We went on the Transalpine train between Christchurch and Greymouth today. A stunning journey across the Canterbury Plain, through Arthur’s Pass national Park and onto Greymouth. You could sit and admire the view from your seat, or get blasted on an outdoor viewing platform. (which I did).
I’ve never been on a train where you get such an adrenalin rush before, but as we were going along, it was great fun trying to switch on and focus the camera, and get the view without bushes or telegraph poles, before the six or seven tunnels blocked the view anyway. The sinuses had a real blast, the air was so fresh on the way, it almost made you feel light headed. The train went through several geographical zones, from flat grassland to alpine to tropical rain forest-all in four hours.
The train trip also reminded me of another scenic train trip- Aberystwyth to Devil’s Bridge. Winding through pretty woods and valleys, with the sides of the train open. We did the trip on a specially organised trip when our finals had finished. Needless to say it wasn’t the soberest of trips, and the train had to be stopped while the lads had to be fetched in, from their cowboys and Indians game.
By the way prostitution is legal in New Zealand. There was an article in the newpapers, where the prostitutes’ spokeswoman was saying how they were looking forward to the world Cup to boost business. She also commented that the English in particular were particularly deviant, and shall we say imaginative. In Queenstown, the walking sleeping bags had the young Englishman in the pink suit, and when I heard on the radion this morning that some of the English team were at a dwarf convention, it didn’t surprise me. Still it gave them somewhere to rest their beer.
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