Our fate is seal'd

Written by Amanda White

Readers—things have gone south.

No, but literally. We made it to the South Island! (Bye to Wellington for now, but we shall see her soon!)

We spent a beautiful Saturday morning on the Interislander Ferry flanked by beautiful water and greenery that is characteristic of the South Island. It was chilly and windy up on the observation decks, but so worth the views and pictures.

We joined back up with our beloved Haka Tours bus for a few hours of driving to Kaikoura. We made a quick stop at a grocery in Bellheim (pronounced BELL-uhm, we learned) and had adventurous lunches. Lyssa and Hannah wanted sandwiches from a closed deli, but were instructed to bring bread to the lady working at the counter, and were then told that “You girls give me a reason to go home and drink the bottle of wine I have there.” They got good deals on large sandwiches on baguettes though—and definitely charmed their way through.

Afternoon stops included SEAL PUPS. We got up very close and personal, taking loads of pictures of the cuties at their waterfall playground. And they were NOT shy about coming close to us; one of the pups touched its nose to Kelsi’s GoPro, and we were glad it didn’t do anything more feisty.

The beach where we saw more seals was beautiful and peaceful, and the sunset was breathtaking tonight. Kaikoura welcomed us.

For a true kiwi Saturday night experience, we headed to a local pub to enjoy the All Blacks game! We learned the rules and got to enjoy a well-fought win for the home team. 

God defend New Zealand!