Penguins and Relaxation in Oamaru

We have no guidebook and no set route, so we rely on the free maps at each town’s awesome information centers We basically show up at each i-SITE, ask about cheap accommodations with tent sites, follow their recommendation, and then have a place to stay. Easy enough.

Our next stop was Oamaru because they have an influx of penguins. Who doesn’t like penguins?

We followed our typical plan and were directed to an awesome hostel where we could camp in the backyard. Camping there only lasted one night because it poured. The sound of the rain on our tent kept us up all night, but luckily we didn’t get cold or wet at all. Princess Hanna made us move inside to dorm beds the next night. Princess Mike didn’t want to admit it, but he was thankful for a warm bed too.

Oamaru is an old Victorian town that has beautiful architecture:

This Whole Street Looks Old-Timey.

Enough jibba jabba…on to the penguins!

Caution.

Penguin Mike.

Not Hobbit Holes. Blue Penguins Live in These Boxes at the Colony.

Yellow-Eyed Penguins Waddle from the Water to Their Homes Each Night. Stupid Bush Getting in the Way…

We Were About 15 Feet from These Guys.

In between getting free samples at the local cheese factory, wandering the aisles of two big grocery stores, and stalking penguins, we hung out at the hostel a lot. Once a drug den, this big old house has been turned into an artsy hippie hostel where people can paint, play music, and just relax. We buddied up to many nationalities–two Swedish girls, a Frenchwoman, and three guys (Irish, Canadian, and Israeli).

We don’t think we’ve said this enough: one of the best parts of this trip is swapping stories and learning about other travelers. In your current daily life, how often do you get to chat with young people from all over the world? We get to do it every single day, so…nana nana boo boo.

Lake Tekapo

After leaving the unseen threats of Geraldine behind, we made the ridiculously scenic drive to Lake Tekapo. A local Kiwi we met suggested we go to this beautiful lake, and we didn’t regret the decision.

Due to the rocks and the reflection of the sun, the lake is an odd color of cobalty blue. We’ve determined that’s the official color name, so we are trademarking it.

Creepy Old Lady in the Shadows.

Not a Cloud in the Sky Besides the Ones on the Small Mountains. Cotton Candy…

Church of the Good Shepherd. Right on the Lake.

We Kept Calling This Guy Balto.

We set up camp in a hostel’s backyard on the shores of the lake:

Home for the Night. No Deer Were Heard.

Because it’s such a big tourist destination, we expected the town to be a bit bigger than it actually was. The local population is about 320, but they have a boatload of campsites, hotels, and cabins. “Town center” is one small strip of stores and restaurants. When we asked where the grocery store was, we were directed to the gas station. Yes, the local grocery store was a slightly-larger-than-average convenience store…and it was expensive. Pasta and sauce was our cheap dinner.

We headed up to the observatory on Mount John the next morning:

Another Beautiful Lake.

Observatory Building. Not Sure What’s in There. Don’t Ask.

A French Woman Offered to Take Our Picture. Such Great Lighting and Detail!

A night at Lake Tekapo was perfect. Any more…and we would have gotten bored.

Hanna: Botched Camping

I have only been camping a couple of times in my life. The trips with my family always involved me sleeping in my family’s van instead of outside. One time I got so scared of a windstorm outside that I threw up my spaghetti dinner all over the car. Let’s just say I am not the most experienced outdoorswoman.

Our first night of camping at a proper campground in Kaikoura went just fine. When we arrived to Geraldine the next day, we headed to the information center to ask where there were free camping sites. We were told to drive about fifteen minutes out of town…there we would find a series of three free sites. The pavement quickly turned into a narrow gravel road, but we finally arrived at the site. There was one other campervan set up but nothing else. (Well, nothing besides two gross, smelly outhouses.) We were far away from civilization….safe but far away.

After setting up our tent and eating a sandwich from Subway, we settled in to go to bed. It was around 10pm, and everything was going okay. I was a bit wary of the lack of people but tried to tell myself everything would be fine. Around midnight I woke up to rustling outside of our tent. I flipped our flashlight on and tried to scare away whatever was lurking outside. The rustling continued, and I woke Mike up. He said it was probably a deer and that it was fine.

I, however, was not fine. Scared shitless, I told Mike that I didn’t want to be there and that I would rather sleep in our car in town. Keep in mind that it was now almost 1am. Being the wonderful husband that he is, he let me run into the car while he tore down the tent and threw all of our stuff in the trunk. We carefully drove the twentyish minutes back into town and found a friendly-looking parking lot to call home for the night. We parked next to a camper van, curled up in the front seats, and finally fell asleep.

