We got there via ferry...a 4 hour ferry...but at least there was free WiFi and disney movies playing!
Saying ferry I think sends the wrong visualisation of this thing. It was pretty much giant cruise ship. This thing fits around 15 huge tractor trailers along with a ton of cars. It also has bars, cafes, and a movie theatre type place.
Anyway, we got there and spent a few hours kayaking around. I didn't have a waterproof camera, but my friend did so here is a picture she took of me kayaking:
Notice the "Ferry" in the background
That night, my favorite part of the trip, we went to a winery for a wine tasting and a super fancy dinner. It was absolutely stunning. We were there for sunset and I can't say it was anything less than perfect. I'll let the pictures do the talking for me!
And then tragically my camera died right as the sun set behind the mountains before dinner. I can't even tell you what exactly we ate. I know we had some lobster and fancy sauces for an appetizer, steak wrapped in bacon a pretzel roll, and some other delicious mystery sauces. For dessert there was fruity sorbet.
The following day we set off on a dolphin search. If we saw some, we could swim with them! Really fortunately, we were able to find 2 extremely endangered Hector Dolphins. This dolphin is ONLY found in New Zealand. Because they are so endangered, we weren't allowed to swim with them. But they did come up to our boat and swam around! When we started the motor boat back up to head back, they didn't want us to leave. They started jumping in and out of the water following us! It was an extremely rare happening and really awesome to see. I couldn't quite capture them on photo because my camera died and I was using my Ipad for pictures.
Because we couldn't swim with dolphins, we decided to swim with seals! They can actually be aggressive if you approach them, but if you let them approach you they can be quite friendly! They mostly would just swim beneath me. Here is the group in our snorkeling gear and wetsuits (which absolutely do NOT keep you warm).
The water was 50 degrees fahrenheit. It took a while to recover. But it was worth it for these guys!
And then tragically my camera died right as the sun set behind the mountains before dinner. I can't even tell you what exactly we ate. I know we had some lobster and fancy sauces for an appetizer, steak wrapped in bacon a pretzel roll, and some other delicious mystery sauces. For dessert there was fruity sorbet.
The following day we set off on a dolphin search. If we saw some, we could swim with them! Really fortunately, we were able to find 2 extremely endangered Hector Dolphins. This dolphin is ONLY found in New Zealand. Because they are so endangered, we weren't allowed to swim with them. But they did come up to our boat and swam around! When we started the motor boat back up to head back, they didn't want us to leave. They started jumping in and out of the water following us! It was an extremely rare happening and really awesome to see. I couldn't quite capture them on photo because my camera died and I was using my Ipad for pictures.
Because we couldn't swim with dolphins, we decided to swim with seals! They can actually be aggressive if you approach them, but if you let them approach you they can be quite friendly! They mostly would just swim beneath me. Here is the group in our snorkeling gear and wetsuits (which absolutely do NOT keep you warm).
The water was 50 degrees fahrenheit. It took a while to recover. But it was worth it for these guys!
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