No, we did not go bungee-jumping
From Ben & Jenny Abroad in Queenstown, New Zealand on Apr 08 '07
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On our way to the last city in our Lee adventure, we stopped at the Strath Taieri A&P show where we enjoyed a picnic lunch and some wholesome competition. While the horse races were alright, we particularly enjoyed seeing the prize winning piles of wool, the blue ribbon guinea pig, and the shed full of artwork by 3rd graders. We arrived in Queenstown exhausted, and so had two dinners, one of which was in a building that Ben's cousin Nick had built! When we met Nick the next day, we learned that he builds lots of things, including several other buildings in the city and his own jet boat, in which he was nice enough to take us for out a spin-- he even let us drive it. It was way cooler than riding in the tourist jet boats full with enourmous groups of people. As if that weren't enough, he let us play with his two absolutely beautiful daughters Tsuki and Kika, who were more interested in playing with a dead fish. (Maybe it's because when Ben was driving the jetboat, Tsuki was so exhilarated in the passenger seat that she fell fast asleep.) We also got to meet his lovely wife Ai, and see Jill and Jock who were down for the holiday weekend, which was a lovely bonus.
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We were told that Queenstown is the adventure capital, so we went out and played some extreme mini golf before strolling around Arrowtown to do some crazy shopping. Driving back to our hotel, we were forced by a detour to take a strange back road where we passed the restaurant that we (Lee, Jenny and family) had gone to as a family for Christmas dinner in 2000, and promptly booked a reservation for that evening. After a rushed wine and cheese, we were swept away for the best banquet ever, complete with a list of superlatives (i.e. best radio staton: Radio Twizel; favorite tart: neenish tart; etc.), nice wine, and sticky toffee pudding, complete with birthday candles.
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Packing that night was a sad affair, but not as sad as the parting rituals which took place at the airport the next morning. As Mousehead said goodbye to Mousehead, Mousehead, and Pighead, the three people applied their team tattoos. Lee crossed over to the other side, and Jenny wished that she was the Airport Whisperer so that she could communicate with people on the other side... of the security gate.
As Lee's plane took off it started to rain, so Ben and Jenny did what they always do when they are sad: they ate a big meal, and took a nap.
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Popular Queenstown Hotels
- Pinewood Lodge
- Sofitel Queenstown Hotel and Spa
- Pinewood Backpackers
- Mercure Resort Queenstown
- YHA Lakefront
- Flag Inn Lomond Lodge
- Browns Boutique
- Punatapu
Popular Queenstown Things to Do
- The Remarkables
- Shotover jet
- Shotover Boat
- River surfing / boarding
- Nevis Bungy
- Deer Park Heights
- NZone Skydive
- Gondola to Skyline
- Skydiving with N Zone
- Helicopter to the top of a glacier
Popular Queenstown Restaurants
- Sushi Bar (The)
- Relishes Cafe
- Haven't had it yet
- Fergburger
- Dux de Lux
- Winnie's Pizza and Bar
- Burger Place
- Skyline Restaurant
- Hoi An















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