Today's the day!! I woke up and went to the beach to see the sunrise. The start of a gorgeous day. I was thinking of all of you while enjoying the view. Miss you guys lots!! It was so peaceful. No-one else was around. I had the entire beach all to myself.  

At 7:45 we met Auto and went to brekkie. After eating, we boarded a bus to take us to the wharf and boarded the boat (the Delphinium) to take us to the dolphin meeting area. Some of the gals on the Aussie trip did this activity and loved it so my expectations were pretty high. I was not disappointed. It was Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious!! The water temperature was around 17 degrees C but we were in wet suits so it didn't feel too cold. I was surprised I wasn't shivering because when we put our feet in on the back of the boat it felt REALLY cold. The dolphins we saw were dusky dolphins, supposedly the most acrobatic and interactive of all dolphin species. We entered the water and before I knew it I was doing circles with a couple of dolphins. They were less than an arms length away from me. I could see every scar on their bodies. They are a browny, pinky, champagne colour but look darker when you see them While looking at them from out of the water. It was a bit of a scare when they rushed up to me. In order to attract them you're supposed to make noise so I sang Puff the Magic Dragon (a song I've sung to my son and all my nieces and nephews at some point), Oh Canada, and Old Mac Donald. Of course this is through a snorkel so no one really knew what I was singing. It was the experience of a lifetime. The 5 of us in the group doing this split renting a go pro camera so, hopefully, someone got some good shots in the water. 

Kaikoura is is reagrded as the best place in NZ to swim with dolphins in the open ocean. Swimming with dolphins in NZ started in Kaikoura in 1990. Not only are dusky Dolphins renowned as being the most acrobatic of all dolphin species but they are typically interactive in their behaviour.

Fun facts about dusky dolphins:
-  they are social animals and the size of the pods range from 50 - 1000 depending on the time of year. 
- their life span is thought to be 20 - 30 years 
- they grow to 165 - 195 cms
- they weigh between 70 - 90 kgs
- they mate frequently and it is not always purely for reproductive purposes (an animal after my heart!)
- they do not form pair bonds and mating takes place throughout the year, particularly in the spring, summer and autumn
- new calves are born in the spring, usually between October to January after a gestation period of about 11 months. 
 
We had lunch at a nice patio in Kaikoura's Main Street basking in the sun and enjoying the warmth. Then it was off to Hanmer Springs, a charming alpine village where we could have soaked in the hot springs. We chose to have a relaxing shower and do laundry as it was the start of school break and there were tons of kids in the pools. Plus we tried to do laundry last night and the washer broke before the rinse cycle. What a fiasco that was!!! . After a nice hot shower we walked along the Main Street before dinner. That didn't take long but it's a cozy little town. 

A European settler stumbled upon the springs in 1859 and they were harnessed by the government in 1883. They have been used to rehabilitate wounded soldiers, the mentally ill and alcoholics. You decide which category we fit into! Hic!!

Tomorrow is a big travel day so we'll be in the bus for most of the day .