Arthur's Pass Village

We had a kea attack at 5:00 this morning. I woke to the sounds of incredibly loud squawks and bites at my tent. I got them back though, when I opened my tent and launched a surprise water attack with all the water I was keeping for defence. Another guy got up and chased them for a bit as well. They're really kind of scary - you can hear their scream from pretty far away, and then they swoop down in a group of 3 or 4. Of course, they don't actually attack humans, but it's still a bit frightening. Once again, I stored all of my belongings when I went out today.

I did some walking today along riverbeds that lead up to the mountains on either side of the pass. Incredible views and the water is so clear - I think because it only runs over rocks and there isn't much stirred up in it. As I reached the end of one trail, I heard a woman say, "Would you like a cuppa?" - cuppa being short for cup of tea/coffee - and sure enough I was treated with coffee from some Australians there for the day. They were very nice people and we talked a while. They told me it was close to 40 celsius in Melbourne now, so I'm glad I'm down here (where it's more like 40 fahrenheit at night).

There isn't much to do around the village here other than walk, so I'm just going to relax with the paper in the cafe here for a while. The free internet is broken, so I'm stuck paying for it again.

-Brian