Muffy Toe

hi Everyone!

I didn't think I would take the time to blog while I'm in NZ, but it's been raining all day and now that i've gotten to my hostel, there's not much to do besides sit here so I won't feel bad. It's such a tiny little town so there's nothing really to do besides hike. Here's a really quick brief/highlights about New Zealand so far:

Our hostel in Christchurch had an old fashioned elevator- the kind with 2 doors that you open manually.

We only got about 4 hours of sleep and then jumped on the bus to Westport. Saw lots of beautiful scenery (do they even have grass this brilliantly green in the US? Also, mountains and awesome windy roads, tons of sheep everywhere and I even saw two farmers out with their dogs herding sheep! Awww, Benny...)

There's a girl on my bus from Beaumont. I'm surprised at how strange yet comforting it is to hear her voice. It's funny because at dinner last night we were all sitting at a long table in a very noisy room and I couldn't hear what the guy next to me was saying, but I could understand her conversation from 4 chairs away!)

I love backpackers. They are an interesting yet wonderful breed.

50 cent ice creams in a tiny bakery in Reeford on the way to Westport

so so so many stars

adorable little hostel in Westport

jet boating up the river on Thursday morning- so cold, but fast and fun and beautiful scenery, going right into the fog hanging over the mountains, also 2 little waterfalls. this boat only needs 10 inches of water. it was created to hunt deer in NZ.

Penguins sitting on the Pancake Rocks

meeting some awesome English guys on our bus, and lots of other fun people

every bridge here is one lane. But we went over one that was one lane for both lanes of traffic AND the train!

Amazing sunset on the beach at Lake Mahinapua. It's in the middle of nowhere. Truly, the only thing there is this hostel where we stayed and our bus had it all to ourselves for the night. this guy Les, who's 81 years old and pretty famous on the west coast owns it. He's hilarious. I can't believe he's that old and still running this place all by himself. the beach was just a short walk and we saw the mountains turn from pink to grey with fog. Les cooked an amazing dinner for us all- steak and venison (very local sorts of meats and veggies).

The weather has been beautiful so far, but it's been raining all day today. We drove straight to Franz Josef and it's still raining so I really can't go hiking or anything. But tomorrow i'm on schedule to do a glacier walk. it's about 8 hours, 6 of which will be on the ice, and it's supposed to rain all day. So i'm a little nervous but very excited. I"m sure it will be fine and even if i'm miserable all day i'll be proud of myself for doing it.

after tomorrow we're headed to Wanaka and then Queenstown where i will hang out for a few days. then back to christchurch to fly out on saturday morning.

I'm glad i'm travelling by bus. I thought i might regret it, but i love roadtrips from my childhood and i think drivng through NZ really is the best way to see it. I want to come back and rent a car one day and drive through the north and south island. Who's with me?

Well i'm going to get kicked off soon. I'm sure i've left out lots of things, but there will be more in the future. I'm having a great time. Special hello to all of my family i talked to so briefly on Easter. (Oh, and Easter camp was so fun. i love having awesome Aussie church friends! more about that when I get home...) Also, hello to the Thursday night group. I'm off to track through the rain down to the little main street and find a cafe and coffee where I can read my Spurgeon sermons. =)

This is a general encouragement to travel whenever you have the chance and the means. Also, thanks to my amazing parents and Dad Ford. Love love love to you all.

cheers!!
Mich