Back in Queenstown – not only because it is _the_ event location for a proper silvester party but there was no other place to get a free hotel room for 4 people at this time of the year. The tourist info made it possible to get one of the last rooms and to our horror quite next to our last hotel here, the Abba (but it turned out to be much nicer than that one, even without maid service on 1st and 2nd of January). After high hopes for a dry night it started to rain at 10 pm and didn’t cease … actually it still rains, two days later. We had fun with remembering last year’s and writing down new year’s expectations and wishes and left for the city center at 30 min to 12 pm. The lakeside walk was already packed with partying youths of all nations and exploded when everybody started to count down the last 20 sec to midnight. A mass frenzy! Must have been thousands of people jumping up and down to the very loud music and fireworks. I didn’t bring my camera but Anna’s new little flat compact xmas present did some nice shots of a drunk crowd and flashy fireworks.
We were the first here in NZ to have the New Year of all the nations around the world! PROSIT!
Yet another event where the NZ non alcohol on the street law turned out to be a party pooper. Just 15 min after midnight, everybody that wasn’t drunk already left for licenced pubs and the street emptied rapidly. Crazy law, would be impossible to have in Austria, guys :)
