After very well-deserved showers at our hostel following our four day trek (somewhat reminiscent of my first shower after Glastonbury), we tried to find some life in Wanaka. Either it was the wrong time of year, or there was a party outside of town and everyone was there, but Wanaka was dead. It may be worth mentioning here, that on countless occasions in New Zealand (this one included) we were turned away from restaurants because at 8pm, or at (Please forgive our sins!) 8.30pm, it was too late to serve us.
The next day we started our northward climb towards the top of the South Island. This was to consist of long tedious car journeys accompanied by Mariah Carey and stunning scenery. We stopped at a pretty beach to take in the sea air and views, and to also add our names to the heap of stones.
We stopped to take a look at the Franz Josef glacier on the way north. It was stunning to get close to such a huge living phenomenon. The glacier is one of the most accessible glaciers in the world, you literally walk about 30 minutes from the car park and you reach it’s face. It is about 13 km long and it advances and retreats in cycles. There are barriers which keep you a safe distance from the face of the glacier but 2 years ago a couple of Indian tourists crossed the barrier to get better photos of the glacier. 100 tonnes of ice fell on them. As a warning to other tourists seeking the perfect photo, they have put the newspaper article on a board at the barrier. In the article one of the glacier park wardens says “they wanted the best photograph, but in my opinion, it wasn’t worth it.” You don’t say!
Further up the West Coast we spent a night at Punakaiki. We stayed in a fantastic forest retreat and were ready the next day, to be impressed by Punakaiki’s famous Pancake Rocks. If you are a fan of Geology (and had things scribbled on your pencil case like Geology Rocks!), you may well be overwhelmed by the rocks. Christian and I on the other hand were pretty underwhelmed, and since the sea was very peaceful at the time we did not get to see any blowholes.
Christian on a stack of pancake rocks
Fiona on a stack of pancakes
After more long and tedious driving, we arrived in Picton. Picton is the town at the northern point of the South Island, where the ferries go to and from Wellington in the North. It is a pretty town but once again, there was nothing happening, literally there was no-one on the streets or in the cafes. The only place in town which had people inside was the library, because it had free wifi!
Christian gets a NZ Criminal Record!
That evening (when the library was closed and there was nothing left to do!) we decided to head to the nearest cinema to catch a film. We were a bit sloppy with our timings and estimation of how far away the cinema was (about half an hour if you ever need to know!) and so we ended up racing along the single carriageway on our way to Blenheim. It was at that point that the police car saw us.
He came up behind us with lights flashing. Although Christian and I both knew we had been going way over the speed limit, we both hoped that he was behind us and flashing his lights for some other reason (maybe he wanted to overtake us on his way to catch some real criminals? Maybe he was testing his lights?). When it became apparent that it actually was us he was after, we pulled over, our hearts wedged firmly in our mouths. He took a slow walk up to Christians window (just like in the films) and I put on my sweetest smile. He asked why we were in such a hurry and Christian said that we were late for the cinema. This seemed to be a reasonable response for him. He then asked Christian for his driving license. Christian’s driving license was actually in a public gym in Christchurch (where he had forgotten to get it back), but obviously that was not the best answer for the policeman and so Christian said (lied!!) that his license was back at the hostel.
The policeman then took a slow walk back and sat in the flashing car for what seemed like hours. At last he came back and presented Christian with two charges, one for speeding and one for not having his driving licence with him. Christian and I were very polite and well behaved, telling him we had learnt our lesson, and eventually we were left to go on our way. We drove very carefully to the film and were only a few minutes late. The film however was not worth the 140 dollar fine!
The next day we took the ferry across to Wellington. It was supposed to take three hours but the ferry was one engine down (which we were only told after we had left dock), and it took six hours. Because of the delay we were given free pie and chips (and yes I think that is a good way of saying sorry). And that was the end of our exploration into New Zealand’s South Island. It was beautiful, serene, well-kept, and with only about one million people living there, it was very quiet. We were intrigued to find out what the North Island held in store for us, and I was looking forward to seeing some family there. Read on…
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