Blogs from Kaikoura, South Island, New Zealand, Oceania - page 12

We were packed and on the road by 0900 hours. Previously I had picked up a brochure about the Riccarton Markets that are held every Sunday and are the biggest in NZ. Riccarton just happens to be on our way so we decided to stop for an hour or so. An older man sitting in his tent advertising palm readings caught my eye so I went in for a 20 minute reading. "you're a very keen traveller, but despite your adventures you lead a very mundane life at home," he prophetised. "your IQ is high and you work well in an office and on computers, but I should give it all up to persue my creative side," he went on to say. What can I say, but I think he was right on the money. I ... read more

Kaikoura is famous for whale watching but unfortunately the sea was too rough and we decided not to go. We went to the seal sanctuary instead where we saw more than 20 seals just lying around the rocks. We could get really close to them. It was still raining...... read more

Day 46: A Slow and Sleepy Day Dusky Lodge isn't bad. Their pool is very clean, and it's even landscaped; they've made an effort with rocks and a couple of trees. The hot tub has no jets, but it is heated to 102 F, which is very pleasant after a swim. So far I have had no trouble, here in the private-room wing, with the drunken guests complained of in the BBH reviews. It's been nice and quiet after 10 p.m.. The only major problem has been the heat, or rather the lack of it. Dusky's heaters are on a timer, which comes on for around seven hours a day. And, at the moment, the timers are out of whack because no one has changed them to allow for daylight time. So they come on from ... read more

Day 125 8th January After an awful night’s sleep we were situated above a nightclub in a filthy hostel and had to endure the most dreadful autotune pop pap mostly consisting of Rhiana and the black eyed peas bumping through the floorboards till 4am I was feeling somewhat less than refreshed, Liz however managed to sleep through though I have no idea how, it’s almost like she has an off switch hidden about her person and for the life of me I cannot find it. Although I was tired we were both REALLY looking forward to this moment let’s face it, it’s not every day you get to meet a dolphin! We were a little apprehensive as we knew the weather wasn’t ideal and could prevent us from being able to go out on the boat, ... read more

It’s been the subject of many a science fiction book and Hollywood blockbuster so I am sure that you know how the story goes … alien creatures arrive in some strange vessel, put on unfamiliar equipment to enable them to survive in the new environment and then boldly make the leap of trust to make contact with the indigenous population. Usually, things take a turn for the worse, pretty quickly, and harmony becomes discord and leads on to warfare. William and I came eye-to-eye (literally in my case) with alien creatures in their environment this morning when we were lucky enough to spend about half an hour swimming and diving with Dusky Dolphins. We were assured that the dolphins love this attention and get as much fun out of such interaction as the humans do. As ... read more