Moeraki Boulders:
So, as it turns out, the people/aliens/midgets (delete as appropriate belief) who ‘built’ 
Stonge Henge have been at work in New Zealand….except this time with boulders! On a beach in Moeraki some years ago, someone or something, randomly placed a series of large black boulders. They have become infamous as no one knows, much like Stone Henge, how they got there. The boulders were surprisingly entertaining when we visited them, if only for the fact that as the tide was pretty much in we, and a number of other tourists, spent a significant amount of time dodging the waves in an attempt to get photos. We even witnessed a mother and baby get stranded on a boulder where they were posing when a rather large wave surrounded them. The husband was a lot of help. He just laughed. The smell surrounding the boulders was near on repulsive….it smelled of dead fish. I understand that it was the mountains of seaweed that had encroached on the beach, but those of you who know my aversion to fish (except of course those of the living variety…especially my goldfish) will understand why I felt the constant need to cover my nose. It was putrid and I’m not entirely sure the banter with the boulders was altogether worth it.
Elephant Rocks:
Visiting a film set however made our excursion on the vile smelling beach vanish from my memory and nostrils. It is official – Amy and I found Narnia. We didn’t even have to walk through a closet to get there, which I must say mildly depressed me as I spent half my childhood in the back of my closet determined to find a way through. Turns out, its just the bathroom on the other side of mine. Anyhoo…the Elephant Rocks was the location for the final battle scene in ‘The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe’ movie. Apparently random rock formations were popular visiting sites that day. They were great fun though. Amy and I had a tremendous time climbing rocks and pretending to be Aslan. Sad? Probably. It was all in the name of photography though.
Mount Cook Region:
The following day we hopped, skipped and jumped up to the Mount Cook Region, home 
of….well….Mount Cook a.k.a the most dangerous mountain in existance apparently. We visited the Sir Edmund Hilary centre and even managed to meet the man himself! He wasn’t particularly chatty though….a bit stony really……..ok, bad joke. I apologise. Let’s move on. After a spot of lunch, Amy and I put on our tramping shoes and tramped our way towards the base of Mount Sefton. With the snow capped mountains in constant view, I have to say that tramping in the severe heat as we were was baffling but we coped…its better than rain after all! Once Mount Sefton was reached, we basked in the sun and
the views of Mount Cook. It was beautiful, if a little scary looking, and I was glad that we made the time to go see it. I don’t think a visit to the South Island would have been complete without witnessing the famous mountain.
Lake Tekapo:
In the middle of no where, we were in Lake Tekapo for one reason and one reason only – Star Gazing! Having witnessed a surplus amount of starry starry skies in Africa, both of us were extremely excited about finally seeing the crystaly like blobs close up and, more importantly, the Southern Cross. All the way through Africa Amy had been rising at 3am to try and see it, sadly she failed every time. I was the clever one…I stayed in bed. Sadly though, the Southern Cross will continue to remain a mystery as severe wind ensured our late night soire was cancelled. Rubbish.
River Wild:
Once back in Queenstown, Amy and I rose early and headed up to Glenorchy to go horse-riding. River Wild was the name of our trek and we were assured to get wet as well as see some amazing views. Mounting my horse Doobie, I knew he was a plodder. I was proved right. It didn’t ruin the ride though, especially as 5 out of the 13 of us were taken off into the experienced group so we could canter to our hearts content. Turns out, when cantering is involved Doobie plods no more. We had a great ride, barring a few hairy moments and a horse that is scared of…well…everything. A wonderful way to see New Zealand…although the pain the following day suggested that a car is the comfier version.
Dunedin:
The countdown has begun to my working days and I can’t say I’m too excited. Tomorrow I fly to Auckland, which in itself is very exciting as I have heard a lot about the city and its surrounding attractions. But I think I have seriously forgotten how to work…5 months as a lady of leisure will do that to you. Dunedin itself is nice. I can’t think of any more exciting words to describe it. It’s very much a small city with shops and cinemas and supermarkets. Nothing fancy. We visited Cadbury’s world and the Otago Museum which was pretty cool (I became a bit of a Classics geek again when I discovered a section dedicated to Greek and Roman art and architecture. I won’t bore you but it was amazing!). The Otago Peninsula was a nice, if a bit windy, drive and it culminated in us seeing an albatross! They are huge! But generally, Dunedin is my holding point until I board that flight to Auckland. I can’t promise my blogs will be that regular or that exciting over the next month….but keep updated, you never know!
