Back on the Ferry

Leaving Wellington yesterday was exciting, as it meant the final leg of my journey to Queenstown was underway. I will travel back across the Cook Straits to the South Island, and then drive down to Christchurch again, this time with Nikola's Mom, Ruth. The following day we drive to the West coast, to a small village outside Greymouth, where we make a final stop, before I depart the following morning for Queenstown. Finally.
Wellington was awesome in the end! I got to go to a professional rugby game, between the Hurricanes and the Brumbies, after having gone to the ANZAC dawn parade commemorating the fallen battalions of the first world war, in Gallipoli (sp?). New Zealand's gun was present at the parade, and at the game, where it shot a couple rounds and deafened the audience, before the lone trumpeteer proceeded to misplay the "call to arms"... yikes!
As if that wasn't enough, New Zealand's two tanks were also present at the field, just to make it look good, and it's military helicopter flew in and hovered above the field while a soldier got hoisted in to deliver the match ball! Seriously though, I think the entire New Zealand military was at that field...

After the dawn parade, at dawn, we went up to Mount Victoria, which overlooks Wellington Harbour. It was a great way to check out the entire city, and see how the landscape has been shaped by the wind and tides of the Cook Straits. The city is one of the windiest in the world, which makes it interesting for airplanes to land on the tricky runway, built on what was formerly a narrow marshy passage from the mainland to an island-peninsula.
Driving down in Ruth's badass Land Rover was fun. I was by far the flashest traveller on the roads! Bling! We even picked up a hitch-hiker from Picton, and she sat in the back quietly until Christchurch.

I'll have some more news once I get to QT, so more later...


Happy Birthday Mom! Love you


Cleeeeeeeeeeeeeeees