Early on Thursday morning we set off from our hostels to catch the ferry that would take us to the South Island. I was looking forward to this a lot, having not been taken much by the North Island and by all accounts the South Island would be much more enjoyable. On board the boat I met a Dutch group and so we whiled away the 3 hour journey chatting and making frequent ascents up to the rather windy upper deck from which you could see some astounding views. We even managed to spot a pair of dolphins playing in the water nearby. After a bit of a choppy landing we arrived in Picton and reboarded the Magic Bus to our next destination, Nelson, a small town on the north-west coast. This is known as the "sunshine capital" of New Zealand and at first glance appeared to be a relaxed little place, full of bars and cafes. We were staying at the Paradiso hostel and, as it was Haloween the following evening, the manager was holding a fancy dress party. Therefore we all rushed out to try and piece together a costume before the shops shut. The trouble with New Zealand is it isn't a very happening place and unless there is a special occasion, towns become dead by about 10pm...not really what I expected!!! The following morning we all arose early as we were going to participate in a 20km walk through the nearby Abel Tasman National Park. This is named after Abel Tasman, the Dutch explorer who was the first discoverer of New Zealand, and it is one of the most beautiful natural areas in the country. Our mini adventure did not start too well however. The first stage of our journey was a 2 hour bus journey to the park and we were unfortunate enough to have the most annoying and talkative driver ever known. He just would not stop chattering to us and we later found out that half the information he was giving was complete rubbish!!! All I can remember from that journey is that there are certain types of apple called Sonia and Eve!!! Next we had to catch a water-taxi to the starting point of the walk. This was a freezing cold 2 hour ride and I came off the other side feeling very similar to an ice block. It did not put me in the best of spirits for the task ahead but as soon as we got moving and I warmed up a little, I threw myself into the trek. Jo, Ella, Jenny, Henry, Heidi and I, soon to be known as Team Elite, formed the leading pack and made it our mission to catch the early bus home. This meant we would have to complete the distance in little over 4 hours but the thought of not having the same bus driver and of having more time to prepare our costumes spurred us on to the finish line. We completely steamed our way through, almost running times, with a few beautiful photo spots on the way, and when we eventually arrived at our destination we all felt very proud at what we had achieved. There was no time to rest though as we began to construct our scary costume. Ella managed to turn herself completely orange and became a pumpkin, although her black mouth make-up made her slightly resemble the Joker from The Dark Night. I painted my face white and, having acquired a staff and a black hoodie, became The Grim Reaper. I even scared myself by my appearance!!! It was a great night out as we hit the bars of Nelson in full costume and proceeded to party the night away (some more than others!). Needless to say there were a few sore heads the next morning (for once mine was not included!) and, as the weather was shocking, we decided to recuperate with a full-on DVD fest. It was much needed! On Sunday morning we caught the early morning Magic bus again that would take us to our next overnight stop, Greymouth. Our first stop on the way was Cape Foulwind, named so by James Cook after he got blown of course here. This is an aptly named bit of coastline as the waves looked very rough and it was a very windy walk to the nearby seal colony. Our last stop before arriving in Greymouth was the Pancake Rocks in Punakaiki. These consist of some rather spectacular rock formations by the sea, definitely a beautiful place to take a wander. We arrived in Greymouth in the late afternoon. Apparently this is the largest town on the west coast. However when we arrived it was completely dead, almost resembling a ghost town. While some of the group participated in a brewery tour the rest of us relaxed before joining them for a vey satisfying all-you-can-eat BBQ at the local pub. Our stay in Greymouth, luckily, was only for one night and as we again had an early start in the morning, we returned to our hostel to watch a movie. However, having been completely exhausted for the past few days, I fell asleep as soon as the picture started to move.