The team at Flip Video were kind enough to give us a new Flip VideoHD to use during our recent Expat Recon Tour.

Aside from being incredibly  simple to use and easy to transport, the Flip VideoHD took the clearest, most detailed videos we’d ever seen! It even took a couple of knocks as we travelled through the rough Glenorchy terrain, but not a scratch to show for it.

But probably the thing I loved the most about the Flip VideoHD was the ability to download the videos so quickly, so we could upload them immediately. It was just great.

Check out these videos of us arriving in Queenstown (above) and two of our guests, Lei and Jackie, seeing the canyon under AJ Hackett’s Nevis Arc for the first time (below).

I recommend you try one! Go to www.theflip.co.nz

The rest of us thought we could, but when you stand out on the platform, look down and realise that the bungy ‘launching pad’ is far BELOW you, you realise just how high you actually are.

Good on you Ben and Jacqui!

It was the lure of driving fast cars that grabbed my attention but after spending time out there I now know there is so much more to experience out there.

Thanks to the team at Dynamic Tours the short drive out was handled in style and the excitement levels grew as we left civilization behind.

After a quick briefing on what was in store for us, we split into teams of 3 and my first activity was offroading in a very sophisticated Mercedes Benz SUV.

We did some cross country driving and there were whoops of delight as we ploughed into a very muddy waterhole.

Nick then showed us the functioning of the Electronic Stability Program with some tight turns and how differently the SUV handled with the system switched on.

Next we learned the art of knife throwing (no not at each other) and I don’t think any of us will be joining the circus anytime soon for knife throwing anyway.

We then had the chance to learn about how ESP can save lives and reduce the number of crashes by joining professional race car driver Boyd in the Mercedes sedan on the track.

I was very impressed with the grip and handling that the car could still exhibit under hard breaking and cornering forces and when it was my turn at the wheel it was nearly too much for Jacqui’s stomach to cope with!

Just before moving onto the archery we had some sensational hot laps with Boyd driving which created many smiling faces.

We then hit the archery range and tried to get a bit of a competition going but with the weather closing in and the warm fire in the lodge calling we didn’t manage to complete a full scoring round.

A couple of us were happy to soldier on in our drizabones and followed Geoff  down to the clay shooting area.

One advantage from the misty weather was the smooth white backdrop for the black clay birds to traverse and this may have helped as there were a few perfect rounds scored.

It was a very enjoyable day at an amazing location.

Feeling very cosy inside looking out at the misty backdrop, we sat down to a beautiful three course meal with matching wines.

The food was amazing – Pumpkin soup with homemade bread, pork with parsnips, pear and caramelised onions and sticky date pudding to finish. Very very yummy.

The service was outstanding and the staff made us feel like guests in their own home. It was the perfect finish to the afternoons activities, and one we were all very reluctant to leave.

We started the rafting experience with a thrilling helicopter ride up Skippers Canyon which was the best way to see Queesntown – it was stunning!

We then headed to the meeting point for our rafting adventure with Queenstown Rafting.

To be honest all the Expat tour members were a little nervous about being thrown out of the boats into the icy cold waters, especially given the ice covered rocks that surrounded the river banks.

But with the sun beaming down on us, we began to relax as our expert guide Cam explained the in’s & outs of the raft and the do’s and don’ts when out on the water.

Our first challenge was being able to row at the same time.

This took a few minutes to establish but once sorted we were off down the amazing Kawarau River, taking in all the scenery around us while trying to also manage the raft through grade 2/3 rapids.

All the boats stuck together and we had great fun.

This was one of my personal favourites so far and I’d recommend this activity to all those visiting Queenstown.

I’d like to thank Queenstown Rafting and our guide Cam who was great and made our experience one to remember.

Nick- UK expat

I was so excited about going to the game I didn’t even mind the only rainy day we got during the trip. I didn’t know much or even care about rugby before my first test match in Auckland last Saturday.

One week later I think I am officially an All Blacks fan.

It was a great experience – the excitement of watching the game in the stadium, the passionate All Blacks supporters, the atmosphere of the entire city on game weekend, the Haka (I think any girls would fall in love with the team after watching the Haka!) there are so many things about Rugby that gives you a sense of excitement which I have never experienced it before.

Westpac Stadium is perfectly built for rugby. Our seats were right in the middle and we could follow the players every move.

What an exciting 90 minutes! The All Blacks were certainly in their best form.

I screamed, laughed, cursed, jumped, danced, cheered and sang with their every move. I forgot about the rain and cold because my blood was boiling with the excitement.

