Our clock is all out and we were up early at 6.45 to pack and have a quick breakfast before taxi at 7.40. Managed it on time and breakfast was yummy. Taxi took us to near the airport to pick up our home for next 6 days, the camper van. We even arrived before they opened!

We went through the motions to learn about how it worked, gas, battery, loo and soon we were the proud owners of a vw campervan! Rob drove us out of the lot to start our journey to kaikoura and was driving it like a formula one driver around the roundabouts so all our bags were flying everywhere!

We settled into the 2.5 drive quite quickly as we passed through the towns including woodend and amberley which was a more upmarket location than Bromley, beckenham, and sydenham that we passed the day before. The road was windier than expected but we soon reached kaikoura for our first activity. Swimming with the dusky dolphins!

We had an hour to kill so we bought the most expensive food shop known to man and had some fun trying to park our truck we then went to check in. Not a lot else happening in kaikoura.

We got given our blue tags and went to get kitted up which took ages but after a demo video we were on the bus and on our way!

Wow wow wow. We were in the smaller group which meant we had the smaller faster boat and the coast disappeared behind us! Within 30 minutes we had found them and suddenly we were surrounded by dolphins! The horn on the boat sounded and with our buoyancy suits on and hats we slipped off to join them. It felt like we were in the middle of a BBC wildlife documentary! There were hundreds of them swimming around us jumping and diving and if we made silly noises and circled with them they would play with you! We also saw the babies with their mums. When snorkling in water they were all around you and swam so well they didn't touch you so felt a little like holograms! We went in about 4 times as the boat moved to keep up with them. Magical!

When time was up we got changed on boat and watched them for a while longer before moving home with Ginger nuts and hot choc! we both said it was amazing and never thought we would ever get to do something like that!

After a shower we headed off with some ale, oops, hot choc, twix and a picnic to Springfield to start our journey to arthurs pass. The drive took three hours but after some whinging from me we found a lovely picnic stop in which to stop for night. We cooked our ravioli dinner and tried to work out the battery power longevity mystery before bed.

It was dark and quiet and once I had gotten over the fact that we weren't going to be murdered, fell asleep! Only once we had set up the van with a handy knife and keys within reach!