Grosvenor Timaru

... NZ $43 to get some food. While we were gone, yet another team showed up at Gordon's church. Actually, we were in a very residential area and walked for a while but never found food. While we were walking, Gordon called us back and said that the worship team had practice at 7:30, and he would meet us at the church at that time, so we decided to head back to the church. Gordon arrived and talked to the worship team to see if anyone would be willing ...

... store. Great photo op! After about an hour longer on the road, passing by many little lambs and cool farm houses, we were in the bustling metropolis of Timaru, our last overnight stop before Christchurch. And yes. It is raining again at the moment. P.S. This is by far the best restroom/shower facilities of all the Holiday Parks we have stayed at. The women's bathroom had a bath tub!

... pastoral acenes culminating with a great sunset as we toped a ridge and could se the mt cok range as we descended to lake teakapo where after a bit of a search we found a perfect camping spot and drove our campervan through a pine grove to park right next to the, you guessed it, turquiose lake. We slid back the monroof to watch the stars as we fell asleep in our cozy crib. Special shout out to our new friends Sarah and Sven for making this part of our trip feel so much like home!

... ashore at dusk, so we didn't harbour any hopes of seeing one as we dropped by at lunchtime. But some great spotting by Abs picked out a Penguin in the surf returning to the beach early - what a sight! On the way to Timaru we aslo stopped to see the Moeraki boulders, some near-sperical mudstone balls which form an impressive sight on the beach.

... kind of comical. Doomsday came around quickly. Too quickly. On the drive there Elly was so excited. Like a kid on Christmas morning. I was busy racking my brain for an excuse to get out of it. Yep, I'll admit it. I'm a total pussy. When we got there at 11, we chilled at the lodge, watched a video of the river and what lay in store, and ate lunch that they put on. It turned out that one of the river guides was Manx. From Union Mills. Small, small world. We got kitted out, split into ...

... don't appreciate how good they have it here. We bid them farewell and take some photos. We stop back in Geraldine for petrol and see a venison transport vehicle. I should have shot a photo of THAT - no one would believe that live deer get driven around here like we drive cattle around back home! You'll just have to take my word for it, I guess. We have a hot lunch ...

... and Uncle Ernie. They met me at the bus terminal and went to visit my grandparents gravesite before heading to my grandad's old fruit shop which is now a clothing store. Aunt Lovaine and Uncle Ernie got talking to the shopkeeper and it turns out the she is the daughter of a friend of Uncle Ernie's! She invited us to go upstairs to have a look around and my aunt and uncle explained where things used to be on the main floor of the ...

... north of Oamaru. A very dedicated group of local residents in partnership with the University of Otago have created a Fossil Trail that everyone can follow and actually experience all in close walking distance from your vehicle. The world-renowned discoveries by the Department of Geology are on display at the Vanished World display in Duntroon. Through the efforts of dedicated and hard working local volunteers ...

... west on Route 79 it is now time to explore one of the most dramatic areas of scenery, that will take the breath away, the Mackenzie Country. Depending on the time of day stop by the Farm Barn along the way for a bite to eat. The road you turn into to get to the Farm Barn goes on to a wonderful small lake created by the dammed up Opuha River not even on maps. Lots of space and frequented by the locals. It is about a two-hour drive to Lake Tekapo ...

... watched TV. He was from Gore (an actual place, near Dunedin!), and was doing a South Island trip before heading back up to work in Hamilton. He somehow earned proper money, in British pounds, despite living and working in NZ. We decided he should be King of Hamiltron: City of the Future. He bought us pizza, and there was a beer mission involved. We stayed up late, mocked the weird other guests and laughed a lot. Ed ...