Adventure of the month

Day 3 in Queenstown. I woke up sans plans. I did a quick online search through the  list of discounted activities  (Money-saving NZ tip #4 or maybe 5, I'm losing count. Check this site often, you will never know what you will find). The Million Dollar Cruise was available for that morning. I'd heard good things about this easy-going trip on Lake Wakatipu and a sunny day on the water is always good so I booked it. This would keep me busy all morning but I still had the rest of the day to fill. I'd entertained the idea of bungy jumping. Doing it here, where it was invented would be super cool, but if I was going to stick to any kind of budget, it just was not feasible. Instead, I was looking at other, more economical options (ie a 10 km hike, a kiwi sanctuary, tobogganing). At the same time, my loca friend Angela, who had been staying in my apt for Art Basel, was texting me, asking where to leave the key, where to put the recycling, etc. As we covered all the basic housek...

Look up any list of New Zealand must-sees and somewhere near the top you will find Milford Sound. In the description, there will usually be someone waxing poetic about the fjord's other-worldly beauty. (ie- from the 100% Pure New Zealand site- Situated on the west coast of the South Island, Milford Sound is a fusion of spectacular natural features with amazing visual cues around every corner; From Explorer James Hingston : ;For thousands of feet upwards the eye looks upon straight cut rocky frontages, not worn smooth by time, or by wind or water, but as sharply defined and as fresh looking in all respects as if riven asunder but yesterday by the stupendous wedges of Titanic Masons. ) You will also find some barely coded language hinting at what you should expect weather-wise. Phrases such as "In any climate.." and "Wet or fine..." clue you in that the chances of you replicating all those sunny Sound pics are precariously slim. That is because Milford Sound ...

With only 18 days to spend in New Zealand, the sensible thing to do would have been to choose one island- either the North or South- and explore it in depth. The problem is I am not a sensible person. I am FOMO personified and I want to see it all. Therefore, on my third day, I boarded a flight from Auckland (North island) to Queenstown (South island), which made for a crammed and busy schedule. I had only 15 days to bus myself back up to Auckland for the return flight but in the words of Edith Piaf "Non, je ne regrette rien". Queenstown is the kind of place you can fall in love with at first sight. It's an outdoorsy, sun-kissed small town where everyone knows what kombucha is and all the guys wearing Jesus sandals actually look like, well, Jesus. Just walking down the street, you feel healthier for being there. Therefore it should probably come as no surprise that the denizens of this clean-living haven are constantly on the lookout for new ways to nearly off them...