#manabus

Already when I started to think that I have issues with places to amaze me (I’ve had a long discussion about it with Christian in Melbourne) when I got out of the bus I knew I was wrong. I looked around and have seen the lake. I’ve heard before it was beautiful but I never in my dreams I would imagine it would be so gorgeus! Crystal clear water, snowy mountains reflecting in the distance, blooming flowers around… it felt like heaven! And every day it was even more beautiful as with the beginning of spring there were more and more blooming lupins (everywhere!).

There’s not really much to do in the area, I wouldn’t say you can get bored there though. There’s a historical church, which is small, cozy and charming. You can go for a walk, for the hike to Mount John, you can go horse riding, fishing, cycling, play golf or just relax at the hypnotic lake.

At night you can go to the observatory to Mount John, which is not cheap, but you can gaze at the stars from the ground as well – in the end the sky is just the same. The best spot I found for star gazing was at the golf course. There are absolutely no lights in there and after a while when your eyesight adjusts to the darkness you’ll see thousands of stars and if you’re lucky even the milky way! Lake Tekapo has been recognized as one of the best places for stargazing in the world! And no wonder, the weather is almost always perfect in here – I don’t know how it works but there’s mostly a perfect sky over Tekapo!

I stayed here at one of the hostels – Tailor Made Backpackers, where I was helping out for accommodation and where I met bunch of crazy and amazing people! I learned how to make sushi and we baked cakes and cookies and other stuff! What was in my duties? Housekeeping, cleaning and stuff like that. Couchsurfing is not that popular outside of big cities but wwoofing and helping is possible at the most places in New Zealand.