Queenstown, New Zealand
Trip Start
Jul 05, 2007
1
25
48
Trip End
Dec 24, 2007
Queenstown,
New Zealand
Saturday, September 22, 2007
I headed straight to Queenstown, which is the place to go if your into thirll-seeking. I went skydiving - which I hadn't expected to enjoy, but have to admit was brilliant, white-water rafting, and bungee jumping. I managed to become only the second person ever to fall out of my guide's raft on the shotover river. And I managed to do it before we'd reached any white water because I got my paddle stuck on the river bed and it "back-flipped" me over into the river. Instead of rescuing me, the guide laughed at me, and I had to wait for the next boat.
The bungee jumping was probably the most fun, and the definitely the most scary
Lake Wakatipu
. I leant my camera to an Italian man so that he could take some photos of me while I jumped. However, he managed to confuse me with the ridiculously named "Crystal" - a fake blond aerobics instructor from the states - so I've got some lovely pictures of her, one of which is posted above, to demonstrate what I did.I went out with a couple of people from the hostel to a bar which was hosting a 90s, which makes me feel very old. When I was a student, those types of bars hosted 80s nights.
Just as they were playing "Wonderwall" (the "Mike Flowers Pops" version) one of the barmaids who was dressed as a "teengage mutant ninja turtle" came over to me, and told me that I was runner-up in the "dressing up" competition. I was wearing my normal clothes. I haven't won anything in years, so I gratefully accepted the 5 shots they'd lined up on the bar. I also haven't downed 5 shots in years. It had a negative effect on me. I can't remember all of the night, but I do remember the end. I lead a group of Japanese tourists up onto one of the tables, to dance the dance to Whigfield's "Saturday Night". And I was promptly asked to leave.
A group of Japanese tourists also gave me the strangest experince I'va had to date on the trip
Bungee Jump
. Today I went to Milford Sound. It's named after Milford Haven in Wales, but all the two places have in common is the rain. Milford Sound is lovely - a fjord with cliffs, forests and waterfalls. Milford Haven is a dump with a port, graffiti and a multi-storey car park. While I was waiting in the ferry terminal for the boat to take me on a cruise round the fjord, a bus load of Japanese tourists turned up. One of them, a teenage girl, started pointing at me and lead he parents over to me. Her father said:
"Photo?"
"OK", I said, assuming that they wanted me to take a photo of them with their camera. So I reached for the camera.
"No - no" said the man, and pointed at me and his daughter, indicating that he wanted to take a photo of me, stood next to his daughter. I was a little confused, but posed anyway. So now a Japanese family have a photo of me and their daughter, making "V" for victory signes, as Japanese people like to do. I would have been flattered that they wanted a photo of me. But I noticed them take a photo of a dustbin shortly after, confirming that Japanese people will photo anything.
Meanwhile, the rest of the Japanese bus had seen the other Japanese people taking a photo of me, and promptly formed an orderly queue to havve their photos taken with me as well. I tried to explain that they were mistaken - I'm not famous, but they wouldn't listen, So I now feature in 6 or 7 Japanese family holiday snaps. I have no idea who they thought I was - suggestions welcome.
