Occidental Backpackers Christchurch

... my every move and almost copying what I did (they have the same intelligence as a chimpanzee / 3 year old - so this is very plausible!) and so I started calling Mark to help me - he knew exactly what was going on as he was IN the van, and the door was open. But did he come to help? No! Did he come to my rescue when, as I retreated from the van, back to the table to save my chopped onion, the Kea followed and tried to snatch the onion from me - even with me waving a knife around at it ...

... was about -8 degrees when I went in, but after a few minutes the lights dimmed and an Antarctic blizzard began raging with winds up to 40km/h. It was somewhat chilly. The windchill went down to way below -20 degrees and frankly I was glad to get back out for a cup of coffee and a bun.

Next up was a trip on the Hagglund. I have to get me one of these. A wee tracked vehicle built by the Swedes for polar exploration, it can go just about anywhere. I sat ...

... miles from England yet we still cant shake them off!!! So we checked into our lovely room and then went for some R+R in their 20 seater hot tub!!! Such a hard life this travelling! The idea for Franz was to go on a scenic helicopter flight over the incredible crystal blue glaciers. The Franz Josef Glacier is next to the famous Fox Glacier. We were hoping to see a big pile of mints and a polar bear, but that wasnt going to happen! Nor was the ...

... from the village(Which had nothing in it anyway)! Next day the Irish gang had gone on to Christchurch but we had decided to stay on in Lake Tekapo. Luckily for us there was an ice skating rink which kept us occupied for a couple of hours. Both of us managed not to fall over at all and we actually got the hang of it towards the end. Wearing the ice skating boots became very sore after a while so even though we wanted to ...

... picked me up from the airport. Lindsey is my small group leader, and Shannon is my intercession team leader. Also, they are the 2 leaders of the prostitute outreach team on Friday nights in Christchurch which I have been on every week. They are definitely the 2 staff members I know best, and it is so exciting how God has put us together this whole time (which is unique in my situation). Anyway, I am SO excited about outreach. Oh yeah, I almost forgot to tell you the ...

... bike and walk up the hill, but I never stopped and never even thought of turning back. Along the way, I got really thirsty and a little hungry as well, and I realized the importance of food and water, symbolically the Bread of Life and Living Water. Without it, it would have been impossible to reach the goal, and just feeding it to your body once will not sustain you, especially on such a journey. We ...

... is just ideal for us. The sitting room and bedroom is all in one, which is not great when i am on shifts but it is cheap and that is the whole point so we can save as much as possible for the next part of our trip. We managed to rent bikes for the time we are here from our landlord, which is highly amusing as i haven't been on a bike for about 10 years!! It was a bit wobbly to start with!! And we were about passing out after a half hour ...

So, to the dismay of a few and pleasure of who gives a ****, my journey does not end in Nelson. After spending the weekend in the city with a heart that I had grown so fond of, with the people who have made it what it is, I said goodbye and drove into the night. Fast and wet the rain broke in fury against the lone windshield stealing through the dark. Light ethereal, ghosts in ...