Kaikura (where the mountains meet the sea) to Christchurch But another thing first. In Picton, on the way to Kaikura, we stopped for lunch and a "comfort break". The local toilets, which were ultra modern, were situated in the middle of the town square. As Susan entered, the door automatically closed and she was invited to press the lock button. This initiated a series of electronically voiced instructions detailing the terms and conditions of the use of this d...

I peeped round the curtain at 6am the following morning and, sure enough, the dark outlines of Mt Cook and Mt Tasman were clearly visible against a lightening sky. Not a cloud in sight. Half and hour later we were yomping round Lake Matheson to the observation point where the best reflections could be photographed in the mirror lake. The mirror surface wasn't perfect, partly because eels kept surfacing and causing ripples, and partly because of a slight breeze ...

On the road again We picked up our car in Queenstown and, after a visit to the local Saturday street market, set off on the road to Wanaka. Wanaka is a beautiful town having a wonderful setting on the shores of a lake and surrounded by mountains. We ate a picnic lunch on the beach and then went for a walk around the wooded shore. Lots of locals were out enjoying barbecues and the afternoon sunshine. We met an older couple who had emigrated to NZ in 1957 and had...

Queenstown is the prettiest town we have ever seen. Set on a deep lake of light blue waters and on the boundary of three mountain ranges - one of which is called the Remarkables because it is very remarkable. We had our first sight of Queenstown from the top of a mountain pass where there had only been a drove road until the mid 70s. The lake has a 100 year old steamship running trips on the loch. Until recently it was used to transport sheep from the lake shor...

Before leaving Rotarua for Christchurch we had time to spend in a Maori village. In this place the earth's crust is only 4 km thick. This manifests itself in boiling water pools, geysers, steam spouts, bubbling mud pools and belching hydrogen sulphide gas. In this charming environment the local tribe of Maori people have chosen to make their home. It has 2 advantages - free hot water for bathing and free hot water for cooking. Put your veg in a bag, drop th...