Queenstown Capers

Thursday, June 23, 2005

Keep it coming

Another 'weekend' has passed, and it too was full of stuff. First of all before work on Monday a packed all my stuff ready to move. I only managed to get myself and a sportsbag to my new residence however, as those who were to help me happened to be busy pulling up carpet and moving furniture.

So on Tuesday, i hung out with my new flatmates for a bit before heading back to the old place and finishing cleaning and making sure everything was ready for the final inspection. Dean rocked up with the van at around 1pm and in the rain we managed to move all my crap and fairly quickly too. 2.30pm was time for inspection and it was all sweet. it had even stopped raining. Plans to go to town were scrapped when i decided i was too tired. ended up blobbing, hanging out and watching crap TV. later on we played black Jack and Poker for house chores. strangely enough, i won with only one chore to my name out of 15. it was heaps of fun. we also tried some goat as Alex had roasted a leg. it tastes like a cross between beef and lamb, not too strong a flavour at all.

Wednesday morning i got up ridiculously early for a day off and went quad-biking. it was awesome fun, dressed up in motorbike gear and gumboots, zipping up and down the other side of Queenstown hill, through big puddles and heaps of mud, glorious mud! we even got to do this advanced track which involved really steep and rocky, serious boulder, terrain. It was a great morning.
after that excitement, I caught up with everyone at the Speights Ale House for Charles's farewell lunch. Great chicken parcel and good beer! that was followed with a stop at Dux de Lux for some pool and ginger beer, a bit of shopping and then home again with icecream on the way.

After my only really good nights sleep in the last few days i am now ready again for work, and all the poms it brings with it. Go the All Blacks!!!!!

Saturday, June 18, 2005

Episode 1

Well well, first up, what a 'weekend'!! being in the industry my weekends are not quite the normal ones. this one just past consisted of Thursay and Friday. Just the way i like it.

First up Thursday. I'd decided (being in Queenstown) that I must learn how to ski. So, having scored a free lesson i went up Coronet Peak. it was a slow but interesting 90 minutes as we were taught all the basics and spent time going around in circles with one ski on. we did get to hit the tiniest of tiny slopes and eventually i managed to figure out how to stop! and how to minimise sliding backwards. as i was not eligible for the afternoon session (well it was free to start off with) i took it upon myself to practice after lunch. a bit longer tiny slope this time and i sort or figured out how to turn a bit and perfected the stopping thing. after a few little runs there i ran into my mates (all acomplished skiers) and they took me up the chair lift to try the big easy - a proper long but still novice slope. here it gets interesting as the slope was pretty steep so my skis just took off all on their own and i was hurtling at high speeds down the mountain. oops. had to fall to stop that time!! nice wipeout and i have to say my only wipe out of the day. After a little hint to turn more from deano the legend, i continued down the mountain, curving nicely around other skiers and still going reasonably quickly, i haven't got the hang of the slow thing yet! needless to say, my mates were impressed and i went up and down another few times all by myself and didn't fall or crash into anyone. Yay for me, i learnt how to ski and i love it!! can't wait to get back up there again :)

Then came Friday. Initially i was going to go do a bungy as they were supposed to be having a famil day but as the guy who was organising it was at a trade show in Christchurch that didn't go ahead. Instead i decided to go do the canyon swing. with Elvis driving us all the way up (i'm not kidding, it was Elvis!!) i wasn't really scared. i got to go last and being an FOC, the guys there like to scare the poo out of ya. so they got me to sit in a chair with a hood covering my face so i couldn't see a thing, tipped back in the chair right on the edge they whipped away the hood just as they let the chair tip over hurtling over the edge and tumbling down a 60m freefall before swinging casually in an arc across the gorge. it was awesome!! imagine sitting in a chair swinging across a canyon with the Shotover river flowing beneath you. Great fun! so much in fact that i did it again although this time pushing off the platform in a handstand. Bring on the bungy!!

After all that i went and saw Mr and Mrs Smith at the movies which i really enjoyed. gotta love the Pitt man!

so now i'm just chillin' (literally cos it is freezing down here) until i go back to work this arvo. And it's not bothering me cos i'm still buzzing!