New Zealand!!

Wow, its 11:20PM on January 1, 2012 New Zealand time, most of you readers are still out celebrating New Years. I arrived in Queenstown, NZ around 4:00PM on Christmas Day, and this is pretty much the first opportunity I've been able to write anything, just quick emails to my family and quick Facebook updates / Facebook Albums - Queenstown / Beginning of the Routeburn Track and then the Completion of the Routeburn Track, ATVing in Te Anau, and Kayaking / Camping in Doubtful Sound!! Wow, what a great first week to our trip!! I have some hand written notes that I will post at a later time and date them, they contain my exact thoughts at the time and will likely portray how incredible of a country New Zealand is.

Here's a quick recap of the first week.

Dec 23: Depart Chicago to LAX to Auckland, New Zealand

Dec 24: Well...my birthday didn't exactly exist this year...we left LAX at 11:30PM on Dec 23 and arrived in NZ on Christmas morning at 10am. Don't worry, I made sure to ring in my 25th year of life with a Kiwi Brew. (Note: New Zealanders are called Kiwis)

Dec 25: Land in Auckland (on the North island), customs, re-check bags, domestic flight to Queenstown, NZ on the South Island. Queenstown is "The Adventure Capital of the World" I'm sure you're not shocked that Tim and I started our trip here. Arrive at the hostel, play Ultimate Frisbee with our newly made friends, hang out.

Dec 26: Canyoning the Routeburn, Disc Golf (read: "Frolfing") at NZ's first ever Disc Golf Park)

Dec 27: Riverboarding with Serious Fun Rafting - One highlight being Surfing a stationary wave, Begin "Routeburn Track" A 32KM (20 mile hike with 2,700 vertical feet of elevation change (more than 1/2 a mile)

Dec 28: Routeburn Track - 14 of the miles today and the majority of the elevation change, with our packs and all our food

Dec 29: Finished the Routeburn Track, Te Anau, ATV "(Quad Bike)" Lord of the Rings sites

Dec 30: Kayak "Doubtful Sound" in Fiordland National Park. Camp in Doubtful Sound - Hall Arm.

Dec 31: Kayak Doubtful Sound some more, bus back to Queenstown to ring in 2012 with our friends at The Adventure Queenstown Hostel. Stay here on your visit to Queenstown!

Jan 1: Rent Car, Drive from Queenstown to Franz Josef Glacier, Spend a couple hours in Wanaka...and...and...and....I GOT TO WATER SKI ON LAKE WANAKA!!! Looooved it!! Beautiful Summer Day with Snow Capped Mountains in the distance!! Gorgeous winding roads the entire time, a stop at The Blue Pools, and then the breath taking view of the South Pacific for the first time via car, and onward to Franz Josef.

Here I am now, what an amazing and whirlwind first week it has been. I've loved every minute of it so far though!! New Zealand really lives up to all of its hype thus far. The adventure opportunities are around any corner you turn. The people have been incredible (see: taking me water skiing when I simply asked them on the beach), and the country is GORGEOUS. I can't stress that enough, pictures will never be able to do it justice. The 4+ hour car ride today seemed like minutes, seriously, the views the entire trip were breath taking. I really wish we had more time here, everyone we meet is doing minimum 4 weeks here, and everyone that isn't doing 4+ weeks here...has moved here, found a job, and just living the dream. I love how the rest of the world does it, they truly live life, and enjoy as much of it as possible. I'll add more thoughts intermittently throughout this blog, as I have countless thoughts about this incredible country running through my head non-stop. I can't wait to visit again, and our trip is only at the half way point!! The rest of our trip plans:

Jan 2: Hike Franz Josef Glacier and relax in the Natural Hot Springs in the area to recover from the 8 hour glacier hike in crampons.

Jan 3: Flex Day - Franz Josef Activities? Drive to Arthurs Pass, Hike Avalanch Peak and other hikes in the area

Jan 4: Flex Day - Arthurs Pass Hikes, Drive to Christchurch, Surf in Christchurch, Fly to Auckland and rent car and drive to Whangarei to prep for the next 3 days...

Jan 5: SCUBA Diving Poor Knights Marine Reserve - 2 dives

Jan 6: 2 more dives at Poor Knights

Jan 7: Dive 5 and 6 at Poor Knights - I hope to see these and an octopus and basically anything, I can't wait!! Drive back to Auckland

Jan 8: Explore Auckland - The City of Sails in the morning before flying home at 3PM, Auckland to LAX to O'Hare, and arriving at O'Hare at 2:30PM....thirty minutes before I departed...

I can't wait for the rest of this trip and I'm going to do my best to enjoy every minute of it!! Hopefully I'll be able to make another post tomorrow night about each of the activities in detail.

Happy 2012 everyone!!

-Kyle