before passing through Hobbiton, otherwise known as Matamata. (check our photo site if you don't believe me!). Rotorua has one major characteristic that you notice immediately upon entering the town - it stinks of rotten eggs! Actually, this is the sulphur and what-have-you that is produced by the geysers in the national park there, as Rotorua is part of the heavily volcanic area of New Zealand. In the evening we were taken to a small Mauri village where they give tourists an idea of the Mauri culture. It was a fantastic evening, with demonstrations of Mauri cooking, a show of Mauri music and dancing, and then a fantastic roast dinner. We were driven out there by our Mauri driver for the evening, Merv, who along with the drivers of the other four buses, really made us all feel at home and part of the tribe. This even included us singing songs from our own countries on the bus ride back to the hostel. We were let down by some of the Canadians on our bus, who couldn't think of anything Canadian to sing, but we gave a performance of "The Northern Lights of Old Aberdeen" with great gusto (which, for anyone who has heard me sing, is loud if not tuneful!). Merv then led us in a rendition of "She'll be coming round the mountain", and it quickly transpired that the other buses must have been singing the same song, as two other buses joined us in making a wagon train circling a roundabout for the remainder of the song!
The following morning we took a walk around Te Puia, an area near Rotorua famous for its geysers and boiling mud pools. This is the main source of the egg smell! That made for a very pleasant journey on the bus afterwards down to Waitomo.
Waitomo is particularly known for its black water rafting - basically white water rafting but through pitch-black caves. Naomi gave this a go the next morning, riding the river through the caves on a tyre! I was slightly less adventurous, taking a walk through the limestone caves (the same ones Naomi was rafting through!). I felt justified in this, as I had gone quad biking when we had arrived in Waitomo, which was brilliant fun. We were taking the quads up various hills and narrow tracks, and got some spectacular views of the whole area.
After Naomi recovered from the rafting, we journeyed south to Taupo, where we would spend an extra day (hey, our driver LJ deserved a day off after being "Awesome" the whole way down from Auckland!). While Naomi spent the day resting and recovering from all the travelling, I went for a "short walk" up Mount Doom! This was an 8-hour hike up Mount Ngauruhoe (the volcano used as Mount Doom in the Lord of the Rings films) and its neighbour Mount Tongariro. It was an absolutely amazing day, with spectacular scenery. Myself and three of the others on our bus, Magdelena, John and Anna) got so far up before bumping into Barbara, a 77-year-old from Elgin (who was also on our bus). We stayed with her most of the journey, and were amazed at just how much she accomplished (not only that day, but over her whole journey, having sky-dived, gone hang-gliding, black-water rafting, white-water rafting, and was preparing to do a bungee jump when she got to Queenstown!). The hike was, she told us, definitely the most challenging thing she had done, just because the walk was really quite difficult in places. John and Anna had to go on ahead (they were doing a skydive that afternoon and need to get back), so Magdelena and I opted to stay with Barbara and help her with those (very few) bits that she struggled with, so we would all get back for the 4.30 final bus. Which we managed.
I was really pleased with how well we all did that day - it was such an amazing experience, and I'm just glad I was able to do it.
On Sunday we drove down to River Valley, a secluded little spot with a fantastic hostel, completely isolated from everything else. We spent our time here just chilling out and relaxing, although a few people (Barbara included) went horse riding early the next morning. Its an idyllic little spot, right on the edge of the river, and made for a nice break from all the more activity-based places.
Finally yesterday we arrived in Wellington where we had to say farewell to LJ and most of our bus-mates. We've really enjoyed the journey down from Auckland, but a lot of people are continuing down to the South Island tomorrow, while we are going to spend a few days in Wellington recharging our batteries.
Tuesday, 27 February 2007
Whitianga (Honeymoon Day 11 - I think...?!)
So we've journeyed south from Auckland to Whitianga (pronounced Fitianga), or Mercury Bay (for ease of pronunciation!). And its hot. Damn hot. REAL hot. (to quote Good Morning Vietnam). Really nice place, quite small and quiet.
