America has a bit of a love-hate relationship with its neighbour to the north, Canada. In Australia, we have a similar friendly rivalry with our neighbour to the east. But the reality is, New Zealand and Australia have a lot in common. We have very similar personalities, tastes in food, and our love for sport goes right down to the bone. And while we Aussies do give the Kiwis a bit of flack for their quirky accent, and their supposed extra-marital activities with their woolly ovine friends, I have always thoroughly enjoyed my trips "across the ditch".
It has been a couple of years since my last visit to New Zullend (that's the accent I was referring to!). When I was going there regularly between 2010 and 2012, my work focused on two main areas: Hamilton on the North Island, and Westport on the South Island. The photo here was taken somewhere near the latter, along the north west coast of the South Island. The rough and choppy Tasman Sea separates me from my homeland. The scenery along this stretch is quite amazing, depending on the weather. It's not a tourist-heavy area, as most people visit the cities and snowfields. But that's the beauty about New Zealand's compact size: it's only a couple of hours' drive from west coast to east coast. North to south will take you quite a bit longer, however!
New Zealand's landscape (the parts that I have visited) is always soothing. From rolling hills to expansive plains to towering snow-capped mountains, interrupted by secluded valleys. And unlike Australia, it seems to be always a deep, lush green colour. But I suppose that's what happens when it rains so much! Of course, there's famous and iconic wildlife - but note that this bird is not the infamous kiwi. It's just some other pretty bird that was hanging around a car-park where I was checking out the views. In all my trips, I've been yet to see a wild kiwi, unfortunately.
Just outside Westport, you can find Cape Foulwind (probably named for the gorgeous weather experienced here!). This is a known resting spot for seals, and I was lucky enough to catch a few lazy ones taking a nap on the rocks. There were quite a way below the walking track, and it was raining that day, so I didn't hang around long - just enough to grab a quick snap. Continuing further down the coast - about 45 minutes' drive - you can find the Punakaiki Pancake Rocks. These rocks sit right at the edge and have been thrashed by the Tasman for many years, gradually eroding away to form pillars and arches. A bit of a geologist's dream, the rocks show off their many layers of formation, which is why they are called Pancake Rocks.
The other cool thing about these formations is the "blowholes" that result from water crashing in from the bottom. I didn't manage a good photo of this. But essentially, as the waves force their way into the bottom of the pillars and arches, the space available is so small that it gives a big boost in pressure to the water. And the only direction this pressure can be exerted is up among the pillars. The result is spurts and sprays of water, rising 10 or 20m above the water level.
On one of my visits to NZ, I had the opportunity to visit Christchurch. I'd finished up on the west coast, so I loaded up my car and set about driving cross-country. I had been informed that there were two routes I could take, so of course I opted to take one route there and take the other route back. I'm not sure of the name of the first route, but it follows State Highway 7 over and through the hills. The route back is known as Arthur's Pass and ends in Greymouth, which is about 2 hours' south of Westport. At about 4 hours' drive either way, it's a nice way to see the inner parts of the South Island. Of course... it takes longer than 4 hours when you stop to take photos so often!
The photos shown are a mixture of the two routes - it's been a few years now, so I don't know exactly where each one was shot! The last one just proves I was really there and didn't find the pictures on Google, haha! You can see why they chose New Zealand as the set for Lord of the Rings! Such awe-inspiring landscapes really made the solo drives much more enjoyable than they otherwise might have been.
Once I arrived, I made my way around Christchurch to where I was actually going to be working - a quaint port-side town just over the hill, known as Lyttleton. From what I understand, this hole town is built inside an extinct volcano crater, with the actual vent being in the water. The result, of course, is a steep hillside of buildings, ending at the water's edge. And of course, as New Zealand and Christchurch have unfortunately seen over the past few years, some unpredictable and often devastating seismic activity. I only stayed for a couple of days, but Lyttleton was a nice place to get away from it all, without actually being too far from it all! It's a functioning harbour for export, so it's probably not the best place to go for holiday, but still very nice!
And so, with another work tour done, I headed back to the west coast and hopped a couple of small plans back up to Auckland, and then back across the ditch the country I call home. There's some much to see and do in the Land of the Long White Cloud, so if you haven't been, definitely pencil it in for the future. If nothing else, it's worth going just for the amazing scenery!
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