OKAY!

So I have 30mins of internet time so I figured that perhaps it's time I updated the old blog... I will try to make this as painless as possible, but expect this one to be a multiple sitting read.
Wellington - So I met up with Lori's friends Vonnie & Eddy for supper and a tour around some of the surrounding areas... some nice pictures of me from one of the lookouts. Later that night I met up with the three English people that I had been hanging around with recently (Jess, Chris, and Luke) for some good old fashioned lazer tag (decided to splurge since it was our last night together). The next morning I was up for my 7am ferry across Cook Straight (Cpt. Cook was the first European explorer to set foot - so you could say that my roots are actually in NZ (my moms maiden name is Cook for those of you not following)).
Picton to Nelson -
We arrived in Picton and quickly jetted off in our bus to Nelson where I was to stay for a few days. On the second day I did some trecking and made my way down to a beach (just a 45 minute walk one way... what I won't do to come home tanned). I found a landmark that said I was 7352 miles away from Vancouver... so just think of me as being next door. Aside from that the hostle in Nelson wasn't the nicest as the facility wasn't built with backpackers in mind (especially the small kitchen).
Westport / Lake Mahinapua
The next day we made a stop at Lake Rotoiti (a glacier fed lake) for the crazy ones to jump in... I chose that my health was slightly more important. For those of you who didn't know I got a bit of a head cold (I know there is no sympathy coming my direction but you want the details so here they are). I also spotted a Kiwi bird (a National symbol - but a rather ugly bird), which are typically nocturnal... but I have seen two of them in broad daylight?? The hostel in Westport (The TripInn) was beautiful and made up for Nelsons shortcomings. I went for a short jog here and quickly realized the difference in climate from Australia as my lungs felt like they filled with phlegm (again... details). The next day on our way to Lake Mahinapua we made a quick stop at Cape Foulwind. Now Cape Foulwind (so named because the person who discovered it encountered a storm in the area or a 'foul wind') is famous for its fur seal colony! Now if I am not able to be reincarnated into a koala I would like it to be known that I am okay with being a seal... they are so funny and lazy... got tons of pics! After this stop we drove a short bit to the Pancake rocks/Blowholes. Essentially these are a series of stratified limestone stacks which, over many thousand years, have been eroded to resemble a giant stack of pancakes (crepes if you ask me). Pretty cool... although the water was too calm to see the true effect of the blowholes. That night we stayed in the Lake Mahinapua Hotel (run by a 90 publican named Les), where I only had to pay $10 ($6 if you convert to Canadian dollars) for a place to sleep! We also were served an amazing meal and had a themed party that night... which 'unfortunately' I again wasn't feeling up to. Les actually only runs his hotel for the bus company that I am travelling with so it is quite an experience that not many travellers get.
Franz Josef -
On the way to Franz we stopped at Pete's Bushman's Centre (overrated and run by one of the rudest locals I have met to date... drive past if you have the choice) which educated us on how people of the bush lifestyle survive... by jumping on deer and selling them live for $2000... ask me about it for better details. Once in Franz Josef I signed up for the steepest guided GLACIER walk around! That's right... ICE and COLD... if felt like Canada. I even got to wear some crampons (spikes to help me not fall on the ice) and managed to get some really amazing pictures... reminded me what I left behind (and wasn't missing) back home.
Wanaka -
The next day on our way to Wanaka we stopped for a short hour walk around Lake Matheson... which is where you can get some amazing postcard photos as Mt. Cook (I think I explained why this is important to me earlier) reflects upon this beautifully calm, mirror-like lake. It appears like you are seeing double. In one of the pics I posted it's of a mountain upside down... it's actually a picture of the lake! Crazy I know.
Queenstown -
On the way to Queenstown... which is where I am now... we stopped at Puzzling World (aka my heaven). It has a 3D maze and loads of brain teasers and puzzles. I took on the maze and completed it in 28mins (it is supposed to take 30-60 mins... so I'm a pretty big deal). Then we made a stop at AJ Hackett's first commercial bungy jump (where Amanda and Justing took the plunge) and we watched a video explaining the science and excitement behind the sport. Pretty interesting as we got an insight into the early stages of it all.
The following day (yesterday) I went on a mountain hike. It was an ambitious hike to the summit of one of the higher mountains surrounding Queenstown (expected time it takes is 8 hours return... we gauged it taking us 6 hours... but it took under 4... but don't ask me how close to death I felt). Great exercise and worth doing (even if you break your camera trying to take a picture of yourself at the summit... disposable cameras it is!)
Today I went on a Milford Sound cruise... essentially you are on a huge body of water that was created by glacier movement... you are surrounded by mountains in every direction (again formed by glaciers... and you see some of the most breath taking scenery) But that is all for now talk to you soon. Ryan