New Zealand continued

Hi everyone!


Sorry its been a while. We haven't have any internet, or the time! We have been busy travelers.





So we left Queenstown after a fun time there and we went to stay on a farm! We had a lot of fun with the host family. It was husband and wife, Ken and Fiona, and they had a working farm with lots and lots of sheep and some cows. We were there for one night, and then off to a boat! We went on an overnight cruise on a 80 passenger boat down Doubtful Sound, and out to the Tasman Sea. In the river, there were bottle nose dolphins, so we got to see those! That was really neat. We also went kayaking! That was an adventure. Everyone, except mom, went. Camille was tied to the back of dad's kayak because she wasn't too sure what she was doing. Then when we were coming back the next day, it was raining a lot, and there were so many waterfalls! It was awesome to see all the many waterfalls. And it is incredible how close the captain could get the boat to the waterfall. We even got so close that the "nature lady" got some waterfall water so we could taste it. It was so fresh. So we got off the boat and headed for a small town called Wanaka. It was just a sleeping stop on our way to Franz Josef, which has a glacier. So the next day, New Years Eve Day, we drove the long way to Franz Josef. It was something like 5 hours! In a small car! Oh and I should mention we ended up getting a van, but it didn't have a lot of space. But it worked. So we ended up in Franz Josef around 5 PM that night, and we were able to make it on a 6 PM helicopter ride up to the glacier. It was really nice up there. And we all kept falling throught the snow! On the helicopter ride back, there was a river that had suddenly swelled and trapped a few people on an island. So the heli dropped us off and then went back to get them because there was no way to get them back, but we then heard on the radio that the river had gone back down! Crazy how things can change. That night we were staying in a super small "resort" in the middle of no-where, surrounded by cows...for New Years Eve. Needless to say we didn't do much. We all stayed up till midnight, but there was no dropping of the ball or anything. Oh well. The next day we had to drive to the train station in Greymouth to go to Christchurch. The drive was 2-3 hours, and the train ride was 4-4 1/2. We got to Christchurch last night and were there less than 12 hours. We walked around the city, ate Mexican food and went to bed early because we had to get up at 5 to make it to the airport by 6 to come to Rotorua, which is where we are now. So today we arrived at around 9 and went to a sheep sheerin show, a farm tour, and then went Zorbing! We have been waiting for a while now to go Zorbing!! It was lots of fun! Camille got a little scared, but eventually was ok with it. Basically what it is is sitting inside of a rubber ball which is inside a bigger rubber ball. In the tube is water, so you don't go in circles. I went with Camille and Ben and Noelle went together. Tonight we ate at a steak house, which was quite good! Tomorrow Dad wants to go to Kaorao, which is part of where he served his mission. We want to go horseback riding and fishing. Who knows what we will do!





I will post a few teaser pictures, but you will have to wait for the majority till I get home...since I don't know where my camera cord is!

This was the lake at Queenstown.

This was the resort in Franz Josef that we stayed at on New Years Eve.

This was the sunset at Franz Josef. Beautiful.

More to come!

Love, The Busath's