I love Wanaka. There. I said it. It’s such a quaint little town in New Zealand and it reminded me of Bloomington, Indiana (where I studied). And it reminded me in a good way.

We arrived rather late in the afternoon (since we wanted to do a little exploring around Mt. Cook before heading here). We stopped a Top 10 Holiday Park (of course) and were pleasantly surprised to find they we had unlimited WiFi – this was the first (and pretty much only) time that’d happened in New Zealand. We had the absolute opposite problem in Milford Sound (10 NZD for 100MB – but more on THAT later).

ANYWAY! Wanaka sits next to a lake that’s called – you guess it: Lake Wanaka. Of course it was clear and beautiful. Did I mention that there are mountains, too?

At this point, the weather in New Zealand had really become fabulous and warm. T wanted to go mountain biking but I was happy to do  a little shopping and sit next to the lake and read…..we did both.

The water was perfect. I’m usually not a big fan of getting into lakes. I grew up spoiled with my heated pools and summers in Gulf Shores, Alabama where the water is so warm – it’s like taking a bath. But Lake Wanaka was so wonderfully refreshing! It’s ruined me for other lakes.

I did so much reading while we were there. It had been a long time since I was able to devour a book. Or a trilogy in this case (I reread books 1 and 2 also. Meaning, I read at least 6 full books in the four weeks we were there. IT. WAS. AWESOME!).

We spent the rest of our time relaxing and enjoying some fish tacos…

Yeah….I was too busy enjoying the taco to take a photo.

Wanaka ended up on our list because one of my favorite bloggers lives here (Young Adventuress). Unfortunately, she was in Australia while we were in NZ, but maybe next time? If you want a great in depth look at New Zealand – this blogger is for you. Her photographs are stunning and her sense of humor is delightful.

Wanaka is mainly known as a summer and ski resort – the summer aspect was why it reminded me so much of Bloomington. EVERYONE WAS OUTSIDE! It also had this small town yet rather culturally aware vibe. Their mainstreet also looked exactly like Kirkwood, so there’s that, too…..

Wanaka was another place that I wish I had more time in. You may have guessed it, but I say this about literally every nook and cranny of New Zealand. I can’t help it. I loved ever second of this trip and all it did was leave me wanting more. MORE I SAY!

*sigh* Wanaka.

We are wrapping up our New Zealand series, folks….but don’t worry – there are still a few subjects left to talk about! Tune in next week when we start tackling……wait for it….

 

MILFORD SOUND!!

 

bis nächste Woche!