(Day 6, cont.)
After leaving Milford Sound we had a short stop for lunch and wi-fi in Te-Anau and made it to Queenstown long before dark. Before heading to bed we discovered "Cookie Time" and opted for dessert instead of dinner. In our defense, it was a cookie sandwich.
As a side note, "freedom camping" is not allowed in the Queenstown Lakes District so if you are in a campervan, be prepared to pay for a campsite or a motel or you can drive outside the city a bit. We stayed near Lake Hayes and it was extremely windy but beautiful and the perfect free place to crash for the night.
I wouldn't recommend using the public bathroom there after dark, the mob of moths I had to push my way through to find the toilet was quite disturbing. If it wasn't for the strong winds, I'm pretty sure the laughter and yelps from Annie and I would have awakened all of the campers on that side of the lake.
We let the boys win a few more games of Euchre before letting our heads hit the pillow... I hate that this was our last night with Jordan and Annie!
Day #7: ERRRHMARGARD.
For Tyler's graduation from chiropractic school a few weeks ago, I surprised him with bungee jumping in Queenstown!
Bungee jumping has never been something on my bucket list. I've jumped out of a plane but somehow bungee jumping seemed liked an awful idea. Whiplash from a recoiling rope, jumping off a ledge by myself (without a tiny man attached to a parachute on my back) AND paying for it? No thank you.
That all being said... by 11AM, we were ALL signed up for a 2pm, 47m jump off of a ledge 200m above Queenstown. Barf.
We headed to grab a bite to eat at Halo (recommended by Lonely Planet) and I somehow managed to scarf down most of my breakfast burrito, even with a stomach tied in knots.
We took the skyline gondola up to the ledge to watch some other brave souls take the plunge until it was our turn...
I have to admit, I admired the beautiful hilltops and mountains of New Zealand much more when I wasn't about to jump off one of them.
I am grateful that we were able to run and jump off the platform... At no point did I have to stand on the ledge and look past my toes to see the ground below!
I didn't even hesitate when they started the countdown... I knew the longer I waited, the harder it would be for me to jump. I planned on doing a pretty swan dive but as soon as my feet left the ledge, I forgot everything that I once knew and all I could do was scream. Some of the bounces at the bottom made my stomach flip more than the initial jump!
The most important thing from today that I need to point out is that we all jumped, we all lived and we all got a free t-shirt (with a $195NZD bungee purchase).
Re-live the thrill with me:
Talk about Jordan and Annie leaving New Zealand with a bang! After an early dinner, a walk around the Queenstown gardens and another stop at Cookie Time (whoops!) it was time to part ways. They headed to Christchurch to catch their flight home so we decided to head to Wanaka as a pit-stop on our way to the Franz Josef Glacier.
Most of the shops were closed by the time we got to town but Wanaka strongly resembles Queenstown (with less tourism) so we loved it immediately! The restaurants along the water were packed so we grabbed some coffee from the Patagonia chocolate shop and still decided to head to bed early. Who knew the stress of bungee jumping would be that exhausting?!
Until tomorrow's adventures...
XOXO
ELISSA
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