It's been a looonnnggg absence from this blog and now A.S is back, trying to revive it. There are so many pictures and video clips she'd like to share here dated back in 2010 from a little bit of USA, to a lot of Western EU to another half of NZ and then back to Spain, Austria and Japan. There was one time she lost her entire files saved in an external hard disk drive and thankfully, with advanced technology these days, she managed to finally... finaalllly retrieved most of them back. It could be one of the lowest point in life when you realized your memories were gone.... forever.
Now, let's move to the Southwest of South Island, NZ. A.S did not spend a long time here in Te Anau(gateway to Milford Sound) and Milford Sound, but only 40 hours, back in January 2012. Following are 5 impressions she remembers about these 2 places:-
1. It rained a lot.
If annual average rainfall in Peninsular Malaysia is 2000mm/yr, it is 4 times in Te Anau. A.S arrival at Te Anau at 6 pm, and was welcomed with strong wind, it could blow and break your umbrella and rain which didn't seem that it was going to stop. The reception at the Te Anau Visitor Centre promised a cleared day the next morning and rain again in the evening, so A.S and mate had to get up early to catch the good weather.
2. It looked like homeland.
A.S supposed it must be due to the generous rainfall that everything looked so green and so tropical. It felt like home. The look of Milford Sound on brochures and images she looked up online did not appeal to her as much as Queenstown. The hills appearing from the water reminded her of Halong Bay in Hanoi, Vietnam.
3. It had many tunnels.
It was the only place in NZ she remembers driving through tunnels from the small town of Te Anau to Milford Sound. It was a scenic drive surrounded by the morning mists and majestic mountain ranges.
4. It was quiet.
Like any other smaller towns in South Island of NZ, particularly, it was quiet, peaceful but yet, feeling safe. The population in this town is about 2,000 people, according to the 2013 census.
5. It had a very big lake
This official site says that Lake Te Anau is the largest lake in the South Island and largest in the country by water volume getting to depths of over 400m.The lake sprawls at the feet of high rugged mountains, and during the summer the hot dry weather encourages water skiing, swimming, fishing and kayaking on the lake. During the winter, days are crisp and clear with frosty mornings and sunny days.
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| As of 2007, the ratio of sheep to man is 10:1 in New Zealand. |
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| Clear morning, woo hoo! |
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| and mystical too. |
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| Heavenly. |
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| We must step up and take some pictures. |
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| ... all around us. |
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| Chilly clear water. |
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| Arrived at Milford Sound |
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| Go on a cruise to explore this Natural Wonder of the World. |
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| That's what you'll ride on. |
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| Plankton, marine vegetation..and the likes. |
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| See the waterfall? |
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| The size of the mobile homes against the mountain. |
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| The thunderous waterfall from a distance. |
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| Along the drive back from Milford Sound. |
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| An exciting group of Japanese joined us. |
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| Arrived at an alpine lake where one just wanted to sit and feel the place. |
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| Let's go. |
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| Originally a video clip, minus the voices. |
*A.S's current location*
Day/ Date: Sun/ Oct 19th, 2014
-A.S has been back in KL, Malaysia since Aug 16th, 2012 from a total of 3 months in Spain and Austria, but the memories are still vivid.
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