New Zealand

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Right,

Will probably be visiting new zealand eary in 04.. where's nice to go & see.. will only be there for around 2 weeks though & with any luck will spend some time meeting people & trying to sort a job [img]images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] but for those free moments, any must-see's?

A

[dog]

Eric posted some photos before.
I went to Queenstown, the snow was great. They say Milford sound is good but stay away from the buses (fly in and out)

[ajsl]

Well I'm probably a bit biased (as I'm from NZ) but here you go [img]images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Are you going to the North or South island? You don't really have enough time in 2 weeks to see everything (NZ has the same landmass as the UK excluding N. Ireland), but you'll have time to do the usual tourist things.

If you're seriously thinking about getting a job then the North island is probably your best bet as the two largest cities are there (Wellington and Auckland). I'm from the North island so expect a bit of Northern bias in my recommendations [img]images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]

It's a bit hard to come up with a short list of things to see/do but here's a few suggestions (all IMHO of course) :

• The Coromandel peninsula
• The Bay of Islands
• Goat island (it's North of Auckland and is a marine reserve)
• Fiordland (Milford sound is superb)
• Queenstown is a bit too touristy IMHO but stop by if you're around, the jet boating is great.
• The west coast of the South Island there's some very wild beaches along there. Look out for the Moeraki Boulders.
• Whale watching at Kaikoura
• Rotorua is well worth a visit if you're at all interested in geothermal landscapes.
• White Island (off the East coast of the North Island) an active volcano.
• Mt Ruapehu (Skiing in season and another active volcano)
• Try to get out and see a bit of native forest (bush) if you can, and if you're up North try to see some Kauri trees.
• The Waitomo caves (if it's your thing try some black water rafting)
• Ninety Mile beach is pretty impressive, same with Hot Water beach.
• The Southern alps are awesome.
• Check out Fox Glacier and/or Franz Josef Glacier.
• Mt Maunganui & Pamamoa beaches (I prefer Pamamoa myself)
• If you can, try and attend a Hangi (traditional Maori cooking method)
• Te Papa (Museum of NZ in Wellington) is supposed to be good though it was built after I left so I haven't been.

Food/drink items to try:

• Macs gold beer - a personal favourite [img]images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]
• Waikato beer - Not as good as it was when they actually made it in the Waikato but still superb (I'm from the Waikato BTW).
• Lion Red beer - Sort of an "everyman" lager for those that can't handle Waikato [img]images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]
• Tui beer - The nectar from Mangatainoka.
• Lemon and Paeroa (L&P) - a soft drink
• Chocolate fish - chocolate covered marshmallow fish, often given as a reward!
• Peanut slab - chocolate bar
• Pinky - chocolate bar
• Moro bar - chocolate bar very similar to a Mars bar
• Diary produce in general - it's excellent, especailly try the milkshakes & thickshakes.
• Fish - quite different to the fish here due to the warmer water, the shell fish are excellent too.
• Ponsonby pie - superb range of savoury pies.
• Big Ben pie - sort of a standard meat pie, not stunning but an institution all the same
• Lamingtons - cake
• Kumara - Sweet potato
• Marmite/Vegemite - contentious issue I know [img]images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img] but NZ marmite is very different that the stuff you get here - I have to import it!
• Mallowpuffs - biscuits, very similar to a Tunnocks tea cake but not as sweet
• Jaffas/Snifters - sweets
• Kina - it's a sea urchin. Personally they turn my stomach but some people like them!
• Crayfish - Like lobster
• Feijoa - Fruit
• Saveloy - cocktail sausage (have these with tomato sauce)
• Tamarillo - Fruit also known as the "tree tomato"
• Sauvignon Blanc - You probably know about this already [img]images/graemlins/wink.gif[/img]
• Spirulina - Seaweed based fruit smoothie (don't let the colour put you off)

Hmm, I'm getting a bit homesick now [img]images/graemlins/blush.gif[/img]

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Cheers guys! good info [img]images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Since I'm only going for a couple of weeks, I'll probably stick to the north island (planning to work in either Wellington or Auckland you see) it looks like there's plenty to see.. [img]images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

(if anyone knows of any cheap flight websites, let me know!)

A

[chris22]

What... Chocolate covered fish [img]images/graemlins/colours.gif[/img]
Bass

[ajsl]

What... Chocolate covered fish

They're nicer than they sound


<edit>
Just found this site complete with tinned chocolate fish for sale: http://productsfromnz.com/browse_1568

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ohh god what have I let myself in for? [img]images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

A