Queenstown and Dunedin

We survived bungy jumping!! We took a gondola up to the ledge where we would be jumping from. That was an interesting trip going up that gondola...it was filled with lots of uneven breathing and concerned faces. What made it worse was that we didn't bungy until 4:00 so we had all day to be thinking about it! However, we made it up to the ledge and the people working there are pros so they don't give you much time to think about anything. One second you are standing there looking at where you are about to voluntarily fall and the next you are in a harness hearing "3, 2, 1, JUMP!". Becca went first and Becky went second. We both loved the experience and came out of the experience feeling completely exhilirated.

WATCH THE VIDEOS AT THE BOTTOM OF THIS POST TO LIVE THE MADNESS WITH US!!!

This is where we jumped from: "The Ledge" overlooking all of Queenstown and the lake. It was beautiful!

Feeling elated, accomplished, and hardcore after our successful jumps!

On Monday, we took a bus from Queenstown to Dunedin. We were definitely bummed that we were leaving Queenstown. Dunedin had big shoes to fill. The bus ride was four hours but the time went fast with lots of stops and gorgeous views. The bus ride was in the morning so we saw the sun rising as we were driving out of Queenstown. The view was seriously breathtaking. The driver took a stop at a fruit stand where we bought some peaches that we enjoyed later. He also stopped for a lunch break and we went to a little cafe called the Lemon House. We both weren't all that hungry but decided to get some cheese rolls. We had no idea what we were in for. These cheese rolls were $3.50 in New Zealand dollars, which means under two in american. We sat outside on the patio surrounded by lots of sunflowers and other gorgeous flowers. A lady came out with our cheese rolls and at first we didn't want to eat them because the presentation of them was just so much work!

Our cheese rolls! They're beautiful, aren't they? Almost too pretty to eat! Of course, we ate every last morsel. They tasted just as good as they looked (maybe better!)

Stopping to pose with some pretty flowers at the fruit stand where we picked up some peaches

We got to Dunedin and immediately went to the Cadbury chocolate factory to make a reservation for a tour. We then went to our hostel which had our favorite room we have stayed in. It was in the city and had huge, tall windows. We went to the chocolate factory where we had a very nervous tour guide (it was her 2nd tour) but she made up for it by giving us more candy. Our favorite part of the tour was when they poured a ton (literally) of melted chocolate right in front of us. It looked like a chocolate waterfall straight out of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. We also got to taste warm melted chocolate which was d-e-l-i-c-i-o-u-s!

Ready for our tour of the Cadbury factory! We got to wear these incredibly attractive hair nets so we didn't contaminate any of the yummy chocolate.

We decided to splurge on an adventure to Dunedin's peninsula where we would hopefully see wild penguins, sea lions, seals, and the albatross (World's largest bird--it's wingspan is 9.8 feet! Yes, we googled it). We rushed from our Cadbury tour to get to our adventure bus in time. We were on our way by 3:30 and the tour was supposed to last until 9:00. While on the bus, we're thinking to ourselves "How on earth are we going to look at animals for that long?" Oh if we only knew what was in store...

First we visited the albatross colony. Becca was having trouble grasping how completely massive the birds were, but when we saw a lifesize model inside the visitors center, it clicked! We spent an hour at the colony eating our peaches, looking out into the ocean, and causing various disturbances while having impromptu karaoke sessions. (The lady next to us asked us to quiet down so her husband could record a video--ha). After the albatross colony, we headed to a private beach owned by the company who chartered our bus. We split into smaller groups and were guided around the area to discover the cutest animals ever. First, the fur seals. Oh. My. Gosh. We wanted to take one home so bad! There were cute babies playing everywhere and lots to look at. We could have watched them for hours, but instead we headed off to see some wild penguins. Yellow-eyed penguins, to be exact. They're the 2nd most rare penguin breed in the world. Only 4,000 are in existence and they're all in New Zealand. Cool! Once again, wanted to take them home. So precious. After our penguin viewing, we spent the rest of our time on the beach getting close to some sea lions. Not nearly as cute as the penguins or seals. These things were MASSIVE! Still cool, though. The beach was so peaceful and untouched. We loved every second. Our day finished off beautifully with the most amazing sunset ever. A beach, rolling hills with sheep grazing all over, and amazing colors of pink, orange, and yellow. What more could two college girls want? Nothing.

Becky and a penguin friend

Becca in front of the fur seal colony

The private beach we got to explore & discover all kinds of amazing wildlife

Becca and Becky on the beach

Well, nothing except for a good dinner. We got back from our tour around 10:30 to discover that all the restaurants around Dunedin were basically shut down. We found what looked like a happenin' pub and since we'd had some delicious meals at a few bars during our travels thus far, we thought we'd give it a shot. Bad idea. Becca ordered four cheese pasta (what we thought was macaroni). Becky ordered a wedge (what she assumed was a wedge salad). 45 minutes later, out comes our food. It consisted of noodles bathed in what appeared to be glue and an order of french fries. Eeeeeeew! We forced down as much as we could, then returned to our hostel hoping the next day would be luckier in our food search. We were exhausted, but it had been a great day.

We're currently in Taupo. Lots more stories to tell, but right now it's time to hop on a bus and get ready to HUKA JET!!!! Yes, we're boating over a waterfall. Jealous? Yeah you are.

Love you all oodles!

Here's a video of Becca bungeeing!

And here's Becky. Beware: she screams embarrassingly loudly. Might want to turn those speakers down before pressing play...