Since we were away for the first time for Christmas me and Paul decided that we would make a special effort for Christmas Day , so we booked a twelve course Christmas dinner up at the skyline restaurant , this also included a gondola trip up and down as well as two rides on the luge which is a toboggan with wheels. We really enjoyed our day and it was nice skyping our families back in the UK too.
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| Making our way through another course ;-) |
Paul managed to find us a race in between Christmas and New Year a 10k trail race around Lake Hayes which is just under 12k away from us so we jumped on our bikes and rode out. We both found the race quite hard as we have really started putting some distance in running with me running the furthest i have ever run just a week before where we ran out to Arrowtown and back which saw us cover a distance over just under 45k and race day was a scorcher and we both felt the heat. Paul still ran really well and managed to finish in a podium position of third overall.
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| Paul enjoying some sun after our race. |
Next up was New Year's Eve we decided to mark this particular occasion with a midnight run to watch the fireworks it was a nice way to reflect on 2013 and too look ahead to our new adventures for 2014. It was also the first time in a while that I was reminded how far Ahead of time we are over here compared to the UK.
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| Over looking the Lake towards Glenorchy. |
Our last few days off together we have both decided to make the most of them. We visited Glenorchy with Cat and Rupert where we enjoyed the scenic drive to there and back from Queenstown. When we got there we decided to have some lunch before we went for a leisurely stroll around the town its quite an old fashioned place but fits well it's beautiful surroundings. During our walk around we came across a ranch , where I fed a horse for the first time, Paul was right at home as part of his first ever job was to look after horses.
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| Embracing the moment. |
The next day we unexpectedly ended up going an helicopter ride literally booked it thirty minutes before we flew. We were spoilt with a beautiful clear sunny day , we both really enjoyed the ride and the breathtaking views, another thing ticked off our bucket list, we ended the day with a nice half marathon around the lake.
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| Ready to take off! |
This week we decided to cycle out to Wanaka via the crown range alpine route it was a good challenge with a couple hairy moments for me! But was really proud that I managed to complete the route. This was my first visit to Wanaka and Paul second again it is a beautiful part of the world. Our campsite had lake views it was a beautiful sunny day again (we are getting quite lucky with our days off) , there was a quite a strong wind tho we made it quite interesting to pitch our tent! We got up this morning to watch the Challenge Wanaka event that was happening there and some competitors will still be competing as I'm typing this. Challenge Wanaka is a triathlon where they can cover a half or full Ironman distances. It was the first time I have been a spectator for a triathlon of this scale over three thousand Athletes, I really enjoyed the day and I think it cements that one day I would like to complete an Ironman. We even managed to fit in a game of frisbee golf whist in Wanaka too ;-) .
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| Triathletes get under way on a stunning morning in Wanaka. |
This week I have been truly grateful for modern technology as my little sister (not so little anymore at 22) Bex underwent open heart surgery back in the UK , and I have been able to be kept update with her progress even getting to speak to her on skype from her hospital bed!
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| View from our balcony at home the other night. |
Until next time Happy Reading
Gem & Paul x
