NZ +7: Arrowtown

Right, well, it's actually Saturday now, so officially NZ +9, but this is the first chance I've had to be on a computer since Thursday and you will all know that's cold turkey for me. So, let's get Arrowtown out of the way first, which was Thursday afternoon.

Before I came away, I spoke to my sister and asked her to email me with anything in particular she thought we might miss and shouldn't, and conversely, anything she thought we might go and see but that really wasn't worth the effort. (She lived in NZ for a while when she worked for KPMG). I can't remember the exact contents of her email back to me (in fact, I have difficulty remembering the email at all... hmmm), but Arrowtown should have been on her second list...



It's an old gold mining town, as are so many around Queenstown. The problem is, it's trying to set itself up as a genuine historic village where things haven't changed much since "them there olden times" and it fails completely. Despite the one of two well-preserved buildings...



..and the nods to colonialism...



...it doesn't really cut it.

There are supposed to be very strict planning regulations here that stops anyone building anything that might be out of character, but Queenstown District Council apparently doesn't have the money to fight the planning abuse that's going on actually in the town, never mind in some of its outlying villages.

So the retail centre and office space that they are currently building just to the right of the post box (you can see scaffolding if you look carefully) will no doubt add to the charm of the place...

Anyway, of some interest was the old mining trail. Chinese miners came here and basically stole the gold. They set up little settlements of their own and built huts and stores which remain to this day...



...there is a whole series of them extending up the valley...



...complemented by a range of information boards which give a detailed account of mining in the area, and show that the New Zealanders welcomed the Chinese immigrants with open arms...
(you'll have to click on it to read it properly...)

And that's Arrowtown.