Picking up our Jucy Cabana!

It's interesting when we write the blog, every morning we discuss who fancies writing it, normally before the day's activities have started so we can take mental notes throughout the day. It means that you only get one view of the day. Most of the time we have similar opinions but the day at Mona Edd's account felt very different from how I felt. I think today was another one of those days! I'm not sure Edd is going to agree with my feelings.

The first day in New Zealand was a little frustrating, we don't have enough time in NZ, apparently you never will! So we have to keep busy. I may have taken this a bit too much to heart because I can't sit still and so waiting half an hour for a lift to collect our camper-van felt like forever. We killed the time with a couple of pastries from the very well known Fergs bakery. By the time we had been collected from town and done all the hire admin, we finally drove off at about mid-day. Don't ask me why but I was really nervous, this vehicle is going to be home for the next 3 weeks so it had to be good!

The hire company is extremely well known in NZ and Aus, they have bright green vehicles and they are everywhere. They are second hand and definitely have older interior than I was expecting but it was clean and seemed in OK condition. As we drove to a near by historical, gold mining town I think it dawned on me that we are going to be living very simply for the next few weeks; I immediately regretted not having a shower in the hostel the night before.

We realised that we also wouldn't have a constant supply of electricity, we have enough for the freezer and the DVD player in the car but no where to plug in our phones, camera, laptop and Edd's rechargeable chargers. We wandered around Arrowtown and whilst Edd was buzzing with excitement of our new adventure I was dealing with the idea of no hot water, no phone and having to run to a public toilet in the middle of the night on my own in the cold and dark!

Arrowtown was a pretty town to wander around with not much there but we were using it as an excuse for a drive and the views from the car were breath taking. I loved Tasmania for the stunning scenery but I have a feeling New Zealand is going to be a more stunning, more dramatic version. Absolutely every direction you look is breathtakingly beautiful, the air is fresh and cold but the sky's are bright blue and the sun means it feels like shorts and t-shirt weather all day long. I'm not very good with descriptive words and no matter how many I use I won't be able to describe it properly, I have concluded that every human on earth should come here at some point.

Picture, if you can, snow capped mountain backgrounds, greenery all the way to crystal blue lakes. Edd left me basking in the sun whilst he went birthday card shopping, we haven't left each other's sides for 6 weeks so there was no way of hiding it and in the end he just had to ask for some time out!! I sat googling work visas for Brits in NZ, I've found my second home!!

We stopped off at a big supermarket and Edd was in his element buying 'the essentials' for our three week trip. I'm not sure mixed herbs and stock cubes are on most people's essential list but I'm looking forward to some home cooked food, my body is craving veg.

We found a campsite and after quizzing the receptionist about any etiquettes we should know as 'first time campers' we settled in our spot. I have to admit I had calmed down by then, bought a cigarette lighter adapter so we should have a bit more electricity now and was feeling silly with excitement about our little adventure and being self contained! Edd rustled up some lunch for us, he immediately settled into his new kitchen and even approves of the one knife they have provided for us (he was worried it wouldn't be up to his home knife standards!). After a lot of rearranging I worked out how to get the little table up and we had lunch with another breathtaking view as a backdrop.

We rushed to finish lunch and get to the gondola that takes you up the mountains. The reason for the rush is that was wanted to do the luge and we didn't know if we would have enough time to fit in three goes each! The luge was amazing fun! We both went all silly and ran around the track to make sure we could fit our turns in before it closed (turns out we had plenty of time). Edd was of course faster than me the whole time but I did wait for him at the beginning so he sort of had a head start!!

Edd was desperate to see a sunset over queenstown and wanted to rush back down to be lake side. I persuaded him to stay up the mountain having paid to get up and considering the view from the top wasn't exactly disappointing, we found a bar with big glass windows and a warm fire and sat waiting for the sun to drop (see photos enclosed for view!)

The sunset was stunning but the colours weren't as dramatic as I think Edd would have liked. We stayed up the mountain until we were sure nothing was going to turn pink or red with the sun set and then caught the gondola back down.

Then the work started!! Edd started his cooking masterpiece and me bed making. We were having sausage pasta, the little hob at the back is lit with a gas canister and I don't think we had thought through the logistic of one hob and a strong wind. Edd started to brown off the sausage meat and by the time I came to ask for help with the bedding they were still looking sadly anaemic. I left him to it and made my way to the shower block, this brings back strong memories of camping on D of E at school. I made it back to Edd a long while later to find his little flame roaring and him deep in concentration over his creation. It turns out the last cannister had been almost empty.

Dinner, when served eventually, was delicious, I was so impressed with what Edd had made from the back of a car and was so grateful to be tucked up, warm and fed. Then I had to get out for the washing up. I keep saying thank god it's not raining because I don't think this would work if we had to dodge the rain as well as deal with all this.

I mentioned over dinner that this part of our trip is going to be an emotional roller coaster. One minute, cold trudging back from a shower block in the dark, the next happily tucked up together eating fantastic food, feeling very proud of my hubby, then back out in the cold and dark, past 9pm in my pjs washing up! I grumpily made rules as I washed up, only one piece of cutlery allowed per meal, no dining past 6pm, no sticking sauces and nothing that smells too strong! I'm not sure those rules will be very practical but it would help me out!!

We have an early start tomorrow so it will be interesting to see how we get on tonight!