New Zealand, Part 1

We write to you from Kaikoura, a beautiful coastal town on New Zealand's South Island, capital of dolphin-watching. The past week has been spectacular, full of outdoor adventures, incredible scenery, and fresh air.

Unlike the rest of our trip, where we took buses and boats and stayed in hostels and hotels, our time in New Zealand involves our very own (rented) old Nissan and our sleek new vinyl tent. We have also acquired some bowls, silverware, a pot, chairs, and a 99cent set of pop cassette tapes. We have not regretted our decision to travel this way-- having the flexibility to go wherever we want and pitch a tent at any pretty place has been great. Traveling this way has also allowed us to "bond" with Mother Nature; it is hard not to here.

New Zealand is a really small country (two islands with a total of 4 million people in a land mass the size of England), however it has a truly broad variation of landscapes, making it a traveling paradise. Just yesterday, for example, we drove from the Fiordland of Milford Sound to the touristy mountain chalet of Queenstown, by the pristine snow-capped Mt. Cook, to rest, finally, at the perfectly turquoise and quiet Lake Tekapo. We went across half of the South Island in only six hours! Our adventures so far have been quite athletic, involving some breathtaking hikes and runs through the fiords and coastal areas, seeing dolphins, penguins, albatross, and sea lions.

One interesting thing about traveling here has been the change in demographic of our fellow travellers. While the rest of our trip we have seen primarily twenty and thirty somethings, in New Zealand, we are surrounded by mostly retiree tourists. Many older couples and groups come here, and consequently the traveller scene is much more mellow and clean/pleasant. Just tonight, we shared a dinner table at a crayfish stand with a lovely English couple in their mid-sixties (age doesn't stop the man from running- he has run 380 marathons to date and is still going!).

The next couple of weeks (the final leg of our trip), we will drive to the famous Abel Tasman National Park for more hiking and kayaking, and then we will head to the North Island of New Zealand. We will write more to you from there soon. For now, here are some pictures. We miss you all!