REGION TWO

FRANZ JOSEF GLACIER - FRANZ JOSEF

We took our walk on the glacier with the Guiding Company and we didn't regret it. It was fun from the beginning. When we arrived we had to fill in a form which also asked us if we had any medical condition. I was filling it in for both of us so I asked if I should put blonde as a medical condition for Ev. "Oh I see we'll have trouble with you," said the lady behind the counter to me. Two minutes later she changed her mind when Ev signed the form but against my name. Blonde is beautiful they say; it's just something I have to put with that my beautiful is blonde.

After we had been given boots, over-trousers, socks and collected our crampons (look it up), we set off in the bus for the start of our adventure. Our guide was Jo, who had lived around here all her life, short though that may be, and she was able to tell us how the glacier had changed even in that short time.

First we had a walk across the riverbed till we reached the terminal face (beginning to you) of the glacier. Here we put on our crampons and Jo kindly asked if anyone was frightened of heights. One of the twelve was and I admitted it straight away. "Don't worry", she said, "so am I". I had visions of us both clinging to a rock face unable to go on. "When we get to the tricky bits you can walk behind me," she said. Then she went on to say that as we walked don't get too close to her when she is swinging her ice axe.

Seriously the whole adventure was brilliant, I managed to cross narrow ledges with drops on one side, climb steep steps cut in the ice, and even look back and down a few times. My only problem came with Jo's very genuine concern as we walked across these narrow bits. She would set off; I would wait a little, then follow, eager to get across as quickly as possible and just watching my feet. Then halfway across she would stop and turn to ask if I was OK. Just keep going I would say and we did. Ev, having thrown herself off everything in Queenstown, has no such problems.

Let me just say that if you can only afford one adventure in your lifetime, go to the Guiding Company and walk on the glacier. You will never experience anything like it, and you will be superbly looked after. They haven't lost anyone yet although I did notice a few axes lying on the glacier as we walked. They may not have lost the paying customers but I reckon a few guides may be missing. We also saw a long stick lying on the snow and I just hoped that the next visitors wouldn't find my particular Pole lying there.

Contact Details: Website www.nzguides.co.nz; email: bookings@nzguides.co.nz Tel: 0064 (0)3 752 0047 or 0800 800 102 if within NZ

STUART LANDSBOROUGH'S PUZZLING WORLD - WANAKA

Just outside Wanaka is a place called Puzzling World, or to be precise Stuart Landsborough's Puzzling World. Stuart and his wife, Jan, bought a piece of barren land in Wanaka in 1973 and created the world's first wooden maze. By 1983 the concept had grown and those people who were clever and finished the maze could wait for their friends, hoping they would see them again, in the Puzzle Centre where they could try all sorts of other puzzles. A little later Stuart went to Japan to design mazes over there but when he came back he decided to extend the whole complex and the theme became puzzling eccentricity.

Outside the centre are a series of buildings, which certainly look strange. The Leaning tower of Wanaka leans at 53 degrees and the clock runs backwards. By the way I have always thought that the citizens of Pisa would make far more money if they said the leaning tower, which only leans at 6 degrees, was straight and all the other buildings lean. Think how much there would be to see. But at Puzzling World there is much to see anyway. Leaving the maze till last, a wise decision we thought in case we never come out, we went first to the illusion rooms. There are four of these and some far more puzzling and clever than others. Firstly there are 3D holograms, my favourite being the woman who smiled as I walked away. This happens quite often by the way.

Then there is the hall of following faces which for me, is the cleverest thing I have seen in a long time. On the wall of the room are the faces of famous people. Each person has a number of their faces in a square block, perhaps ten across and five down I forgot to count, and if you look closely they are actually concave shapes. But from a distance they stand out, convex, and take on the appearance of that person. But the incredible bit is that as you walk, the faces follow you. Don't ask me I don't understand it and therefore it is very clever. Then you go to the Ames Room where you walk across the floor and change from a dwarf to a giant and move on to the Tilted Room where water flows uphill and all manner of unnatural things seem to happen. Let's just say you have to be there to experience it.

After this we went out to the maze which is not only a wooden one but has two levels. The aim is to visit each of the four towers in the four corners and then get back. We were told by Duncan, Stuart's son-in-law who now runs it with his wife, who should be Stuart's daughter but in this place I wouldn't bet on it, that Stuart had watched people in the maze and then seen which was the natural way they went. Then, as you can do with a wooden maze, he moved the walls. Would you want this man as your father-in-law? Anyhow Ev and I set off separately and she reached the yellow tower and I found the red, blue and green ones, so, as we do everything together that meant we had finished. Actually there are escape doors around the maze and we used these as we couldn't find our way back to the start which is also the finish.

Finally, as you can see from our photos there is a realistic Roman toilet. Let's say no more shall we.

Contact Details: Website www.puzzlingworld.com; email: Tel: 0064 (0)3 443 7489