Wellington to Christchurch in Three Days

Greeting Earthlings. I'm sorry I haven't blogged in a few days, but I was just accumulating enough pictures to blow your minds with one blog post. So Sarah and I spent Friday and Saturday night (October 30st and 31st) with Roger in Wellington, then Sunday night in Nelson. Here are the pictures that resulted:

Saturday night, we went to a Wellington vs Southland Rugby game. The Westpac stadium is really close to Roger's apartment so it was really east to walk to and get tickets. Surprisingly, the stadium wasn't even close to full. There were some foul-mouth 12-year-old boys sitting behind us that had a thing or two to say to the refs. I was amazed that their parents let them say such things. They were also really angry at the people in the stands quacking duck whistles. That jacket is Rogers, not mine. I forgot my down jacket at home :( It's still cold here :(


Sunday, we got on the Wellington–Picton Ferry and set sail at 1:00. There are two of them so they are quite expensive. We took a car with us so it cost us NZ$215. The company we took was called "Blue Bridge," isn't that cute? The ferry was really large so it was fun to explore during the 3.5 hour voyage. I made my way to the movie room where I watched part of Beverly Hills Chihuahua. This picture shows Wellington harbor in the background where it was cloudy when we left.

This is the beautiful, green strait that we sailed through about 45 minutes before arriving at Picton. It was sunny there. Still pretty cold though. That is why you can't see my chin. It is stuffed in my jacket because it was cold.


This is right before we docked at Picton. I got some pretty great pictures of the surrounding landscapes.

I didn't take any pictures of our hostel in Nelson... or of Nelson for some reason. I wasn't really there long enough to really enjoy it anyway. I would like to go back there and stay a few days before I leave New Zealand. There is a lot to do there, wineries to visit, and sun to absorb. It is the sunniest place in New Zealand.


I took this picture today (November 2nd) on my drive from Nelson to Christchurch. It took me about 6 hours to drive there. I think it is funny that I have more pictures with myself in them after Sarah and I went our seperate ways. This picture was taken north of Kaikoura on SH1. You can find fur seals on this cost if you look hard enough.


Roger recommended this place. You can get fresh crayfish and muscles. I had a crayfish, the size of a lobster, in garlic sauce for $40. It was really good! By the way, all these pictures of me were taken by balancing my camera on top of my car and using the 10-second timer.


This picture was taken outside my car window wile I was driving. Can you tell? I was really worried I would be late to drop off my car and have to pay for an extra day... and also be late to pick up my new rented car. In New Zealand, you can find special rates to rent cars if you are going the opposite direction people usually go. I rented a car for NZ$5 a day to take a crappy Toyota gokart from Christchurch to Queenstown. I drove like a racecar driver to get to Christchurch airport on time, but then was still almost late because I couldn't find a gas station.


I am spending tonight in a hostel that used to be a prison, called the Jailhouse. It was recommended by my guide book. It is really cool here.


All the former jail cells are now hostel rooms. I am staying in a huge room with ten beds. As of 7:00pm, I was the only one in it. I'm not sure if anyone has checked in since. I kind of hope they do because I am scared there will be ghosts. I do have my own bathroom though. That's pretty excellent.

Tomorrow, I will drive another 6 hours to Queenstown and spend the night. Then, Milford Sound Lodge is sending a shuttle to pick me up and take me to where I will work for the next 5 months. I am excited to have a perminent home soon and not have to live from hostel to hostel out of my bag.

Good night :)