10/3: Queenstown

Today we got up in the morning and took some pictures around Wanaka before heading to Queenstown. The drive wasn't all that spectacular (relatively speaking) until we got to the top of the pass and were all of the sudden looking thousand of feet down at the valley at our feet. The road was insanely twisty- Lombard street has nothing on the bottom of this road. We got into Queenstown and finished setting up our activity for later in the afternoon.

Then we went over to the Gondola for a luge run and panoramic views over the lake and city to the Remarkables and the Eyre Range. For those of you that don't know, the Lord of The Rings movies were filmed somewhere around here. I don't actually know anything about the movie, but it gives you an idea of the scenery. The views were incredible, and the luge was fun- sort of a mix between a sled and a go kart. But it had nothing on what we did next.

After a bus ride about 20 minutes out of town, Nicole and I were strapped together and to a giant rubber band and JUMPED OFF A BRIDGE. It was a surreal experience. I don't actually remember jumping off, just all of the sudden falling. It was sensory overload for the first 2 or 3 seconds until the bungy started to catch- I'm sure it was windy but I didn't feel anything. It happened really fast- from check in and weighing to getting strapped in and jumping off and being collected by the little dinghy- which is probably a good thing. Definitely a unique experience. Links to pictures to come tomorrow.

We then went back into town and looked at a handful of restaurants before Nicole remembered reading about one earlier in the trip. We couldn't find it so we looked in a phone book to figure out where it was- good thing we did too. The meal was awesome, as was the wine and the views- right across the lake to the mountains.

The restaurant prides itself on the total experience, and everything was paired and matched superbly. We had rabbit ravioli with braised daikon radish and an orange- Grand Marnier sauce; Pork Belly with sauteed bok choy and a sweet balsamic- some sort of weird NZ fruit gastrique; white miso risotto with artichoke and wild mushrooms (which was a perfect fit for the NZ Sauvigon Blanc I had), and a mango creme brulee with black sesame ice cream, which sounds weirder than it actually was. Presentation, service, bread, water, wine, view, they nailed it, and I think it was the best meal I've ever had as far as the consistency of quality and creativity- plus, in another feat of discount magic, we got it for 50% off since we were within the first 7 table before 7PM. Ridiculous.

Milford Sound tomorrow- this trip has left no disappointments yet.