a_mccausland

Until now, i've been running my folio off my bands site. Now it's got it's own domain - a-mcc.co.uk

fun times


lil promo

just a few cosmetic tweaks on the site. visit ere

been working on this for a few weeks. just a few finishing touches to do

We've done this trip one and a half times. The first time was by train. This was one of the things we had been looking forward to most but ended up being just ok. the scenery was great, when we could see it, but the train's other passengers all tended to be on the mature side.

Anyway, we then borrowed a chums car and drove to Arthurs Pass from Christchurch. The road runs parallel to the railway in most places so you see an awul lot fo the same stuff but we got awesome weather and being able to stop where you like and do it all in your own time is unbeatable.

On the way we stopped at a place called Castel Hill, famous for it's huge limestone rock formations, also for having a big battle in Lord of the Rings filmed there as well as Narnia(i think). Possibly the most awesome landscape in NZ. We spent hours walking through the formations and just chilling out. Climbers sometimes scale some of the larger rocks.

We stayed the night in Arthurs Pass, New Zealands highest village, 737 metres above sea level (apparently). We had been hoping to meet one of NZs most famous birds, the Kea, the worlds only Apline Parrot. The first once we saw skipped out of a cat flap at the restaurant we had just eaten at, funnily enough, it was called the Wobbly Kea. They have a funny kind of walk, like a two step waddle. Anyway, this particular Kea, waddled around us a for a bit, reckoned Amy had some food, realised she hadn't and then wadlled off.

The next day we headed off for a short drive and came across three, we think a mother and two babbies. They're incredibly inquisitive birds and incredibly intelligent. They have a strange fixation with rubber, they peck at the rubber seal around car windows, they do this so much in fact, that rental car companies dont let you take their cars into areas where the birds are often found.

Before we were ready to head off back to Christchurch, we bought some snacks at the local shop and sat outside. Within seconds, about 5 keas had descended to the table where we had sat. i headed off to the car to get the camera and turned round to hear amy yelling that one of the them had nicked our bag of crisps! all i saw when i turned round was the bugger flying off over the trees with it! and this wasnt a small bag either, it was a large sized bag. We did get it back unopened however but we kept a firm hold of everything else we had.

I've always said i wanted to live somewhere with a view of snow capped mountains and alpine forests. Amy always wanted to be by the sea. Kaikoura seems to be the place for us. We get the best of both worlds here. It's the most surreal landscape here, you look out to see and across to the shore and in the distance are massive snow capped peaks. Madness.

Where we now live

Well, it's been a while since i last updated here, i've gotten terribly lazy with these updates. Anyway, since the last update we've travelled from Queenstown, the adventure capital of New Zealand, to Christchurch, the biggest city in the south island. We got there with enough money for two weeks in a hostel and basic food. Unfortuntely the place just ended up reminding us of Belfast and there was little point in living somewhere on the other side of the planet that just reminded you of home. The Photo above makes it look rather more pretty however. Long story short, it was grey and miserable so we pissed off. During our time there we had been searching for jobs but even the recruitment agencies were saying there was just nothing there. Amy was offered two nights a week at a shitehole of an irish bar from 7pm to 4am and i managed to get a one off job moving display boards for 3 hours. The one good thing about Christchurch was that we stayed in a great lil hostel in the city itself. Chester Street Backpackers was the place, great staff, beatiful rooms. Fantastic place in the city which didn't feel like you were actually in a city. Anyway, we had enough dough for two weeks and the job hunt wasn't looking any more promising. Out of the blue one of the girls who worked at the hostel we had become friends with found an advert for a horse trek guide in a place called Hanmer Springs, just 2 hours north of Christchurch. Two days later we were on our way to Hanmer.

Hadn't really been looking forward to Queenstown, after being all down the quiet west coast i really didnt want to head into a busy centre but ended up really liking the place. WE arrived just after the WinterFest finished and it was absolutely BUNGED! The first day we were there we headed to Milford Sound, one of the most popular places to visit in NZ. I'lll post some photos in the next Entry.

Whilst in Queenstown i participated in something called the Shotover Canyon Swing. i will say no more and point you here >> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubxvTc1rfDg

One of the msot beautiful places we've seen since being away and we could only stay one night. Bloody kiwi experience. if you ever get here, dont book with them. It should be renamed Pommie Experience, full of English students whose only goal is to get pissed and laid.

AAAAnyway, we did our skydive in Wanaka, i've posted the skydive video on a previous post. we look ridiculous but it was an amazing experience. highly recommended. there are much better photos all over flickr

So after the rush of descending the glacier by helicopter on sunday we decided we could only go ever more further and higher so yesterday we jumped out of a plane at 12,000 feet.

I have not the words. evidence is available below.

Whoo Hoo! today we soared high above the ice and snow and finally got on our Heli-Hike. i have no time to write so have some piccies!

And so, we are back on the road, travelling further south into glacier country in the South Island. Our first stop after leaving Buller Adventure Tours was a lil place called Lake Mahinapua, Home of New Zealands oldest publican, Les. He's 83 (i think) and hosts Fancy dress partays every night of the week for Kiw Experience passengers. I generally dislike fancy dress partays but the prize was a canyon swing in Queenstown and what with us having little money, i thought i'd give it a go. We had to dress as things beginning with the first letter of our names, i was Albert Einstein and Amy was Alice in Wonderland. Against all odds and the laws of the universe, i frickin won! i promise pics soon. i looked bloody ridiculous.

So, we're now in a lil place called Franz Josef, the main town situated beneath the Franz Josef glacier. We had booked onto a Heli-Hike, a 10 minute chopper ride up on the glacier and then a 2 hours hike around on the ice. the weather however had other ideas and it was frickin cancelled. Miffed. Anyway, we're booked onto a different glacier hike tomorrow and hopefully we'll go on a scenic plane flight elsewhere at some stage. This was one of the things we REALLY wanted to do here before we even came and now it looks like we wont get the chance which is a major bummer. We can always come back if we have the opportunity but hassle and cost will probably mean we cant.

Anyway, next stop is Wanaka where we plan to do a skydive and then n to Queenstown where i collect my prize of the canyon swing. We also should be meeting up with a few gals i was wrking with back in Belfast for some skiing, drinking and what have you.