JUST ANOTHER TEACHER: THE BUS TRIP FROM CHRISTCHURCH TO QUEENSTOWN

Sunday, January 19, 2014

THE BUS TRIP FROM CHRISTCHURCH TO QUEENSTOWN - PART 1

1st December 2013 ~ From Christchurch, we took a ride on the Nakedbus to get to Queenstown. No, people did not have to get naked on the bus which was a disappointment. Mr. Hamzah managed to get a NZ$10 bus fare, for a return trip which was real cheap. (My 2-hour trip from Palmerston North to Wellington only cost NZ$1). The whole journey took about 9 hours and I was actually expecting a long and boring journey but I was wrong.

I only slept for a short while as I was too excited to observe the panoramic view outside the bus. Believe me, I was not the only excited person on the bus as I could see other people were busy clicking away their cameras and gadgets to capture the breathtaking view. Basically what people would see were blue sky with fluffy clouds like cotton candy hanging in the air, grass greener that what we had at home as far as the eyes could see, endless stretch of hills and mountains whose tops were sometimes covered with snow. At times, there would be lakes and the roadsides and hillsides adorned with wild but beautiful "lepinus" flowers, and fields dotted with cattle and sheep from faraway.

Even though it was a very long trip, the bus had a few stops along the way, to drop off and pick up passengers and also just for short toilet breaks. The bus had a longer stop for lunch at Lake Tekapo and at the same time, people could take better photos of the place. One of the stops was a small town called Geraldine and it was too short a stop, if not I could get into its small museum. There was a Sunday Market by the roadside selling handmade items produced by the locals.