Epic New Zealand Road Trip - Wanaka

Feb 10th

We took it easy this morning. We shared some of the guava bread Liên bought in Brisbane airport for breakfast. Debbie and Liên shared the driving of the 3.5-hour road trip to Wanaka where we visited Puzzling World. On the way we stopped at Haast to see the Blue Pools, located where the Blue River joins the Makarora River, whose icy cold water is beautifully blue. To get to the pools, we walked across suspension bridges that could hold only a limited number of people. It was hard to know if the number of people exceeded the stated maximum because people entered and exited the bridge constantly, especially if you’re already on the bridge. The bridge did sway side-way and we all tried to cross it as fast as possible. We went down to the water but didn’t stay long because we got bitten by sandflies. We took pictures of some brave souls who jumped into the cold water from the high bridge above.

We also stopped at lookout points while driving to Wanaka to take pictures of Lake Hawea and Lake Wanaka. 

Puzzling World offered us fun and amazement in its Hologram Hall, Titled House, Ames Room, Hall of Following Faces, Sculptillusion Gallery, and the Great Maze. My favorite is the Tilted House which is tilted at an angle of fifteen degrees. At first I thought no big deal, but amazingly it was very hard to walk in this room. I don’t understand all the illusionary effects, but really enjoyed the unique experience. We giggled a lot.

After checking in at the Airbnb, we walked to town for dinner and then to take picture of the Wanaka Tree, a lone tree in the middle of the lake. At the recommendation of our hostess, we tried Big Fig and liked it. Later, we wanted to try the dessert cheese board that Liên talked so much about, so after seeing the Wanaka Tree, we stopped at the restaurant that Liên went to in 2018, but they no longer had the cheese board on the menu. 

I can imagine living in Wanaka, ...if the restaurants add the cheese board to their menus.