We woke up the next morning and then noticed the sign that said “No Overnight Parking.” Whoops. We made our way over to the public bathroom where Mike proceeded to brush his teeth and wash his face while confused tourists stared at him. Hoboes…we are truly hoboes.

Lesson learned: I do not like sleeping in free campsites that are in the middle of the woods. We camped in the backyards of hostels the following two nights.

By the way…we never saw the menacing deer.

Hanna, Frank, Our Car Bluebird, and No Deer.

Frank

Meet Frank:

Our New BFF. He Even Has a Nametag.

We adopted this green guy from an outdoors store in Christchurch. He was the floor model, and he is beautiful. He was ours for the low low low price of US $53. We expected to pay a lot more, so we were totally satisfied with the cost. He packs up small enough that we hope to bring him home to the States.

The Beginning of an Epic Journey

January 25, 2011 marks the day when we first began driving on the wrong left side of the road.

Keeping with the theme of this entire around-the-world trip, we really haven’t done much planning about our road trip in New Zealand. Does this surprise you?

After picking up our old but trusty Nissan Bluebird, we decided to drive about three hours out of our way to spend a night at the oceanside town of Kaikoura. We know that we drove north just to turn around and head south the next day, but the drive and the destination were worth it.

A quick interjection: Mike is the chauffeur, and he has picked up the whole opposite-side driving thing quite quickly. Even Hanna agrees.

Kaikoura is an old whaling village that is now known as the spot to see whales and swim with dolphins. Due to our really extensive research, we thought you might be able to see these friendly creatures from the shore. After a quick visit to an information center, we soon found out that the only way to see whales and dolphins is by boat and will cost you…a lot. More than we were willing to spend. The ocean was looking a bit choppy, so after our Thai adventures, we decided to stick to land.

Luckily for us we were able to see many seals sunbathing. Even better? This was free.

Sunning Himself.

Napping Like His Friend Hanna.

The Kaikoura coastline is absolutely stunning, and it’s one of the most beautiful places we have ever been. (We feel like we will be saying that a lot in New Zealand. You‘ll be getting lots of superlatives this month.) The water was a magical shade of translucent turquoise, and no picture we took captured it exactly like it appeared.

Mountains and Coast.

Tidepools Galore.

Like a Postcard.

We used our tent Frank for the first time, and it couldn’t have been more perfect. (Well, take away the trains and cars that zoomed right by us throughout the night.) Our campsite for the night was right on the coast. We paid US $15 for a site complete with remarkably clean bathrooms, a kitchen, and seven seals that greeted us in the morning. Crazy that they were about a hundred feet from our tent door…

Thanks, Christchurch Library, for Your Free WiFi

We have spent the past two days in the beautiful (but small) metropolis of garden-filled Christchurch. A lot of this time has been spent planning our upcoming New Zealand road trip. Yes, friends, it’s true: we are attempting to drive on the left side of the road…for a whole month.

Yesterday we welcomed a new friend into our family. His name is Frank, and he is green, sturdy, and hopefully waterproof. He is a bit camera-shy at the moment. Once we figure out how to properly pose him for the camera, we will introduce you all to him.

Our visit to Christchurch fortuitously coincided with the World Buskers Festival. (That’s street performers for all you ignorant Americans. Hanna didn’t know what it meant either. You’re in good company.) We have seen a lot of really great performances…think jugglers, aerialists, unicyclists, fire-eaters, and two hilarious guys from L.A. who are known as the BlackStreet Boyz.

Crowds of People Watching the BlackStreet Boyz in Front of Christchurch Cathedral.

We’ve strolled through the Botanic Gardens, watched punters on the river, and spied two great American chains–Wendy’s and Denny’s. (We didn’t partake in either. Waaaaay too expensive.)

Botanic Gardens...Also with a Crowd Watching the Buskers.

One thing that has come as a shock to our systems is the weather here. We’ve had hot hot hot weather for the last five months, and we felt the cool air immediately upon disembarking the plane. It was about 60 degrees yesterday. Please keep in mind that’s cold to us now, but the air feels great. We are wearing t-shirts, hoodies, and long pants. (Mike finally zipped the legs onto his oh-so-cool convertible shorts.) We will see if this colder weather still feels good to us after many nights in a tent.

A Sunny Day in Christchurch.