SEALS SEALS EVERYWHERE

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Quick recap on the past 3 days. On the 29th Sept. we packed up ready to leave Greymouth and head to Nelson. Knowing that i had a long 4/5 hour drive ahead of me and still suffering from the bloody cold Claire gave me we decided to have an easy relaxed day.

After consideration we went down the road to the South Islands 'Shanty Town'. Greymouth was the center of New Zealands gold mining and panning many years ago and so they have capitalised on this by creating a small town similar to how it would have been in Victorian times. The town itself was actually very interesting and i got a brilliant picture of Claire posing as a washer woman, Looks uncanny. Lol.

Then we headed down a track to pan for Gold. Ooooh it was exciting. After a frustrating 20 minutes of sieving my stones back and forth, in and out of the water i am now the proud owner of miniscule, microscopic pieces of gold plating.

After the exhilaration of my gold panning we set off for the long drive to Nelson.

Nelson is at the top of the South Islands and along with its surrounding areas is famed for its wine and many vineyards. This, as you can imagine, made Claire very happy. As we didn't get into Nelson until late the evening was spent chilling.

Yesterday we rose and as it was a Sunday (Most things annoyingly close) plodded around the town enjoying the relaxed day of no driving for me and having a FANTASTIC curry. As you all know I have a slight obsession with Indian food as does Claire, so this made for very happy travelers.

Then with the aid of large quantities of alcohol we headed back to the room to enjoy a tipple or two.

Today we headed to the famed Whale watching town of Kaikoura. After leaving the room we drove to a nearby museum WOW! (World or wearable art and classic cars). A great museum cos it catered for my clothing/fashion needs and Claires tomboy habits. The fashion ironically enticed Claire (probably not such a shock since she has become a shopping addict) by creating outfits from everyday objects and utensils.

After the museum we started on the drive to Kaikoura. Whilst cruising i spotted a sign "Seals 4km) Since the motorway ran alongside the coast I immediately told Claire to look out for the animals. Seconds later she squealed in excitement and when i pulled over we saw a beach of both adult and baby seals. There was at least 100 of the creatures lazing in the sun. You have never seen me so elated. How often do you see that on the M1.

After Claire coaxing me back to the car we reached the town. And what a pretty seaside town it is.

We looked around got a hostel and then spent a wonderful hour say in the Jacuzzi, alcohol and books to hand and a view of snowy mountains and crystal sea. Am i making you jealous cos i can honestly say that the scenery is that of which dreams are made of.

Kelly

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