Hi there....so im now in cold new zealand!! Flew in on Friday and the views as we were approaching were amazing, as we actually flew over Mount Cook, which is the picture ive set!! Also several other mountains too!! As i stepped outside the airport the freshness of the cold air hit me, was very refreshing! Got Bus to my hostel and as i knew England were playing All Blacks in Christchurch the next day the first thing i asked the english girl on reception is where can i get a ticket!!! She very excitedly made me run across the street to the ticket office (very handy) and i got the last of 9 tickets left! Reception girl (Becky) then said a group of them are meeting in the lounge at 5 tomoz for pre match drinks and to paint english flags on our faces!! how cool!! So that was great start!Had a wander round town that evening and foudn a travel place where i spoke to a girl and was gonna go back the next day to plan my time here. That night i was freezing, slept in sooo many layers! The next day say Becky and she gave me a blanket and showed me the heating in the room, doh!!! Went to explore today and buy some warm clothes..got a jacket and a fleece, some thermals, and some gloves! (Bit diff to oz!) Then sat in the adventure centre for 2 hours planning my trip! very exciting things planned, was fairly expensive but did it the cheapest way on buses and accommodation is costing no more than 14 pounds a night, but also doing some once in a lifetime experiences! That night we went to the rugby, met great group of people and the atmosphere was fab, altho we didnt win, sooo many english people there and we all joined together and sung the usual songs with a guy playing a trumpet at half time! The next day i was gonna go skiing but there wasnt enough snow on Mount Hutt which is the mountain only an hour from christchurch......after having a sandfly attack in my last wk in oz, was horrible, on face and arms...i discovered more bites, bigger and red!! went to chemist and she said bed bugs.....but not from where i am now as they appear about a wk or so after so must have been from Byron Bay..anyway she gave me some treatment and its all cleared up now thankgod as wasnt very pleasant!! On my last day in Christchurch i went up on the Gondola buy didnt choose the best day as was raining and foggy, the gondola shook and blew in the wind..i remained calm, got to the top and saw some bits and pieces but not fab! That evening i went to a maori experience evening....it was fantastic! Learnt a lot about their culture and beliefs and saw a fantastic show of singing and dancing and chanting! Then had a night tour and saw a KEA bird up close, was like face your fears for me, again i remained calm! Then saw a kiwi..pretty cool and their bodies actually do look like kiwis, how funny! Off to Franz Joseph Glacier tomorrow for the adventure to begin!!