We made it to New Zealand! It was a surprising long transit from Koh Tao to Christchurch, NZ, but everything worked perfectly!
New Zealand is a drastic change from our international travels so far. There isn’t a single piece of trash anywhere. It’s. So. Quiet. Where are all the people that maintain this beautiful country!? So far, we love New Zealand and are trying to figure out ways to emigrate and become sheep herders or something.
In Christchurch, we explored much of the central downtown area and the (free!) botanic gardens. Everything is a highlight, but these ducklings running towards us at full speed on the path has to top it:
After a couple nights in Christchurch we picked up our home for the next 5 weeks. It’s even nicer than expected!
We drove out to Lake Tekapo to a holiday park (aka nice campground/homestay/BnB). We adjusted surprisingly quickly to such a large vehicle and driving on the left. The roads are really well maintained and marked.
Lake Tekapo is a glacial lake, so it was the most amazing turquoise color. When the wind died down, it was almost like a mirror.
We tramped (gotta adopt the local lingo) up the nearby mountain to the observatory at the top. This is ‘Dark Sky’ country with some of the cleanest air in the world, so this is a world class observatory. Also used to be a USA spy outpost during the cold war to monitor satellites.
The views are epic everywhere you look, no matter where you are. It’s hard not to gasp all the time. Did I mention we love it here?
A pass in the mountains holds back a cloud ‘glacier’ that just hung there all day:
The clouds were also rolling over the mountain range behind the quaint little village. Looks a bit ominous actually.
After hiking up the mountain, we walked through the village to a pine beach and past some famous church. Most importantly, there was a statue to show appreciation for the sheep dogs that made the first settlers life possible. Everything is the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen, of course. This is New Zealand after all.
Highlights of Canterbury Region, New Zealand
- How can we live here forever?
- We’ve arrived during Autumn here. It seems like we basically chase Autumn around (when not in the tropics). It’s perfect outside
- This is the cleanest place we’ve ever been. And I’m fairly certain that’s not just the reverse culture shock talking