The Kiwi Experience

The south island is a beautiful place! I am now travelling with the Kiwi Experience tour bus. It is mainly for travellers between the ages of 18-30. I have met so many great people from all over the world and everyone is up for having a great time and experiencing the best of NZ.
I left Christchurch on the 13th and met up with the big kiwi bus in Murchesion in which I got to ride in the tour guide seat right in the very front of the bus. I got to chat with the driver which was sweet and the view from the seat is the best! We got into Westport, an old gold mining town that still has an open cast coal mine working. I took a walk down to the water and met a man sketching boats and I got to chat with him as he is an artist and he took me to his studio and showed me his work. Later in the evening our bus driver took us down to the beach and built a big bonfire. That is where I was able to meet some really cool people including Fiona and Lance a couple from England travelling around the world together. The next morning we were off like a herd of turtles...We stopped in Cape Foulwind it is the closest point to Australia and houses a giant seal colony. There were many babies playing around. The next stop was at the Punakaiki Pancake Rocks which are stratified limestone stacks where I met Steph from Brampton, On. Then it was a short jaunt down to Greymouth for some costume shopping for a party that night. We ended our tour that day at Mahinapua Hotel. My new friends and I walked down to Mahinapua Lake and lounged before dinner. They made us steak dinner with potatoes and venison and coleslaw and some pasta salads. It was sooo good to taste homemade food.
On the 15th we started out the day at the Bushman's Centre. I didnt choose to go into the museum about how people on the south island carve out a living by hunting deers by jumping out of helicopters but some people thought the video was pretty funny. Then we arrived in Franz Josef. Where one of the larger glaciers are. The next day was a free day in the small town which in my feeling resembles a place like Jasper except the mountains are mostly rainforest. I decided to not go on the 8 hour hike up the glacier because I have seen the ones in Canada. So I did a hike up a small mountain that had views of the glacier. Then I came back and chilled for the rest of the afternoon while I awaited the return of my friends.
The next morning we travelled to Lake Mathesion which is supposed to give a mirror reflection of Mt. Cook but unfortunately it was cloudy. But we saw some brightly coloured mushrooms in blue and orange. However the clouds cleared so we got a great view of the Thomas Range. Then it was into lake Wanaka. The lake is a stunning blue.
On the 18th we set out for Queenstown stopping at Puzzle world along the way to see all of the illusions and the worlds first maze to which Lance, Fiona and I had a lot of difficulty finding our way around but it was fun nonetheless. Next we headed to the birthplace of bungy and watched some of our friends and bus driver throw themselves off. We stopped for an ice cream in Arrowtown before getting into Queenstown. It is absolutely stunning here. it is set against the Remarkables Mountain Range. They are named because they run exactly north-south. The town is set along the Wakatipu Lake.
The next day I took my book down to the lake and read for a bit and took it easy. it is nice to not be on the bus all day long. But the next morning I made the most of my day and I did a solo hike up to the gondola. Passing waterfalls along the way. At the top there is glorious views of the town, mountains, and the lake.
On the 21st, I met up with some of my friends from the bus and we went out to do the Canyon Swing where you get harnessed at the stomach and the ledge is 109m high, you do a 60m freefall and then a 200m arc. I was the first to jump and as I had not thought about the style I wanted to do they suggested I just run off the ledge. So without much hesitation I went for it and screamed most of the way down. It felt exhilarating. Then the rest of our crew did swings too. While another couple was going the 4 of us were deciding to do another swing and came upon the idea to do it naked because if you did then that swing would be free. So to save money and for a really random experience we all stripped down and did a different jump. For mine this time they swung me out over the canyon and I hung myself upside down so that faced the canyone river and then they pulled the chord. That was liberating. I cant believe that I actually did it. Definitely a once in a lifetime thing. Well I am off for more adventures... but none like that one. Hope you are all doing well I will be back in less than a month!!!