The last page of my letter to my best friend

I love writing letters to my closest friends. I reserve my best words and longest, time-consuming efforts for those close to me. I finished a trip to New Zealand last December. Here, I am sharing the last page of my letter to my best friend, Neha.
Do you know what I do?
I write something like a diary every month or so. Everytime something nice or bad happens, something eventful, something spicy, something happy or when nothing happens and I feel I must write this. Then I compile these pages together and send them off to India. Every 4-6 months.

29/12/2011

  Today, India lost the Boxing Day Cricket Test match against Australia. Well they played pretty badly to be honest. I don't know if I care or not.

I am at a resort called Millbrook, at a place called Queenstown. This city is in the Southern Island of NZ in the area called Otago. We are beside a lake called Wakatipu, an 80 km long lake. "I HATE LUV STORYS" was shot here and nearby.

 This is a very beautiful country. They call it 100% pure, untouched. Ao-tea-roa - a long white cloud, in a Maori language. Everything here is so beautiful and in the words of many tourists "You simply don't know where to look...". Nothing is an eye-sore

I was asked by Mr.K yesterday on the phone where I was staying and he googled it, for images. And then, he exclaimed, "We only see this in our dreams, are you really at this place?"

Truly, my eyes are now used to seeing each kona-kona (corner to corner) of this wonderful land and yet, my sight is not tired. I'm impressed to the point where I'd be happy to lose my passport and live here. 

And I do miss my friends and loved ones back in Australia and India. I want them to witness how delightful it is here and I have tried to take some good pictures, with my camera. And this time I have NOT used the Auto Mode but they are all in manual mode. The land and the country feels so young, so virgin. I haven't yet felt like using any bad words as my mind is flowing with nothing but the sunrise, the days and into the starry nights.  Have I ever seen so many stars in recent times?

I know now, that this was what the earth looked like some 1000s of years ago. I have seen it and witnessed its magnificience and the height of its peaks, glaciers, sweet flowers and pretty, friendly birds. I have felt the warmth of the Merino sheep, touched the soft natural grass and smelt wild lavender, giant lupine and other scents which I only can smell in today's Ponds Talc. This is surely the land of dreamflowers, something that is forgotten.

Time and again, I have been surprised by this land- glow-worms, craters, sulphur pools, volcanoes, lakes, streams, peaks, sheep, ferns, and the lovely people.

I have known today that the world hasn't ended yet. It is nearing the end of 2011, and today, I see before my eyes that our darling earth, as we know it, is still evolving.

We finished our trip at the end of December but I wish we hadn't.