Beach, Beach, Penguin, Beach!

Hello

We have travelled quite a distance since we last spoke to you, about 700 km to be precise, and we have seen lots of things along the way.

Maggi is now a fully fledged camper van, complete with bed, curtains, cooking facilities and carpet and provides a very cosy nights sleep. She does however have a few flaws, she rattles like mad when you go above 80kmph, and when you go up hill the fuel gauge reads full and when you go down reads empty. 

So far we have camped on beaches and nature reserves, as well as a nice holiday park here and there (Lauren needs her nice warm showers). A few days ago we parked up by a beach south of Oamaru and sat on the beach for hours soaking up the sun, all of a sudden fifty feet away a little penguin popped out of the sea and marched up the beach beside us, this was very exciting especially as the beach down the road was charging $25 each to see them. We lay there for several more hours hoping to see more  penguins, but a sea lion cruising the coastline kept the rest of the colony away. Lauren spent the rest of that day roaming the beach collecting all manner of shells while I relaxed in the sun. We now have an impressive collection of Paua Shells which shimmer a fantastic green and purple and (Lauren hopes) will one day make some great jewellery.

The last few days we have been driving down the east coast taking in the views of the Pacific and enjoying the beautiful long beaches, along with the great weather, on our way towards the very south of the country. Yesterday we visited the famous Moeraki Boulders which are every bit as strange and fascinating as they look in photos. Tomorrow we head off towards the city of Dunedin to treat ourselves to some civilisation as well as some food that isn't fish and chips. Along with a drive around the scenic Otago Peninsula with another chance to see a some marine wildlife and a spot of snorkelling.

Having a really great time and wish you could all be here to enjoy it with us. Speak to you again soon.

Moeraki Boulders

Campbells Bay, Kakanui

Penguin at Oamaru

Collecting Paua Shells