Christmas Dinner
At last we left off Maggie and I got done with a great hike on Christmas Day. Maggie signed us up for a special Christmas Dinner on the TSS Earnslaw, which is the original ship that was sent into Queenstown when the town was starting with operations in the timber and coal business. It's still a coal fire powered ship. You would think from the beauty of the surroundings and the lake that they would have decommissioned the ship, but Kiwis apparently don't care about that. This is a picture below of the ship from the Internet. Maggie and I were late (what's new) to getting to the ship so it almost left without us and we didn't have time to take pictures in front of the ship before boarding.
Took a few pictures of the boiler room and the exhaust- didn't realize that these things existed anymore.
Once on board we were able to relax and enjoy the beauty of the ride across Lake Wakatipu, which has my vote for most beautiful lake in the world. I mean take a look at all of this beauty the lake provided.
James really enjoyed all of the new sights and the noises on the boat. There was a piano player playing Christmas tunes on board. As seen above he also tried his best to take down the Christmas tree.
Once the boat reached the other side of Lake Wakatipu, we were able to make out our dinner location. A small little farmhouse nestled alongside the mountainside on the bank of the lake.
The Walter Peak Farm was off to a good start- they had Champagne waiting for us when we got off the boat.
Which James kept trying to grab out of my hands. The little guy loves reaching for the alcohol, I blame his mother.
During Christmas out here they have these things called Crackers. You twist off the ends and it makes a popping noise and gives you a 'fortune' inside similar to a fortune cookie. James wanted to add a little bit of American culture to the Kiwi tradition by trying to eat it. His look says, "It's Christmas, I want to feast."
Since we were having such a great meal cooked for us at the farmhouse, I figured James would want some too.
Nope, he just wanted to gnaw at the table.
I took this picture for my old roommate Jeff. Everyone gave me a funny look when I loaded my plate with gummies and then took a picture of them. Worth it, jealous JJ?
After dinner we were treated to the owner of the farmer showing us his sheperding techniques with his dog. He sent his dog into the woods and a minute later it came back chasing a few sheep into the holding bin. Once in there he was able to grab the sheep and showed us how they shear the sheep in an incredibly fast motion. He took all of the wool off the sheep in one piece, it was incredible.
After the show, it was time to cruise back across the lake as the sun was setting over the South Island. As James fell asleep on the ride back, we enjoyed the views and reflected on a truly special Christmas Day. We still missed everyone back at home, but this was a great alternative way to spend Christmas Day.
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