The rest of New Zealand

Travels in New Zealand... Wow. So it's been a while, but we are headed to Fiji today and I wanted to give you the quick version of our remaining time here in New Zealand.
Milford Sound. This was one of the best parts of my trip... the beauty of this area in New Zealand is incredible. Wanting to experience the sound in a different way than most... we decided to go kayaking which was just great. We were lucky to see a bit of wildlife... fur seals and birds amongst the fiord's. It was a crystal clear day which is actually uncommon in fiordland, and we took advantage of the weather by taking a 10 km hike, 600 meter ascent. Starting off relatively easy and flat it quickly changed into one of the most intense tramping experiences so far- soon we were climbing straight up rock formations while hanging onto a metal cable drilled into the rock! When we made it to the end it was the most incredible view, we could see all the way out from the sound to the Tasman Sea. It was breathtaking!
From Milford we decided to travel along the Southern Scenic Route, where most travelers rarely make it. Driving along the southern coast of New Zealand was really nice, the landscape had lots of paddocks with sheep and cattle grazing amongst the rolling hills. As we traveled closer to the eastern side we arrived in the Catlin's, stopping in Slope Point, the southern most part of New Zealand (of the mainland- Steward Island is further south) Porpoise Bay, a bay known for the rare Hector's Dolphins which we saw swimming amongst the surfers, and Curio Bay, where a petrified forest lays along the shoreline. It was created 170 million years ago when a volcano erupted, the mud and ash quickly entered the forest not allowing the trees to actually decay they were instead created into fossils and now have been revealed by the shoreline erosion. It was here that we also saw the rare yellow-eyed penguin enjoying the sun!
After the Catlin's we made our way to Dunedin, a great city with a very European feel. As a true Belgian girl would- we decided to tour the Cadbury World and Speight Brewery! The morning of smelling, eating and seeing chocolate was great followed up with an afternoon of sampling the brews of the legendary southern brewery. In the evening we found a great little place with live Jazz. Before leaving town we also visited the Guinness Book of World Records steepest street... Baldwin Street. The houses sure did look a bit funny and it was quite the hike to the top!
After Dunedin we headed to Mt. Cook, the highest part of New Zealand with 22 peaks in the area towering over 3000 meters. We were lucky to see a tiny bit of the tip amongst the clouds when we arrived in the evening, which is rare- you can only see it clearly maybe ten days out of the year. The next day we were hoping to do a hike with views of the area, but the weather was very windy and rainy- so we made the most of it by taking a shorter hike through Hooker Valley. In the end we were looking forward to a hot cup of coffee and dry cloths... but it was worth it. There are two lakes in this area Lake Pukaki and Tekapo that have the most incredible turquoise water which is created by the silt from the glacier melt amongst the southern alps the view is just incredible!
Our travels then took us across the Central Otogo region to the Bank's Peninsula where we stayed one night in the small French village of Akaroa. We didn't have too much time to explore it here, but it was great little spot, very relaxing with lots of shops and cafes next to the waterfront.
The last few days we have been WWOOFing again at a farm near Matakana, just outside of Auckland. It was a beautiful little area next to the coast with lots of winery's and orchards in the area. A good change of pace, and very interesting situation. It was a good experience but we are glad we are on to the next thing!
New Zealand has been a true highlight and is a serious must see in life. It is an incredible country with very friendly people, amazing sights and beautiful countryside. Now it's on to Fiji!

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