I never ever want to leave this place, end of story.

Well, not end of story, I of course, have tons of stories. This weekend was QUEENSTOWN BABY! with the Arcadia group, and it was heaps and heaps of fun. I'm glad I'd already been there, though, because last time I got a much better taste of what Queenstown is like, this time was a total touristy trip which was fine because it was all-expenses paid and I can't afford touristy trips to Queenstown.

We started off the trip by taking the gondola up the mountain, and then doing the luge down--there's apparently only 3 places where you can luge in the entire world, and Queenstown is one of them. We got to do 3 rides, but Jane (our amazing group leader...I want to be her when/if I grow up) only used one of her rides, so Dave and I took the other two and got four rides instead...we're smartas. Luging is kind of like go-karting, except you have this gorgeous view of the entire city and the water and the mountains, and if you steer right, you can even catch some air as you go down some of the hills. Even the gondola trip us is exciting, since you're shooting through trees and then all of a sudden you have this jaw-dropping view. Afterwards, we all went out for Fergburgers and I ate this amazing tofu burger with garlic aioli and peanut sauce and it was a fabulous eating experience.

The next day we got up super-early to do the Routeburn track, which is one of the Great Walks of NZ. All in all, we hiked over 18 miles (half of it uphill too!). It was a great hike because it was so varied: the first part was really wooded and we hiked next to this bright blue-green river, the second part looked straight out of Jurassic Park or something, we hiked through this hay field next to these giant looming mountains, and then the trail went back into the mountains. The third part was straight uphill for over an hour and was tons of rock climbing, walking through streams, and crossing really treacherous looking swing bridges. We rested at the waterfall, and trekked upward up more rocks and out of the woods to a lake, and then even further up this steep path to the most gorgeous view of the Remarkables (the big mountain range in Qtown) with snow on top...why would anybody ever want to live anywhere else with scenery like this in their backyard? It was an incredibly tiring hike, and I don't remember if I've ever hiked 18 miles in a day, but it was SO COOL and it makes me want to be really hardcore and learn to be a climber so I can climb up to the top of the world and see what it looks like from there. The scenery was incredible, the air was so crisp and so clear and so cleansing, and it just takes your breath away to stop and think about where you are in the world. I don't know how I got so lucky as to get these experiences, but I feel like hikes like these were why I came to NZ. We finished off the day at a much needed pizza pub and hit the hay earlier than I've hit the hay in all of my trip.

Day 3, people had the option to bungy jump, but my wallet was screaming for me to take it easy, so I restrained myself. I really hope it's not one of those things where I leave NZ regretting that I didn't jump. It was tough, since everybody else that didn't jump was just too scared and didn't want to, while I desperately wanted to but felt like it was a smarter decision to save the $200. Still, it's always fun to watch everybody else jump, and the bridge you jump off of is between a really pretty canyon. We also went on a jetboat ride through this amazingly gorgeous canyon. The jetboat has this special water propulsion system that allows it to go freakishly fast through really shallow water, and it can do really tight turns like drifting in a car. I sat on the side of the back of the boat, where you get the best thrill, and got absolutely soaking wet, but it was so fun! It was like the coolest water roller coaster I've ever been on. Our guide took these really tight turns through really narrow canyons and at some points, it looks like you're about to hit the rocks but you don't! It's totally a thrill and a half, and it's something I would have never forked over the money for on my own, but on an expenses-paid trip, it was great!

Now I'm back to Dunedin, and it happily feels like home. I got back and Jane had a falafel all cooked up for me, and we had a great time planning our Irish meal for St. Patty's day tomorrow (green potatoes, stew, peas, broccoli, spinach, bread with green butter, and green beer which is apparently free at a local brewery down the street). It feels good to come back somewhere that feels like home. Sadly, I have to re-enter academia and turn in a project proposal tomorrow, but Easter break is this weekend, meaning I only have a four-day week since there's no school on Friday. That would be a lot cooler if I had classes on Friday, but I don't, so it really means nothing to me except that we can leave for our trip earlier since we don't have to wait for anybody else to finish going to class.

Prepare yourselves for gorgeous pictures to come later.