Wednesday, May 16

May 16, 2007

We had a pretty relaxing day today although it started off disappointingly enough. We put our bathing suits on and went downstairs where Helen led us out to the hot tub….which was broken. Ugh. The swimming pool is unheated (and really dirty) so we had no recourse. Seriously, I know that we cashed in points to stay here and it is the off season, but fix your stuff or offer me a free breakfast or a bottle of wine for the fact that not all of your amenities are available. I thought this place was supposed to be high class. A letter of complaint to the hotel’s parent company will be forthcoming.

We went back to the room to get ready to go into town. We didn’t make it into town until noon, parking where we had the night before since it was out of the city center so there was no 30 minute parking time limit. I got a phone call from Jo at UCOL regarding my second contract as we were parking the car, so I had Josh walk ahead (he was going to check the times that Spiderman 3 was playing at the cinema) while I spoke to her. I caught back up with Josh after the phone call (running along the wharf’s boardwalk) and we noted the movie times for the evening shows.

Next, we walked around thinking we’d like to get more chips and dips from Sombreros. The only thing was they didn’t open until 5:30. We were getting hungry so we went to the food court for a third time. Man, you should have seen the line at McDonald’s….ridiculous. I guess it’s to be expected seeing as it’s the only McDonald’s in about a 200 km radius. So, Josh and I ate at the Indian restaurant he had the day before. Josh had lamb curry and I had chicken curry. Good stuff.

We browsed in the Queenstown shops and soon enough, it was time to drive out of the city center to Hush Day Spa for our first ever couples massage and pedicures. We arrived about ten minutes early (“as we were” like I’d been instructed over the phone the day before) and filled out some forms. Josh’s back had started hurting him last night and today but he didn’t mention it on the form.

We were shown to a changing room where we undressed and put on robes and slippers before heading to the Relax Room. Well, we didn’t have time to relax there and have a fruit juice that was listed on a menu in the room because as soon as we had sat down in the Relax Room, a girl told us to get up and follow her into a room at the end of the hall….we must have taken too long making jokes in the changing room.

The room was large, candlelit, and had new agey music on in the background. Two massage tables were placed in the room (they appeared to be more like mechanical hospital beds than the wooden transportable massage tables I’m used to). In addition to the massage tables, there was also a large Jacuzzi tub in the room. Josh had his masseur and I had mine, Chemise…or something like that.

Josh and I have had massages before, jut never together and never for an hour at a time. Count me out for a couples massage in the future. All I could hear over the otherwise relaxing music was the creak, creak, creak of Josh’s mechanical massage bed as his girl massaged him down with hot oil. Not so relaxing for me as I’m really sensitive to aggravating noises!

We both got the hot oil massage (the oil was never heated in previous massages) and a hot towel placed on our backs too which we both liked. In the end, however, I just didn’t feel like my girl did a good job. I mean, the pressure was fine and after the massage was over I think I felt zonky relaxed, but I guess it just wasn’t the best massage I’ve had and that was what I was expecting since I was paying for it and the other massages I had were really good and really inexpensive through the apartment in Fayetteville.

When the massages were over, they told Josh and I to stay in the room as long as we like. We laid there quietly for awhile and then we started making lots of jokes. We crack a lot of jokes under normal circumstances but the combination of being in a warm room after all your muscles are relaxed made us both feel a bit delirious which only added to the hilarity of the jokes we were making. Back to the Relax Room and onto the pedicures. Well, actually, I had to pee so by the time I was back from that Josh was already out of the Relax Room and in his chair to get a pedicure.

Note to self: Having expectations based on prior experience can set you up for disappointment. This refers to the fact that I thought the pedicure chairs would both vibrate and heat up based on the pedicure chairs I’ve sat in back in the States. These chairs did neither…bummer.

Josh and I did finally get our juice here and some chocolate hearts to eat. Like my massage, I didn’t think my girl gave the best pedicure either. I picked Must Be Lust as my polish color…it’s a pretty darker pink color…love it. Then, I was floored when my girl asked if I had open toe shoes with me…Uh no, it’s autumn in New Zealand. She proceeded to tell me that I could either walk barefoot to the car or buy a pair of their sandals for $15 since the polish wouldn’t completely dry for another 15 minutes or so.

WHAT THE HECK?!?! Don’t ya’ll have any cheapy throw away flip flops like in the States? Geez, even the crummy salons back home have that. Or, if you don’t have those, why don’t you tell clients to bring open toe shoes not to “come as they are.” UGH!

So, I wasn’t impressed with the place but Josh on the other hand was floating on cloud nine and couldn’t stop raving about how great his massage was and all that jazz. At least 50% of the team was pleased. We paid and left to go back into town so Josh could mail a package home.

We parked in 15 minute parking in front of the Post Office and we took care of all of our business in about 17 minutes. Luckily for us we escaped without another parking ticket.

We spent the next hour or so in Patagonia’s (a chocolate café) because Josh had noticed earlier in the week that they offered free WiFi there. I bought a hot chocolate and Josh had an ice cream. There were no available electrical outlets (somehow I think that’s intentional on their part) so we used the internet for about an hour before the battery died.

Leaving town we went to the Fresh Choice grocery store and bought a few things for snacks. Then, it was back to the room where we made use of the spa bath tub since the hot tub outside was broken. Then, onto bed to rest up for a driving day tomorrow.