My trip to New Zealand went very smoothly. Mengel drove me to Minneapolis, then I flew to Los Angeles, Auckland, and finally Christchurch. Qantas Airlines is amazing. Each seat has its own screen where you can watch movies, CD's, news, tv shows, games, a destination guide, and a place where you can monitor the plane's progress and speed. We got headphones, a blanket, pillow, booties, eye mask, toothbrush/toothpaste, a hot meal, snacks, and even hot towels! On Northwest-no pillow, no blanket, but we could buy a sandwich or salad for $8.00.

A message cancelling my city tour was waiting for me in the Christchurch hotel lobby. No worries. That gave me an afternoon to explore the city on my own. I think there are only a handful of Christchurch residents and the remaining million people are tourists. Lots of souvenir shops. The city has an English feel to it and it is nicknamed the City of Gardens.

The next morning I was in the lobby bright and early expecting to be picked up for my Alpine safari. Eventually the concierge noticed that others were coming and going...but I was just sitting. He asked me if everything was okay, and when I expressed my doubts, he called the safari people--who had already left because they didn't even have me down on the list. No worries. Mik, the super concierge, made some calls, consulted me about my preferences and scheduled an excellent day for me.

I spent the morning at Thrillseekers Canyon! I drove a 4 wheel Quad bike through the most beautiful scenery I have ever seen. We went through creeks, rocks, and MUD! I loved it! See those rocks in the background? You don't bother going around them...you just go over them!









Thank goodness for the jumpsuits and mud boots!















In the afternoon I went to relax the the Hanmer Springs thermal pools. They have 9 open air thermal pools, 3 sulphur pools, and a regular pool with slides and stuff for kids. It was very soothing.