Following our 3.5 hour ferry ride, we arrived in the little town of Picton, and went to work finding contact solution (which we didn’t find in either of the small grocery stores in town) and dinner. We had some very unsatisfactory greasy spoon fried food and headed into Blenheim, which turned out to be a lot larger than Picton, about 20 minutes away. We found our place, a fun little AirBnB farm on the edge of town. There, we met the talkative "Grandma Wendy"(landlord), who hooked us up with a “hottie bottle” and turned on our electric blankets, as we settled into the cozy place for the night.
After the sun finally came up on Wednesday (we are in the Southern-Southern Hemisphere), Bri made breakfast, we packed the cars, the kids had fun feeding Wendy’s alpacas, and we headed South for Kaikoura.
The land on this side of the South island is not as lush but it has towering mountains constituting the Southern Alps, and these soon came into view halfway towards Kaikoura. It’s been a few years since we’ve seen snow-covered mountains, and the effect was enchanting!
Bri couldn’t get enough photos as we dropped down to the coast on one side and snow-covered mountains on the other and made our way into Kaikoura.
Just outside of Kaikoura, we stopped at Ohau waterfall and hiked in to see a couple dozen pup seals working their way up the creek and into the pool under the falls.
We had a blast watching these young seals frolic and play in the water like little kids, and our little kids loved hiking and climbing all over the rocks and trees in the vicinity. After driving into town and grabbing lunch at a bakery, we headed out to the whale watching start point along the beach where we were catching a whale watching catamaran tour. There was a little playground there that the kids enjoyed for a few minutes before boarding the tour bus for the whale watching. The beach was covered in stones of all sizes, so I built a rock stack in honor of my dad, the king builder of rock stacks! Savvy found a cute little heart rock on the beach while we were waiting, and Bri enjoyed a quiet walk on the beach as he searched for fun shells. We ate up the beauty of this beach scene!
For the whale watching, we packed layer upon layer of clothing that we had to make sure we were warm out on the boat--shirts under sweaters under another sweater under a coat and topped off with hats, scarves, and gloves. We were pleasantly surprised when we got out there that we weren't any colder than we were on land. It was a beautiful day, clear of fog and haze that would have made it difficult to see the whales blowing water from their blowholes.
Here is a whale behind Bri and kids:
Savvy and I fought our motion sickness the whole time but I refused to let it keep me from getting photos of the whales in the water and their tails as they dived!
June and July, winter months in this part of the world, are the migration months for sperm and humpback whales. Our hope was to see sperm whale and other wildlife, so we consider the cruise a success with seeing three big sperm whale and two of the more elusive humpback whales side by side. We marveled at these big beautiful creations and were grateful to have a successful outing where 1-2 whales is the norm. The whale watching guides had special equipment that they lowered into the water to listen for the whales and from that they could tell the direction the whales were in. We would all quickly return to our seats inside the boat as they sped off on the hunt. Upon slowing down and finding the whales, we were allowed to go back out on deck and observe. Fun and exciting (especially for those not feeling sick)!
Two humpbacks: As luck would have it, my camera card said "FULL" seconds before they were going into their dive so I didn't get their two tails together. :( We learned that whales only stay up on top of the water for about 10 minutes before they dive back down, so we were grateful that we caught so many whales with working with such short windows of time.
While on the boat we also saw several cape petrels with their distinctive white circle wing markings hunting in the water, and we saw several big albatross that flew near to the boat.
We made it back to dry land without anyone throwing up (unlike some other not-so-lucky passengers) and hit a souvenir shop before heading South another two hours to Christchurch.
As we came into Christchurch, it was clear the Google Map directions to the Aetoa Motel where we were staying were off, so we decided to look for a KFC (kids request) and leave the Motel for later. We ended up stumbling onto our motel, got directions to a KFC where they were blasting death metal at 90 decibels, got our food back to the motel, and ate and settled in for the night.On Thursday morning, we wandered through charming Christchurch and saw little evidence of the recent devastating earthquakes, and found our way to Orana Wildlife Park just outside of Christchurch to take advantage of a little extra time in our schedule. This has been the summer of wildlife for us, and we couldn’t leave New Zealand without seeing a Tasmanian devil and kiwi bird (NZ native, flightless bird that has become the national icon for NZ and is the name that New Zealanders even give themselves--"Kiwis"). Unfortunately, Kiwis are nocturnal, so they were kept in a dark room to assimilate night time when we were there, so it was difficult to get any pics. We could see the little creature though running around from one area and back to another, apparently searching for food.
The gorilla below actually stood up and pounded on his chest for us!
The Kea bird (below, top left corner) is a large species of parrot native to the south island of NZ. It's known as one of the most intelligent birds in the world. They're also known for their destructive playfulness and outgoing friendliness to humans.
The kids also appreciated the large playground, trampoline, and zipline they had there to play on!
