Southern Alps - Not just "some other mountains"
(click on the picture to see the gallery)
The Southern Alps are located in the middle of New Zealand's South Island, offering a breathtaking different scenery at just maximum 60 km from the sea. Obviously, as soon as people knew I was Swiss, the comment was always the same: oh you're Swiss, there's nothing new here for you. They couldn't be more mistaken. Even having grown up at the bottom of the Swiss Alps, as soon as I arrived up there in the middle of the Mackenzie District, I was just baffled by that view. Actually, the winter temperature around zero degrees was cozy comfortable for me, so I could start discover the region with ease. And some scenery around Lake Tekapo wasn't that new, I have to admit this. But that watercolour and that night sky! It was just outstanding. You would have found me there during the day down at the water ignoring the monuments and jumping from stone to stone, while at night staring at the stars with my mind screaming "This can't be a sky. This is a painting. This just looks like a painting". If you were passing by when I was there, of course. Not mentioning when I arrived at Mount Cook Village. The colours of the Hooker Valley track were astonishing, Aoraki Mount Cook was standing there with its 3724m and quite no clouds above the icy Hooker Lake, the other mountains around were also absolutely impressive. Of course I couldn't leave the Southern Alps without climbing something: the choice fell on Red Tarns, which I reached in no time, and on direction Sebastopol. Was just an amazing trip of which I can still feel the emotions more than one year after. Alps are not just Alps. They wouldn't have been called like that if they weren't astonishing and proud. Moreover, mountains will always be my habitat, it doesn't really matter where. I hope to show this with my selection of pictures of this marvelous place.
