We set off today with a new driver (Mangee) who would be taking all of us through to Queenstown. The first time we have had a driver for more than a couple of days. After taking a dislike to the last driver for being so patronising we were a bit apprehensive. However within minutes of getting on the bus I knew we were in safe hands as his favourite song is 'Total Eclipse of the Heart'. He is really into his cheese and we have a daily sing-a-long which is cool.
Today however didn't go quite to plan as after stopping off to buy bits for a picnic lunch the bus broke down on the side of the road. A mechanic turned up a couple of hours later only to discover we needed to get a new part which was going to take hours.
After finishing off our picnic roadside instead of on lake Rotoiti (claimed to be one of the most stunning views in New Zealand) we began to get a bit fed up. Most of the bus decided to sit inside (despite it being really hot), however we thought it would be more fun to wave at the cars and get them to honk their horns. Juvenile behaviour I know, but we had nothing better to do and it paid off when a guy in a meat and alcohol van came back for us after dropping off his deliveries to give the 10 of us a lift up to the lake (after we checked with the driver of course). It was hilarious as the van was pitch black so we had to keep the door open so we didn't get too claustrophobic. The others were eventually shuttled up to the lake in a mini bus but at least we arrived in style (ahem).
The lake lived up to expectations and was absolutely stunning. Most of us went for a dip but I chickened out as it was just too cold for me. After a seven hour wait the bus finally arrived to collect us and we pulled into Westport at 9pm. The driver cooked us up a BBQ so we didn't need to worry about food and we decided to head to bed early as there was big night planned tomorrow!
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