After a few hours at Orana, we were ready to start on one of the most anticipated (at least for Bri and me) parts of our trip: driving through, up, and over the Southern Alps via Arthur’s Pass from Christchurch to Greymouth. We had lunch in Springfield against the backdrop of the big mountains at a charming little restaurant where we unexpectedly found Spicy Thai Pumpkin soup with gluten-free bread and Bri had a steak and cheese and a Moroccan lamb pie (at this point the kids would only eat Domino’s, KFC, or chicken nuggets and fries).
The scenery on this drive was simply spectacular and otherworldly – its been a while since we've seen such rugged and snowy mountains, and Bri and I were both grateful that we had clear sunny days and no snow on the road as we made our way through the four-hour journey from one side of the Alps to the other.
Briant and I are convinced that this area may have been where parts of Lord of the Rings was filmed:
The mountains and the views went on and on, and it was one of the most beautiful things we have ever seen. We stopped at the Otira viaduct lookout hoping to see kea birds there as other travelers have experienced, but they were uncharacteristically absent. Still, we enjoyed a moment admiring the beauty outside of the car and stretching our legs.
We then descended through the passage down into a much more lush and tropical Greymouth. It was BEAUTIFUL as the sun was beginning to make its descent in the sky!
I had to get out of the car and get this--I love train tracks, especially train tracks that weave through and around New Zealand mountains! :)
Upon entering Greymouth, we found our Greymouth Motel and of course managed to find Domino’s there (the kids like their predictable tasting meals especially when away from home).
After finishing off a few pizzas and reading more from our family book (we finished "Inside Out and Back Again" so we started reading "No Easy Walk to Freedom" about Nelson Mandela in preparation for our trip to South Africa), we all turned in for the night.
We had a lazy Friday morning in Greymouth, sleeping in and taking our time getting going in the morning. At this point in our trip, we had nothing left that was scheduled other than drive times and a ferry, and we looked forward to exploring and taking it more casually this day with stopping at Pancake Rocks along the way. Bri cooked breakfast, we packed, and headed North towards Punakaiki. It was a dark, gray morning driving along the coast. We loved the contrasts of lights and darks between the sky, clouds, and water with the dark green hills and mountains. There were some wonderful look-out points where we were able to stop and enjoy the views more.
We made it to the famous Pancake Rocks and blow holes.
These rocks get their name from the stacked-looking eroded limestone that looks exactly like pancakes, and we all had a lot of fun exploring this area. There are some fun creatures in the rocks if you look carefully. :)
The big hole:
The blow holes were the best we’ve ever seen, and both Rhea and Savvy were completely soaked after one particularly large wave hit the main hole and showered everyone on one of the viewing decks. The girls continued to wait for more such showering from the hole, and of course they got it! Savannah decided to avoid getting completely drenched and ran as the water got higher, but fearless Rhea stood there unfazed by the quantity of water coming up and over onto her and the deck. She definitely wanted to get wet!
The scenery on this drive was simply spectacular and otherworldly – its been a while since we've seen such rugged and snowy mountains, and Bri and I were both grateful that we had clear sunny days and no snow on the road as we made our way through the four-hour journey from one side of the Alps to the other.
Briant and I are convinced that this area may have been where parts of Lord of the Rings was filmed:
The mountains and the views went on and on, and it was one of the most beautiful things we have ever seen. We stopped at the Otira viaduct lookout hoping to see kea birds there as other travelers have experienced, but they were uncharacteristically absent. Still, we enjoyed a moment admiring the beauty outside of the car and stretching our legs.
We then descended through the passage down into a much more lush and tropical Greymouth. It was BEAUTIFUL as the sun was beginning to make its descent in the sky!
I had to get out of the car and get this--I love train tracks, especially train tracks that weave through and around New Zealand mountains! :)
Upon entering Greymouth, we found our Greymouth Motel and of course managed to find Domino’s there (the kids like their predictable tasting meals especially when away from home).
After finishing off a few pizzas and reading more from our family book (we finished "Inside Out and Back Again" so we started reading "No Easy Walk to Freedom" about Nelson Mandela in preparation for our trip to South Africa), we all turned in for the night.
We had a lazy Friday morning in Greymouth, sleeping in and taking our time getting going in the morning. At this point in our trip, we had nothing left that was scheduled other than drive times and a ferry, and we looked forward to exploring and taking it more casually this day with stopping at Pancake Rocks along the way. Bri cooked breakfast, we packed, and headed North towards Punakaiki. It was a dark, gray morning driving along the coast. We loved the contrasts of lights and darks between the sky, clouds, and water with the dark green hills and mountains. There were some wonderful look-out points where we were able to stop and enjoy the views more.
We made it to the famous Pancake Rocks and blow holes.
These rocks get their name from the stacked-looking eroded limestone that looks exactly like pancakes, and we all had a lot of fun exploring this area. There are some fun creatures in the rocks if you look carefully. :)
The big hole:
The blow holes were the best we’ve ever seen, and both Rhea and Savvy were completely soaked after one particularly large wave hit the main hole and showered everyone on one of the viewing decks. The girls continued to wait for more such showering from the hole, and of course they got it! Savannah decided to avoid getting completely drenched and ran as the water got higher, but fearless Rhea stood there unfazed by the quantity of water coming up and over onto her and the deck. She definitely wanted to get wet!
