Hot is certainly the word of the moment, especially when you consider the weather we had during the weekend. Officially, Queenstown reached 27 and 26 degrees on the thermometer located at the airport, but our very own weather station based on Hallenstein St, clocked an impressive 34 and 32, and it definitely felt that way. Some respite is due later this afternoon with some much needed rainfall according to David Crow's weather forecast. Also, the Barup cocktail prize jackpots as no one correctly answered last week's question, so check out this week's question here.

Also on the sizzle are Queenstown's housing prices. At the current average property value of $662,539 in Queenstown, it is possible to buy 2.4 houses in Dunedin ($272,460), and 3.2 houses in Invercargill ($205,062). The question remains to see whether the continual increase in pricing here is sustainable or not. Is continual growth in the region a good or bad thing? We now have an eco-adviser to help with building sustainably, but do sustainability and growth go together?

Keeping with the hot theme, the Copthorne Hotel played host to the Otago Regional Council's Climate Change seminar which saw presentations from Niwa principal climate scientist Dr Jim Salinger, and University of Otago professor Blair Fitzharris. The presentations forecasts in temperatures from 1 degree warmer by 2040 and 2 degrees warmer by the 2090, with a worst case scenario of 4.5 degrees by 2090. It's a good thing that Coronet is yet again expanding its snowmaking fleet. Let's hope it pays off.

Last week we asked: Scorpion Vodka is a novelty vodka; Where is it made? The answer was London and no-one answered this correctly showing just how hard it was. That means we jackpot this weeks question in the Barup cocktail competition which you can find on the Our Town tab, but remember to log in before voting. That's it from me this week, so until next Monday, take care and enjoy the sun!

Nathan - Queenstown.com Editor.