When you first hear about New Zealand, you create images in your head of what this Country might look like. The way I pictured it was: a very green place with lots of sheep, not many people, vast lands, long roads and lakes.
I thought New Zealand was somehow similar to my home region and indeed it is.

When my host family asked me if I wanted to join them for the holiday in Queenstown, my brain didn’t even think about the option of staying behind. Many times in life I said no and missed out on amazing opportunities.
( To be fair, I've also said yes too many times when I could have definitely avoided not so pleasant situations )

The South Island from above looked like paradise to me. Tall mountains covered in snow on one side, the ocean on the other and green fields in the middle.

While we are at it, I have to say I wan't impressed with the cookie Air NZ provides on the flight, but I did enjoy their little questions and answers going on the tv screens. The chips were better.

You get to Queenstown and the first thing you see are these mighty mountains on your left. The remarkables.
A perfectly suited name if you ask me.
Something I have only really seen in Italy is a phenomenon called "Enrosadira", which happens when the dolomia (the type of rock the Dolomites are made of) soaks up the sunset light and turnes the mountains pink.
Well, I can now say that the Remarkables do something similar.
Unfortunately I do not have a photo of it as I must have been enjoying the moment out in the veranda with a beer and plenty of laughter, but trust me, it is breathtaking. I guess that is one great excuse to go back.

This city will take your breath away. It is a bit of a shame that not many locals live here anymore, but if you can look past that, you will find beauty in every corner.
I have recently read an article about how everything new that we do becomes normality after a while.
Leaving your home Country to come to NZ and perhaps settle in Queenstown will become your life and maybe you will see it as just another city after a few months of living there.
The surroundings will make this process harder in my opinion. There are places you never get sick of and Queenstown might be one of them.

Imagine yourself just for a moment waking up in the morning in your cozy house with a view of the Remarkables.
Imagine brewing that morning coffee, filling up the take away cup and head into town to get to work.
See yourself walking along the water, looking at the boats, the birds, the sun rays touching the blue water of the lake. Tourists are sitting on the beach enjoying the morning sun with a cup of coffee and the water taxi is waiting at the dock.

You look up and paragliders are flying. They make it seem so easy you wish you had a paragliding license, so you could squeeze in a quick flight over the lake on your lunch break. Enjoy a moment for yourself, thinking about how nice it would be to sit on the grass while you wait for your friends to come meet you so you can go to the pub for a beer. All of this surrounded by mountains, forest, lakes and waterfalls. Not so bad hey?

Queenstown calls for people that love the outdoors. Everyone is into something wether is rock climbing, canoeing, canyoning, pargliding or skiing. If you enjoy eny of these, you will fit in right away.

You will love the slightly European look (don't get too excited, I said slightly). You will probably laugh at the people waiting in an insanely long queue at Fergburger under the scoarching hot sun, unless you are one of them of course, in that case I lost respect for you my friend. Just call in and order your burger which will be ready in 15 minutes.

You might not enjoy the amount of tourists, but it does make the town look lively and if you don't have to drive much, you will be fine!

I am sure you can tell, Queenstown got me and got me hard. I hope to be back and in some way I know I will.

xx
Sharon