Monday the 7th of September
Wanaka. Wanaka. Wanaka. Apart from a pretty view there was NOTHING to do in Wanaka. Emma and I were getting desperate to waste time before out 3:00 Naked Bus/Atomic Shuttle would pick us up, so we stopped into iSite to see what our options were. A long day hike (no) and Puzzling World!
What exactly is Puzzling World?
Would we be… Puzzled?
Emma and I walked half an hour to Puzzling world in hopes of being puzzled and, indeed we were!
OMG. How does that tower lean like that?!!! PUZZLING!
For $12NZD we were able to get a pass into the Puzzling World of Illusions AND THE ADULT SIZE MAZE! But first thing was first. Potty stop!
The Most Amazing Jelly Bean Toilet Seat YOU WILL EVER SEE!
The Illusion Rooms were very cool and puzzling! Portraits where the eyes follow you, 3-d pictures, and an anti gravity room that proved to me that I was not ready to be an astronaut and that Business Communications was the right major for me!
After some brain hurting, we proceeded to the Adult Size Maze. The Mission: There are 4 “Castles” in the 4 corners of the maze. Get to each colored castle. The catch – the maze had stairs and climbing them took you from one size of Puzzling World to the next. Steps were unavoidable to complete the maze. It was cute watching little kids get excited about finding the castle and it was even cuter watching mom-mom’s and pop-pop’s thinking like a team to figure out the best route.
Which way do I go?
Alas, Puzzling World only killed 2 hours of our time and so we hung out at the backpackers, watched NZ top 40 music and finally went to the bus stop a bit early. Ducks were walking around by the water and so I started up a duck sitcom, with Cindy, Dale, and Roger. One girl, one tough guy, and one computer nerd whose never even held hands with a girl… Cindy wasn’t keen on rough and tough Roger but she also wasn’t having any of lispy-Dale. She kept walking away and they boys kept at her. Eventually other characters entered the scene and then the saga of love was interupted when our bus driver asked if we were on the bus.
So we ended it, and on the bus we went and spent the rest of the day driving to Dunedin.
By the time we arrive in Dunedin it’s dark and late. I grab my dufflebag and Emma, Philippa (who arrived a day earlier) and I walked to the backpackers.
Just as we approach the building the boys (Bas, Martijn, and Bryan) and Agnes honk at us. YAY for more company! (Good company too). Emma remarks about the weight of the suitcase and I think “This doesn’t feel as heavy as usual.” Think. think. think. “$%*#! I FORGOT MY BACKPACK WITH MY PASSPORT IN IT ON THE BUS!”
With fear I ran into the backpackers and had them ring up the bus company endlessly, with no luck. I ran back to the bus stop, but of course the bus was already gone. I felt doomed! Meanwhile, Martijn is making jokes because he stepped in sea-lion poo a few hours earlier and the entire backpackers smelt like rotten fish! The lovely workers at the backpackers rang the bus company again and this time they recieved an answer. My backpack had been reported and I could pick it up at 9:15 the next morning.
PHEW!
I was sooooooooooo angry with myself. I am never forgetful like that! And that situation could have been disasterous! Goodbye Passport, Goodbye various forms of ID…
With this relief we resumed joke of sealion poo and learned of Agnes and the boys trip in the Doubtful Sounds and of a strange character they encountered named Dusty Hank. We then proceeded to make a BIG TACO feast and with full tummy’s hit the hay.
What a day. Puzzling and worrying!