We woke up at 6:15 in order to be ready to go catch the Interislander ferry to Picton. Today we're leaving the North Island and heading South. Left late, as usual, but did make the 8 am ferry. The ferry is huge! It has 10 decks (including car decks) and a movie theatre, bar, a couple of cafes, and a cafeteria. I stood on the sundeck and watched Wellington disappear and then headed down to the reclining chairs and had a nice view of the sound in front of us. Of course, I then fell asleep for most of the three hour trip :)
When we got off the ferry we had the choice between a straight fast drive or a scenic winding drive to Nelson. Despite the motion sickness sensitive people in the van we went for scenic. We took off along the Queen Charlotte Drive and it was definitely winding. It was also beautiful, with amazing views of the Queen Charlotte Sound. We stopped a couple of places along the way to take pictures and for some of the people to jump into the water.
We also stopped at a scenic hike. I did not go all the way up it as there were too many stairs. Instead I took pictures of plants, the very odd looking outhouse, and my knees. My right knee is starting to turn interesting colours from the bang it took during sledging.
After everyone got back we went to the Pelorus Cafe for lunch. They're really big into meat pies and quiches here.
I had a venison pie and a custard slice. The pie was quite delicious - the first time I've had venison. The slice was interesting, it's got the phyllo layers like a napolean, but the inside is pudding and the topping is cream cheese icing. We took the food down to the riverside and had a bit of a picnic. As I did not have my bathing suit on I sat in the shade with my food and a book and watched some of the rest of the group hurl themselves off rocks into the water. Then it was on to Nelson.
We arrived around 3:30 and checked into the Fern Lodge. We then walked into the town centre, only to find that it was Nelson Anniversary Day and most businesses were closed for the holiday. We did find an open pharmacy and I got some hair clips and more earplugs as one of mine disappeared in Wellington. I've discovered that earplugs are a very good thing to have when sleeping in noisy hostels. Susan and I found a Countdown (grocery store) and stocked up on food for dinner and then it was back home. The kitchen in the hostel is disgusting. There's no dishwashing liquid so you don't know if stuff is clean. There's not enough cups and mugs and cutlery. Flies everywhere and the fridges stink. I made (after waiting for free oven space) a smoked chicken pizza and I bought a fruit smoothie made with a fruit I know nothing about - feijoa.
I have no idea what it is, but it's delicious. Then I finished my book and went off to bed. This is my first time on a top bunk and it was kind of wobbly when I climbed up there, so I was a bit scared. Of course - Ronnie, who was below me - then decided that shaking the bed to startle me was quite alot of fun :)
Oh, and while we were walking about town Susan found a $20 bill on the ground!
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