I’m sitting here over looking a parking lot.  It’s a nice parking lot. Well organized.  Also, the lines are clearly painted.  Above the parking lot in the distance is Mt. Sefton and Mt. Footstool, along with what I think is Mueller Glacier.  The weather is cool, the moon is setting, and the sky clear.  We arrived at Mt. Cook today. 

Before departing the gang hiked up Mt. Iron, located very near Wanaka.  A spectacular day allowed for views of the town and lake, along with the mountains in the distance.  Standing over Wanaka, I could help but notice the sprawl.  Everyone has said something about it.  I felt like I’ve read this story before.  A underpopulated gem gets discovered, builders race to meet insatiable demand, local resources (like drinking water) are strained, climate changes, resources (like water) diminish, financial upheaval or two, crisis.  I think of the Southwest, where this woeful tale has played out.  Hopefully Wanaka’s governing body has planned more carefully than we ever do.      

We left the warm company of Chad’s family and headed northward on our own.  Open road driving back home means a four lane highway that cuts through the land.  Here it means the opposite:  Two lane roads that move with the land, dodging mountains and lakes.  We’d drive for miles and miles through empty mountain passes and long, flat plains surrounded by even more mountains.  The approach to Mt. Cook (one road in, one road out) was nothing short of stunning.  I doubt seriously the planet has views more compelling.  It physically caused me pain not to document all the beauty I witnessed.  I didn’t want to stop the car too much for fear of irking Becky.  The majestic landscapes still swirl in my mind.

The Mt. Cook “town” is a tiny collection of hotels and not much else.  The Hermitage, our hotel, is nice.  Lots of Asians.  I’m listening to one sneeze through the wall right now.  Sadly, thin walls.  We tried to get dinner reservations, but the earliest they had was 9 PM.  They were, “… booked solid,” until then.  At 9 PM, expecting pandemonium, we arrived to a cavernous dining room that was comically empty.  Practically had the buffet to ourselves.  Fun fact:  RBD and I have never eaten at a buffet for dinner together until tonight.  We sat by the windows watching the sun set on Mt. Cook.  The landscape here just commands your attention.  We spoke very little, as if eating before a God and weren’t sure what to say.