Today started off with an excited vibe as we were looking forward to a Dolphin encounter in their natural environment as well as what was supposedly the best drive in New Zealand through Arthur's Pass.
There was a bit of trepidation due to the inclement weather the night before, but the day dawned drizzly that quickly became bright and sunny, increasing our hopes. We reached the Dolphin Encounter checkin with plenty of time to spare and had a nice breakfast of coffee and the biggest crossaint I have ever seen! The staff told us the sea conditions were very rough, but still within limits to operate, so we idled our time getting a couple of souvenirs and watching the swimmers get dressed for their date with dolphins. My children were disappointed not being able to swim themselves, mainly because we were scared as parents and felt they were not ready for open ocean swimming. The briefing and short video about sea life around Kaikoura only heightened the excitement levels.
We were soon loaded into a fully packed couple of buses for the short trip to the boat quay. Just when we caught sight of the shore, we were stunned with the news that the sea had turned worse and that the tour will be cancelled. As the locals say, nothing much we can do against Mother Nature aye?
With the day starting off on the wrong foot, we started off on the long drive from east to West coast. The mood soon became much better thanks to the sheer awesomeness of the Pacific Coastal drive. We just couldn't enough of the majestic Pacific Ocean and had to stop along the way to admire it and touch the cold waters of the Pacific once again before embarking on our journey inland.
The initial foray was largely through grasslands with mountains on the horizon, but after overwhelming our senses over the last week in NZ, the beauty could be ignored as we drove along in silence. But there were enough to keep us interested like the unique fencing based on cuboid shaped landscaping and quaint little post boxes lining up houses and farms, few and far between.
As we entered the Southern Alps, the mood changed once again as we embarked on the most beautiful drive we have had ever! The stunning views of the winding mountain roads, the raw nature of hill slopes being eroded by ice as it thawed, the wide river bank that hinted at a huge flow of water during spring, the deep blue waters of the glacial lake, the trek of Castle Hill with Maori cultural significance, the vintage Alpine train station at Arthur's Pass, the Arthur's Pass National Park overlooking snow capped mountains even during summer, the list goes on and on. The paucity of things that do not take your breath away here is mind-boggling! Given to the true Singaporean nature of complaining, I would say only the last part of the drive out of the mountains toward Kumara Junction and Greymouth was a bit underwhelming, possibly because of the sensory overload earlier on.
On arrival in Greymouth, which is a major train station on the west coast, we had a quick dinner takeaway from a nearby Indian restaurant. Indian restaurants are everywhere in NZ and are typically open until 9pm or so in all places we have been to so far, contrary to the initial scare about scarcity of food here after 3-4pm. No regrets packing a few instant food items including maggi though, which tastes like heaven in this cold weather!
What a day it was, with memories to last a lifetime! If wealth was measured in moments that take our breath away, I would be a millionaire!
No comments:
Post a Comment