We're staying on a YHA called "On the Beach" because of its location (surprisingly enough!). The beach is directly outside, which is really nice (although we don't get a view of the sea from our bedroom, but we can from the shared living area!)
We came down here on the Kiwi Experience bus, which unfortunately had no air conditioning (it broke down somewhere between us getting off last night and on this morning!). This made it hotter on the bus than it was outside, even with the sunroof window thingy open! Our driver, LJ, has promised that he will try to get it fixed tonight, or if not get something sorted by the time we get to Taupo in a few days. I'm hoping for the former!
The group of people we are travelling with seem quite nice, even if there is an overabundance of Brits aboard! Travel to the other side of the world to spend most of your time with your country-mates! Oh well!
We came down through the Coromandel Peninsula, which had some very scenic views, both inland and along the coastline.
We then briefly visited Cathedral Cove this afternoon on the way into Mercury Bay, but as it involved a 40 minute walk up and down and around various cliffs to get there, Naomi didn't feel up to the hike back in the heat, so we stayed at the lookout point and just enjoyed the view from there, rather than going down to the beach itself. We did manage to journey a little way down to Gemstone Bay and Stingray Bay, so we at least got down to the sea itself, however briefly.
Once we got dropped at our YHA, we nipped to the Supermarket and got some dinner - beans on toast! A good backpackers meal! Just as we finished that we met our flatmates for the night - a Kiwi chap, his Mexican girlfriend and her sister. We had a nice chat with them before coming out to let you lot know what we're up to!
Anyway, we have an early start tomorrow (we're being picked up at 7.30) so we're off to bed!
We're staying on a YHA called "On the Beach" because of its location (surprisingly enough!). The beach is directly outside, which is really nice (although we don't get a view of the sea from our bedroom, but we can from the shared living area!)
We came down here on the Kiwi Experience bus, which unfortunately had no air conditioning (it broke down somewhere between us getting off last night and on this morning!). This made it hotter on the bus than it was outside, even with the sunroof window thingy open! Our driver, LJ, has promised that he will try to get it fixed tonight, or if not get something sorted by the time we get to Taupo in a few days. I'm hoping for the former!
The group of people we are travelling with seem quite nice, even if there is an overabundance of Brits aboard! Travel to the other side of the world to spend most of your time with your country-mates! Oh well!
We came down through the Coromandel Peninsula, which had some very scenic views, both inland and along the coastline.
We then briefly visited Cathedral Cove this afternoon on the way into Mercury Bay, but as it involved a 40 minute walk up and down and around various cliffs to get there, Naomi didn't feel up to the hike back in the heat, so we stayed at the lookout point and just enjoyed the view from there, rather than going down to the beach itself. We did manage to journey a little way down to Gemstone Bay and Stingray Bay, so we at least got down to the sea itself, however briefly.
Once we got dropped at our YHA, we nipped to the Supermarket and got some dinner - beans on toast! A good backpackers meal! Just as we finished that we met our flatmates for the night - a Kiwi chap, his Mexican girlfriend and her sister. We had a nice chat with them before coming out to let you lot know what we're up to!
Anyway, we have an early start tomorrow (we're being picked up at 7.30) so we're off to bed!
Sunday, 25 February 2007
Panda in Paihia (Days 9-10)
After arriving in Auckland on Saturday, we spent the night at the hostel before our early morning pickup on Sunday for our trip north to the Bay of Islands (or Paihia). We had a really good driver, Andy, who was very friendly and had a lot to show us and tell us about on the four-hour drive.
