South Island
As I was flying into the South Island, I was blessed enough to get a window seat, and the view was spectacular. Ginormous mountain ranges for miles and miles. Touched down in Queenstown and went to my hostel to wait for check in. After that, I grabbed some food and did some exploring around the city. The guy at the booking agency, suggested to take the gondola to the lift station above Queenstown, and from there hike to the Ben Lomond peak.
The following day I did just that. I got off at the lift station around 10 a.m. and began my ascend to the top. After about 2 hours (felt like 6) of breathtaking views and scenery, I reached the peak. And I’ve done longer hikes in Cinque Terre, but I felt extremely accomplished after this one. It was a pretty much constant uphill trek on loose rocks and dirt, and once you got up high enough it began to get very windy and cold. It was completely worth it though. Because this 360° panoramic view of Queenstown and the surrounding area was absolutely stunning. I have some footage of it in my YouTube video, but I promise the videos don’t even do it justice. Walking back to the hostel I could just feel my legs wobbling and about to give out. So I called it a night and knew I wanted to save my strength for the next day.
After going back and forth about whether I wanted to bungy jump or skydive (Queenstown is the adventure capital of the world, so I knew I had to do at least one here), I decided on bungy jumping. But not just any, the Nevis Jump, which is New Zealand’s highest bungy, at 134m and an 8.5 second free fall, it’s a rush unlike any other. I wasn’t really nervous the whole morning, but once my name was called up and I started to inch towards the ledge, my legs got really weak and I knew I was feeling it now. They tell you that you have to jump though, and that falling legs first or just falling down will ruin the experience and could possibly injure you.
So I jumped. Out far and head first. It was wild. You feel like you’re about the hit the ground until last minute it shoots you back up. You spend the next few minutes sitting there, practically floating in the air being able to see everything around you. When they pulled me backup, they have sign that says to ask for 2nd jump if you’re feeling up to it. So I did, and luckily they had time and space to let me go again! For some reason the second was scarier than the first, but still just as crazy. They also offer a giant swing, so I was able to do that as well. This was a little less scary, and much more peaceful because they keep you swinging there for what feels like at least five minutes. Letting you really soak up the views.
The next day I did the Glenorchy tour from Queenstown, and I can see why this drive is considered one of the top 10 prettiest in the world. You drive down the side of Lake Wakatipu, with nothing but the lake and endless mountian ranges in view. Luckily, our tour guide Megan was really into Lord of the Rings, so she enthusiastically showed us all the spots that were used for filming along the way. We got to spend time in Glenorchy and Paradise, just soaking up the beautiful scenery and nature along the way. It was so peaceful and so still. I definitely recommend this tour for anyone who wants to spend a beautiful day taking in some of New Zealand’s landscapes.
My last real and final day in Queenstown, I spent doing the Milford Sound, considered to some to be the 8th wonder of the world. That it certainly is. I did the coach/cruise/coach option, which spends a lot of time driving to and from Queenstown, which makes it full day excursion, and honestly got pretty exhausting spending nearly 8 hours on a bus. However, it was definitely worth it for the cruise around the sound though. Roughly two hours of blissful cruising with some of the most awing views imaginable. I felt as though I was in like King Kong, or some undiscovered place, hidden from the rest of the world. The cruise is well worth the long day of travel.
Now I’m sitting in my hostel, uploading all my pictures, videos, and updating my blog and Youtube! I hope you all have enjoyed New Zealand through my eyes and I hope it has inspired you to see it for yourself! See you guys in Thailand!