Dunedin Beaches

 Twice this week I have had the amazing experience of achieving holiday vibes in my own hometown. 

On Sunday Michael and I had a great time bodyboarding. The water was clear and tinted azure blue. The sun was shining and there were no crowds. We cought an awesome wave together, but moat of all I enjoyed watching the texture and colour of the waves as they broke and rolled. Fear stopped me from getting out in the water for most of my life, and I am perpetually amazed as I discover what I was missing out on. 

This morning I went for my second Tuesday sunrise walk with Richard, a friend and ex-colleague of mine. Richard has a gorgeous golden retriever called Jess, so here are some photos of her and Athena at the beach.

 

and finally, Jess running across the beach in my favourite photo of all:

 

Brief trip to Hastings and Hawkes Bay

After Christmas I got a 3 hour bus across the island to Hastings where I met my friend Nadja, who was my best friend in Dunedin but moved north for work (and sunshine)

Here are some photos of her part of the country

Map of Hastings relative to Palmerston North, Auckland and Wellington.

 We spent an hour people watching at Waimarama beach and then took Zara for a walk to Pakowhi regional park.  Despite being overcast, the cicadas and wetas were chirping, and it was very hot.

After the black sand on the west coast, it was fun to travel coast to coast and wriggle my toes in golden sand only 24 hours later.

 

Zara is cute so I included a bonus photo just of her. Note the water trail below from all the dogs and children jumping in the river and then running across the bridge!

The next morning we swam in the sea at Ocean Beach, and it was wonderful.

 

 

Hastings has some beautiful parks and gardens. Nadja's favourite is the Chinese garden

There was also an aviary, a huge playground for kids, a river running through with lots of little bridges, and a beautiful hot-house. It was pretty extreme on that day!

Unfortunately as we were walking, Nadja told me a number of stories of encountering strange people on her early morning walks there, who she assumed were high on non-medicated drugs.

For our final morning in Hastings, we got up at dawn, intending to capture a sunrise at Te Mata Peak. Unfortunately it was raining, but very impressive nonetheless.

 

Time to catch the bus back for our New Years Eve trip further north!

Cruising Doubtful Sound

 Michael and I had an amazing visit to Doubtful Sound on the 27th/28th November. 

It's so remote you have to get a 45 minute ferry from the car park, to get a 1 hour coach along a private mountain pass, to get to the boat. We got all of that in a package with Real NZ. There was no phone reception.

We had our own double cabin with an en suite bathroom and two full size windows, which felt pretty fancy!

Here are some pictures of the boat.

We toured the length of the fjord, even getting out to sea, as conditions were so calm and still. The views were amazing both from the Fjord and the pass  - we saw Coronet Peak, which is obscured by cloud "9 days out of 10" but due to heavy rain the previous week, we also saw a lot of Fjordland's famous temporary waterfalls.

A definite highlight was kayaking. We were sharing our dining table with some honeymooners, who kindly took photos of us from the little motorboat that went out at the same time. We kayaked along the shoreline and listened to the thousands of native birds chorus from the forests. The Pohutukawa (NZ Christmas tree) was just beginning to bloom.

I also brought my phone, dangerous but worth it.

After Kayaking, we saw some cool wildlife, including Fur seals, Fjordland penguins, and bottlenose dolphins.

It was amazing trip, romantic even. No more spoilers in case you are planning a visit, just some of my favourite photos