What a perfect result for the All Blacks – two convincing wins over the current world cup champion in their homeland!

And what a perfect ending for us – this was the last activity for the eight lucky members of ‘Pass it on’ Expat Recon tour! For me it’s the beginning of a long learning process in this new hobby I’ve picked up.

I still don’t know many of the players names or recognise their faces but I am working on it. Hopefully by 2011, I can talk about rugby like any other hard core All Blacks fan!

Now we need to get back to our hotel and have our farewell party for the end of our tour.

Hopefully we will also catch a drink with the All Blacks too! (did i mention that we’re staying at the same hotel as All Blacks? Haha…)

It was an incredible day.

We arrived at NZRU headquarters and were introduced to Brent Anderson who proceeded to give us a tour of the building.

Brent is the General Manager of Community and Provincial Union Rugby and was in the All Black squad in 1986 and 1987 – so he really knows what he’s talking about!

The trophy cabinets were impressive – with a nice little gap for the Web Ellis Cup!

The NZRU looks like a great place to work – full of hard workers who are all experts in their field, whether it be the legal team, communications or sports science – but they also know how to have fun.

Staff members are invited to decorate their desks in their provincial colours and their is a nice long aisle in between the desks which is apparently used as a cricket pitch on Friday afternoons.

We then proceeded to Westpac Stadium under tight security (these guys are definitely ready for the Rugby World Cup – it was a slick operation!)

We sat in the stands and had a great view of the team as Richie took them through some drills and a practise of the Haka.

There was a lovely atmosphere in the stadium as many of the teams’ families were there.

It had a nice ‘NZ rugby community’ feel about it, which was nice for our overseas guests to experience. The players and coaches looked very relaxed.

Then for the highlight! We were taken down to the field where the All Blacks were lined up and we were invited to have a photo with them. (We’ll post the pic as soon as we get it)

Wow- being up close to ALL the All Blacks was almost overwhelming and they were incredibly friendly, acknowledging us when we wished them luck for the following night.

We were then shuffled off to allow others to have their photo taken and lead to the side of the field where we had our  final thrill for the day – the All Blacks and coaches signed our posters, t-shirts and a rugby ball that Angie had bought along. Once again they were very obliging, friendly and seemed to be very appreciative of the support.

What a day – being up close to our heroes was very exciting – many thanks for this incredible experience NZRU!

The Intercontinental Wellington is so central you can walk to ‘Te Papa’ in 10 mins (even in too long jeans and overly platform boots), you can shop fabulously by jumping over 2 streets to Lambton Quay, and you can literally walk to the wharf in 3 minutes – and that’s just time wasted waiting for the ‘walk sign’ to turn green!

I’d recommend The Intercontinental Wellington it to those who’d even usually go for less ‘snazzy’ spots, as there’s SO much money saved on transport – and that comes from a cheapo AmeriKiwi!

The  I.C.W. staff were fabulous – considering we’d just got off two flights and were probably not looking our ‘top model’ best. And they were everywhere; a very enthusiastic/well presented concierge, and wonderfully knowledgeable reception team went out of their way to make sure we had all we needed and were aware of the hotel amenities. They even have a guest laundry for the sporty types like our Aussie contingent!

Once we established The All Blacks weren’t going anywhere, Angie and I traipsed up to our 7^th floor room, and took a few minutes to take in the wonderfully still (yes – I AM talking about Windy Wellington) harbour view.

The sky was dark blue, the water was like glass, and the lights reflecting off the water were doing more of a waltz than break-dance. Te Whanga-nui-a-Tara was looking its best, and our hotel view was beautiful. Note: there was NO drinking involved in this observation. There REALLY was NO wind. I have never seen the harbour so still and beautiful, not sure if this was a ‘coming home’ moment for me or not, but it really did look like a gorgeous canvass covered in lights off the city. I spent the next 10 minutes unpacking, checking out the minibar (Dairy Milk, you ARE my Satan) and attempting to convince Angie that yes, this was the City we call ‘Windy Wellington’.

We are still at this wonderful hotel – so far it’s proven all too well why we call my fair hometown city ‘Absolutely Positively Wellington’. The Intercontinental Wellington has def stepped up to the plate. The Breakfast buffet is SO yummy (best hash browns so far!) and they even have a spirulina/guava/misc fruit smoothie bar – but just FYI: The All Blacks go straight for the pancakes. Yes…they are just one table over!

The rooms, service, food and location are spot on – we even managed to get a healthy and delish meal in the bar late last night – (with some fab wine of course).