Click on this link to view an online album with pictures from the Marlborough region, the towns of Blenheim and Kaikoura. Play the slideshow to see the captions. The south island is beautiful, and I am struck by how quickly the landscape changes. These pictures cover the following activities:
- Vineyard tour in Blenheim - This little town of 4000 people has over 100 wineries. Cheers!
- Drive from Blenheim down the coast to Kaikoura (an old whaling town). The coast is covered in dry mountains that look to be constructed from straw
- Sheep shearing show! So much fun! This is what NZ is all about.
- Whale Watching Cruise - We saw 4 sperm whales. The whales are up to 18 meters and weigh 30 tons. One tooth weighs a kilo. Only about 10% of their body mass can be seen at the water's surface. Kaikoura has so many whales relatively close to the land because there is a huge underwater canyon (over 1600 meters deep) just a few miles offshore. The whales flip up their tails before going for a dive. When the tail slaps the water, it creates a "footprint," a large pool of perfectly still water in the otherwise very choppy ocean. It was one of the coolest things I have ever seen! We also encountered a group of ~200 dusky dolphins (present only in the southern hemisphere). They were jumping and flipping in the air right in front of the boat!
- Hike along the Kaikoura peninsula coast - the place is teeming with fur seals. They blend in with the rocks so well that I almost stepped on one. This is very dangerous because they bite.
- Notice the crayfish stand where we ate lunch. These little stands are all over the coast and have a reputation for very good seafood. I was brave and gave the mussels another shot, thinking my weekend illness was a fluke. Well, I must have some kind of allergy because the mussels won again. Imagine how lovely it feels to be sick in a campsite under the hot sun. Never again!
Tomorrow, we are Christchurch-bound!
8 comments:
Did you try the crayfish at all?
Well, I'm envious again. The pictures are amazing.It looks awesome there!! Love,Mom
I agree with mom, the pictures are gorgeous!
In addition to the sickness-inducing mussels, I had a crayfish fritter. A whole crayfish was $60 and that doesn't fit in my budget right now.
It looked like a lush row of lavender -- did you smell or touch it?
I am so jealous...tell me again, why I didn't join you and Dawn on this excursion???
As a matter of fact, we have some of that lavendar on our dashboard in an attempt to freshen up the Integra.
Kelly - I was just thinking of you today! I wish you were here too! We make good traveling companions.
what great pics - and BTW, it is 11 degrees here. It was 6 yesterday. The kind of day you cannot even imagine a world where shorts and tee-shirts are appropriate apparel. So enjoy!
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