Day 17: Friday, March 7, Queenstown

Switchbacks above Queenstown.

Today was a failed exciting day. We left Te Anau (where we stayed after Milford Sound) and drove back to Queenstown in the morning, stopping a couple of places along the way. I was supposed to go hang gliding, but when we went up to the take-off point the winds had changed and they canceled. The upshot is that we got a great view off Coronet Peak into Queenstown and the surrounding areas for free. In my van were a French couple; a Chilean who was the champion at some paragliding competition recently; and Japanese, Swiss, and German/Australian guides.

The drive to Wanaka went up a switchback that gave us a view over Queenstown. At the top was a property listed by Sotheby’s International. We had difficulty finding a place to stay in Wanaka and when we arrived we learned why: Wanaka’s Agricultural and Pastoral (A&P) show was going on. It’s the second biggest A&P in the country according to a brochure I read.

We also got some more groceries, which makes this a good time to talk about cereal. Cereal, the staple of the American breakfast, hasn’t had quite the same success over here. The biggest types of cereal seem to be varieties of muesli and Weet-Bix. Muesli seems like uncooked oatmeal, and Weet-Bix (which I saw in Britain) is a wafer of bran that dissolves into mush upon contact with milk. It’s so big here that one grocery simply listed “Weet-Bix” on the end of the aisle instead of “cereal.” Cereal is NZ$6-9 a box unless you go with the $2 Ricies (Rice Crispies). Apples go for NZ$4-6 per kg (about 2.2 pounds). We cooked spaghetti one night and used venison instead of beef because it was actually cheaper. (We have seen lots of deer farms along the way.) Milk is about NZ$6/gallon (NZ$3.25 or so for two liters and about 3.75 liters in a gallon). A McDonald’s strawberry milkshake is NZ$2 for a small to NZ$3.20 for a large.

Camper van art. Backpacker hangouts are veritable art car parades.

Just like in Australia, one of the most popular ways to travel around here is to rent a camper van. There are large campers like the kind we’re used to in the U.S., but there are many more “minicampers.” They are minivans converted into campers by taking out the rear seats and replacing them with some storage room, a bed for two, and other amenities depending on what camper you get. There are a number of brands. One is called Wicked Campers. They are easily distinguished by their paint jobs; it looks like they went to local gangs and said, “Hey, spray paint whatever you want so long as it includes a pithy quote and a graphic,” because they really look like they were graffitied. They remind me of the jeepneys that were a big form of transportation around Manila, though I like the jeepneys a lot more.

The end of sunset over Te Anau's boardwalk.