New Zealand 38 Double The Usual Cost

 The sign postings were infrequent and uninformative so we really had no idea how long we had to go when Matt informed me that it would be best to drive the rest of the way down the mountain in neutral so as not to burn any more fuel. About 17km later we pulled into a petrol station in the middle of nowhere and happily paid double the usual cost of fuel.

We made it to Nelson and kicked around the shops for a few hours. Ate lunch and we were back on our way to Abel Tasman.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 37 Empty Petrol

Today we headed towards Abel Tasman National Park but decided to stop along the way in Nelson. Nelson is a really cute, funky little town with lots of good shops and eateries. Not particularly scenic but a fun drive all the same. Matt decided (he claims it wasn't deliberate) to kick up the excitement just a bit by testing the van to determine when empty petrol really means empty. We happened to be on a road with absolutely no signs of human life (there were lots and lots of sheep) so whether we made it or not was of dire consequence- to me at least.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 36 Blenheim

 Not much to write about, the country side is beautiful but not a very interesting day. We bought a couple of bottles of nice wine from the local vineyards in Blenheim and then spent some time at an internet café. 

Spent the night at a holiday park in Blenheim and ate good ol' KFC for dinner. This is rather comical since neither of us would care to eat it in the states. It is amazing how desperate you become for foods from home. It was good too.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 35

 
Everyone smiled politely the next morning but I know they were dying to ask what the hell we are doing in there all night. The answer? Sleeply, soundly as kittens. Thank the good lord we had the forethought to buy sleep shades for the long train rides (and the glowing vans).

The weather was poor this morning when we woke so we decided to spend a leisurely day checking out the various wineries.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 34 Our Gypsy Van

I can only imagine what the people in the other camper vans must be thinking, truly, our gypsy van must glow for miles. It is hard not to laugh when you are walking back to the van from the restroom in the middle of the night and you see the van bursting from every crevice with a warm glow.

It seems we are operating some sort of 70s disco inside.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

New Zealand 33 - It GLOWS All Night

 We spent the evening in a very nice family-run park in a farm setting. It was quite tranquil.....and then we plugged in our new heater. Now, I will say straight away that this heater will warm up a joint (any joint) in about 5 minutes flat. 

 It is hot and, I think, quite a fire hazard. But when you are cold (and we were) you tend to ignore the obvious. But the funny thing is, the halogen lamp heater is SO bright- it literally GLOWS all night long.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued) 

 New Zealand 32 Marlborough Sound - Decided Against It

We discussed doing the Queen Charlotte Track, supposedly a very easy walk around Marlborough Sound but decided against it because all of the places to stay along the way were quite expensive and the area was expecting a great deal of rain.

Matt and Cynthia (to be continued)