After a most enjoyable stay at the St. Moritz hotel in Queenstown, New Zealand, we will head north to Auckland later today. Adventure awaits.
Feel free to also check out Elliot's Whiff summer tour blog at georgiaglobetrotter.blogspot.com
Friday, June 5, 2009
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Bungy Jumping/White Water Rafting
The plan changed a bit today. In the morning, it was too cold for rafting, so the company ended up changing it to the afternoon slot. Sadly, they only had 12 slots for people to paddle a boat in freezing water. Although we would have loved to go, and are sure the other Whiffs had fun (post about it. It's cold and lonely in here), Jay and I went bungy jumping instead. We fell 134 meters attached to large rubber bands. Mom and dad, please look away now.
I'm doing it again tomorrow. Slightly differently. Jay and I decided to do a regular bungy jump today, but tomorrow, more extreme sports await. Half the group (not including myself) is going skydiving, and the other half is going bungy swinging, the thing that I linked to yesterday.
The rest of the day, I plan on combating jet lag and trying to make it out to a pub crawl. Wish me luck.
Queenstown, New Zealand is Great!*
*Internet not included.
I will air my gripes at the beginning of the post. Apparently, in New Zealand, the internet is not free in a 5-star hotel. Apparently, it's "hard getting internet onto a small island". Manhattan is a small island. I fail to see their logic.
Having said all of this, I will still try to limit my post so as to conserve my 100 MegaByte/day limit (beyond which point I'm charged an exorbitant per megabyte rate) when describing the beauty of the country in which we find ourselves.
I will upload the pictures when they do not cost me $5/picture. However, the beauty that people described to me of New Zealand in the past does not compare to what I'm seeing out of our back window. Not only are we staying in an incredibly luxurious hotel (in which, for the first time on tour), everyone has his own bed, but I get to do laundry, and, tomorrow, I get to white water raft and bungee jump. Kind of. It's not totally bungy jumping. Apparently it's more like bungee swinging. Here, check it out.
http://www.canyonswing.co.nz/index.php
That is what I'm doing tomorrow, as well as white-whater rafting (all starting at the fresh, jet-lagged hour of 8:05am), during which I will try to stave off hypothermia, as it is winter down here (it's about 35 degrees here, or 1 celsius, in case there are any europeans following our blog).
I will update to prove that I lived through bungy swinging, but I fear that if I post more, my credit card will be cancelled for overcharging.
Despite my petty gripes, New Zealand is beautiful. Until next time.
I will air my gripes at the beginning of the post. Apparently, in New Zealand, the internet is not free in a 5-star hotel. Apparently, it's "hard getting internet onto a small island". Manhattan is a small island. I fail to see their logic.
Having said all of this, I will still try to limit my post so as to conserve my 100 MegaByte/day limit (beyond which point I'm charged an exorbitant per megabyte rate) when describing the beauty of the country in which we find ourselves.
I will upload the pictures when they do not cost me $5/picture. However, the beauty that people described to me of New Zealand in the past does not compare to what I'm seeing out of our back window. Not only are we staying in an incredibly luxurious hotel (in which, for the first time on tour), everyone has his own bed, but I get to do laundry, and, tomorrow, I get to white water raft and bungee jump. Kind of. It's not totally bungy jumping. Apparently it's more like bungee swinging. Here, check it out.
http://www.canyonswing.co.nz/index.php
That is what I'm doing tomorrow, as well as white-whater rafting (all starting at the fresh, jet-lagged hour of 8:05am), during which I will try to stave off hypothermia, as it is winter down here (it's about 35 degrees here, or 1 celsius, in case there are any europeans following our blog).
I will update to prove that I lived through bungy swinging, but I fear that if I post more, my credit card will be cancelled for overcharging.
Despite my petty gripes, New Zealand is beautiful. Until next time.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Auckland Airport
In the Auckland Airport on a layover to Queenstown. Exhausted, despite help from Ambien. Will we summon the energy to experience Queenstown tonight and bungee jump?
Monday, June 1, 2009
Yale Whiffenpoof Day in San Francisco
Sorry for the update spam, but I just remembered that Saturday was Yale Whiffenpoof Day in San Francisco. Seriously. Thanks go out to Gavin Newsom and the City of San Francisco.
But, on a different note, what? Is that legal?
But, on a different note, what? Is that legal?
Write thiings!
Please, if you are visiting the blog, or are one of the silent Whiff contributors, write something! It's lonely in here...
Drew fixes blog layout!
Drew, as our tech-savvy Whiff, took a look at the blog and said "I can make it look pretty". And he did. A big thanks to Drew for helping the site look less as if it were designed by a blind 2nd grader.
Off to NZ!
The Whiffs are leaving for New Zealand today! Our 13 hour flight will be grueling, but we will be rewarded with adventure sports in Queenstown. I plan on sleeping the whole flight (thank you, Ambien, without which I can't sleep on planes at all). A jetlagged update will follow after we land
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Real Update: The Whiffs do great things, yet don't remember them very well
We're still in San Francisco. We checked into the University Club in downtown San Fran for tonight and tomorrow night.
Last night was an experience that all of us will remember (or maybe not...) for the rest of our lives. We had the privilege to sing at The Bohemian Grove last night. After being introduced to many Bohemians and having a chance to put our things down at the camp at which we were staying, we sang "Midnight Train" to a packed house, and were followed by sax player Dave Koz among other great acts. It was a real pleasure to have had the opportunity to share a stage with someone like that.
Our experience at The Grove was incredible. Nowhere in my life have I been somewhere full of so many accomplished and talented, yet approachable, people. The beautiful setting, the wonderful people, and the ubiquitous music made it a unique and wonderful experience. The gracious hospitality that we were shown was humbling and, ultimately, something that I will never forget.
Having said that, part of the hospitality that we were shown extended to drinks, of which we had plenty. At the end of the night (roughly 3 am for me, but much later for some of the Whiffs), I was happy to have a comfortable bed to which to retreat.
On the way back, as Joel describes (self-referentially and possibly self-mockingly?) so poetically below, we had the opportunity to drive south down Route 1. While driving through Sonoma, all of us were awe-struck at the sheer beauty of our surroundings. We stopped to take pictures (of our surroundings and of the seals sun-bathing on a rock) before heading into San Francisco to sing our concert tonight.
Tomorrow: free day in San Francisco!
Last night was an experience that all of us will remember (or maybe not...) for the rest of our lives. We had the privilege to sing at The Bohemian Grove last night. After being introduced to many Bohemians and having a chance to put our things down at the camp at which we were staying, we sang "Midnight Train" to a packed house, and were followed by sax player Dave Koz among other great acts. It was a real pleasure to have had the opportunity to share a stage with someone like that.
Our experience at The Grove was incredible. Nowhere in my life have I been somewhere full of so many accomplished and talented, yet approachable, people. The beautiful setting, the wonderful people, and the ubiquitous music made it a unique and wonderful experience. The gracious hospitality that we were shown was humbling and, ultimately, something that I will never forget.
Having said that, part of the hospitality that we were shown extended to drinks, of which we had plenty. At the end of the night (roughly 3 am for me, but much later for some of the Whiffs), I was happy to have a comfortable bed to which to retreat.
On the way back, as Joel describes (self-referentially and possibly self-mockingly?) so poetically below, we had the opportunity to drive south down Route 1. While driving through Sonoma, all of us were awe-struck at the sheer beauty of our surroundings. We stopped to take pictures (of our surroundings and of the seals sun-bathing on a rock) before heading into San Francisco to sing our concert tonight.
Tomorrow: free day in San Francisco!
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