A GORGEY PORGEY DAY -
As the weather finally turned for us and it was stupendously sunshiney, Kay, Rob and I had a picnic in the garden of my backpackers before we took their stuff into their lodgings for the eve. Another gorgeous home with beautiful views! After a wander around the lake town, it has already turned my world with its alpine excellence and wowed us all with a phenomenally, glorious Autumn afternoon!
Wanaka is such a pretty location that tons of photos should definitely be posted of it. We walked up to *That* Wanaka Tree, a cherished part of the town and the most photographed, lone tree in all of New Zealand. I must say, it was looking fleek but it was a bit of a pity that the water was out further than usual and not reaching the tree as it does in the iconic pictures. The willow is backdropped by Southern Alps and shimmered in the sunlight.
AND THEN TWO OF THE GREATEST HUMANS WERE STOLEN AWAY FROM ME -
Because I loved being with Kay and Rob it was so sad to part ways with them after a manic supermarket food shop. They are such good people and I was sorry to leave them but they had to continue on their big, fat, amazing adventuring of NZ. The only thing that softened the blow was seeing the sunset at Monument Lookout. It was a tangerine 'hello' to the night before a mostly repulsive pasta and chicken dish prepared by myself.
THE MAGNIFICENT MANIA OF PUZZLING WORLD: WHERE ANYTHING COULD HAPPEN -
Stuart Lansborough's Puzzling World would be the most amazing place if I were 11 years old! I can't pretend that all that was zany here didn't rock as I feel that the weird and wonderful should always be celebrated. The garish holograms in the Illusions rooms went from odd to odder and the tilted house at an angle of 15 degrees could have caused a calamity to Catastrophe Rianne. The 'brain is convinced that it cannot possibly be sloping' - I got dizzy but the distorted perception didn't lead to a disaster.
A XANADU LEVEL OF INSANITY -
168 faces in the octagonal Hall of Faces, where faces of famous figures of the likes of Mother Theresa and Abraham Lincoln appear to follow you. It was both creepaaaaaay and amazin'! The Ames Room in Edinburgh's Camera Obscura kicks the butt of PW's - forced perception where you appear dwarfish one side and GIGANTICAL the other.
Stuart Lansborough is kinda the Willy Wonka of ILLUSION. The toilets themselves had flooring of a Rubix cube with an abyss and another had puzzle pieces with the same chasm below = the coolest loos in existence. I saw ridiculous things such as: *Giant tap appearing to get water from nowhere *Kit Kat bench *telephone box of infinity *invisible bench *afro lion *Roman communal 'loos' where it looks as though you're sat in the painting *Leaning Tower of Wanaka and steps to nowhere.
PUZZLED BY THE PUZZLES -
Are they supposed to be beatable? I couldn't win a single one of those scattered atop tables; they all had me bamboozled!! But what proved to be most perplexing and more challenging than it appeared was the labyrinth of the great maze. I can't say I brought my A-game maze negotiation through the 1.5km of passages, underpasses and over bridges.
I may or may not have cheated by crawling under fences 2 or 3 times in order to find the blue, red, yellow and green corners that you're supposed to come upon before you escape. And I took the CLASSIC challenge in favour of the difficult challenge - this alone took me the best part of 60 minutes and that is with me taking the sneaky shortcuts to reach the coloured towers. I didn't beat around the bush - instead, I BEAT the bush to get out of the mystifying nightmare.
I'LL JUST PRETEND TO BE INTERESTED IN DEAD PLANTS -
Trudging on ahead to Wanaka Lavender Farm along a further 1km of highway with my upper back and shoulders aching and being wary of setting off possum traps along the roadside. The bloody images of the roadkill I passed are burned into my brain and scarred upon my heart :( it upset me deeply.
Picnicked by the driveway of the Lavender Farm until I was annihilated by sand flies; it was close to turning into a Rianney massacre. It was the wrong time of year for a visit as the lavender was far from flourishing; it bummed me out a little bit as it should've been a sweet sight. There was prettiness even without any of the lilac pigmentation and the distinct herby, perfumed smell hit me.
