Hi Everyone,

This morning was a very early wake up as Nan had a bus to catch. She was going on a full day tour to the unofficial 8th natural wonder of the world Milford Sound. This is a massive day and we did it last time we were in New Zealand (we loved it), but we didn’t think it was appropriate for Julian to go that far so we opted to not do it this time. However, we encouraged Nan to do it, because in our opinion it is an absolute must-do. We got up at the same time as Nan and walked her to the bus stop. Ronnie then went and grabbed for breakfast some banana bread and coffee from Mackenzie’s. The coffee was OK, the banana bread was not good so we didn’t eat it.

We spent some time getting ready slowly and let Julian roam around the accommodation before heading back out. We decided to get an edible breakfast so we wandered down to Arthur’s Sandwich shop and grabbed some ham, cheese & pineapple toasties. They also turned out to be average and far too expensive for what they were.

After this we embarked on our activity for the day. It was a roughly 15 minute drive to Bob’s cove and the start of the trail we were hiking this morning. By the time we got to the trail Julian had fallen asleep so we had to wait in the car, in the carpark for about 30 minutes while he napped.

Once he woke up, we hit the trail. Aimee had baby carrier duties. We know that we called it a hike just before but honestly it is more of a short walk. It is about 1.5kms around a cove to a jetty. The first 10 minutes winds downhill into a forest-type area.

Then following that you emerge into a clearing and have such a beautiful view over the cove and the mountains behind.

Then you walk around the bend and reach a few little historical sites including an old kiln with some signs explaining it before coming to the main attraction which is the iconic jetty. The water is a stunning blue colour and you emerge into a picturesque location. We spent some time taking some photos here and just taking it in.

Ronnie of course, felt the need to get into the water despite the temperature already being very cold. He also forgot his towel but he did not let that stop him. It was freezing in the water, but worth it. Last time we were in QT we didn’t get into any of the lakes rivers, now he is getting into all of them.

We turned around and went back around to get o the start of the track. It was so nice to get out into nature. Last time we were in New Zealand we went on a lot of hikes and this was the only one planned for this trip. We love going on nature walks. When we travel we are always looking for short walks or hikes that we can do.

We worked up a good appetite and were definitely ready for lunch by the time we got back into town. For lunch we decided to try Devil Burger. It is said to be the main rival of Fergburger in Queenstown. If you do any research around it you will certainly see that there is a small but staunch opposition to Fergburger (there are always haters for anything that is popular!). These people will direct you to Devil Burger where the wait is non-existent and the prices slightly lower. We ordered a Devil’s Staircase which had Prime NZ beef, pineapple, cheese, streaky bacon, smoky BBQ sauce, lettuce, tomato, red onion & aioli. We also ordered a side of Curry chips, because who doesn’t love curry chips?

The burger was really good. We can see why it is a top rival to Fergburger, it felt fresh and tasted great. However, we don’t think that is quite lives up to the burger giant. Fergburger is just better put together and extremely fresh. The curry chips were a lovely treat. All it is, is curry sauce on chips. Simple, but brilliant.

After this we decided to spend some time walking around Queenstown and just taking in the sights and sounds and people watching.

Letting Julian stretch his legs and play with the nearby ducks

We spent some time by the lake

Then we went to Patagonia, this time for chocolates, not for gelato. We got one truffle which was a sesame cremino. It was bold in flavour but also really creamy and absolutely delicious. The other, long chocolate was milk chocolate & mix of the chocolatier which included a mix of raisins, roasted nuts and coconut which was also damn good. Patagonia chocolates are far superior to their gelato which we think is one of the worst in Queenstown.

We went back to the accommodation so Julian could have another sleep and we could have some much needed down time. Eventually it was time for dinner. Tonight’s dinner was Pedro’s House of Lamb. It is a specialty store that only sells one thing – lamb. They do a full lamb shoulder with scalloped potatoes and peas.

The lamb was so tender and juicy. It really felt like an excellently done home cooked meal. Not takeaway in the conventional sense at all. New Zealand is known for good lamb and this certainly lived up to the hype.

One more full day left in Queenstown.

Much Love,

Ronnie, Aimee & Julian.