Easter is the new silly season and ignorance is bliss, and it doesn't only affect people who came to Queenstown, but most of the places I visited during my time away. Good Friday continued to be the shambles that it is, yesterday's Qantas flight into Queenstown was redirected because of an aging fleet, a local publication wildly speculated about the Southern Basin's oil reserves, and the provincial rugby team floundered. Also, the Warbirds over Wanaka proved successful, the 6 day fire was finally extinguished, and Queenstowners continued to pay extra at the petrol pump.
I was in Greymouth on Good Friday, albeit for 20 minutes. Me and my girlfriend had stopped to get some supplies for our camping trip. Both The Warehouse and Fresh Choice were closed, so that ruled them out, so we decided to go get a coffee. This cafe had two computers for using the internet, but after asking to use one, I was told I couldn't because it was Good Friday. We were also told that we couldn't have takeaway coffee either. Meanwhile and estimated one third of businesses opened in Wanaka, openly flouting what appears to be an overwhelming archaic law based on religious beliefs, and got away with it scot-free.
Even the New Zealand Government has put this issue in the 'too-hard' basket, dumping plans to alter the Easter trading laws, while some cafes in Wellington charged a 20% surcharge. After looking this up, I found that I still could have bought souvenirs despite not being allowed to use the internet in a cafe that was already open. In 2006, more than 70 retailers across New Zealand flouted that law and were fined the standard $1,000.
Due to the use of an aging fleet of aircraft, a Qantas flight into Queenstown was once again redirected to Invercargill, due to some low cloud. This happens to Qantas a lot, and the taxi operators at the Queenstown airport often joke that if there is a cloud in the sky, Qantas can't land. The rumour behind this is the fleet is so old, that they either have insufficient GPS abilities which hinders low flying, or inexperienced co-pilots. Proving the age of the fleet is the inability to use any form of electrical equipment on these flights including laptops, cameras and mp3 players. We even get asked to switch our phones to 'flight mode' before switching them off, which is laughingly absurd. And topping it off, after the collective sigh that echoed around the plane after the pilot told us we were off to Invercargill, was the pilot then telling us that it was only and hour and a half to drive back to Queenstown.
Rumour has it every time oil prospectors have put down a test drill into the Great Southern Basin off our south west coast they have struck oil. Deposits greater than those found in Saudi Arabia are expected.
Continuing on my rant, a local weekly publication had the above gem on their front page editorial. To correct them, 8 wells have been drilled, and that was between 1976 and 1984 with only 4 of them returning positive hydrocarbon results, which is hardly a rumour. As far as comparing the Great Southern Basin (GSB) with Saudi Arabia's reserves, that part is pure unadulterated speculation. The weather and sea conditions in the GSB makes the North Sea look like the Mediterranean. We only have the record high prices of crude oil to thank for this new wave of prospecting as it only now makes economic sense to develop smaller and more difficult fields. That should be a clear indication of how desperate oil companies are becoming. It would also take at least 10 years to start commercially pumping of oil out of the GSB.
Also observed on my travels were petrol prices compared with the prices here in Queenstown. We pay more than every town we passed through on our way to the West Coast via Arthurs Pass, and back to Christchurch via the Lewis pass. This included Greymouth, and based on the location of all these small towns, one struggles to see why we pay that much more when you consider the cost of transporting the fuel, when you compare them to Queenstown geographically.
It was on average 3 cents cheaper per litre, which equates to Queenstown drivers paying $1.20 more for 40 litres of petrol. Multiply that by the number of motorists that fill their vehicles here in Queenstown, which would be higher due to the increased numbers of tourists are here during Easter. An estimated 100,000 people flock to Warbirds over Wanaka alone. On an environmental note, one must shiver at the massive carbon footprint that event has. Easter as a whole is just like Christmas where commercialisation and profits take precedent over the original message intended for said 'public holidays'.
And lastly is the news that housing sales in Queenstown have plummeted 60% when compared with February 2007, and this is being blamed on high interest rates. Interest rates are normally affected when the Reserve Bank ups the official cash rate, but that's not this seen this time. Why does it seem to be that banks are finding it increasingly hard to borrow money to lend to new homeowners?
Nathan - Queenstown.com Editor.
