South Island Part 2

Lake Mathison is a wonderful picture spot with reflection of Mt Cook in it. Alas we were not meant to see it since it was cloudy that morning. We moved on and meant to Hokitaki to see the eels but got distracted by mention of hot spring along Wananganui river. It was supposedly a kilometer walk to the springs and it became a 2-3 hour long adventure to find it! We parked on the road and walked along rocks lining the river for what seemed like ever. Half of us wanted to give up the other half didn’t, so we moved on. We ran into some DOC (dept of conservation) folks who had just been airdropped, they pointed out where the spring were. At some point we had to cross a narrow strip of water and I tell you it was the coldest water I have ever set foot in. I was afraid I would get a cramp right there and fall into it. Anyway, we did cross over, Hans and I were trailing. We met up with Eugene, Rachel and Nadaf and discovered we had been left behind by the rest of the group. We wandered in a very abandoned area, there were warning signs to keep out and I was at some point in time worried since we had come very far and there was no sign of humanity. Anyway, Nadaf played his harmonica and entertained us (he knew this hindi song “ichak daana”, I was pleasantly surprised!). Rachel had talked about Rahul Khanna the Indian movie actor in the film Earth. She thinks he is hot! We eventually caught up and discovered the springs. It was utterly relaxing and I lay on the hottest spot of all.

While I had managed to stay covered and protected from the sand flies, it was here that I finally got taken. A few bites on my hands and ankles. Rachel assured me it would itch very badly in a couple of days and especially at night. She was so generous with the detail, that Rachel! She ofcourse was the worst bitten of all with angry red blotches all over.

On our way back from the springs, Rachel commented that this was it, this was the landscape they showed in the movies shot in NZ. I agreed, it was indeed beautiful. So far the landscape was stunning, we had been driving along Tasman sea which is green in color. It was never ending stretches of large mountains looking over water. I was convinced that my camera could never do justice to what my eyes beheld.

When I joined the group, Rachel was the de facto cook, by this time I had become her de facto assistant chef. That night we made pasta, beef sauce and had it with champagne and wine. It was raining hard the next morning and we made our way into dp:one a restaurant with lots of abstract and modern art on the wall (for sale) at Greymouth. The name stands for “development one”, the restaurant is in the first commercial building in Greymouth. We passed train tracks, this was the first I saw train tracks. There is a train from Greymouth to Christchurch, apparently a very scenic route. We also stopped at a Jade store and gallery, I bought some Paua (abalone) shells and jewelry for myself and gift giving.

The next day was pancake rocks, it was in a plantation setting and the rocks themselves were amazing, they got pressed into themselves over time so they look like a stack of pancakes. Once again a reminder of what water and nature can do given time (lots of it). By now we were driving along country side and farmland. I could not stop taking pictures, the sight of slivers of clouds sitting across mountains was just gorgeous! Pancake Rock Pictures

Click here for Nelson and other pictures.
The plan that night was to eat seafood at Nelson. Except when we got there all restaurants were closed by 9:30pm (and this is supposedly a big town). Not only that, the holiday park where we were camping was also closed. So we slept in our vans, cooked on our stoves on the sidewalk washed up in public restrooms. I wondered if this is how the homeless live!

The next morning was the warmest I woke up to so far. We walked up to the beach which was nearby (Tasman Bay) and as I look at my pictures, I think those are the best I have of NZ. The water was very calming, the clouds were like in an impressionist painting. I also noticed the way the city was laid out. Much like Queenstown and parts of Auckland and later Wellington, it is hilly with homes layered up the hills. Very reminiscent of San Francisco, the streets are often sloping.

Anyway, we went to Boat Shed café on the waterfront for brunch. They did not have mimosa (they didn’t know what that was), so we bought OJ and champagne and made our own. We had oysters with roe, bread with some great olive oil. I also had baby abalone, its more or less as expensive as it is here, but in NZ dollars. This was my first time eating abalone and while I didn’t fall in love with it (like I did with escargots), it was fine. (Chewiness was between scallops and squid). As I sat at the table, I felt supremely civilized eating with cutlery that had been definitely washed (I think) and a real cloth napkin! Restaurants expect no tip though they charge 20% surcharge on public holidays (maybe kiwis go out in loads on public holidays and make a lot of noise).

So far I had not driven much since I was the slowest of all (rather they had all become accustomed to speeding in the 2-3 days they had been driving before I joined them, so I just didn’t drive all this time). But this day I drove and it was an absolute delight. The right hand sitting, left hand driving and left side gear box was ok, the only part that took me some time was the turn indicator. The windshield wiper started every time I meant to turn!

After only a couple of hours we stopped at Mussel Pot in Haverlock to enjoy some greenlip mussels, a specialty of the area. We had them steamed, marinated and boiled along with Sauvignon Blanc from nearby Forrest winery. Dining was definitely getting fancy. Food so far in NZ had been uneventful, when we did eat out it was nothing you couldn’t get back home.
We drove on taking more pictures along the way. We had planned to visit wineries since we were in the famous Marlborough country. Except they all closed by the time we got there (5ish). That was rather disappointing since I had really wanted to taste and buy some good NZ wine. Anyway we headed for our campsite for the night which turned out to be a lovely place and we paid extra to camp by the lakeside. I ordered some fried fish at the café and ate with left-over something. By now Rachel and I had made good friends and we decided that instead of sleeping inside we would lay out under the stars. It was unbelievably beautiful and it’s a shame we didn’t do it more often. I struggled to stay awake so I could keep looking at the clear star studded sky. We awoke to a wake up call from Mama duck with 7 of her baby ducks walking right by my head. Later as I went to the washroom, the sink was full of cicadas. Absolutely disgusting, I didn’t know if they were dead or just sleeping. At some point, I was wondering if they would ever clear out and a woman came by and scooped them out of the sink and threw them out!!

We went to Picton, which is another picturesque town. Here Eugene, Rachel and I said our goodbyes to the group and took the ferry to Wellington. The ferry ride is famous since it meanders through the sound with lovely sights all around you.