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Imagine yourself in a romantic foreign city in New Zealand with your loved one, savoring the sights together as you stroll through the streets. Did you envision glaciers? Probably not. But when you travel on a locum tenens assignment to the country, the village of Franz Josef is one of the most romantic regions you can find.
High in the New Zealand mountains is a huge basin, Neve, where a massive abundance of snow collects, causing the glaciers to form from heavy layers of snow and compact into hard blue ice. The combined pressure of the snow and gravitational pull force the ice down the valley to within 200 meters above sea level. Its steepness and unique location make the Franz Josef Glacier the most dynamic on the planet. Whether you choose a romantic adventure of landing on the glacier by helicopter or simply touring the village below, you and a partner will have an unforgettable experience exploring an area unique from the rest of the world.
At the foot of the eponymous glacier is the small village that exudes mountain romance. You can start off with a stroll through the minuscule town and watch the sun set behind the mountains topped with glacier caps. Spend the end of the evening unwinding in a glacier hot pool nestled within the region's lush rainforests. As legend has it, the steamy waters are fed by the frozen tears of the goddess Hinehukatere for her lost love. Shedding any tears is the last thing you'll be doing when you visit this adventurous city in New Zealand.