Pennys Backpackers Dunedin

... private viewing. Being bent double for too long doesn’t do my back any favors and I wasn’t keen on pushing our luck by going further in without equipment so we backtracked banging a few heads and elbows on the way but it would be great to go back and explore them as they go on for quite a few km’s.

On the way to tonight’s accommodation we stopped a few times at wetlands and some cloudy view points but owing to previous days events we had ...

... lovely animals in the wild yet so up close and personal and the enjoyment was only slightly dampened by the icy blast of wind and rain that we were treated to on our way back up the hill. Heading down to the next beach along, the Hooker sea lions were visible from a long way off and they got larger and larger and larger as we approached them. Standing less than 10m away from an adult sea-lion on a beach, in his home on his terms, was pretty intimidating and very ...

... like Edinburgh of the South - the time in dunedin was also going to be a chance to catch up with one of the old Newham posse - Grant Finn or Finny who used to work with us. so i got off the bus in dunedin checked in and in true traveller style hit the town ten minutes later to take a look around stopping briefly for some lunch and internet to catch up with my blog and emails i then walked in a generally lost direction cos i'd ...

... we clambered over the Moeraki boulders and went on to Dunedin. We were very pleased with our trip to The Warehouse there where we picked up 2 $10 chairs - great little luxury that we need at our age! Onto another DOC campsite at Parakanui, down the coast. Beautiful location but quite noisy when a couple of drummers turned up with their heavy metal accompanying music, and tried to compete with the digger that was constructing a new ...

... that it was just a bit overheated from being left on the dashboard in the sun, and just needed a rest and to, literally, recharge its batteries a little. Fortunately there were signs for Dunedin, so I figured I'd just follow those, and by the time I arrived, the stupid thing would have located itself and me once more. After a couple of hours, I turned it back on, and it behaved much more like a satnav and less like a petulant child. This pleased me. So ...

... Miami Beach, to the pink house (they actually call it "The Red House") in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, even those exterior designers love pink! I could not forget the hysterical Happy Hand Bath Day station in Shinjuku, Tokyo, where you lined up to dip your hands in a pink soapy solution, and walk away with a free pink face cloth. And, not forgetting either all the pink bath products they were selling! And, what about all those pink stores ...

... had some live music, then onto a very odd nightclub. The coolest music, the stickiest floor, the most bizarre laser show downstairs, it was memorable! Surprisingly, we all felt fairly fresh the next day, and fortified with a trendy brunch, we headed off to do some shopping. Mainly halloween costume and decoration bits and pieces were purchased, soon it all became too much and we retired to a bar for afternoon cocktails! Strangely, after mocking Dunedin's "city" status ...

... and arrived the same time as Graeme (Volunteer who looks after the penguins welfare) who was able to give us loads of useful info on the penguins and the sea lions on the beach. We left the beach after watching the penguins and sea lions for an hour and headed straight for our evening tour of Speights Brewery. During the tour we were informed on how James Speight started the company and of course how they make the beer. We were then ...

... the beach and saw a couple hanging out there, as well.  There was a little observation blind where we watched a couple penguins come up out of the water, walk up the beach, and hop up into the grassy area above the beach (to get out of the way of the sea lions, apparently).  I got some really good pictures and some movies, too.  On our way back along the beach a couple of penguins started coming up from the water right in front of us!  Our guide told us to stand still and just ...

... zagen we gelijk al 1 volwassen pinguin met 2 kuikens in het zand liggen. Wauw, en zo dichtbij! We stonden bovenaan een klif naar het strand te kijken en toen kwam er net eentje uit zee! En heel veel zeehonden weer, die zie je echt overal. Daarna zijn we de
"loopgraven" ingegaan. Erg grappig, je voelt je een beetje een gluurder, want ze zijn zo gebouwd dat jij hun ziet, maar zij jou niet. En daar zagen we er weer 3 en 2 kuiken! Zo lief! Eindelijk was ik zo snugger om ook ...