I've clearly been busy these past few days, since I've not posted in a week. The South Island has been a trip of astounding beauty and contrasts thus far. After meeting up with B. in Wellington (and my first experience with an urban "backpackers" accommodation), we had a nice ferry trip across the Cook Straight (yes, yet another feature named for that busy, busy explorer) to Picton. We ended up having to take a late boat out of Welliwood, so didn't get to see the view through part of the Marlborough Sound, but oh well.
From Picton it was the Tranzcoastal train to Kaikoura. I can say without reservation that the scenery there is one of the most, if not the most epic I've ever seen. High, snow capped mountains with green, green valley running all the way up to the white, all towering over a very blue ocean. Incredible. There's an ocean canyon as deep as the Grand Canyon right offshore, which makes the waters rich in food and, consequently, marine life. Early in the morning our last day there, B. and I boarded a boat and chased a pod of dusky dolphins out into the open Pacific. When the horn went off, we scrambled off the back with a dozen other souls to try and entertain them. We succeeded in spades, enjoying what the Dolphin Encounters crew calls a "one dip wonder" (or something like that) - we were able to spend the entire swim time alloted (35 minutes) with the same group. It's beyond description to have a couple of dolphins come within inches of you, swimming round and round while you try to keep up. I'm thinking the main group that interacted with us numbered maybe 12 or 15. When we got back on the boat for the photo shoot/education part of the trip, it was clear that the total pod was around 20 or 30. Terrific, one of a kind experience.
Next stop was Christchurch which turned out to be mercifully warm and sunny. It totally lives up to its designation as NZ's Garden City, with a 400 acre park that includes a huge botanical gardens. Rhododendrons and many other plants are in full bloom right now, so it was glorious. Combined with the gothic architecture, the picturesque River Avon running through the middle and the artistic/cafe culture, a nice urban pit stop.
B. took off for the States yesterday, and today I arrived in Queenstown. It's sort of a Tahoe-like scene, with the town right on the water and towering mountains right up next to it. Very lovely. I'm lucky enough to have landed here on the first day of the annual Jazz Fest, and got to see the free kick-off concert on the lake shore earlier this evening. Headline act was Galapagos Duck, the "most popular jazz band in Australia." Go figure. Tomorrow I'll spend the day knocking around here, then it's off for my overnight trip to Milford Sound. Should be full of amazing views and lots of rain (Milford gets 7 meters of rain a year). Can't wait!
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