It looked like the weather was going to be against us for this trip, as we passed through some heavy rain showers, but when we reached Bay of Islands, the sun was beginning to peek out. At Andy's suggestion, I went on a fast boat trip that afternoon. (Naomi wasn't feeling too great and decided to give it a miss) The boat, the Excitor, took the group of us around the Bay of Islands, and out to the "Hole in the Rock", basically a huge rock in the ocean just off one of the islands which has a huge hole in it made just from the water eroding it away. The water was steady enough that the captain was able to take us through the hole and out the other side. The weather had totally cleared up by now, and was getting suitably sunny. This, however, was a mixed blessing. Typically, neither Naomi or I had noticed how sunny it was getting, and with being out on the boat for two hours (and with Naomi standing on the pier for half an hour before the boat left), and with neither of us thinking to put on any sunblock until after I had left (Naomi has the sunblock in her bag!), I got off the boat looking like a red panda - white under my sunglasses, but sunburnt all over my face! Naomi fared worse, with the sun catching her shoulders and arms as well as her face. We're both suffering for it today!
There was a barbecue back at the hostel last night, which was quite good fun. Met some nice people, including another Irish girl, and chatted with them while we ate. Eventually, we turned in for an early night (after still being tired from the 6am rise we'd had that morning).
This morning we got up and checked out by 10, then after getting some breakfast (a toastie and a burger!) we headed across to Russell, the settlement built on the site that Captain Cook first landed in New Zealand. Very historic, but a little on the boring side (we didn't have time to do any organised tours - I'm sure that would have made it more interesting). Anyway, we stayed there a while, then got the ferry back across.
Now we're just killing time until we get our bus in a couple of hours time. That will take us back down to Auckland for the night, and tomorrow we will start our journey proper as we head to Mercury Bay...
It looked like the weather was going to be against us for this trip, as we passed through some heavy rain showers, but when we reached Bay of Islands, the sun was beginning to peek out. At Andy's suggestion, I went on a fast boat trip that afternoon. (Naomi wasn't feeling too great and decided to give it a miss) The boat, the Excitor, took the group of us around the Bay of Islands, and out to the "Hole in the Rock", basically a huge rock in the ocean just off one of the islands which has a huge hole in it made just from the water eroding it away. The water was steady enough that the captain was able to take us through the hole and out the other side. The weather had totally cleared up by now, and was getting suitably sunny. This, however, was a mixed blessing. Typically, neither Naomi or I had noticed how sunny it was getting, and with being out on the boat for two hours (and with Naomi standing on the pier for half an hour before the boat left), and with neither of us thinking to put on any sunblock until after I had left (Naomi has the sunblock in her bag!), I got off the boat looking like a red panda - white under my sunglasses, but sunburnt all over my face! Naomi fared worse, with the sun catching her shoulders and arms as well as her face. We're both suffering for it today!
There was a barbecue back at the hostel last night, which was quite good fun. Met some nice people, including another Irish girl, and chatted with them while we ate. Eventually, we turned in for an early night (after still being tired from the 6am rise we'd had that morning).
This morning we got up and checked out by 10, then after getting some breakfast (a toastie and a burger!) we headed across to Russell, the settlement built on the site that Captain Cook first landed in New Zealand. Very historic, but a little on the boring side (we didn't have time to do any organised tours - I'm sure that would have made it more interesting). Anyway, we stayed there a while, then got the ferry back across.
Now we're just killing time until we get our bus in a couple of hours time. That will take us back down to Auckland for the night, and tomorrow we will start our journey proper as we head to Mercury Bay...
Friday, 23 February 2007
Sydney Shopping! (Days 4-7)
So we've now come to the end of our four-day stint in Sydney. Like I mentioned before, I love this city. I don't know what it is about it, but I've enjoyed my stay here just as much as I did previously.
Although we haven't done most of the touristy things this time (as we'd done them all before), we've spent the days relaxing and wandering the city. In particular the shops. Sydney is fantastic for shopping, especially if you're Naomi! :)
As well as dotting in and out of shops, we've had some time to wander the city properly. We've been down to the Opera House to see the QE2 and QM2 that were both in dock a few nights ago. We've gone to Parramatta (shopping, mind you, but at least it got us to see a different shopping mall!) We've also been out to Manly Beach for a meal with Leanne and her folks.
Its been really good being able to catch up with a friendly face while we've been here, and have seen Leanne most days since we've been here. Unfortunately, Phil hasn't been able to make it to visit us, as his work has kept him away from Sydney during our stay (although I hear he's coming back to the UK around the time we are, so Phil, if you're reading this, we definitely need to try and meet up for a pint when you're over!).
