Remarkable(s) in Many Ways

Yes, we have some BANANAS! $1.99 (NZ) per kilo! I must say, they’re pretty yummy sliced on a toasted English muffin spread with Nutella, accompanied by “trim” milk (skim, we think). The view from our place of the Remarkables enhances the dining experience.

We started and finished the day in Queenstown set along Lake Wakatipu surrounded by the Remarkables. A quick visit to the medical center was on the agenda for the Charlie cough that won’t go away (lots of rest and regular meals haven’t been part of his recent days). He’s back out on the field in no time.

Our low-key day included the observation decks at A.J. Hackett – the founders of the sport of bungy jumping. I know with certainty that I could not dive off that bridge and Daniel seems to be with me. Mike would do it if he was sure he wouldn’t get hurt. Molly is first in line as soon as she reaches 35 kilos. Charlie keeps repeating that he’s “afraid of heights.”

Next stop, Arrowtown, a nearby town that was central in the 19^th century gold rush that attracted Europeans and Chinese gold seekers. The visitors' center rents pans for $3 each so the Conlin 49ers (?) planned what to buy with their nuggets on the way down to the river with Mike. No luck at all at first…after I arrived to check in on the action and Mike fetched (Molly’s term) them some river bottom from a promising part of the river, their luck changed. No one can believe that they each found a nugget of approximately the same size within minutes of each other. Daniel thinks it might be pyrite (fool’s gold), but they’ll wait until they get back to the States to have it fully appraised, while continuing to make their lists of how to spend their fortunes. Charlie insists that they’ll split their earnings in half. Clearly, we have a little work on fractions to do with that boy.

The day out ended with a walk along the water in the Queenstown Gardens and the nearby neighborhood. The tulips and rhododendrons are in bloom, well into spring. The fern, as seen on The All Blacks jerseys and everywhere else in NZ is a national symbol.

As I type, we’re watching the consolation game for the Rugby World Cup. Go Wallabies! According to the commentators, someone needs a warning about too many “hands on the ruck”. The blood is flowing freely and at least one ACL and a few teeth are not in the shape they started in. The athletes seem, on average, more well-spoken than the athletes, on average, in the United States. Mike says it’s because of all the public speaking practice they got in elementary school.