Monday, Dec 4. – Full day #5
Waking up in this tree hut we knew today was one of our longer “drive” days of the trip. Mapping it, we had a 4.5 hour drive ahead of us. We weren’t necessarily in a hurry. We just had to make it to Queenstown sometime that day so that we could catch our flight out the next morning. We’re not big fans of big cities so much anyway. We made our way out of bed (starting to sleep in past 6:00am… better…starting to get adjusted to the other side of the world’s time).
Adam cooked the pre-ordered breakfast. Okay, he toasted the toast, layered it with butter and jam. Then, he tried and failed miserably at the coffee machine, and sliced a kiwi. Angela took her turn at the coffee machine. “Here, let me show you how, Adam.” FAIL. Then she went up to the front office. The “free WiFi” also was not working. They could take their “tree house” and shove it.
Ended up we couldn’t the get the coffee machine to work. The front desk lady said the pods they got weren’t the ones that go with the machine because they were trying the environmentally-friendly kind. I mean, I’m cool with that but they weren’t working. She offered to come to the room; she had personally tried out every single coffee machine the day previous and got every single one of them to work. (How environmentally friendly is this approach?) She gave me a number to call about the Internet. Maybe they could help get me individually signed in. Maybe it was because the walls were so thick, made out of logs, but she had never had anyone have issues in the past. I go back and relay all info to Adam. He goes outside, and Wa-lah!…WiFi connection. Back to the coffee press again. Adam, out to the front porch with the bugs to hop on the Web for a quick minute. I was over it. (I know I’m spoiled, it’s cool.)
So we basically ate quickly and figured it was time to go. No need to stick around. This drive took us South along the coast, hugging the mountains. Same amazing scenery and winding roads as we’ve become accustomed to here on the South Island, so Adam really refined his NZ mountain driving skills while Angela managed to, once again, avoid falling prey to becoming car sick. She asked him to avoid using the brakes, it made her feel more sick. Reasonable, right? Yeah right.
A little over 3 hours into the drive and it was time for food, a stretch, a pee and a beer break. We stopped in a little town called Cardrona. You could tell this was a pass-through town, right on the highway.
We stopped at a bar/restaurant/hotel called, surprise! …Cardrona Hotel. This was a delightful little place connected to an 11 room motel and an amazing garden out back. You couldn’t really tell from the front. We picked a good one.
^Out the back of the Cardrona Hotel.
^The constant travel is starting to catch up with Angela.
We ordered a local pint, decided on the Bangers and Mash to split for lunch and headed out back to wait for the food. While waiting we toured the manicured landscape and even discovered that Prince Harry himself stopped at this same bar a few years ago and ordered the Bangers and Mash (I guess great minds think alike.)
^It was so nice sitting out back in the crisp air while the fire crackled. Thumbs up Adam!
^Look at these amazing flowers! Flawless.
The meal hit the spot, and before you knew it, we were back on the road. As we got closer to Queenstown the scenery changed a little bit. It kind of reminded me of driving through North California (Napa Valley region). It was very dry here, which made the area very dusty. We could feel it in our sinuses. This was not the humid weather we are used to in Florida. Apparently NZ had a very wet winter and were now experiencing droughts. The locals said it was unusual weather. The further along we got, we could tell we were getting into more populated areas, but we still couldn’t see the high-rises beyond the mountains. We kept waiting, thinking it would be right around the corner.
^Maybe around this corner? …nope.
^Look at the GPS image for an example of the roads we were navigating!
^Can you see it down there yet? Nope, me either.
^Is that a teepee up on the hill??? I bet it’s an AirBnB!
Once we made it around a mountain and by looking on the GPS saw what seemed to be Queenstown we were a little taken-a-back. The town that we had been envisioning was filled with high rises and a metropolitan hub…this city wasn’t that at all. It was a much bigger and more defined town than we had seen in our earlier travels but it wasn’t overpowering. It still had a quaint feel to it. As we approached the downtown area we saw your typical brand name shops, but no high-rises.
^We made it! …this is Queenstown, NZ.
^Isn’t she beautiful?
It felt like a Colorado Ski town. Big enough to draw the people but not big enough create overpopulation. Our hotel was just a few blocks away (within walking distance) from the main hub and we decided to make a beeline for it and check in. The Hotel St. Moritz Queenstown was amazing.
Our room was on the side of the mountain overlooking the bay. Angela felt a peace with this place. We took our time in the room, made our way to the well-needed laundry room and did a few loads. This got us set for our flight the next day. We didn’t want to start our tour of the North Island with dirty laundry.
^Our super comfy bed for the evening. Angela was so happy.
^View out our window.
After a relaxing 2 hours of waiting for the laundry to be done we figured we’d treat ourselves to the fancy hotel bar’s happy hour. Here, we fell in love with the place. After a few minutes sitting at the bar (they actually had bar seats here) we went to the patio – a small patio that we had to ourselves. This view from this 4th floor bar overlooking the bay and mountainside…it was a picturesque scene that we cannot compare. It was truly breathtaking. We went on to have a few more cocktails and take in the views for as long as the temperature would allow.
^The way the mountains were catching the light as the sun sank was just incredible.
^Look at these clouds!? I mean wow, Queenstown, we didn’t expect you!!!
^Speedboat up in the bay about to drop some riders off for the evening.
^Okay, so we basically fell in love with Queenstown in one night.
After we finished our drinks and soaked in the view we headed out to the town. We’d been planning on going to the casino. Of course, we were expecting a big city casino like Biloxi or Vegas. Au contraire, we were a bit shocked as we walked into a large room with six tables…and a few dozen slot machines. We didn’t let it detour us. We decided to sit up at the $2 roulette table and see where the odds found us. FYI, there were no free booze and you weren’t able to tip the dealers. Long story short, the casino won. But, we did meet a group of physician assistants from Florida. The one we were speaking with was actually out of Destin. They had all gone to PA school together and now enjoyed touring the country together. That was kind of cool. Indeed, it is a small world.
After we lost our allotted play money, it was time for dinner. Okay, it was well past dinnertime but we needed something to eat. At this point we didn’t have many options. To be honest, we had only one option (the only place that was open at this hour) Fergburger.
We later found out that this place was an iconic late night burger joint that the locals love. The menu was scattered with burger names and descriptions that would not be U.S. politically correct (we loved it). The burger hit the spot and then we made our way up the hill. Angela had to take her shoes off for the walk. These hills are REALLY, REALLY steep. And…going up steep hills in heels is not the easiest. Plus, our legs were already fatigued and sore from our previous days of hikes and treks. We finally got back to the room and ultimately, we passed out.
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