Two Great Weeks on the South Island

Much to the chagrin of my obstetrician, we escaped from Wellington to spend Christmas and New Year’s with my sister down on the South Island. I must admit that I took advantage of my very pregnant state on several occasions- earning us a private sleeping cabin for the ferry crossings, taking shotgun in the car all the way (despite Elaine’s legs being almost 12 inches longer than mine) and never loading or unloading a single piece of luggage- it was pretty sweet! Of course, the bump was a bit of pain at times too; when Mike and Elaine took off for nice long hikes or to soak in the really hot thermal pools, it generally meant nap time for this mama-to-be. I’ve never been one to skip such adventures, but it was certainly worth it to avoid a premature labour.


The vacation started in a beach house in Golden Bay where we had grey weather for a start and found ourselves doing silly but fun tourist stuff like browsing the quaint local shops, short hikes through an animal farm, feeding eels in a river, and fishing for our salmon dinner on Christmas Eve. Similar to you all at home, there was a definite focus on eating lots of great food- something that I was quite comfortable partaking in. Our third day was December 25th and the sun made a glorious appearance, allowing us to open stockings on the deck and then lounge on the beach all afternoon. Mike even managed to squeeze in a couple hours of windsurfing while Elaine and I started the big meal preparations.


On Boxing Day we moved to a different spot further North up the bay and settled into a cozy little private cabin at the Innlet Backpackers. Complete with hammocks, outdoor bbq and picnic area, composting toilet and hot baths next to a stream- it was a very easy place to feel relaxed. Elaine took off to kayak in Abel Tasman (which we really enjoyed last Christmas) while Mike and I did little day trips of the area that we love so much. One day we drove west to the Wanganui Innlet which connects to the West Coast and were absolutely amazed at the untouched sprawling beaches and gorgeous views.












We left the bay and collected Elaine from Nelson on Saturday, the 30th after a nice browse around the awesome Nelson farmer’s market. We headed for Nelson Lakes where they enjoyed a challenging hike to take in the view over the lakes. From there, it was Hanmer Springs for New Years- I took two naps that day and we made a late dinner booking in the hopes of staying awake until midnight. Well, dinner was fabulous but we left the restaurant at 11:30 pm only to walk in the drizzle over to the outdoor party which was NOT happening. I convinced my two sleepy (full-bellied) companions to come into a pub until midnight, but the place didn’t even do a collaborative countdown so it was very anti-climatic. New Year’s Day was bad weather too, but they still got out into the mountains and then met me at the hot pools later in the afternoon.



Our final stop was back on the East Coast to the cute little town of Kaikoura where we visited a seal colony, and then each did our own thing (hike / windsurf / sleep… you can guess who did what!) on the first day. Elaine and I woke up early the next morning to go on an absolutely amazing whale watching trip. We had spectacular encounters with Giant Sperm whales, Orca whales and an enormous (highly entertaining) pod of Dusky Dolphins.



Now we’re back safe in Wellington- Elaine is touring the North Island at the moment, Mike will be back to work tomorrow and I will continue baking the babes here at home. If they will just wait 2-3 more weeks, we’ll have an excellent chance of avoiding the neonatal intensive care unit, which would be ideal. Keep your fingers crossed for us.

This last photo shows the opening of the symbolic New Zealand fern, called a "koru". In Maori tradition, the koru symbolizes new beginnings and the continuing cycle of life- quite fitting to our current state.

Happy 2007 to all!