Remarkable
An update this soon? Pat on my back.
Back in Queenstown to put some real effort into finding a job. Long scar up the hill is a gondola that leads to a scenic view over the city. At night, the complex on top is lit up and looks like a UFO floating over the city.
Rich was travelling around the South Island with his mate, so we quickly met up to say hi and goodbye.
Spent much time at the hostel lounge enjoying unlimited internet and watching movies. It was weird watching Lord of the Rings and recognizing half of the scenery. I guess it ruins a bit of the movie magic when you can start naming the mountains of Middle Earth by their earthly names.
Decided to go up to the scenic lookout over Queenstown but was too cheap to pay for the gondola. Good thing I have legs.
A luge ride up top.
That’s Danny, some English guy. He asked me to take a picture for him… next thing I know, we’re hanging out together for the rest of the day. Oh, the spontaneity of independent travel.
Spectacular view of Queenstown and the Remarkables mountain range in the distance.
Took the gondola down, think I did it the wrong way around.
I can’t believe I walked all this way!
At some pub to drink beers and talk about life. The two guys in the background were from Yorkshire. When they all started talking about English football in their heavy accents, they might as well have been speaking Greek; none of it was comprehensible.
That night, after I returned to the hostel for free soup, we went on a little pub crawl. Left the World Bar before the partying backpackers crowded up the place.
At around 11PM, we returned to the Red Rock Bar where we were earlier, and look who was still there! Frosty (he had a name now) had been there the ENTIRE TIME since I had left 4 hours ago! He was one drunk man.
Reminds me of Christmas.
Queenstown is FULL of Asian tourists.
There are probably more resources for Japanese people here than English speakers. That ain’t right.
One usually doesn’t get excited over urinals, but pissing into a can that you go on the piss on is gleefully congruous.
After 4 days in Queenstown without any luck in my job search, I did the only reasonable thing, leave Queenstown. On the drive south toward Te Anau, I passed the Remarkables, which are glorious with a light dusting of snow on top. Can’t wait until they become proper ski fields. Maybe there’ll be more hospitality jobs available then.
A density of sheep.
harhar
Lake Te Anau at dusk.
A mushroom that looks like it’s topped with yummy sweet crunchy bits.
A kea, a very clever alpine parrot. I’ve heard some crazy stories about their shenanigans and look forward to having some of my own.
So why am I in Te Anau? This town is the gateway to Fiordland National Park, home of three Great Walks - the Routeburn Track, Kepler Track, and Milford Track. My plan… FINALLY do one of the Great Walks in its entirety, and without a question, it had to be the Milford Track. Most of my time here has been spent sorting all that out. It’s only possible for me to show up and plan this on a whim because it just became winter season (yesterday - May 1st - matter of fact), and I don’t need a hut reservations which people book months in advance. But that doesn’t by any mean make it simpler or much cheaper. $150 for transport to and from the start and finish of the track, $30 for 3 nights of hut passes, $25 for a mandatory locator beacon, 4 days worth of food, $20 for socks (all mine have holes), not to mention the petrol cost of driving all the way down here. But starting tomorrow, I’m going to find out just why the Milford track is regarded as one of the most famous in the world.
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