Over the past few days my sister and I went on a trip down to the South Island. Since the day that I arrived in New Zealand, I knew that it was beautiful. Everyone had said to me that the South Island was even more beautiful. While I believed them, it was hard for me to wrap my mind around anything being any more beautiful than what I had already seen.
Alison and I flew into Dunedin on the 16th. We stayed there for two nights, then spent one night in Te Anau, then finished our trip off with two nights in Queenstown. My sister rented a car, so we drove to each place on our own. Not only did she have to pay attention to the different rules for driving (like being on the left side of the road and going the other way through roundabouts), but she also had to drive a manual with her left hand. All in all, I'd say she did a pretty good job! Driving through New Zealand, but specifically the South Island, is challenging. The roads are very windy, more so than any road I have seen at home. There was very limited sight distance and the speed limit was nearly always 100km/h. Along with the winding roads, you also have quite a narrow space to drive on and huge cliffs due to the fact that you are driving up and down mountains. I can say with heaps of confidence though, that the drive was not the least bit boring.
Not a lot of shoulder room, but this curve was at least easier to see around.
On our first day there, we walked Tunnel Beach where we saw a seal! It was so exciting to be on a beach, just the two of us, and see a seal pop up out of the water. There was another day where we saw a seal playing in the water and riding the waves up onto the beach. The beach is called "Tunnel Beach" because there is a tunnel that was formed from waves carving through a large rock over time, creating a tunnel that you can walk through when the tide is out.
We found out who the stronger and tougher sister is when we kayaked through Milford Sound. Milford sound, we were told, was incorrectly named as it is not a sound, but is actually a fjord. If you would like to know the difference, you can google it (sound vs fjord). I have kayaked before and it has never been difficult for me. At Milford, it was pretty difficult to get through the water. As difficult as it was, it was also a lot of fun because it was so beautiful and such an interesting way to experience Milford Sound!
Some photos from Dunedin...
While Alison was here in New Zealand with me, she discovered her love for flat whites. It was so much fun to get to explore parts of the South Island with my big sister. She did so much planning for our trip and did a wonderful job relearning stick and driving on the other side of the road. I'm happy to have had the opportunity to share New Zealand with her as well as show her around Cockle Bay and introduce her to my home stay family!
Here are some extra pictures, as well as some of the penguins we saw...
Some seals just lying around. I almost stepped on one because I was going to climb across the rocks. When I got close, I realized that there were 4 seals!!
We thought that this guy might be dead, but he was just really really relaxed.
The driver of the tour said the water was extremely fresh and clean so, naturally, I had to try it. It tasted ice cold and just like melted snow!
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On a side note, this is the article that was written after interviewing me (and a few others) and posted to the KSU website. It also made it in the Stow newspaper. I'm excited that someone cared so much about what I had to say! I also love that she mentioned Cockle Bay and New Zealand.
http://www.kent.edu/kent/news/kent-state-education-graduates-bring-extra-clout-classrooms
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