Kia Ora!! Here is an overview of the last 2 and a bit weeks of the south island of New Zealand, a lot has happened so it might not be in the best detail but its enough for you guys to know what I'm up to!

Sooo first stop Christchurch.. not really much to do here seeing as the whole city centre is still closed off and there's only a couple of hostels open, but I met a couple of girls leaving on the same bus which is good, so I mostly just hung around with them. The "hostel" I was staying in was actually more someone's home.. it was nice but I just felt really intrusive and we weren't really sure where we were allowed to go and where not. Just things like when she spent about 2 hours cooking herself this massive meal, sitting in the kitchen just felt a bit in the way and she always had the cover over the tv so we weren't sure whether we could watch it. But I was only there one night so can't really complain. I had a dorm to myself, that is until about 10pm when this random guy came in (around about 60 years old) and started talking.. and talking and talking!! I had my book right up to my face but he still didn't get the idea but then I realised he didn't really need me to be involved in the conversation, he was quite happy chattering away to himself. But then in the morning.. his alarm went off at 6.30..... i would've gone back to sleep.. but then he turned on the light and started talking again.. something about had someone come in during the night and stolen his sock?? Who knows! Then we got on the bus to a place called Kaikoura, but because we didn't arrive til late if you wanted to whale watch or swim with dolphins we had to stay 2 nights. Then the next day me and some others off the bus went off to swim with literally hundreds of wild dolphins! It was a bit scary at first and the water was absolutely freezing and I found myself wondering if this was not a really silly idea. But then you get used to the cold a bit and once the dolphins start coming and swimming around it was really cool and I was so glad I did it! But it wasn't anything like I did last time, like with them jumping over your head and pushing you along and stuff, they were proper wild and only came over to see what the hell we were all doing.. we were told to swim around in circles and make high pitched noises.. I wish I had filmed people doing it. It was very entertaining! I would've liked to have whale watched too but hopefully that will be an option somewhere else around!

Next stop, a place called Nelson, again we arrived quite late so 2 nights to stay if we wanted to do anything, but then there was abit of a bottleneck with the buses and massive waiting lists, so they put another bus on the Friday and I ended up staying 3 nights. We stayed here to go to a national park called Abel Tasman, named after someone but I don't really remember what he did! Maybe he discovered it or something!? Anyway the trip involved a speedy little boat taking us around some beaches and then dropping us off to walk back. The views were nice but it was not a walk it was hilly and hard work! I think I said not too long ago I liked hiking.. I take it back! I do not like walking up hills!! It is not fun! But there were some really nice scenery and lots of pictures taken but with my new fancy camera I've done that everywhere!! There's not really much else to do in Nelson, except we walked up another mmmaaaasssssssive hill to the centre point of New Zealand, which was kinda cool but we managed to just miss sunset, still got some nice pictures though! But on the way to Nelson we stopped a few times to look at seals. There was this one shortish walk we went on up to some waterfalls where all the seal pups go in winter when the mam seals go fishing. They're really cute but wouldn't sit still long enough for a decent picture!

Next stop.. Westport! And off jet boating. Which started off as quite a nice little tour of the river and the area and we got explanations of how high the river floods to etc, then the fun bit started! Its some really fast boat so when it spins and turns it meant we all got flung across the seats, even though we couldn't have been more crammed in! Poor me was on the edge for a while so I kept getting slammed against the side every minute or so! Poor me! I felt so bruised and at one point I was convinced I was going to fracture something! Six 5 other people bashing you into the side really hurts!! Anyway, it was still awesome and the boat guy said that they used to get everyone to jump into the river off the road (quite a big jump) until people kept getting injured and they realised that it was maybe a bit too high! Westport is a pretty small place so apart from pizza that was all the excitement for the day. Next day had a few more woodland type walks and some people from our bus jumped off a jetty into a really cold lake! Not me! We could actually see the eels!! Thats just silly! That night we had a party (and a steak) at a random pub in the middle of nowhere run by NZ's oldest publican (apparently) but he did look pretty old, and we all dressed up as tramps, not really sure why but it was fun!

Next was another 2 nighter.. Franz Josef. Again its not the biggest of towns but it does have a massive glacier. Why there is a massive glacier there I don't really know but apparently it is receding but it still moves everyday, and for something in the ice at the top to get moved to the bottom takes about 70 years I think. But when we first arrived me and one of the other girls decided to go horse riding. I knew I couldn't ride a horse but I figured, how hard could it be!?! Turns out.. very hard! I came scarily close to falling off at least twice! The silly thing was I was too busy holding on for dear life that I couldn't let go long enough to slow the horse down! It was quite happy just cantering/galloping after the others.. stupid horse! BUT!! I did manage to stay on and my legs definitely got a proper work out! I've never hung onto anything harder in my life, but I would like to learn to ride properly(Christmas/Birthday idea for someone maybe??) just so maybe if I ever find myself back on a horse I can get around without fearing for my life! After saying that the scenery was beautiful, we didn't see the glacier but we were in a valley and on river beds and it was just beautiful. The other side-effect of my inexperienced riding was my poor back, it got pulled something rotten! Luckily the hostel had a big outdoor Jacuzzi, which I think might have stopped it from being even worse! But the next day.. ouch! I was in so much pain! Arms, legs and back! And today I was doing a full day glacier ice walk! And yes mum, Simon was right they give you the warm clothes, I didn't steal them!! Not that I needed them, the weather was amazing, I couldn't have had better but it also meant that I was roasting! We got special spiky bits to clip onto our boots and that made walking n the ice easier but it was still really hard in some places, stomping up hills and clambering up ice steps that our guide hacked into the ice! They were really steep and I thought I had been super prepared by layering up so combined with my soreness, it was doubly hard. But the day was totally worth the effort and you guys can see the pics when I get home! I think the guide said there's only 3 glaciers in the world that are bordered with rainforest and thats why this one was so special but I'm not completely convinced!