THANKS FARM FOR REUNITING ME WITH ALPACAS -
They were of mixed 'race' and I wanted to take them in my arms for a cuddle. I was inadvertently headbutted by a bee/wasp but that wasn't too awful as I wasn't stung. Beforehand, I crunched on a lavender heart shaped cookie in the quaint tearoom, satisfying my unnatural love for cookies.
At eventide, I roved passed the marina to the sheltered bay of Eely Point which is popular for picnics and boating. This was a short and gentle track - I think I'd expected more but as twilight was descending, the silhouettes of mountains and last specks of sunlight breaking through the clouds was outstanding.
I GET TO HATE MOUNTAINS NOW -
It is also the last time I trust a random hiker man who persuaded Eleanor and I to begin our hike of Mt Iron at the steeper side. That was like the walk that wouldn't end to the top but my affliction was self-imposed. Again, my lower limbs were mostly uncooperative to my uphill struggles -- we have the ugliest of histories! It embarrassed me that so many were fitter than I, including the little boy who was keen to beat us to the summit as he believed there was a reward of gold.
The real reward was lake vistas, exceptional to the eyes and for that alone, it was worth my while. The lake definitely expects to be Instagrammed, whenever I gaze at it .. I wanna(KA) applaud! :D We sat for an hour or so as we dined alfresco at the peak in a spectacular setting.
THE BANE OF ICE CREAM'S EXISTENCE -
After my consumption of Black Peak Gelato, it immediately came to light that it is inferior to Patagonia's! I'm a blueberry kinda girl but the artificial mush of the blueberry sorbet was shambolic! And the hazelnut? Just NO. I cannot be won over by insufficient sweetness. Where was the flavoursome creaminess gelato is known for?
We strolled further afield back to *that* pesky tree as dusk was fast approaching. This is a serene site for soul searching especially when it is blissfully, stupendously sunny and not remotely summer. The light was so dazzling reflecting off the lake as we went west side of Lake Wanaka and headed towards Waterfall Creek - not that we actually got there as we weren't sure where it was.
OY TO THE VEY -
After doing a large load of laundry at my backpackers, I was mortified and overly apologetic that I had broken the dryer. The sign was not clear that we should have used $2 coins to operate it so me being me, put in several $1 coins into the slot. This jammed it and the machine wouldn't do anything, all I could do was stand by and watch as one of the female staff members used a paperclip to 'pop' out all the $2 coins she'd crammed in over the one dollar ones I should not have inserted. It was SO stressful and not how I'd envisioned spending my final night in Wanaka. Not only was I left with wet washing but I had destroyed the chances of anyone else drying their clothes!!
With Eleanor in tow, we dashed down to the corner launderette and had us a drying partayyyyy as we stared at the dryer spin round and round. It was somewhat therapeutic to see our washing tumble during the cycle - moreso than staring at a lava lamp. I'd pretty much legged it while the staff members were trying to fix the damage.. they must have been furious with me and rightly so but the notice by the drier needs to be less vague. All's well that ends well - as my laundry was dry and I got back to the hostel to be told that the drier was repaired!! My immense was relief.
Goodbye Wanaka, you're now a part of my life xx
Stuart Lansborough's Puzzling World would be the most amazing place if I were 11 years old! I can't pretend that all that was zany here didn't rock as I feel that the weird and wonderful should always be celebrated. The garish holograms in the Illusions rooms went from odd to odder and the tilted house at an angle of 15 degrees could have caused a calamity to Catastrophe Rianne. The 'brain is convinced that it cannot possibly be sloping' - I got dizzy but the distorted perception didn't lead to a disaster.
168 faces in the octagonal Hall of Faces, where faces of famous figures of the likes of Mother Theresa and Abraham Lincoln appear to follow you. It was both creepaaaaaay and amazin'! The Ames Room in Edinburgh's Camera Obscura kicks the butt of PW's - forced perception where you appear dwarfish one side and GIGANTICAL the other.
Stuart Lansborough is kinda the Willy Wonka of ILLUSION. The toilets themselves had flooring of a Rubix cube with an abyss and another had puzzle pieces with the same chasm below = the coolest loos in existence. I saw ridiculous things such as: *Giant tap appearing to get water from nowhere *Kit Kat bench *telephone box of infinity *invisible bench *afro lion *Roman communal 'loos' where it looks as though you're sat in the painting *Leaning Tower of Wanaka and steps to nowhere.
