We`re making our way around NZ on the Magic Bus, which is a good laugh, and we got 2-4-1 on the tickets as well. Ka ching! We seem to have struck gold with our driver, and as we`ve only been staying for 1 night at each stop off we`ve had the same guy all the way so far. It`s going to be a bit pants when we have to switch to another driver in a few days because this guy has been great. He has saved us wasting so much money on stuff that looks cool but is actually pretty lame, which is good because money is starting to get low now as we get towards the end of our trip. So, here is what we`ve done so far in New Zealand.

Christchurch: Only hung around for one night because we`re passing through again.

Kaikoura: Went and did some whale watching, saw a sperm whale and some dusky dolphins. Pretty cool seeing the whale, but we didn`t get too close to it, so I`m undecided still whether it was worth the $115. Rachel  - It was definately worth it. We were right up next to the dolphins. They were jumping out of the water right next to the boat. So beautiful and playful. Also the whale was mahussive. CRAZYNESS!!!

Nelson: Just hung around and took it easy for the day. Also took in the views in and around on the coach. Saw some seals on the rocks playing around and head butting each other. v funny.

Greymouth: Monteiths brewery tour. Don`t really remember too much about this one, or the BBQ afterwards! We had a little tour around the brewery and sampled the 6 types of larger and ale that they sell. Bit of a messy night after! Some were beautiful such as the girly radler which is lime flavouring added to lager and monteiths original which is an ale. I absolutely love the ale and russ is keen on Radler. Bit of a swap there! Off to the "free" BBQ after and made friends with a guy named James from Huddersfield.  

Franz Josef: Arrived just in time to go on a half day trek on the Franz Josef Glacier. It was chucking it down, it was cold, and fat, stupid (average) Americans were a pain in the backside. Was a good work out for the legs, and the beers that night were well earned. The beers made the coach trip the next day pretty painful though! The glacier was amazing. Even if it was wet. It was covered in dirt as well because of the extensive rain bringing the dirt to the top of it. It didnt deter us even though we hadnt had time to eat lunch. 4 hours later the conversations did stop and we rose home to the free soup at the hostel. We have been pretty lucky with the hostels so far as the driver Stu suggests a place to stay each time and the usually have jacquzzies and swimming pools. On our way out of town the next day, we stopped off at Lake Matheson for some pictures of Mount Cook, but the fog got in the way a bit. Fear not though, for we shall be passing the Cook again once more as we bus up the East Coast and cruise right past it.

Queenstown: Our first stop off for more than one night. We were going to do a sky dive, but the weather looked a bit suspect so we gave it a miss. We`ll be doing one on the north island next week though instead! Hung around the adrenalin capital of New Zealand, and spent the day on a gondola, riding down the mountain on a luge, and did some extreme indoor crazy golf at the Caddy Shack. Best crazy golf ever! Rockets go off, you get free sweets from the little sweety shop when you pot on the 18th hole, its awesome! And because it`s new, everything still works properly!

Dunedin: Tour around the Cadbury factory, which is always nice. The nice guide tells you all this interesting stuff, and then asks you questions. First person to answer correctly gets a bar of choccy! I was excluded from the game in the end because I was clearing up. The best bit was when they took us into a HUUUUUGE silo and then a ton of melted chocolate drops out of this massive thing in the air anto a massive thing below. So noisy, so cool, and the smell was awesome! mmmm chocolate! Russ was acting like an absolute teachers pet at this point. The guy gave out a bar everytime someone got an answer right and Russ decided it was his duty to then stand at the front of the class and raise and even resorting to waving his hand to get picked. VVVV funny. you should have seen his little face he looked so chuffed. blessX