Monday, November 19, 2007
Monday we drove to Te Anau and then Milford Sound, believed to be one of the most beautiful places on earth. We drove through countryland covered with sheep, and then between towering mountains. We saw too many waterfalls to count.
At Milford Sound we took a nature cruise which was in a smaller boat than the large tours take, so we could get right up close to the action. In addition to all the waterfalls, we saw some rare New Zealand penguins and some fur seals. The boat could go right up to the mountains and under the waterfalls since the Sound is so deep. It's been a dry season in New Zealand so I'd love to go back to Milford when all the waterfalls are in full force.
The drive from Te Anau to Milford is great, with lots of places to stop to hike and see views. We drove through the Homer Tunnel which is pretty incredible. Read about it here. It's over 1km long, pitch dark, super narrow, and is leaking water. Reminded me of the ice tunnel at Universal Studios (the one that spins around you).
At the eastern end of the Homer Tunnel we saw a bunch of Kea parrots. They weren't scared of us at all and came super close for photos. But then they started following us and wouldn't leave us alone! The funny thing is they weren't flying to follow us, but were on foot. As we walked faster, they "ran" after us. In the end they were sitting on our car and wouldn't let us leave.
On the drive back I saw a baby sheep sitting in the middle of the road. I pulled over and honked a couple times to scare it back towards the other sheep. The baby got up and moved back to the fence but couldn't find a way back in (how did it get out!) Poor thing was "baa'ing" like mad and another sheep (clearly her mom) was responding. Hopefully she found the way in. So cute.
People can say my name correctly here thanks to cricket star Sachin Tendulkar.
I HATE using PCs in these hotels. WINDOWS SUCKS SO MUCH. Why can't a window that has focus keep focus? Why can other windows steal focus? It makes no sense at all and pisses the hell out of me.
At Milford Sound we took a nature cruise which was in a smaller boat than the large tours take, so we could get right up close to the action. In addition to all the waterfalls, we saw some rare New Zealand penguins and some fur seals. The boat could go right up to the mountains and under the waterfalls since the Sound is so deep. It's been a dry season in New Zealand so I'd love to go back to Milford when all the waterfalls are in full force.
The drive from Te Anau to Milford is great, with lots of places to stop to hike and see views. We drove through the Homer Tunnel which is pretty incredible. Read about it here. It's over 1km long, pitch dark, super narrow, and is leaking water. Reminded me of the ice tunnel at Universal Studios (the one that spins around you).
At the eastern end of the Homer Tunnel we saw a bunch of Kea parrots. They weren't scared of us at all and came super close for photos. But then they started following us and wouldn't leave us alone! The funny thing is they weren't flying to follow us, but were on foot. As we walked faster, they "ran" after us. In the end they were sitting on our car and wouldn't let us leave.
On the drive back I saw a baby sheep sitting in the middle of the road. I pulled over and honked a couple times to scare it back towards the other sheep. The baby got up and moved back to the fence but couldn't find a way back in (how did it get out!) Poor thing was "baa'ing" like mad and another sheep (clearly her mom) was responding. Hopefully she found the way in. So cute.
People can say my name correctly here thanks to cricket star Sachin Tendulkar.
I HATE using PCs in these hotels. WINDOWS SUCKS SO MUCH. Why can't a window that has focus keep focus? Why can other windows steal focus? It makes no sense at all and pisses the hell out of me.