Bought a freshly caught crayfish for lunch on the way to Kaikoura. I thought they would be like prawns when I came up with the idea but they turned out to be quite a bit bigger than that - more like a lobster. We tried to convince the children that they were getting gourmet food but they were not impressed.

Along the roadside were loads of seals (inlcuding babies). It was great to stop and watch them surfing in the waves and sunbathing.

Found a great campsite that had a heated pool and 'Jumping Pillow' - no not extremely enthusiastic bed bugs but a kind of bouncy castle with no sides or a roof. Kept the children amused long enough for us to have a relaxing cup of tea.

Tried to get onto a swimming with dolphins trip but alas all booked up. However, ended up on a whale viewing trip where we were treated to three close-up sitings of sperm whales. Great for us but Luca seemed more impressed with the bubbles the boat's engine was making and Amelia just wanted her lunch. Matthew liked it anyway. Also saw loads of albatross including the oversized Wandering Albatross - another first to check off the list.

Andrew finally faced facts that his back was not getting any better and tracked down Kaikoura's one and only Osteopath (who turned out to be from the Isle of Man). Had a few 'manipulations' done on his back (glad I wasn't there) and is feeling marginally better, but still not able to run (a great hardship for him).