New Zealand 紐西蘭 (24 Mar - 5 Apr 2005)

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We went to New Zealand for the first time during the Ester holiday.

In my opinion, we were too ambitious to visit both the North & the South Islands, and ended up not enough time in any place.

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Jump!

We took the flight to Christchurch then drive to Queenstown the next day.

This picture was taken at the Skyline Gondola in Queenstown.

Natural beauty and extreme activities mixed well in New Zealand. My kid was begging for permission to jump.

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Luge Fun

Luge at the Skyline Gondola in Queenstown.

Both me and the kids had lots of fun on the luge.

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Shotover Jet

More serious fun near Queenstown. The jet skirt pass the rock only inches away.

When the pilot make the hand signal of spinning (like in the second picture), brace yourself for the spinning and the water coming into the boat.

Again, my kid was begging to go again, again & again.

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Heritage Hotel

We stayed in the Heritage Hotel in Queenstown. The rooms were quite spacious and nice.

We saw the rainbow from the balcony in our rooms.

Looks like most of the hotel workers were young people from overseas - a Japanese girl cleaned our rooms, a Middle-eastern looking guy and a Caucasian with funny English installed the kiddy beds in our rooms, and a Hong Kong Chinese guy served us in the restaurant.

We observed the same in lots of the restaurants. Apparently there is a serious labor shorterage, especially in the service industry. The Hong Kong guy in the Heritage Hotel restaurant told me that he earns about NZ$12/hour.

The second picture is our van right outside the hotel lobby.

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Gibbston Valley

Gibbston Valley is not too far from Queenstown. Lots of wineries in the area.

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Grandma

Japanese grandma in traditional dress.

This picture was taken near a former gold mine on the way from Queenstown to Christchurch.

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Farm Animals

The pictures here are probably the top three most frequently encountered farm animals in New Zealand, especially in the South Island.

As it turned out, it's hard to take snap shots of sheeps. They are generally very shy and run away as soon as we stop the car.

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Farmland

Warehouse for sheep food?

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Hermitage Hotel

Hermitage Hotel in Mount Cook. The rooms are very expensive for the quality, perhaps due to the remoteness of the location.

The environment was very nice, and cold. In the morning, some wild chicken like birds came visit our backyard.