As we left Sydney we thought we should have spent more time there. Four days wasn't enough, a week would definitely have been nice.

But we didn't even land in New Zealand before I realized we had made the right decision to spend more time with the kiwis. From the plane we saw gorgeous snow capped mountains all around us. I've never seen a plane fly so close to the tops of mountains. I think the airport is hard to approach otherwise.

I think I'm in paradise. Queenstown is the most beautiful place I've ever been. Snow capped mountains all around us, hills covered with dark green trees, dark blue lakes everywhere. It's like the Pacific Northwest (which I love), except Eric Woershing told me "In New Zealand, they know how to party."

We have so much planned for the next couple weeks. The fun has already started. We rented a Ford Focus and we're driving it pretty much through the entire country from South to North. I keep repeating to myself "stay left."