Other holes:
After a fun visit at Pancake Rocks (and Bri had enough of his legs being eaten alive by sand flies in his shorts) we headed up the coast. The drive was, again, spectacular, and we loved the coast line up to Westport and then the mountains once we turned inland and headed towards Nelson and Blenheim through more mountains and the Marlborough wine country region.
We stopped in Westport for some food at a cute little diner named Gibby’s (I'm amazed at how many gluten free sandwiches and pastries have been available between Australia and NZ!), and then wandered mainstreet looking for the third Harry Potter for Thomas (he started the first book right before we left on our trip and he devoured that one and the second before we arrived on the South Island). We found some other books in a few second-hand shop and enjoyed getting to know Westport before again heading into the smaller northern tips of the Southern Alps, taking hundreds of pics along the way. 
We arrived back in Blenheim just after dark, picked up some food, and returned to "Grandma Wendy’s" little cottage for the night.
After a fun visit at Pancake Rocks (and Bri had enough of his legs being eaten alive by sand flies in his shorts) we headed up the coast. The drive was, again, spectacular, and we loved the coast line up to Westport and then the mountains once we turned inland and headed towards Nelson and Blenheim through more mountains and the Marlborough wine country region.
We stopped in Westport for some food at a cute little diner named Gibby’s (I'm amazed at how many gluten free sandwiches and pastries have been available between Australia and NZ!), and then wandered mainstreet looking for the third Harry Potter for Thomas (he started the first book right before we left on our trip and he devoured that one and the second before we arrived on the South Island). We found some other books in a few second-hand shop and enjoyed getting to know Westport before again heading into the smaller northern tips of the Southern Alps, taking hundreds of pics along the way. 
We arrived back in Blenheim just after dark, picked up some food, and returned to "Grandma Wendy’s" little cottage for the night.On Saturday morning, we woke up early, said goodbye to Wendy, and caught the Picton morning ferry to Wellington. The cruise over was beautiful as we slipped past the fjords and fingers on the South Island and into the bays of the North Island. Thomas and I were fascinated with the rugby game on the t.v. and how the players survived the game! Rugby is huge in Australia and NZ!
In Wellington, we got lost looking for the road North and ended up in a college area near the airport, where mom ordered a Cajun salad and dad and the kids ordered chicken, toasted cheese, fries, and sweet and sour chicken at another Chinese greasy spoon – we can’t get enough! We enjoyed being in the casual feel of a first-world Western college town for a while, then found our way out of town heading NE to Napier. We traveled through some beautiful country as the sun slowly set.
We arrived at the Kennedy Park vacation "resort" after dark, where we checked into our casita and headed out to get groceries for dinner and breakfast. Kennedy Park caters to families with the housing set-up as well as the amenities they offered--playgrounds, pool, arcade games, ping-pong, an over-sided chess set, pedal car bikes, etc.
Bri made dinner and the kids played at a great park with a giant trampoline bubble and all the amenities. Bri and I even had to try it out the next morning--who doesn't like jumping on a huge trampoline bubble?! 
We woke late the next morning, ate breakfast, and explored the large area where we were staying. The kids continued to play on the spectacular facility playground while mom and dad took a walk. We were all having so much fun that we arranged to check out late, rented some pedal cars, and had fun practicing our driving skills on the left side of the road.
Eventually the time came, and we loaded up and retraced our steps to Auckland via Cambridge and Hamilton. We again enjoyed the scenery of the valley and made it to Auckland after dark. We had dinner at the same Burger King we ate at when we arrived and reflected on a great trip to NZ. We checked into the same serviceable but unlovable AirBnB we stayed in our first night in NZ and hit the hay.
Monday morning we ate, loaded up, and headed out to take a look at Auckland before we caught our early afternoon flight. On our way into town we saw a large obelisk on Maungakiekie/One Tree Hill in Cornwall Park that we had read about in preparing to come to NZ, and made our way there. The obelisk was raised by a prominent European landowner, Sir John Campbell, in honor of the Maori people, and we enjoyed walking around the park/estate and hiking up to the monument. All along the way we took photos of birds, sheep, and the stunning views of Auckland from the summit.
In the little valley below the obelisk, people had written names or words with large rocks. "Kia Ora" of course was there. 
After touring the visitor’s center, we grabbed McDonalds and headed to the airport. We dropped off the rental car and made it through security in better shape than the last time, and prepared for a LONG series of flights to Capetown (3 flights and layovers for a total of 28 hrs).
In the little valley below the obelisk, people had written names or words with large rocks. "Kia Ora" of course was there. 
After touring the visitor’s center, we grabbed McDonalds and headed to the airport. We dropped off the rental car and made it through security in better shape than the last time, and prepared for a LONG series of flights to Capetown (3 flights and layovers for a total of 28 hrs).
We are grateful to have had this chance to go to NZ, both North and South islands, and to see the pristine beauty of this country. We enjoyed our time here in the land of the long white cloud and will treasure our memories here always!
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