Curio Bay - Christchurch - Picton

Hey! Wow, it's only been a month since I last blogged but we have been busyyy. That's us been living in our Hiace for 6 months now - I can't believe it! It feels so homely even with the lack of space and warmth (although it's probably warmer than NZ homes, seeing as most don't have double glazing or any insulation). I wasn't that worried about winter in the South and it turns out, I didn't need to worry anyway. Yes, it has been cold and it has reached -5 some nights, but once you're layered up it's all good. Frost on the inside just makes us laugh. We have been thankful to have an inside cooker so we can stay cosy (cooking heats up the van too). We've stayed ill-free apart up until I felt a bit of a head cold for a couple days. Luckily it didn't last long because I didn't fancy being ill when it's hard to chill and rest, staying warm. Anyway, here we are, about to catch the ferry North again. We have LOVED the South. One day you're up a mountain, next you're by a sparkling blue lake, then you're watching some amazing wildlife, then swimming in the sea and then you're having a few drinks in a cute bar. Here's what we've been up to in the last month. It all started at Curio Bay, the first place we saw yellow-eyed penguins. We waited from 3.30-5pm and saw 2 little guys jump out of the sea and waddle into the bush. It was amazing! We went back in the morning from about 7-9am and saw 3 going out fishing. The next penguin stop was Roaring Bay. We saw 4 yellow-eyed come out at the same time. It was like watching a boy band! That night we went out to Nugget Point to watch the milky way over the lighthouse, and in the morning Scott took some lovely sunrise pictures while I creeped on more penguins. Along from here is Cannibal Bay where you can see the endangered sea lions. From there it was up to Dunedin next. We knew we'd like it there - seeing as it is called Edinburgh of the South. Of course, there isn't as much history or historic buildings, but it's a nice city to stroll through, and they had great bars! In particular, a jazz bar and a Scottish pub! You can freedom camp anywhere in Dunedin which is great. It was weird waking up to people walking past for work though! However, the highlight around Dunedin is the Banks Peninsula. A wildlife haven! We saw Royal Albatross chicks, spotted shags, fur seals AND about 34 little blue penguins - I was in my element (and managed not to steal one). There were lovely walks around there too and even a castle you can look around! More penguins I'm afraid! Basically, every morning and evening was spent sitting, waiting to see if we were lucky. North of Dunedin is the lovely point at Aramoana where we camped by the beach and saw 1 yellow-eyed. 

We continued north, stopping at the Moeraki Boulders of course. I loved seeing the structure of the boulders and looking at the rock pools inside some of them. They looked even more striking at sunrise! Oamaru was next. It was a quiet town but it had a pretty cool Victorian precinct with a steampunk feel. Then it was time to leave the coast and head back to Wanaka. On the way, we managed to catch up with a friend from Cromarty. It was nice to catch up with him and his lovely girlfriend. We hope to grab a drink somewhere north! I spent my birthday skiing at Cardrona. It was amazing and definitely a first. It is a small resort but it had a gondola up to the top and plenty blues and greens for me. Scott and a friend we met up with went off while I practised my skills (I was confident at the start then lost some after a pretty bad fall). It was so much fun and the views were unreal. The rest of my birthday was spent chilling by the lake, watching Jurassic World at the best cinema, eating pizza and a few too many drinks at night. We hit a few bars and were the first up dancing in La La Land, a cocktail bar. Oh my, my head was sooooore the next day! We headed over the Crown Range, back to Queenstown to catch up with a friend and to take in the last of our favourite areas. We did not like leaving Wanaka!! However, we had the lakes to look forward to. Lake Pukaki was gorgeous, with views of Mount Cook (tallest mountain in Australasia) in the background. The Church of the Good Shepherd at Tekapo was beautiful, just busy. It made for an amazing backdrop for the milky way though. We loved walking around Mount Cook national park, Hooker Valley Glacier was unreal.   It was nice to head out to Mount Sunday (where LOTR Edoras was filmed) after the lakes. It was so quiet and peaceful out there. Nobody was around - there was even a deserted town! Akoroa was next and wow, I could have spent weeks there! It probably helped that it was 19° - in winter!! Wow. A French settlement with a lovely bay, nice shops and plenty of bars. This is a nice detour before hitting Christchurch. We really liked Christchurch and it was interesting seeing the regeneration. After a few stops for some wine tasting in Waipara, we arrived in Kaikoura. One of my favourite places so far. We managed to see a blue whale!!! Very rare. Also, sperm and humpbacks - what an experience (minus all the seasickness chat). Being out on the water in kayaks was amazing too - seeing fur seals up close and even a little blue swimming. We loved it there, and were lucky to arrive on jam night in two of the pubs. Good vibes. So here we are, back up in Picton, getting the boat back North. We are pretty gutted to be leaving the South but we've still got the east coast, Bay of plenty, Coromandel, Taupo, Tongariro and possibly Waiheke Island to visit. Then we'll know how much time we have to hopfully find work. We looked for jobs South but we're thinking it will be cheaper to work when it's warmer and we can commit to cold showers again at free camps. Thanks for reading! X gf v x