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[cirianz]

How long you going to be here? You going to be down Dunedin way?

 

[bodhi]

Arrive in Auckland in saturday and then hiring a car with two danish guys i know and drinving around NZ etc. Any advice on what to do?

 

[cirianz]

That depends on what you like? You into mountains (mount cook is pretty cool but the southern alps as a whole are pretty breathtaking)? Beaches (probably a bit cold for swiming these days)? If you've got a good wetsuit then there are supposed to be some good surf beaches around here. Boating? Lakes? Sub Tropical Rainforest (The Westcoast)? Waterfalls? Glaciers? Probably a bit early for skiing. Native birds, penguins seals etc (saw a couple of ex-baby seals sunbathing down Aromoana beach the other day. Not all white any more, but still all furry. Hidden away places? The sort U need a 4x4 drive & lots of hiking to get to. Wide plains (Canterbury plains 4 eg) with braided river systems (too flat for me... I like some lumps in my landscape). Then theres places like Fiordland... Milford sound & Doubtful sound are quite stunning.

Queenstown is quite renowned for it's beauty but it is quite horrible really... all plasticy & aimed at the tourist market. Plenty of places just as beautiful still un-noticed if you take a look around.
If you like it rugged & dry then check out central otago. If you like things lush & green then drive down the west coast (although be prepared for a lot of rain... it is a rainforest after all If you're driving over the Southern Alps then the Lewis pass is beautiful. Oh, & although Wellington itself is appallingly ugly for a city, it is in the hills around Wellington that they filmed the LOTR trilogy if you're interested in checking that out.

A warning though... since you're comming from Nice toasty Aussie... remember we are well into Autumn over here & there's definitely quite a bite in the air these days so bring something warm!

 

[bodhi]

I will pack my jumpers, dont worry, ive been well warned that it's not as toastie as oz!! To be honest, im not really sure what we are going to be doing. We are going to sit down on sunday in auckland and plan it all. We all want to see some amazing scenery etc, and one of the guys wants to see where LOTR was filmed, so i guess that means a trip to wellington. Think we will spend a week in the north island and 2 in the south island.

Can you recommend any good hire car companies?!

 

[cirianz]

well, since I can't drive i can't give a personal recommendation, but I can ask around? What you after? anything with 4 wheels & an engine? Or are you wanting something with 4 wheel drive?

 

[bodhi]

4 wheels and an engine, and reliable. There will be 3 guys and a lot of backpacks and stuff so nothing too small. No womens cars!! ;-)

 

[cirianz]

John sez that most of the filming for LOTR was actually done down here, he also sez...
"The north island doesn't cut it, don't waste time up there in Auckland & the like, get on down here. This is one time where they put the a*eshole of the country at the F*ckn head"
He sez "I lived up there, I know what I'm talking about!"

"Most of LOTR was filmed in central otago, Canterbury, & of course the Franz-Joseph Glacier" (shows how much I know)
He sez "If you like a mans country then this's where you come, no room for pussies." John sez (Not sure what I'm doing here then ) "& we've also got the best roads" (? that has to be manspeak cos It went right over my head) "& sod all traffic. Dunedin doesn't even know what a traffic jam is & that's no bull! I used to wait 2 hours just to get across the Auckland Harbour bridge some mornings."
He sez "http://www.cityofdunedin.co.nz Just have a nosey at this, this's just Dunedin, Not Christchurch or the like" (check out the "scenes of Dunedin" link, it's got some good piccys of the port & the peninsular area)
John wants to upload some photos for you so I'll head off & get some up in the Gallery

 

[cirianz]

There you go Bhodi I have just flooded the 'Holidays' section of the Gallery with an assortment of Local photos. I think they would count as pre-holiday photos

John sez to try Budget rentals if you're looking for affordable & yet reliable. But neither of us has needed to rent a car for a very long time so....
I expect you're busy getting ready for your flight tomorrow now & probably won't see this until you're already over here but I'll wish you a happy holiday anyway & hopefully will be seeing you sometime soon
Any questions then I'll be here or you can email me (I'll PM you my email) We'll be away for the warbirds over Wanaka display on saturday so I'll be incommunicado then, but asides from that just giv's a yell.

 

[bodhi]

Hey,

I dont leave til tomorrow. Ive been out for my last night in sydney and im spastically drunk!! It's me and two danish guys driving around. I'll write down everything you suggested and we should be sorted. John seems to know whats he's talking about! haha.

Right, no more typing or else i'll swear!!

 

[cirianz]

ROFLMAO Ok bodhi, I'll try not to shout.

Couple of things: R u sure that u don't want to do the south Island first? We're in the 'Indian summer' stage of Autumn now, but in a couple of weeks we'll be heading into the 'soggy grey' phase & starting to get the occasional touch of frost in the air. Since the south Island is quite a bit colder than the north it might be an idea to head down here & work your way up.

Also, just heard the weather. Auckland Airport is closed due to fog & international flights are being diverted to Christchurch. Might be an idea to keep a good eye on that between now & tomorrow.

Hope you had a good celebration last night & that your head's not punishing you too much this morning

 

[bodhi]

I'll speak to the boys im travelling with and let you know if we are going to be down Dunedin way, im sure we will be.