Zorb!

Once we made it back to the north island, we decided it was time for something completely different. So we decided to zorb together! Look at the pictures, the zorb is that giant ball at the top of the hill. All three of got in the middle with a little water inside to make footing difficult. We then rolled the ball down the hill from inside (I mean we just got it started and gravity did the rest from there). The chaos and hilarity ended when Mark landed a leg drop from the top ropes on Lori and scored the rare and unnecessary 10 count pin to win.

More South Island

After surviving our sky dive, we took on puzzling world where we had to leave Lori behind when she couldn't find her way out of the maze to the car. From there we headed to Queenstown, the adreneline and party captial of the south island of New Zealand for a couple fun nights and adventure filled days. Next we saw the incredible sights on the way to Milford Sound, including the Mirror Lakes. Finally we toured Cadbury chocolates (yum!) and Speight's Brewery (burp) in Dunedin before heading back up to the north island.

3---2---1---Bungy!! (what?? bungy is a number)

Well I did what many come to New Zealand to do.... I bungy-jumped! I hadn't planned on doing it when I signed up for this trip, but after sky-diving I was looking for a new thrill. This definitely provided it, b/c I had to take the plunge myself. (whereas with skydiving your tandem partner does the jumping for you) Also I went without either of my travel companions who were interested in other activities.

I decided to bungy in Queenstown (the adventure capital of the world). And I decided to do the "Nevis Highwire Bungy" which is the tallest in New Zealand at 440 ft. It's called highwire for a reason, you jump from a gondola suspended on a wire over a huge gorge with a river at the bottom. You get about 8 seconds of free fall before you bounce back! It was heaps of fun! The pics don't do it justice.

You'll notice in the pics that I go through the usual phases of bungy. Excitement, nervousness, relief.

Funny Picture Post

Here are a few pics that we've taken over the course of the trip. We find these to be funny, and maybe you will too. The first 3 pics are of all of us modeling our extremely well-fitting work clothes. Dave is working on obtaining a job as a model for Abercrombie, Lori could fit lots of extra towels for the guests in her pants, and my shirt doubled as a sail when i wasn't using it. The next 3 pictures are examples of New Zealand creativity. They literally call everything "____ shop". Lori has been taking pictures of these shops to add to her already started collection, and these are a few of our favorites. The next two are from our acrobat day. If you look closely at the one with Lori swinging on a trapeze, you'll see me in the background on a tightrope. (about to fall off after taking only one step :) Next, is a picture of how windy it was when we took a cruise out in the bay. You'll note my gut is fully exposed. The last two are my favorites. We decided to have a little fun with a statue in our room. I put my glasses on him and he then magically resembles my friend Jaymin. Next, the statue (Jaymin) treated us to a guitar solo. (it looks like he has a mustache and is looking at his finger placement) Hope you enjoy!!!

Oops I did it again

Got lost in the game, jumped out of a plane...

That's right baby, I went skydiving again and this time dragged a pair of Schraders with me (or was that dragged by a Schrader...). Sky diving is so great. I can't stop smiling for the next 4 hours after a jump, and my adrenaline continues well after the jump.

Driving on the Wrong Side of the Road

Road Trip!!! From Picton we rented a car to head around the South Island, as Mark and I learned how to drive when everything is backward. We went to Blenhiem for a day of wine tasting at the various vineyards in Malborough. This region is known for its Pinot Noir and Sav Blancs. We also saw the Abel Tasman coastal walks and the Pancake rocks as we made our way to the west coast and headed south. Mark and I conquered blue ice when we went glacier climbing on the Franz Josef glacier with pick axes and crampons, I never knew I could look so coordinated on ice.

How do you tell a north american driver in NZ? They turn on the windshield wipers when they make a turn.

Lori Weighs In

A bit from Lori...After finishing our long stint of working in Paihia, we headed back to Auckland. Here we met up with my friend Cheri and some of her buddies from Florida, Kajal, Palvi and LaTisha. It was great having some female companions after travelling with the boys for so long. In Auckland, amongst other things, we went to the Minus 5 Bar which was very "cool". Everything was made of ice including the glasses and seats, brrrr.

From Auckland we flew to Wellington. Here we visited the Museum of New Zealand (Te Papa), rode a cable car, went to a film archive, visited the botanical gardens and enjoyed some karaoke in the evening. We all really liked Wellington and if we didn't find jobs in Paihia, we were going to work here.

After our stay in Wellington, we took the morning ferry down to Picton where we will begin our journey on the South Island.

Just a couple side notes...Here they call restrooms, toilets and you get funny/confused looks if you ask for the restroom. Next, one of my concerns as a backpacker was getting caught in a room with a loud snorer...little did I know I'd be travelling with one. I'll let you all guess who that might be, you've got a 50% chance.