At this point, we bid farewell to Corentin. With a one year visa, he had the freedom to travel slower than those of us with the standard 90 day visas. Five of us rented a tightly packed car and headed to the southern tip of the South Island.
The Catlins
Beaches, lighthouses, tree climbing, caves, waterfalls, seals, and penguins!
Tunnel beach
Rocks on a crazy scale.
Otago Peninsula
Just outside of Dunedin, the wildlife viewing on the Otago Peninsula was a bit of a let down. After seeing so many penguins(!) and seals in the Catlins for free, most of the wildlife opportunities on the peninsula required paying for a tour, so we cheapskates passed. We did manage to see some albatross from the viewing center's parking lot, a sleepy seal, and many, many sheep as we took a misguided hike through boggy sheep fields on a windy, rainy day. Ah, New Zealand.
Dunedin
Christchurch
I regret not taking more photos in Christchurch. The city is a bizarre place years after a devastating earthquake. Barely any reconstruction has begun, leaving entire blocks as abandoned rubbish heaps. The flip side is that there is a great deal of innovation and creativity in the city. An outdoor shopping center has been built entirely of shipping containers and solitary holes of a citywide mini golf course randomly popped up.
Lake Tekapo
Mt. Cook
New Zealand's highest point was my last stop after 10 weeks in Kiwiland. My foursome had dwindled down to just 2 as Guillaume and I left Angela after Dunedin. We again lucked out with the weather and even had a day so sunny, I had tan lines on my shins for the next 2 months. The last 2 photos are of Mt. Cook itself.
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