Are they supposed to be beatable? I couldn't win a single one of those scattered atop tables; they all had me bamboozled!! But what proved to be most perplexing and more challenging than it appeared was the labyrinth of the great maze. I can't say I brought my A-game maze negotiation through the 1.5km of passages, underpasses and over bridges.
I may or may not have cheated by crawling under fences 2 or 3 times in order to find the blue, red, yellow and green corners that you're supposed to come upon before you escape. And I took the CLASSIC challenge in favour of the difficult challenge - this alone took me the best part of 60 minutes and that is with me taking the sneaky shortcuts to reach the coloured towers. I didn't beat around the bush - instead, I BEAT the bush to get out of the mystifying nightmare.
Trudging on ahead to Wanaka Lavender Farm along a further 1km of highway with my upper back and shoulders aching and being wary of setting off possum traps along the roadside. The bloody images of the roadkill I passed are burned into my brain and scarred upon my heart :( it upset me deeply.
Picnicked by the driveway of the Lavender Farm until I was annihilated by sand flies; it was close to turning into a Rianney massacre. It was the wrong time of year for a visit as the lavender was far from flourishing; it bummed me out a little bit as it should've been a sweet sight. There was prettiness even without any of the lilac pigmentation and the distinct herby, perfumed smell hit me.
They were of mixed 'race' and I wanted to take them in my arms for a cuddle. I was inadvertently headbutted by a bee/wasp but that wasn't too awful as I wasn't stung. Beforehand, I crunched on a lavender heart shaped cookie in the quaint tearoom, satisfying my unnatural love for cookies.
At eventide, I roved passed the marina to the sheltered bay of Eely Point which is popular for picnics and boating. This was a short and gentle track - I think I'd expected more but as twilight was descending, the silhouettes of mountains and last specks of sunlight breaking through the clouds was outstanding.
It is also the last time I trust a random hiker man who persuaded Eleanor and I to begin our hike of Mt Iron at the steeper side. That was like the walk that wouldn't end to the top but my affliction was self-imposed. Again, my lower limbs were mostly uncooperative to my uphill struggles -- we have the ugliest of histories! It embarrassed me that so many were fitter than I, including the little boy who was keen to beat us to the summit as he believed there was a reward of gold.
The real reward was lake vistas, exceptional to the eyes and for that alone, it was worth my while. The lake definitely expects to be Instagrammed, whenever I gaze at it .. I wanna(KA) applaud! :D We sat for an hour or so as we dined alfresco at the peak in a spectacular setting.
After my consumption of Black Peak Gelato, it immediately came to light that it is inferior to Patagonia's! I'm a blueberry kinda girl but the artificial mush of the blueberry sorbet was shambolic! And the hazelnut? Just NO. I cannot be won over by insufficient sweetness. Where was the flavoursome creaminess gelato is known for?
We strolled further afield back to *that* pesky tree as dusk was fast approaching. This is a serene site for soul searching especially when it is blissfully, stupendously sunny and not remotely summer. The light was so dazzling reflecting off the lake as we went west side of Lake Wanaka and headed towards Waterfall Creek - not that we actually got there as we weren't sure where it was.
After doing a large load of laundry at my backpackers, I was mortified and overly apologetic that I had broken the dryer. The sign was not clear that we should have used $2 coins to operate it so me being me, put in several $1 coins into the slot. This jammed it and the machine wouldn't do anything, all I could do was stand by and watch as one of the female staff members used a paperclip to 'pop' out all the $2 coins she'd crammed in over the one dollar ones I should not have inserted. It was SO stressful and not how I'd envisioned spending my final night in Wanaka. Not only was I left with wet washing but I had destroyed the chances of anyone else drying their clothes!!
With Eleanor in tow, we dashed down to the corner launderette and had us a drying partayyyyy as we stared at the dryer spin round and round. It was somewhat therapeutic to see our washing tumble during the cycle - moreso than staring at a lava lamp. I'd pretty much legged it while the staff members were trying to fix the damage.. they must have been furious with me and rightly so but the notice by the drier needs to be less vague. All's well that ends well - as my laundry was dry and I got back to the hostel to be told that the drier was repaired!! My immense was relief.
Goodbye Wanaka, you're now a part of my life xx
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