Another land conquered...

So that's it - another country conquered in my quest to see the world! My six weeks in New Zealand totally flew by - I can't believe it.

We spent the last week travelling from Queenstown to Twizel to Christchurch. At Twizel we took a bus to Mount Cook - NZ's highest mountain and the place where Sir Edmund Hillary practiced his climbing skills before taking on Mount Everest. It was cold! We were back to the snow again after our brief spell in the sun, so out came all the jumpers again!

We decided to take a tour up to the Tasman Glacier. Our guide Vernon took us up the old crumbling mountain road in a 4x4, driving through frozen puddles and getting fairly close to the edge! He really knew his stuff and clearly had a passion for learning and sharing his knowledge. We went right up to the glacier and saw how it was formed and how it carved its way through the rock to create a valley - and in this case a lake, which is full of giant icebergs.

After Twizel we headed to Christchurch - our last stop in New Zealand. We arrived about 5pm on the Friday afternoon, and after checking into our hostel we walked into town to try and find something to eat, before watching the rugby match on tv. It turned out to be our lucky night... we happened to wander into a sports shop to look at some of the rugby t-shirts and got chatting to the shop assistant. I thought she was acting a little weird - I know kiwis are friendly but she started asking some strange questions! After she'd learnt we'd been following the Air New Zealand Rugby Cup and were planning on watching the game that evening she offered us complimentary tickets to the quarter final match! The stadium was only up the road, we just couldn't afford the tickets! So we gratefully accepted - apparently she had been waiting for someone worthy to give them to! We just had enough time to get to the stadium and had a great evening! The next day we bought her a bottle of wine which she insisted we share right there and then - in the middle of the shop! A lovely lady.

On the weekend we met up with a friend's cousin, Jonny, who had been living in New Zealand for about 6 years or so. He invited us round for a Kiwi BBQ with his friends and family then took us out for a drive to the hills - for a great view - and then down to the beach and Brighton pier! I keep saying it - but people in NZ are so friendly and welcoming.

We spent the last fews days just chilling out in the sunshine in Hagley Park - which is sort of like Hyde Park in London. You could even go punting down the River Avon! Christchurch was really pretty - especially in the sunshine.

I have since flown to Melbourne where I've spent the last three days catching up with Dad (who is on a fast paced tour of Australia) and seeing some amazing sights. I have another 6 days before flying to Cairns and meeting with friend Lee and two of his friends from uni. The four of us plan to travel the East Coast together.

Look out for another blog update on Melbourne soon... until then here are a few random facts about New Zealand you might find interesting...

Woolworths is a supermarket chain
Kiwis call peppers capsicums
Most shops still close on a Sudnay
The most common phrase must be, "Sweet as!"
NZ is known as the Island on the Long white Cloud
It's the most recently permanently populated country in the world
Mount Cook is the country's highest mountain. In Maori its name means cloud piercer
Kiwis LOVE netball
New Zealanders claims they invented pavlova - Australians claim they did!
All New Zeland's glaciers are receding
Kiwis enjoy watching Coronation Street - but must be at least 6-8 months behind England
There are about 40 million sheep
There are 14 national parks - the biggest by far is the Fiordlands National Park