Week 21

Monday 21st of December

I let my parents try Marmite for breakfast (not a big success) and then we had to go.. I was a bit sad to say goodbye (this time it was for over 2 weeks) but it was endearing to see Jack hold my dad's hand and even Grace let him pick her up.. My daddy's girl heart melted a wee bit =D

We drove to Tekapo with a quick stop at Geraldine to bulk up on Barker's juices and lemon curd. They predicted a heat wave but because of the major amount of wind, we could hardly notice that. When we walked up Mount John, the wind only increased! It even got so bad we had to hold on to our hats and dad's sunglasses flew off (took us about half an hour before we found it).
As a surprise, I booked us in for the Tekapo hot springs and even though it was a hot day (37° @ Ashburton) we enjoyed them. It was good for our muscles to relax after 2 hikes, a big flight (for my parents) and a lot of time in the camper.

We had dinner at the farm and then we got installed by the shearers quarters in which I slept (better than expected). We were surrounded by sheep which made this experience even more unique.
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Tuesday 22th of December

By the time I woke up, mum and dad were sitting outside in the chairs, watching the sheep (and the view) until Tony moved them to the other paddock. Since he used the dogs to do it, it was a real spectacle.

Off to Mt. Cook village and guess what... We could see him! All day long! On the drive next to lake Pukaki, during our Hooker Valley Walk and even on the drive away from it!

Oamaru, here we come! We had a wee stop at a dam and watched some Maori drawings but it was already getting a bit late, so mainly just driving and deciding on a camp spot. A delicious meal at 'the last post' restaurant and an evening walk where we saw penguins cross the road (!) to their nest. They were even at our campground!
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Wednesday 23th of December

We spent the morning in the Victorian part of Oamaru which I absolutely adored!

After that we drove South to the Moeraki boulders where we saw dolphins! We must have been the only ones seeing them. Even a bunch of girls might have them on their pictures, but didn't even see them =D They were having rides on the waves which was pretty cool to see.

We had a quick visit in Duniden before we carried on to Brighton were we had our ocean view campsite. Thank you Janine and Ross for recommending this place!
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Thursday 24th of December

HAPPY 35th WEDDING ANNIVERSARY, MUM AND DAD!

Cloudy morning and heaps of K's ahead of us. First a quicky to Tunnel Beach (amazing, but almost 2 drowned parents while doing their anniversary photoshoot ;D ) and then off to Gore (not much to do, but apparently the country capital of NZ) and Manapouri.

On the night before Christmas... We had chippies with kiwi dip and finished off with potatoes, chicken and Barker's compote. Delicious!
We had a great view of the beginning of the Doubtful Sounds and took some Christmas shots. In t-shirt! Although I have to admit we put our jerseys on afterwards =D
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Friday 25th of December

Merry X-mas!! Luckily I had my music and some cheerful others 'cause mum and dad were not in a very spiritual mode... Of to Milford Valley with a small walk to Lake Mistletoe (how appropriate) and a few other scenic stops (mirror lakes who weren't mirrors because of the wind) before we started a 3 hour hike (I added the Howder hut) of the Routeburn Track. We passed the Gunn Lake (miss them!) and now we have a relaxing evening at the Cascade Creek campsite.
Night night, don't let the bedbugs/sandflies bite!

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Saturday 26th of December

Milford Sound Cruise (actually not a Sound but a Gorge.. Just like 90% of all the "sounds" in NZ), in one word: gorgeous! And pretty cosy chatting with an Irish guy.
A slow drive (enjoying the surroundings) out of the valley, groceries @ Te Anau, some relaxing while mum and dad did some local sight seeing and a drive towards Queenstown. We missed our campspot (too steep for our camper) which turned someone in a very grumpy mode. The drive past the pictoresk lake was a but spoiled due to the lack of accommodation but we did find a decent spot near a river right outside Queenstown.

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Sunday 27th of December

Quick visit at Queenstown. Not really my cup of tea (or I'm not used to all the busyness any more). We drove past the AJ Hackett Bridge where people are crazy enough to through themselves down on a bungee.. AAAAaaaah! I love the area, but I still didn't feel like jumping... Gorgeous (I have to learn more synonyms) drive past heaps of wineries to Cromwell which was the exact opposite of Queenstown. Nice and quiet but still very cosy.
Final stop: Wanaka. LOVE IT! Amazing view, not too busy or touristy and a positive atmosphere (I totally get why people have holiday houses here!) Btw, today was HOT!