The meal at Manly Beach was at the fantastic Ribs & Rumps restaurant. Last time Naomi and I went there, I wasn't particularly impressed (its loud and with very little room between the crowded tables, and my food was fine, but wasn't the fantastic steak I'd been led to believe). This time, however, was a totally different experience. I had a 500g Lazy Sirloin Steak, which was just immense, and very enjoyable. It was still noisy and crowded, but the food and the service were brilliant, and we all had a great time.
We also met up with Leanne for a drink at the Star City Casino at Darling Harbour last night. The casino itself is pretty impressive (the doormen generously let Leanne in only wearing "thongs" - for those of you not initiated in Oz-speak, this is flip-flops, not what we refer to as thongs in the UK!). We drank a little, gambled even less (I never did see a Texas Hold'em table, although there was some Blackjack), but had a nice evening.
Anyway, tomorrow morning we fly to Auckland and start the trip down North Island to Wellington.
Although we haven't done most of the touristy things this time (as we'd done them all before), we've spent the days relaxing and wandering the city. In particular the shops. Sydney is fantastic for shopping, especially if you're Naomi! :)
As well as dotting in and out of shops, we've had some time to wander the city properly. We've been down to the Opera House to see the QE2 and QM2 that were both in dock a few nights ago. We've gone to Parramatta (shopping, mind you, but at least it got us to see a different shopping mall!) We've also been out to Manly Beach for a meal with Leanne and her folks.
Its been really good being able to catch up with a friendly face while we've been here, and have seen Leanne most days since we've been here. Unfortunately, Phil hasn't been able to make it to visit us, as his work has kept him away from Sydney during our stay (although I hear he's coming back to the UK around the time we are, so Phil, if you're reading this, we definitely need to try and meet up for a pint when you're over!).
The meal at Manly Beach was at the fantastic Ribs & Rumps restaurant. Last time Naomi and I went there, I wasn't particularly impressed (its loud and with very little room between the crowded tables, and my food was fine, but wasn't the fantastic steak I'd been led to believe). This time, however, was a totally different experience. I had a 500g Lazy Sirloin Steak, which was just immense, and very enjoyable. It was still noisy and crowded, but the food and the service were brilliant, and we all had a great time.
We also met up with Leanne for a drink at the Star City Casino at Darling Harbour last night. The casino itself is pretty impressive (the doormen generously let Leanne in only wearing "thongs" - for those of you not initiated in Oz-speak, this is flip-flops, not what we refer to as thongs in the UK!). We drank a little, gambled even less (I never did see a Texas Hold'em table, although there was some Blackjack), but had a nice evening.
Anyway, tomorrow morning we fly to Auckland and start the trip down North Island to Wellington.
Tuesday, 20 February 2007
Honeymoon - Sydney (Day 3)
Just a quick note to say that we've arrived safely in Sydney. I'd forgotten how much I love this city!
Anyway, everything is fine here, the weather is great, and we're off down to the harbour to see some celebrations because of the QE2 and QM2 are both in harbour together, and are leaving tonight.
More as we do stuff!
Anyway, everything is fine here, the weather is great, and we're off down to the harbour to see some celebrations because of the QE2 and QM2 are both in harbour together, and are leaving tonight.
More as we do stuff!
Monday, 19 February 2007
Honeymoon - Days 1 & 2 - Singapore Slingshot
19/02/07
Weather : Day 1 - Warm, humid, overcast
Day 2 - Wet Wet Wet!
So, ignoring the day we arrived (which was made up of flying, sleeping & eating), we have had two full days in Singapore (although at time of writing only one full day has so far passed).
At first appearance, this is a city without its own identity. Everything seems to be imported from elsewhere. The language is predominantly English; the food seems a mix of American and Chinese; the shops could have been moved here from almost anywhere else. Even the people seem to be a mix from Chinese, Indian, Malaysian and Western heritages.