Next Stop: Wanaka. On the way we stopped to see Mt Cook reflected in this lake, again very scenic but I think that's a theme with the South Island of New Zealand at least! We also got a chance to see number 2 of those special rainforest glaciers, Fox glacier! Like the mints!! Wanaka itself was still quite a small town but its a ski resort in winter and looking around, it totally looked like one! But only the beginnings of snow at the moment so no skiing for me! But some day I'll come ski here, do you reckon there's an elective that could be done around skiing or skiing injuries or something?? Maybe not! But you never know!

Next stop: Queenstown and Milford Sound. Well Queenstown is such a pretty town, and definitely more of a town than a lot of the others we've been too so far! Its got mountains and a lake and its just lovely! I would've spent more time there except for the stupid kiwi bus being full until the 29th!! And seeing as my flight was booked for the 27th, I thought I had better keep my seat for the 24th! But we'll get back onto my transport issues later! They've got a strange law in NZ that on Good Friday and Easter Sunday no alcohol can be bought or served midnight-midnight. So that complicated things a little bit. So on Thursday off we went to Milford Sound for the day (its actually a fjord!! Don't be fooled!) It was sold to me as being the 8th wonder of the world, and while again being very nice, I think perhaps its been exaggerated a little. It reminded me a lot of the river cruise through the 3 gorges in China to be honest, more just like a strip of water with cliffs and waterfalls either side. It was nice but not necessarily worth the 5 hour drive to get there! The other thing we did there was go down into an underwater observatory to look at some coral and rocks that they moved there to attract fish. The fish were only little but we did see some rare black coral (it was white, but apparently only goes black when its dead!), silly name I reckon, but then that's not up to me! We then spent one day kinda mulching around and I had the best (and only really) burger ever. You guys know I don't like burgers but this one was a-may-zing!! Soooooooo goooooooood! Fergburger! I don't know why it was so good but it's always really busy and well worth it! Yum! Then came Saturday and so my canyon swing!! I kinda wish I'd been a bit braver and done something fancy off the side but I was scared so I got swung out to the side and then they cut the rope and you freefall for 3 seconds before swinging out over the river. It was awesome but I was shaking for a fair while, I have a video of it especially for grandmas! I thought they would appreciate it the most! But it's alright I'm still in one piece.. for now! Who knows maybe I'll feel braver in the north island and do something fancy! Then I went and got my tattoo.. I know, but don't worry it only covers one arm! I think you'll like it really! Haha only kidding! But I think your faces would've been funny to see! Imagine if I had though! I just wouldn't know what to get! My friend did get one though and I took some pictures of that. And that was the excitement of Queenie!

Next stop: Omarama. Soooo I managed to get dropped off ok in Omarama but i hadn't baked on it being Easter Sunday, and it would seem that its a very popular area for a long weekend because it took me a while to find somewhere to stay! Luckily I managed to get the last "cabin" in this holiday park. I guess it was technically a cabin but I think it more resembled a garden shed. It was basically a room with a double bed (yey) and a small desk. But really what else did I need? So off I trotted to the airfield for the glider flight my lovely daddy and mammy paid for! And it was totally worth it! Easily the best flight I've had. There were wave clouds and the ridge was working and at one point I had the controls but it's been so long now since my course that I wasn't totally confident, and every negative-g kept panicking me a little since that infamous stall! But it was really fun when the instructor decided to freak out some campervan sat on top of a hill, and we headed really low straight for them and swooshing out of the way at the last second! It was awesome! Put this way, we were so close to the hillside that we could see the blades of grass on the hill! The next day I tried to leave on the Kiwi bus but they were full unless I could get an hour and half down the road to Lake Tekapo.. I'm still not sure how they thought I was going to do that. So I spent another day in Omarama hanging around and taking pictures and eating lots, but at least the weather was nice! Then Tuesday morning, I had been bumped up the waiting list and confirmed on the bus at 11 and I was told to wait at the bus park.. so I did wait from 10.45.. 11.20 the bus appears, but nooooooo he doesn't come to the bus park, he stops at the end of the road and just sits there. So I gather my stuff and start walking down.. then when I'm maybe 50m away, a lorry pulls around the corner in front of me, and once he's moved..... the bus has gone!! He left me behind!!! I was so so so mad and rang the office straight away, but she said he couldn't come back. Grrrrrr! But the office lady was nice and helped me book another shuttle which they paid for, but now I didn't get dropped off til 10pm in some obscure area of Christchurch, but luckily mam text me some taxi numbers and I managed to share a taxi with this American girl to the hostel. The next day the weather in Christchurch wasn't up to much so I didn't do much but hang around catching up on my diary and reading etc. Then on the airport I somehow managed to earn myself a lecture on how money has no real value and how people in the world are evil and we all need to wake up to the real stuff in life.. I was so happy to get out at the airport but then I discover my flight is delayed by 3 hours.. wwwhhhhyyyyyy! Well according to Jetstar lady because the plane needed a new part earlier in the day!! Oh yes and now that plane is behind a bit. Oh dear.. we've all seen aircraft investigation.. this is where stuff goes wrong, new bits to planes not done properly! But its okay because now I'm in the north island so no more flights for 3 weeks and then I'm off to sunnier times!