Tuloy po Kayo! (Come in Please)

Breathtaking, awesome, magnificent- I can enumerate a long list of
superlatives for this part of the world. For someone not used to cold winters, I seem to find myself visiting during the cooler months in places like New Zealand's South Island. We visited in winter(hoping to wallow in the snow). I organized most of the arrangements over the NEt and I surprised myself by doing "pretty well" as most of the accommodations I chose were up to par with my expectations and those advertised in the web. We rented a car (originally I arranged for a Toyota Corrolla) but to our pleasant surprise, they gave us a brand new Toyota RAV four wheel drive(not a real one according to my hubby who is devoted to his SUzuki Grand Vitara)with all the modcons.

Anyway, we drove from Christchurch(supposed to be the garden city of New Zealand) as claimed by their site. We didn't get to the center of Christchurch so we missed the gardens which was just as well as my hisband, ever since visiting the "Floriade" in Canberra has vowed never to look at any tulip of bulb ever again!

Instead, our "adventure" started at the Antartic Centre near the airport where we braved riding the hagglund(a Scandinavian ride that can be used underwater and over rugged terrains). Well, I am not very technically oriented so just take my word for it. We missed our actual schedule to ride as we got sidetracked at the museum which gives visitors insight on life at the Antartic. Luckily we were still accommodated an hour later.From there, we drove to Mt. Hutt, not far from Christchurch and dreamed of more excitement.

But to my dismay,there was no toboggan to be rented! I wasn't keen to
ski as the place was chock-a-block of eager ski learners while the more experienced ones are up in the higher peaks(and I cannot claim to be either one)...As usual, the first place we went to was the coffee shop (and the fire place) and this was the start of my "gourmet" world of meat pies and hot chocolate. Mind you, every coffee shop boasts its own gourmet meat pies and other mouthwatering food designed to beat the cold. Oh, before I forget, almost always, you will find a pot of "kumara soup" on the menu.

Beware: driving to Queenstown. The narrow steep roads on the way to this bustling town were devoid of safety rails. One wrong move and you will find yourself down below the ravines! This was by far our most exciting road trip and the most dangerous. Typical of Dave to choose" the off the beaten track" attitude and "scenic route" syndrome that he was accustomed to, driving from Sydney to many parts of New South Wales and up to QUeensland and the ACT(Australian Capital Territory)
ignoring all the signs!

That's enough adventure for us- First stop, our accommodation at a Best Western property at Arrowtown, a historic former little mining town where Chinese settlers first lived in search of gold. We too
hoped of striking it rich so off we went to the mining museum where we
eagerly rented some pans(equipped with instructions) and trekked to the Arrow River. After a couple of hours of shaking and swivelling the
metal pans, I've had enough but lo and behold, Dave held out
his hand and inside there was a tiny flicker of gold, later we discovered was fool's gold. Oh, well, we still got some gold...only it was a knock-off.Trust the Chinese to come up with perfectly good knock offs! In the early days, they set up their stores and families near the river where a permanent memorial of their settlement had been
preserved for tourists to scrutinize.

Oh,I also forgot to mention we did ride the gondolas both at Christchurch and at Queenstown(and did not fail to check their coffee shops and pies).

Another tip, if you're driving, parking is really hard to find at Queenstown so it's better to choose
a place to stay that is within the city centre. I chose Arrowtown precisely because we didn't want to lodge near crowded places(In a way, it was a blessing as during our stay, Queenstown was having a winter festival with free concerts, etc. The downside is, looking for parking. Arrowtown was about 20 minutes from Queenstown.

On the way, we saw people getting their thrill from whitewater rafting
but we 've had our share of fun so we passed it out. We also drove to Mt.Cook, and we actually saw the places where some of "The
Lord of the Rings" movie were shot. They looked like those from another world. There were majestic mountains of varying colours...one turn you'd see pure white snow-clad peaks and after a few turns, you'd be met by chocolate brown slopes...very interesting indeed, 99!

My favourite place though is Lake Tekapo.I felt just sheer tranquility standing on the edge of the calm waters of that lake. We even find ourselves usually alone(just the family with my 2 boys and my hubby) enjoying the fresh cool air with no animal or person in sight for
almost an eternity.

But alas, my tummy was grumbing so off we forced our newly bought snow boots from "The Warehouse "to the lovely cafe next to the lake and had an enormously tasty breakfast, with Dave having pancakes and the boys and I shared the big brekky with eggs, bacon, toast, chips and
sausages served with steaming hot coffee(and orange juice for the boys). Not bad for under $30! You can even get a refill but we were raring to go to the souvenir shop so away we sauntered in search of souvenirs- opal jewellery for me and magnetic kiwis for the kids.
In Queenstown we mostly had Chinese(very popular there with both tourists and locals) and Thai food. I find though that it is more pricey than say, most places in Sydney.

My verdict: whether you're an adrenalin junkie or only adventurous in spirit like me(my boys said I was BORING with a B in NZ), South Island
has something to offer you and more: friendly people, superb service and amazing sights!

One last thing, don't buy the ski gloves at the shops at the ski slopes as they are overpriced. The same brands of gloves can be had for a third of the original price at local shop. (We brought our own but they were not as good as the new ones.)

We traveled in May (in the early 90's) and I was shivering as we got off the plane on to the tarmac at Xiamen Airport.

As I have changed my hairstyle, I had a bit of a problem with my passport. Luckily,a Chinese photographer came to my rescue and with that I didn't even have to queue very long as I was let in ahead of the others.

Whew! This is a Communist country after all and I also have a Chinese middle name (Tan) so it sort of puzzled the Immigration officers that I cannot speak the language(I am not Chinese, my grandfather was).

Anyway, our hotel was very nice(Hotel Nikko Beijing) and a number of
my other Chinese colleagues enjoyed the buffet breakfast tremendously. One would even lay his hanky on the table after eating and stash all the little sachets of sugar, butter, etc..that he could find in the buffet table.The menu was varied; to my surprise they even have my favourite corned beef hash(cooked with onions that we love back home!) Congee was of course available with all sorts of sauces and condiments you can find.

The Peking Duck Lauriat was delicious and amusing too as they(our hosts) taught us how to spread the morsels of juicy duck meat onto a Chinese vegie leaf,roll it and put in our mouths in one go.They all laughed as most of us struggled to chew the whole bloody thing! We even got a souvenir of a silver coin (as big as a 50 cent Australian) with the duck and name of the restaurant on it. It must have cost a fortune!But then, it was sponsored by the Chinese government I think...Tipping was not necessary here.Oh,they give bowls of clear soup at the end of the meal instead of water to drink.

Of course the highlight of the tour was the visit to the Great Wall.
Actually when you reach it(one of its parts), you will find it looks like a humongous bridge with a series of narrow steps that go steeper and steeper, hence the slogan "I climbed the Great Wall" is splashed in cheap t-shirts sold under the bridge. It was tremendously cold for me(being used to a tropical climate), my three layers of shirt,jumper and cardigan were no use(I was chilled to the bone)...Despite the steep climb, I didn't sweat one bit! SO, after the customary souvenir photo ops, I sneaked down to snoop at the numerous souvenir shops below the bridge, I mean, wall.
Cheap, cheap ,cheap, that's all I can say! But mind you prepare small notes if you need to use the toilet. The public toilets are reasonably clean but if you're squeamish about squatting, you have to hold it in then.. That's all for now...That's as far as I remember.