Goodbye Queenstown.
Ty loved Queenstown. So much that every time we started to head off to so something else he would say, “no! I don’t want to leave.” When we packed up the car this morning he got emotional, said he didn’t want to leave. I would like to think his fondness of the town was due to the fact that he recognizes the jaw dropping beauty of the place, or that he knew that the memories we made there would last forever. Likely, however, he knew that when vacation was over, so was the seemingly endless supply of ice cream shops.

Remarkables.
The majestic mountain range around the town are called The Remarkables. I couldn’t have come up with a more appropriate name. Bits of The Lord of the Rings were filmed in those mountains. Jay thinks that every movie should be filmed in New Zealand – and I agree.

Bungy.
On our way out of town we again drove by the original bungy jumping bridge, and this time I snapped a picture.

Rocks.
Along the side of the roads there are random piles of rocks in pretty much the middle of nowhere. I am kind of wishing we had pulled over and made one. Kind of a neat (and harmless) way to leave your mark on New Zealand.

Hitchhikers.
We saw lots of people hitch hiking their way around. It seems like a perfectly acceptable (and for some preferred) mode of transportation. Made me a little nervous, especially for the two younger gals about to stick out their thumb and hope for a safe free ride, but there must not be many psychos wandering through NZ.

Mountains.
There were more beautiful mountains. And sheep. We were considering driving up to Mt Cook but it was sort of cloudy, and a New Zealander from the office said it isn’t worth the extra travel time on a cloudy day. Besides the clouds, we were pushing our luck with Mr. Pukesalot in the backseat. We tried to keep him focused on the road ahead and stopped at little roadside parks quite often to give him some fresh air.

Poor kid inherited Nana’s weak tummy. Nothing a little bit of Cheese Twisties can’t cure…

Cherries.
We noticed something that looked like an entire field covered in tarp ahead and were wondering what the heck it was. Turns out it was an entire grove of cherry trees covered in netting to keep the birds out. Wow.

More Mountains.
Did I mention how beautiful the mountains are here? And the wildflowers? And the lakes the color of the ocean?

My Lord.
Our accommodations for the night are interesting…we are staying at Camelot Motor Lodge, in a room that is meant to be like a castle. Ty loves it. He and dad are having a slumber party in the loft upstairs.

Brrr.
We walked down the road about 800 meters to have dinner at a little brew pub. It had a neat outdoor deck area that we had all to ourselves. It was chilly enough to have to wear our jackets, but not too bad. It was a yummy last supper in NZ. The boys were being silly.

And Lily wondered what this thing was she was wearing. She has managed to avoid colder weather her entire life.

Ty’s Favorite Bits.
When I ask Ty what his favorite thing about vacation was, he says “ice cream” or “milk”. Glad we travelled to a foreign country to make him happy. 🙂