Summary: pootling around NZ in a campervan like Max & Paddy

Full version:

We've been in NZ for just over 2 weeks now, having flown into Christchurch from Fiji. For the first couple of nights we stayed in a hostel but then booked a little campervan and have been in that ever since. It's a little Fiat Ducato, which is transit-van size, and it's just about the right size for the 2 of us. At first we had a panic when all the major rental companies were booked up because of Easter hols, but somebody at the hostel knew a local firm who turn up in the van so you can have a look round it before you book.

We'd promised not to book anything on the spot but from the moment Kath was in it she wanted it, so we broke our promise and booked it there and then. Jon, being one to hold grudges, didn't really want to drive a Fiat again but it's actually been brilliant for us. It's solar-powered and completely self-contained which means that we can 'freedom camp' - a posh term for pulling in and kipping wherever we like. Having to pour your own wee down the drain, and the night we had a couple of furry little vistors (Jon went mad with a wooden spoon and a spraycan of DEET at this point), are minor drawbacks of campervanning, but the ability to go where we want when we want has far, far outweighed any of that.

We've found some amazing spots to camp by lakes and mountains, but that's not particularly difficult to do as the South island of NZ is absolutely full of outstanding scenery everywhere you look. Too amazing to put into words, so I won't try. We've taken loads of photos though, so have a look through them (once we've worked out how to upload them all) if you get chance.

Basically we've driven rouned the South island in a big clockwise loop from Christchurch, heading down to Dunedin, into the Catlins national park, up the West Coast and round to Picton where we are now. Tomorrow we get the ferry over to Wellington and start all over again on the North island.

It feels like we've been in NZ for ages because we've seen so much and been to so many different places, but there have been a few special highlights. On the East Coast the Moeraki boulders were an amazing sight - almost perfectly spherical boulders that look like alien eggs sat on the beach. Jon suspects they actually might be alien eggs, there's no other rational explanation.

Milford Sound was as good as it's cracked up to be too. We did a boat tour around the Sound and saw a seal colony, as well as getting drenched as the boat hovered under a waterfall. It seemed like fun at first, but after about 5 mins of getting properly drenched to the skin it seemed less amusing. Apart from to the skipper of the boat, who thought the whole thing hilarious.

We actually got wetter on a slow tourist boat in Milford Sound than we did on a jet boat doing 80 kph screaming downriver whilst pulling 360 turns in Queens town. (Take a look at the video on shotoverjet.com then imagine Jon & Kath sat in the 2 front seats next to the driver). Jon is still deaf in one ear from Kath's constant screaming, but it was worth it for the experience. Like the best ride at Alton Towers mixed with fantastic views.

They're not that fussed about health & safety in NZ either, which adds that extra frisson of excitement to every activity. The general rule seems to be that if you're daft enough to do it, they're daft enough to let you. Never mind the jetboat, the scariest ride we've had yet was going up a mountain chairlift and not being able to bring the safety bar down as we set off in vertical fashion. Nobody but Jon seemed in the slightest bit bothered. It wouldn't be so bad if we hadn't heard so many horror stories about tourists being maimed or killed by all these adrenalin sport activities. These stories don't make the local news though, they're too busy worrying about minor variations to the rules of rugby and who's playing whom in the Super 14.

Despite all the safety concerns we threw caution to the wind and went walking on Franz Josef glacier. It was a bus ride, followed by a trek through bush, then a 2.6km hike across a dried up riverbed before we got to the ice, but it was worth every step when we got there. It was a beautifully sunny day and we had a couple of hours walking on the glacier itself, crampons attached, marvelling at even more stunning, words-can't-describe scenery.

We also walked NZ's longest swingbridge (110m) at Buller Gorge, then got a tandem zipwire back across from the other side. The zipwire was less scary than walking across the rickety old bridge frankly.

After a full day trek in Abel Tasman National Park we drove to Blenheim, capital of the Marlborough wine region and booked ourselves on a wine tour. After getting a bit 'overexcited' in Napa last time out, Kath was very careful to have a big breakfast this time before we jumped in the minibus and spent a very happy day driving from cellar door to cellar door drinking a little bit of everything and stocking up the campervan with essential supplies for the next couple of weeks. Cheers!

Lots of love to everybody,

Jon & Kath