But when you stop and look more closely, something strange happens. That seeming lack of identity actually seems to create a unique identity all of its own. The people (at least those I spoke with) seem to have an underlying pride in their place in the world, and with good reason. Certainly there seems to be a friendliness to Singapore's inhabitants that is quite refreshing in today's current climate of suspicion of strangers. (This could well be in part due to Singapore's rule to not keep communities separate - if a block of flats has too many Chinese, for example, no more Chinese will be allowed to move into that block. And while there are Chinese, Indian & Malays areas, these are only meeting areas, not living areas.) Its a clean city too, well sort of. I don't think I've seen a single piece of litter our entire visit (other than one bit dropped by a tourist!), but inside the malls everything is just....scruffy. In the way that a Glasgow railway station is scruffy - there are no obvious signs of anything dirtying the place, it just is kinda grimy. (that said, being a public holiday, a lot of places were shut, so possibly there are nicer malls that we couldn't go into!)
But its the smells you notice most. So many different gorgeous aromas float through the air as you walk around. Its almost impossible to not be hungry with such spicy foods competing for your attention.
Did I mention that its Chinese New Year this weekend? Welcome to the Year of the Golden Pig. Apparently there are five "Year of the Pig"s - paper, wood, metal, gold & fire. The Golden Pig is supposedly a lucky year to be born in (take note Steve & Chris!). Of course, this means most things are shut here this weekend.
Still, we've had a good run at things. We spent Sunday (after a long lie!) working our way down Orchard Road, looking at many closed shops that Naomi was just dying to go into! After getting something to eat we proceeded back up the other side of Orchard Road back to the hotel, before getting picked up for the Night Safari.
I've got to admit, I wasn't as impressed as I thought I would be. The place itself seemed quite nice (if a tad overpriced - S$8 for an OJ?!), but I think my lack of enthusiasm came from being rushed by our tour guide. While very friendly, Mary Anne had an annoying habit of telling you the same thing six times (or more, if you'd let her!), and the tour seemed to have such a tightly fixed schedule that Naomi & I actually had to leave a show half way through for fear of the bus leaving without us - indeed, it nearly did anyway! Mary Anne seemed to be trying her best, and was full of interesting facts about stuff, but I'd have traded that in a second for having more time at the actual Night Safari.
The tram ride around the park was pretty good, although you never really stopped quite long enough at the more impressive animals (for me, the highlight was the 10 seconds or so during which we drove past the giraffes! (for those who don't know, giraffes are my favourite animal, don't know why, I just find them elegant)). The Fire Dancers show was ok, although a little boring in the middle (the bit without the fire!). The Night Creatures show was shaping up well, with a really funny & charismatic Indian girl presenting it. Unfortunately, this was the show we had to cut short in order to make the bus on time. Still, it was overall an experience we were glad we managed.
Once we got back to town, we headed to the one place we had to visit while in Singapore - Raffles. Its a pretty amazing looking place - you could easily see David Suchet's Poirot sitting in there feeling right at home. The rock music blaring from the band in the bar upstairs took away from the atmosphere a little, but it was good music, so I can't really complain! We were too late for food, so settled for a Singapore Sling each (well, you have to, don't you?!) Just about everyone else in the bar seemed to have the same idea - I'm sure the staff must get sick of making those cocktails!
Day 2 has had constant rain, which of course saw us on an open-topped bus tour of the city! While the various tours seemed pretty good, the weather dampened our enjoyment a bit. When it rains in Singapore, it really rains! Mind you, when it stops you dry out pretty quickly! Now we're just killing time until our flight.
Have we enjoyed our time in Singapore? Yes, on the whole.
Would we come back again? Probably not, except as a stopover. Its nice to visit, but for us doesn't have enough to keep us occupied for a full holiday.
Next stop, Sydney...
Weather : Day 1 - Warm, humid, overcast
Day 2 - Wet Wet Wet!
So, ignoring the day we arrived (which was made up of flying, sleeping & eating), we have had two full days in Singapore (although at time of writing only one full day has so far passed).
