Kaikoura is a small town midway up the east coast between Christchurch and Picton which has turned into a tourist mecca due to the marine life just of the coast. Whale watching and swimming with dolphins is big business here and also insanely expensive. I had planned to go whale watching, but after seeing the cost decided against it. I’ll save that venture until i’m back in Sydney where it’s cheaper, though the chances of seeing whales there is much lower but doing it in Sydney will mean I get to cross one more thing of the list there – travelling in and out of the harbour by boat!

One thing Kaikoura does have, which is free, is Seals! Just south of the town is a seal sanctuary where the seals come onto the land for a bit of relaxation. Being able to stand just meters away from WILD seals is an experience! Not going up and touching them takes will power, though the signs saying they bite help with the resisting!

After two days it’s stopped raining! Today was a perfect day and so I went for a walk up to the summit of Avalanch Peak which dominates the Arthurs Pass Landscape. It’d supposed to be a 3 hour walk to the summit however as with most DOC (Department of Conservation) walk times they are well off and the summit was actually reachable in half that time. The first part of the walk is through thick trees before passing above the bush line where the stunning views over the area begin. It meant I got to watch a helicopter flying through the valley below from above! That’s a somewhat strange experience!

Tomorrow it’s due to rain again, thankfully i’m leaving and heading back to Christchurch for a night before heading to Kaikoura!

It’s not just raining, it’s pissing it down and them some! And has been since I arrived in the mountain village of Arthurs pass this morning! Village is probably being over optomistic when catagorising a place. It’s basically just a couple of places to stay and a shop that sells almost nothing. The hostel is nice enough but the only people here are all couples and there is no TV! ack! Hope the rain stops soon and I can do a bit of walking.

So far i’ve gone through all my photos and sorted them out, played solitaire a few times and wrote this. I’ve no idea what too do now. Apparently the rain has come from Australia where its been hailed as drought breaking!!

Think I may go and count raindrops on the window – should keep me occupied for an hour or two!!

I arrived back here in New Zealand a week ago. It was so hard to leave Australia and everyone I know. So hard in fact that I think i’m going back sometime next month! I’d like to spend more time over there and there is a chance of doing a roadtrip in a campervan from Adelaide into either Western Australia, the Northern Territory or both!

I’m in Christchurch at the moment, having just spent a few days in a sleepy town called Akaroa a couple of hours from here. The town is built in the crater of an extinct volcano which the sea has nicely filled to create a really scenic area. Mountains just dive straight into the water and there’s enough to do to occupy a few days. Dolphin watching is the main attraction, but there is plenty of walking too.

Tomorrow I head for the tip of the Southern Alps and a town called Arthurs Pass!

So its been almost two months since my last update – oops!

Most of that time since Port Stephens was spent back in Sydney. It’s an addictive city to live in and leaving is always hard. Staying there is all too easy! I did manage to escape for what was supposed to be two weeks on Magnetic Island to enjoy the sun and beaches, however after the first week a couple of friends mentioned they were going to drive the Great Ocean Road from Melbourne to Adelaide and I should go and join them, so I did!

Magentic Island was lovely and relaxing! Hot, clear blue skies and the stinger season had just ended so it was safe to go in the water in the many bays. I also mangaged to bump into a few people I knew there which was good.

The Great Ocean Road, by contrast, was cold! But a lot of fun and turned into a mad binge where chocloate and food in general was concerened. It was great to see the scenery again, and have the option of doing ‘whatever’ that a car gives.

After arriving in Adelaide and spendign a couple of days there it was back to Sydney (never a good move to go back somewhere you keep getting stuck) but only for a few days before flying back to where I am now – New Zealand!!