Queenstown

January 5^th- On to Queenstown on the South Island

You may know that New Zealand consists of two islands, North and South. (Actually there are un-numbered smaller islands, but the locals only speak of the North and South when they describe their land so we will honor their custom here.)
They seem to enjoy similar prejudices as Americans from North and South in their opinons of each other. Those on the North Island (Auckland, etc.) will portray the South Island as a few thousand people surrounded by millions of sheep, goats and deer. Those on the South Island are extremely proud of their rural heritage and outdoors activities and speak contemptuously of urban problems in the North. So, Bubba versus Metrosexual conflicts may be universal?

Today we left the North Island and flew to Queenstown on the South island. Queenstown is a lake and ski resort, It’s a small jewel of a city sits on the shore Lake Wakatipu and is surrounded on the other three sides by 6,000 foot mountains. The only outdoor activity they don’t have here is nude sky-diving, but I am sure they would arrange it if requested.

It will make you tired just reading the brochures.  These people are fit, tan and buff. They all look like ski instructors in Aspen or Vail. They offer bungee jumping, parasailing, zip lining, white water rafting, black water rafting, cave exploration, jet boat rides, hiking trips, rock climbing and mountain biking. And that’s just in the summer. These people will wear you out and then work on you some more.

Our first day in Q-town, the activity we opted for was drinking wine and eating canapés in our hotel lobby. Why not? We had the stamina for it and went for it. Seemed like a better option. Give me break… rock climbing?

We are in the Queenstown Park Hotel, a terrific, small, extremely contemporary hotel, just off the main business center. It features a reception for the guests in the lobby every evening. Over refreshments, we meet our hosts, John and Donna, who own and operate the place.

The other guests are an eclectic group. We spend most of our time with an about-to-retire Professor of Engineering and his wife, who live in Cambridge, England.  He had worked with engineering colleagues at UT and A&M. I had worked with my co-workers in the UK. So the language barrier was lessened.

On to a Thai restaurant for dinner, on the recommendation of our hosts and to bed after a day of travel from North to South.