Everybody look at me cause I'm sailing on a boat

This is Julie B. And that's right, we went on a boat today! In Lake Wanaka. And it's 40 miles long! It's probably the most picturesque place we've been. And I know we said that before - it's like the entire country of New Zealand is filled with pretty places!

By Trevor's request, I've uploaded some pictures. These are the only ones available on my camera now, I had to change memory cards a couple of days ago. The first two were taken today from the lake. You can see the snow capped mountains in the background and us with our hats and heavy coats on. And all of Shanna's layering, of course.

Lake Wanaka from Liz and Johnny's boat; it's cold but really pretty :)

Wanaka from Mt Iron, if you look close, you might see Shania Twain's farm in the background... seriously! She lives here!

So, since Shanna's blog left off, we've spent a total of 6 days with Amy's amazing relatives, 3 in Christchurch and 3 in Wanaka.

Christchurch is on the east coast of the country, where a prevailing wind makes it really cold, that's what we were told at least. They were experiencing a cold snap while we were there and the weather got to 4 deg C! Julie, Shanna and I packed for Australia, complete with bikinis and sundresses, so some purchases of boots, coats and/or hats had to be made.

We went to Hanmer Springs with Amy's cousin Prue for a day. They had natural hot springs of sulphur that came out of the ground into heated pools of 35-41 deg C. The hottest pools smelled the worse, but in that cold weather, the heated pools were like heaven!

We've all been fattened up since we arrived in New Zealand. The food that's prepared for us is delicious! We've been spoiled by Amy's cousins- fresh towels, full meals, comfy beds, even heated blankets! I don't wanna go back to hostel living haha. I don't know if it's the part Newfie in their genes, but New Zealand hospitality could give the Newfies a run for their money! When we got in Christchurch at 6:00 the first evening, there was a native Lamb roast waiting for us... and it hasn't slacked off one bit! I'm loving it, so long as my jeans still fit. I only have one pair!

We arrived in Wanaka on Wednesday afternoon, to rain, fog and cold temperatures. But it was just what we needed. Amy's other cousin, Prue's sister and her husband, and everything ready for us. We curled up by the woodstove that afternoon with tea, a book and blankets, listening to the rain outside and playing with their dog, Susie, who I think Shanna wants to take home to play with Barkley. Either way, it was lovely to relax in a house again!

We chilled out in Wanaka for a couple of days, explored the quaint little town, bought some souvenirs, hiked Mt Iron on an unexpected expedition through the woods, rode in boat, and pretty much made ourself at home. Yesterday for supper, Liz and John trusted us enough to let us cook for them. And it turned out amazing! Chef Julie N cooked Pepper Sausage Penne Bake, and we had a garden salad and bread for the side, with brownies for dessert. Talk about a meal! Yum. They loved it, and us of course. We're thinking about staying here forever.

I've been talking about baking muffins for about 3 weeks now. Muffins around here are wayyy too disappointing. They're like cupcakes. And gross. So, today, I made 3 batches of Mom's Banana Chocolate Chip muffins. And it was like heaven. I'm revamped now until December. One of the batches were remolished during lunch. One we're taking on our great biking adventure tomorrow, and the other is for Liz and Johnny to freeze. So, we're not that big of pigs haha.

Tomorrow, we're going on an old railway for a 3 day biking trek. It's going through the backroads of New Zealand and through tunnels and up hills for about 150-175 kms! We're staying in little towns along the way, in hotels. So, muffins for breakfast!

The last picture was uploaded to compliment Shanna's last post. This is a picture from one of the many lookouts on the Abel Tasman trail. It was like a scene similar to this one was around every corner!

Well, it's 11:45 here and about 2 hours past my bedtime. The other girls are long gone to bed and our lameness is getting worse on our journey through NZ. It started by jet lag, and now by 9:00, we're dropping tired and in bed by 10, up by 7. I think we're getting old.

Night folks!

Julie B