50: South Island Tour: Part IV: Queenstown to Dunedin (15 Feb 2009)

We thought we'd leave Queenstown early to get a head start on the drive back to Dunedin, but we somehow ended up dragging our heels and did the gondola ride (see part III). We got out of town a bit late, but still managed to make pretty good time getting back to Dunedin. We stopped off at the Shingle Creek Pub for lunch which, if you blink, you'll miss it. It's an amazing little place in the middle of nowhere with a quirky lot working in the bar and kitchen. They live on site so have no real expenses in terms of commuting. Back in Dunedin, we had about 90 minutes before I had to get them to the airport for their flight back to Wellington. We did a whirlwind tour around town, snapping some photos of the old style buildings. Dunedin apparently has a lot of history and is one of the older settlements in New Zealand.

49: South Island Tour: Part III: Milford Sound to Queenstown (14 Feb 2009)

Saturday the 14th seemed like an eternity. The days this time of year are extremely long, with the sun going down around 10 to 1030pm due to being so far south. We left early for Milford Sound, did the tour (see part II below) and then had to get straight back on the road to get to Queenstown before it got too late. NZ is so full of scenery that it's hard to keep to any semblance of a time table. It makes you want to stop at every beautiful panorama. We eventually pulled up to Queenstown and found that the entire place was booked out. All of the grungy backpackers hostels were full so we scouted around on foot and found a nice hotel which was reasonably priced when divided by three. Had a nice evening out relaxing and got to bed at a reasonable hour, only to get up early on Sunday to make the mad trek back to Dunedin to get my friends off to the airport.

48: South Island Tour: Part II: Te Anau to Milford Sound (14 Feb 09)

Day two: We arrived the night before into Te Anau only to find that accommodation was nil to limited. We fortunately scored a little cabana in the camp ground near the lake. No clouds in the sky so it was absolutely freezing. This, of course, made for perfect weather during the day, so no complaints there. The drive from Te Anau to Milford Sound was stunningly breathtaking! Milford Sound itself is usually overcast and rainy but on this particular day we scored perfect weather which was great for getting some quality images.

47: South Island Tour: Part I: Dunedin to Te Anau (13 Feb 09)

I was living down in Dunedin for 6 weeks doing a collaboration with a physiologist at the University of Otago. But all work and no play makes me a dull boy, so decided to duck out for an impromptu South Island tour with a couple friends visiting from Wellington.

46: Rain Rain Go Away....No, Even Better, PISS OFF For a Good Long While

Incessant rain can take its psychological toll on a mere mortal after just three weeks of monsoonal punishment. I mean, yeah, it's rather refreshing at first. It washes away the grime, keeps things nice and tidy. But enough's enough already!! Add in the wind and cold winter temps and this is a carbon copy of Seattle.

SOS!!Please, send sunshine! Need suuunshine!!

45: Til We Meet Again....On The Dance Floor!

Happy times but sad times. My beloved friend and esteemed salsa partner Jessica has finished her work contract here in Wellington and is on her way back to Canada. Yes, who'd have ever thought that the Canadians and Yanks would ever get along in such perfect harmony?! The salsa gang met up at a Restaurant 88, a little Vietnamese place on the corner of Tory and Ebor. As you can see, plenty of smiles all of which belie the fact that we will be losing one from the Wellington salsa family before long. But the good thing is, most of us are from all over the world and have traveled quite extensively, so are confident we'll cross paths yet again in the not so distant future!

<----See salsa video off to the left on the side bar. Click on photos for larger view.

44: Wednesday Bloody Wednesday....

This photo prompted a memory of the lyrics from the U2 song Sunday Bloody Sunday, "under a blood red sky...." However in this case it was more like Wednesday Bloody Wednesday. Last week the rain cleared out just in time to create something on par with a laser light show at a Pink Floyd concert. I dove for my camera and captured this image. Quite impressive actually. Click on image for full size.