Barbara's travels continue 2018

After a pretty quick turnaround after my trips to Picton, Nelson and Wanaka, it was time to pack a couple of essentials for 2 days and an evening in Wellington. It has certainly been over 35 years since I was there! I didn't remember it at all.  Arriving early I had a chance to meander around before meeting up with Bruce and Alison again. Just down from the appartment was The Beehive, our parliament building. It is such a great shape, and I loved the name of its neighbouring street! I just had to walk down it!  Next to the appartment was also this amazing old church, 150 years old, Old St Paul's Church,  a survivor because it is entirely wooden. It is no longer used for services sadly, as they have built a rather ugly new cathedral nearby which is used instead. Madness! Wellington is well known for its wharf area, where old boat sheds have been transformed into up- market restaurants and bars or boutique stores. It is very attractive, though with a very cold wind, it was...

I honestly thought, after my incredible trip north to Picton and Abel Tasman, that the scenery in New Zealand could not get better. Wrong! Different vegetation, of course, but on the day I drove south to Wanaka, the scenery WAS even better! The ever changing landscapes, from plains to foothills and then to lakes and snow- capped mountains, was truly distracting when you are trying to concentrate on the road ahead. No worries if you have all day and can pull over as much as you want. My 450 kilometre journey took 7 hours in total, but I so enjoyed myself. Lunch stop at Lake Tekapo. Those turquoise waters are simply irresistible, and the weather was perfect. The Lake District of the South Island is one of the most beautiful places on earth on such a fine day, with so few people around. Today, the spectacular reflections of mountains and lovely clouds in Mount Pukaki just took my breath away. In all the years in NZ I have never seen such a wonderful sight over this lake. I was completely...

My very good friends Bruce and Alison picked me up from Waikawa and we drove the very winding, but breathtakingly beautiful route following Queen Charlotte Sounds, more of the stunning scenery I had enjoyed on my walks previously, but seen from a different angle. We soon arrived in at their fabulous property at the end of Pukeko Lane, with its panoramic views over the estuary, and , right next to my room, the sheep with their lambs, 13 of them as I write, but a couple more due any moment now. I could imagine that if I lived here, I would waste hours watching the wee lambs frolicking around or , when the ewes are lying down, standing on their  mum's back to try to get them to stand up so they can feed. Late afternoon, as we enjoyed a daily spa and glass of NZ white, the lambs would come alive, have a little get together and then tear around the paddock. You can already pick out the leaders and trouble makers! Super entertaining! It will be hard to eat lamb when I next visit. The sp...

With drains being repaired at home and my lovely front garden being wrecked to achieve this, and with building next door too, it was definitely the right moment to have a trip away and to fall in love with New Zealand once again. It certainly did not take long to do this! Just two hours from Christchurch you get the first dramatic views up the coastline towards Kaikoura. It is pure magic. Rocky beaches which have been changed dramatically by the 2016 earthquake, but with large numbers of fur seals basking on the rocks in the sunshine or frolicking in the gentle waves amongst the kelp. It is an idyllic sight. Kaikoura is patiently awaiting the massive tourist influx once the season gets underway. We could thoroughly enjoy the long , empty beaches with expansive views out to sea and over towards the mountains around Mount Fyfe. They looked breathtakingly beautiful with their snowy peaks, Two years on, the road north is open 24/7 and is an engineering masterpiece considering the number o...