At first appearance, this is a city without its own identity. Everything seems to be imported from elsewhere. The language is predominantly English; the food seems a mix of American and Chinese; the shops could have been moved here from almost anywhere else. Even the people seem to be a mix from Chinese, Indian, Malaysian and Western heritages.
But when you stop and look more closely, something strange happens. That seeming lack of identity actually seems to create a unique identity all of its own. The people (at least those I spoke with) seem to have an underlying pride in their place in the world, and with good reason. Certainly there seems to be a friendliness to Singapore's inhabitants that is quite refreshing in today's current climate of suspicion of strangers. (This could well be in part due to Singapore's rule to not keep communities separate - if a block of flats has too many Chinese, for example, no more Chinese will be allowed to move into that block. And while there are Chinese, Indian & Malays areas, these are only meeting areas, not living areas.) Its a clean city too, well sort of. I don't think I've seen a single piece of litter our entire visit (other than one bit dropped by a tourist!), but inside the malls everything is just....scruffy. In the way that a Glasgow railway station is scruffy - there are no obvious signs of anything dirtying the place, it just is kinda grimy. (that said, being a public holiday, a lot of places were shut, so possibly there are nicer malls that we couldn't go into!)
But its the smells you notice most. So many different gorgeous aromas float through the air as you walk around. Its almost impossible to not be hungry with such spicy foods competing for your attention.
Did I mention that its Chinese New Year this weekend? Welcome to the Year of the Golden Pig. Apparently there are five "Year of the Pig"s - paper, wood, metal, gold & fire. The Golden Pig is supposedly a lucky year to be born in (take note Steve & Chris!). Of course, this means most things are shut here this weekend.
Still, we've had a good run at things. We spent Sunday (after a long lie!) working our way down Orchard Road, looking at many closed shops that Naomi was just dying to go into! After getting something to eat we proceeded back up the other side of Orchard Road back to the hotel, before getting picked up for the Night Safari.
I've got to admit, I wasn't as impressed as I thought I would be. The place itself seemed quite nice (if a tad overpriced - S$8 for an OJ?!), but I think my lack of enthusiasm came from being rushed by our tour guide. While very friendly, Mary Anne had an annoying habit of telling you the same thing six times (or more, if you'd let her!), and the tour seemed to have such a tightly fixed schedule that Naomi & I actually had to leave a show half way through for fear of the bus leaving without us - indeed, it nearly did anyway! Mary Anne seemed to be trying her best, and was full of interesting facts about stuff, but I'd have traded that in a second for having more time at the actual Night Safari.
The tram ride around the park was pretty good, although you never really stopped quite long enough at the more impressive animals (for me, the highlight was the 10 seconds or so during which we drove past the giraffes! (for those who don't know, giraffes are my favourite animal, don't know why, I just find them elegant)). The Fire Dancers show was ok, although a little boring in the middle (the bit without the fire!). The Night Creatures show was shaping up well, with a really funny & charismatic Indian girl presenting it. Unfortunately, this was the show we had to cut short in order to make the bus on time. Still, it was overall an experience we were glad we managed.
Once we got back to town, we headed to the one place we had to visit while in Singapore - Raffles. Its a pretty amazing looking place - you could easily see David Suchet's Poirot sitting in there feeling right at home. The rock music blaring from the band in the bar upstairs took away from the atmosphere a little, but it was good music, so I can't really complain! We were too late for food, so settled for a Singapore Sling each (well, you have to, don't you?!) Just about everyone else in the bar seemed to have the same idea - I'm sure the staff must get sick of making those cocktails!
Day 2 has had constant rain, which of course saw us on an open-topped bus tour of the city! While the various tours seemed pretty good, the weather dampened our enjoyment a bit. When it rains in Singapore, it really rains! Mind you, when it stops you dry out pretty quickly! Now we're just killing time until our flight.
Have we enjoyed our time in Singapore? Yes, on the whole.
Would we come back again? Probably not, except as a stopover. Its nice to visit, but for us doesn't have enough to keep us occupied for a full holiday.
Next stop, Sydney...
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