This is my tribute to a week-long spell of signing my life away in indemnity forms. Breathtaking, heart-stirring, hair-raising, all at the same time — this trip was definitely epic.
Song: Bad Girlfriend by Theory of a Deadman
Continue reading “Queenstown is for the Brave”
I haven’t actually started on the proper track yet, and I’m already lost. I backtracked to the last sign I chanced upon for the Ben Lomond trail, and saw the shaded path that I’ve missed. The thick canopy of bare-leafed pines looked ominous, as if I were Little Red Riding Hood who should have known better than to wander alone.
Out of the blue, the trail suddenly opened up to a great vastness of sky, sunshine and meadows. The green horizon met the wild blue yonder of the heavens for almost the whole trail. On every spot you stood upon, you can freely admire the range of the Remarkables, glimpse upon the near green and yellow rows of trees, smile at the intense blue-green of Lake Wakatipu.
Continue reading “Meeting Ben Lomond”
I have a feeling that boredom’s outlawed in Queenstown. We arrived in QT with no clear plan, yet in a matterof minutes, we were able to come up with a jam-packed itinerary for our next 3 days.
The skies weren’t so clear on Day 1, so even if we were so eager to hop on a plane and hurl ourselves off, we decided to stay grounded — or rather drenched and half-immersed — on a day’s outing in the Shotover River.
Continue reading “Paddling Adventures on the Shotover River”
Wave after wave after wave, they just keep on coming. I’m gulping in more water than I probably should. As fast as I crashed into the swells, suddenly I’m past the rapids and saying hello to surprising peace and quiet. This is just the first round of river surfing — should I still stay for the second round? Hell yeah! Continue reading “Wet, Wild and Wicked: River Surfing in Kawarau”
Today, dreams won over nerves.
More often than not, people come here longing for that surge of adrenaline, one great jolt to feel alive. You have to understand that for me, it felt completely different.
Terrified would be the exact word to describe how I felt towards skydiving. I would turn pale from simply looking at videos of people hurling themselves out of planes and into the great void. You can imagine how I felt when I watched Felix Baumgartner jump off from the stratosphere; it was a mix of awe, admiration, and ‘oh-my-god-what-have-you-done-!!!’ hysteria. No matter how much people try to convince me that I’m more likely to meet death by car or cow (?), I was adamant about staying grounded. I’d bungy, I’d go rafting, I’d bungy again — but throw myself off a plane? No-si-ree sir, I’d pass. Even if you offer to pay for it, nope. Even if you throw in Channing Tatum as the diving instructor, no (– well, maybe in that case, yes! Death by Channing isn’t so bad.) Continue reading “The Leap of All Leaps: Skydiving in Queenstown”
.: ishcapades 