Explore 11 Days of Unforgettable New Zealand Adventures and Memories for Traveler P

2024.11.20–11.30 Get away from work and social life, go to a place where no one knows you, a place so beautiful it feels unreal—New Zealand [HeartR]

A completely stream-of-consciousness memoir! Not a travel guide! Purely a memento for myself!

Day 1: Afternoon flight ✈️ from Shanghai to Auckland

Day 2: Landed in Auckland at 6:00 AM, with only 1h50m for the transfer, so I chose to bring nothing and went through the nothing-to-declare channel. It turned out to be more than enough time, and the entry and transfer were super smooth. After landing in Christchurch, rented a car, wandered around the city, and took a boat ride on the Avon River (a bit boring, almost fell asleep [LaughingCryR] actually, sitting on a bench by the lake and watching the boats is better).

Day 3: Headed to Tekapo. Stopped by Fairlie to buy a pie, walked by the lake, saw lupins, and visited the Church of the Good Shepherd. At this point, I was already in awe of the beauty! Then, played on the free zipline at a children’s park! Watched the stars at night! First time seeing so many stars and the Milky Way with the naked eye, it was really moving [CryingR] so stunning and beautiful!

Day 4: Set off for Mount Cook. Passed by a salmon farm and Lake Pukaki, arrived at the airport for a glacier hike (details can be found in another post). Stayed at the Hermitage Hotel. Originally planned to see Tasman Glacier Lake but got lost and ended up at the Hooker Valley Track, turned back after the first bridge as the previous hike was too tiring [LaughingCryR].

Had a buffet dinner at the hotel, which was not good. Ended up eating plain rice and broccoli (tasted better than the meat, missed rice).

Met a couple from the same city, such a coincidence! We hit it off! Love these little encounters during the trip!

Day 5: Set off for Wanaka. Stopped by another salmon shop 🍣, had some cooked food. Then went skydiving 🪂, bought ice cream at Patagonia🍦, walked by the lake, watched ducks 🦆, and swung on a swing. Couldn’t resist having Chinese food for dinner, it was so delicious! Mapo tofu, boiled beef, and white rice! Who understands the value of this! So fragrant!

Day 6: Set off for Queenstown. First, went to Real Guns for shooting, very exciting with real guns and bullets. On the way to Queenstown, encountered a road closure, a long and complicated story, but managed to make it to Queenstown in time for the gondola and luge.

Day 7: Morning at the Nevis Swing, afternoon in Glenorchy, the drive was indeed very scenic.

Day 8: Morning cycling in Arrowtown… if it were autumn, the scenery would have been super beautiful! In the afternoon, went to see the black-faced sheep (disappointing, also wrote about it).

Day 9: Set off for Dunedin. Visited the Royal Albatross Centre, lucky to see many albatrosses gliding due to strong winds! Stayed at a castle.

Day 10: Visited the castle 🏰, returned to Christchurch ✈️, and flew back to Shanghai.

Day 11: Touchdown at 7:00 AM, and just like that, the dream faded away. Time to dive back into the daily grind [CryingR]