BootsnAll Travel Network



Wanaka -Day 9- 2nd March oh the joys!

The time in Franz Joseph was spent mostly trying to get an email connection to Stray Travel who keep sending me the wrong itinery! I got on the bus Sun morning only to be told by Happy, our driver, that i wasn’t on the list! – well I’m here i say. He phones Stray who say all ok. From one aspect they are very good – often you wouldn’t know about places to stop between stops for the night and I have seen some beautiful sights. But and I know i shouldn’t start a sentence with but, but, their office organisation is a mess. Enough of my frustrations!
As we drove to Franz Joseph the landscape changed from rugged beaches with crashing waves to huge hills and tropical vegetation. One interesting stop was the pancake rocks. Stunning rock shapes all in layers like a pile of pancakes! The walk down to them was wooded and covered in a lot of New Zealand flax.
Franz Joseph and the Rainforest retreat seemed sort of Swiss or a typical hilly/mountainous ski resort. It is a centre based on the glacier there which is moving 7 times faster than it should, due to climate change. It is a worry for locals with a living based on tourism. I went out to do a bit of shopping and bought myself, at great expense, a poncho type jumper made from possum (very soft) and merino wool ( to give it strength). Very light and very warm in an air force blue colour. After another attempt to use wiffy I gave in and sat in the hot tub with a lovely young man from the Isle of Man who was on holiday from working on a farm in the north. I then showered and got ready for the pizza fest in the bar. I was early so had to have a beer while i was waiting! I had made friends with a couple of lovely girls called Claire and Nicola from just outside London and a lovely woman from Dublin got on the bus at Greymouth and sat next to me. We all stuck around together. The pizza fest was a real blow out – garlic bread, chips, a free drink and all the pizza you could eat for $18.50 – £9.50. Went straight to bed after that!
We left FJ and as I turned my mobile on I got a text from the bank saying they were sending me a new debit card as requested and it would be with me in 2-3 days. Luckily Claire had free calls to UK so she let me use her phone. Someone had swiped my card details but it had been investigated and no fraudulent action had taken place – thank god! I spent a stop at Lake Matheson doing that instead of enjoying scenery! Anyway, phew! No problems.



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