Wanaka

So far, Wanaka has been one of our favorite towns in New Zealand. The fact that the weather was great made it even lovelier. After arriving we visited the odd Puzzling World where we ran around a big maze for an hour and a half (we started to loose patience, but even finding the exit was difficult). Then we checked out their illusion section with holograms, puzzles and other silly stuff.
Since Wanaka lies on a lake between mountains there are many short hikes that provide really cool views (and a good excuse for muffins after the excercise). Most of the time though, we took it easy and hung out with nice people from the hostel.

The highlight of our stay was, without a doubt, canyoning. It is a bit difficult to explain what it means, but the pictures might speak for themselves. The water was really cold and we stopped feeling our hands very early in the day. However, since we were wrapped in multi-layered wet suits the rest of our bodies were nice and warm(ish). Before we started Anita still secretly hoped that the trip would be cancelled due to weather conditions, but after the first freaky abseil she started enjoying herself and by the second slide she was all into it.

Our favorite part was the slides. One slide was the best - the seal slide - head first into the cold water (luckily we have proof of this dumbness - Anita's slide, Oren's slide)!