皇后鎮(zhèn)，給心靈放假的好去處

飛揚

來到南島，皇后鎮(zhèn)是不得不去的地方，它是新西蘭南島耀眼的存在。

被冠以“皇后”之名的原因，并不是這里真的誕生過皇后。據(jù)說，早在1862年，這里只是毛利人的傳統(tǒng)生活領(lǐng)地。隨著淘金熱的興起，越來越多的英國殖民者來到這里，他們被秀麗的湖光山色深深吸引，認為所有的榮耀都應(yīng)歸功于維多利亞女王，所以將之命名為“皇后鎮(zhèn)”。

湖光山色是皇后鎮(zhèn)最美麗動人的標志。

皇后鎮(zhèn)位于瓦卡蒂普湖畔，置身于南阿爾卑斯山脈環(huán)抱之中。瓦卡蒂普湖是新西蘭第三大湖泊，湖水呈現(xiàn)深邃的寶藍色。其形如閃電，獨特的形狀致使湖面具有特別的潮汐現(xiàn)象，水面每隔25分鐘就會漲落一次。若想欣賞壯麗的高山和湖泊景色，一定要搭乘厄恩斯洛號。厄恩斯洛號于1912年投入營運，從湖的一邊開往另一邊，是南半球唯一還在航行的燃煤蒸汽游船。

皇后鎮(zhèn)的湖泊、高山以及神奇地勢，天生就是探險活動的樂園，有“探險之都”的美譽。在這里，游客可以隨時來一場冒險之旅：在世界上第一個蹦極場地卡瓦勞大橋上飛躍而下，感受“自由飛翔”；乘坐卡瓦羅號噴射快艇，體驗穿越休特弗河峽谷的驚險；在休特弗河的船長峽谷，挑戰(zhàn)一次真正的漂流。若這些不過癮，還可以選擇高空跳傘、峽谷秋千、滑翔傘、熱氣球等，200多種戶外運動項目絕對能滿足體內(nèi)的冒險細胞。

除了皇后鎮(zhèn)，瓦卡蒂普湖區(qū)周圍的格林諾奇、箭鎮(zhèn)、金斯頓村和金洛克等城鎮(zhèn)也各有特色，值得一去。格林諾奇擁有多條優(yōu)美的步道，壯觀的景色使這里成為《指環(huán)王》及《納尼亞傳奇》等多部電影的取景地。距離皇后鎮(zhèn)21公里的箭鎮(zhèn)，有著與中國剪不斷的聯(lián)系，留下了最早一批華人在新西蘭淘金的印跡。

上山、入海、游湖、觀星……以皇后鎮(zhèn)為軸心，無論是來一場探索內(nèi)心之旅，還是單純地給心靈放個假，都可以在此開啟。而專屬這里的那份氣韻，為旅途增添了一份魅力，也讓這份美好歷久彌新、畢生難忘。

Queenstown， a Perfect Place for Relaxing Your Soul

A lot of people have said， “Be sure to visit New Zealands South Island at least once in your lifetime.”The North Island has a greater concentration of cities and more developed economy， but the South Island seems like a treasure given to New Zealand by nature， where the splendid scenery of snow-capped mountains and lakes is natural and pure. It is a place that will never disappoint travelers.

The name “Queenstown” does not mean that it is a queens hometown. It is said that in 1862， it was only Maori traditional living territory. With the rise of the gold rush， more and more British colonists came here. Captivated by the beautiful scenery of lakes and mountains， they believed that all the glories should be credited to Queen Victoria， so the town got the name “Queenstown”.

Queenstown is located on the shore of Lake Wakatipu， and surrounded by the Southern Alps. Lake Wakatipu is the third largest lake in New Zealand， appearing sapphire blue. Because of its unusual shape like a lightning bolt， the lake has a special tidal phenomenon， which causes the water to rise and fall every 25 minutes. If you want to enjoy the magnificent alpine scenery and lake view， be sure to take the TSS Earnslaw. Put into operation in 1912， the Earnslaw is the sole coal-fired steamship that sill runs in the Southern Hemisphere.

In addition to Queenstown， the surrounding towns of Lake Wakatipu， including Glenorchy， Arrowtown， Kingston and Kinloch， all have their own characteristics， and are worth visiting. Glenorchy has many beautiful trails. Its spectacular landscape has made it a prime location for films， including Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia. Arrowtown， 21 kilometers from Queenstown， has a close relation with China. There are the traces of the earliest batch of Chinese miners panning for gold in New Zealand.