Still Down Under and Not Over It!
When you hear New Zealand, what comes to mind? Kiwis? Sheep? The All Blacks? Bungee jumping? The Lord of the Rings? Or maybe you just think of it as that little island place by Australia. Any one of those things would be correct and have added up to put NZ on the map, but I’d like to tell you more about one of my favorite places in the world. New Zealand certainly ranks in my top five of amazing places to travel, just ask me to describe it for you.
I have often said that God made New Zealand as his prototype for the rest of the world. All those neat, interesting features you can find all over the earth are sample size in NZ. On these two small islands, there are tiny quaint towns and artsy cities, beaches, mountains, grassy pasture land, canyons, Caribbean blue lakes, jungles and rain forests and oh, yeah, snow and glaciers. AND these postcard places are all within a day’s drive, if not a few hours. A little something for everyone, no matter what your favorite vista.
Yes, they are kiwis and quite proud of the moniker. The little flightless, nocturnal bird doesn’t demand attention, but the image makes appearances on everything- not just shoe polish cans.
Yes, there are sheep. Thousands of them dotting the landscape and as this is their summer, they are in all stages of attire. Some are still wearing their winter woollies and others are already sporting their much shorter spring look. But keep looking in those pastures called paddocks, dairy is the biggest business along with tourism. The main export for NZ is powdered milk products to eastern countries. As they adopt more western foods in their diets, think lattes and ice cream, the farmers here are milking that market. You can also see nine foot fences corralling red deer. I’m guessing deer hunting will never make in a country where there are hundreds penned up.
Yes, The New Zealand All Blacks, named as such due to the color of their team uniforms. The national rugby team is a huge thing for the kiwis. In fact they were anticipating the 2015 Rugby World Cup. They love their team, but please don’t expect me to explain it, I barely get American football.
Mountain climbing, biking, hiking, surfing, snow skiing, NZ is loaded with ways to get your heart pumping. Yes, you can bungee jump. This was the country that invented it. When a couple of young guys asked permission to tie people’s ankles together and drop them off a historical bridge, who would guess that decades later folks of all ages would still be paying big bucks to bail off high places. I’ll bet those city fathers expected to clean up the gene pool a bit. Nope, and that’s just the beginning of the list of extreme sports and outdoor adventures you can experience. The Shotover Jetboat ride that flies up the river in four inches of water making 360 degree spins is about as exciting as you can get. Traveler Louise said “it was the most fun she’d ever had with her clothes on!” ‘Nuff said.
Yes, The Lord of the Rings movies were filmed on these islands and groupies rent camper trailers and scout out all the locations. I’m surprised there aren’t major film companies here with the diversity of terrain available.
Yes, New Zealand is two tiny islands but the friendly, English speaking kiwis are like that little lap dog that growls at the big dog. They are fierce rivals with the Aussies (their closest neighbors) and look for every chance to discredit them.
Put New Zealand on your Bucket List. Discover a place where tea is more popular than coffee and you will be served in a real cup and saucer so you have to slow down and enjoy it.
New Zealand is “as sweet as,” a favorite saying in this land where they abbreviate almost everything. “As sweet as,” we can think how to finish the sentence.
