It snowed overnight in Queenstown. Beautiful vistas. We took a minibus to Skipper’s Canyon. Skipper’s Canyon was once a booming gold mining area. The road through the gorge was completed in 1890 and much of it hasn’t changed since then. A dirt road with sheer drops, switchback curves, and very narrow. Kind of terrifying but wonderful at the same time. Gorgeous views. And there were no people. We were the only ones on the road. It was really the highlight of our trip.
Back in Queenstown we took a boat ride across the lake and watched some dogs watch a sheep shearing….
We flew from Auckland to Christchurch and got up early the next day to board the TranzAlpine railway. The TranzAlpine is considered one of the world’s great train journeys because of the scenery. It is 139 miles one-way, takes almost 5 hours, goes through 16 tunnels and four viaducts. The route takes it from Christchurch through the Canterbury Plaines, past the Waimakariri River to Rolleston. It then passes through the Southern Alps past the Waimakariri River gorge via Arthur’s pass and ends in Greymouth on the West Coast. We rode it as far as Arthur’s pass.
From there we were on a bus to Hokitika. Hokitika is a beach town on the west coast known for its Pounamu. Pounamu is also known as Greenstone or nephrite jade. The stone is important to the Maori culture. Not all Pounamu is jade. Pounamu can only be found in New Zealand whereas some of the greenstone found in shops is jade from other countries. There are many different kinds of Pounamu, distinguished by the color.Â
We overnighted in Franz Joseph and took a jetboat on the River Haast the next day. It was a rainy day and we were the last people allowed on the river due to high water levels. Lots of waterfalls.
The west coast is wet and tropical. As soon as you cross over the alps to the east, the climate changes quite drastically. Back over the Alps again and on to Queenstown.
Our first day in Auckland, we met my friends Louise and her sister Barbara for breakfast. I met Louise and Barbara and their family when I was living in Mexico. We went to grade school together. I hadn’t seen them for over 50 years. It didn’t matter. We had a wonderful reunion. Lots of fun. Their family owns two restaurants in Auckland – San Ray and Cazador. We ate at San Ray and it was fabulous.
From there we went to the War Museum which is more of a science and history museum. Interesting place, but unfortunately much of it was closed. Then on to the Art Gallery with was wonderful. Lots of impressionists. An exhibit of Louise Bourgeois – including a film of her being interviewed. A very interesting character. Saw some New Zealand artists as well.
A very civilized place…
The next day we took the 40 minute ferry to Waiheke Island. The island is known for its wineries. We opted for the hop-on-hop-off bus that gave us a tour of the whole island. Beautiful views and countryside. Lots of holiday houses. We at lunch with a view of the sea.
I arrived on time in Los Angeles. Picked up my bag. It was 2 pm. My flight to Fiji left at midnight. I couldn’t check in until 8 pm. No place to sit in the Departure area. Why are airports like that? Masses of people sitting on the floor waiting for check in to start. Couldn’t they just put in a bench of seats? Is that asking too much? I went downstairs to Arrivals. Lots of seats down there. Go figure.
After waiting in long lines, got to check in. Found the gate. My traveling companion’s flight was delayed. No sign of her. Final boarding call. I’m in line to board the plane. She showed up at the last minute. Whew!
We were flying Fiji Air. Flight was 9.5 hours. For some reason it was brutal. The food was not good. The service was great. Nice staff. Arrived in Fiji at 6 am. We time traveled. It was all of a sudden two days later. Or something like that. It took a while to figure out what day it was. Checked into the hotel, napped, watched the sunset, ate dinner, crashed.
The next day was Fiji Day. Who knew? Activities all day long. Dancers in the morning. More dancing and singing in the evening. Along with fireworks.
Signed up for a tour. First stop was the Hindu Temple. The largest one in the southern hemisphere. Women cannot go in with pants or shorts on so we all had to wrap cloth around us. They had a big pile at the entrance so you could take your pick. The temple was beautifully decorated.
We spent some time in the downtown shopping area. Mostly tourist shops.
Next stop was a village on the coast. We learned that cannibalism was common on the island and the European sailors originally called Fiji the Cannibal Isles. The sailors avoided disembarking there. Thomas Baker, a missionary, was killed and eaten in 1867. The soles of his leather sandals, which were also cooked by the cannibal tribe, are preserved at the Fiji Museum in Suva. The story goes that later missionaries arrived laden with all kinds of food in order to avoid being eaten. The small village was lovely and very well kept. There was a church at one end of a small square. Several women were selling trinkets on the way back to the car.
From there we went to the Garden of the Sleeping Giant at the bottom of the tallest mountain on the island. The garden was originally set up by Raymond Burr of Perry Mason fame. He apparently had a home on the island and loved orchids. It is famous for its extensive collection of orchids.Â
A lot of time in Fiji was spent by the pool. Totally awesome.
Drove to Wyoming, Minnesota yesterday. We were speculating on why it was called Wyoming. Maybe people were headed to Wyoming and only made it this far? Maybe they came from Wyoming and missed it. Turns out it was originally named after the Wyoming Valley in Pennsylvania. This Minnesota town has a population of about 7,800. Its claim to fame is The Barker-Karpis gang kidnapped William Hamm of Hamm’s Brewery and released him in Wyoming in June 1933.
