Honkey Donk: Christchurch to Invercargill

Hello friends, and Happy Easter! I finally have a chance to sit still and write about the past few days, and I can’t wait to fill you in on everything I’ve been doing! It’s now the end of day three of my Honkey Donk Mid-semester break trip. I’ve decided that I’m going to try and update roughly every time I switch locations, so stay tuned for future episodes.

We left Christchurch around 1:30pm on Friday (a tad later than originally intended, but so it goes) and headed out for our first destination: Dunedin. Having stayed up essentially all of the night before cranking out my take home Film test (I overachieved and totally intentionally answered all of the essay questions instead of choosing two so it took a bajillion hours) and my seven page NZ Lit essay (banged it out in three hours, what’s up), I was wiiiiiped. But also so excited for the trip that it didn’t matter. The drive overall was beautiful; I’m starting to realize that this is pretty much guaranteed in New Zealand.

On the road to Dunedin we stopped in Oamaru to see the Moeraki Boulders, which are perfectly spherical and supposedly 55 million years old. We went to the wrong place at first, which turned out to be okay because we had a lovely walk down a lovely beach…except the tide was coming in so it turned into a sort of run…but fun nonetheless!

We found a see-saw. We're adults. Don't worry about it.

Let's go to the beach-each!

This makes me think of Harry Potter for some reason. But sew pwettyyyy.

My New Zealand Bestie and I on the wrong beach.

Then we got directions from some locals and made our way to the boulders. It was almost dusk so the light was incredibly beautiful. It felt like we were on a different planet. I managed to completely soak my butt within about five seconds, so then I looked like I peed myself for awhile…what’s a girl to do. We frolicked around in wonderment for a bit and then (reluctantly) hit the road again.

Me on da rock

Me on da other rock

The light was so amazing. We were definitely in another world!

Okay, these pictures are kind of embarrassing but too hilarious to leave out. The rock was really hard to climb because it's perfectly round, so there weren't any footholds or anything. But I look super tall compared to it so it seems absurd that I'm struggling so much. Buuuuut oh well, I enjoy laughing at myself as much as the next guy, so enjoy.

Hahahaha MADE IT!

Triumph.

We arrived in Dunedin at night, so we pretty much just checked into our hostel and crashed. It had been a long day of driving and adventure and we were sleepy. But we woke up the next day ready to rock, and it was gorgeous weather (we’ve been super lucky in that department.) Dunedin has a completely different feel than Christchurch; it has a lot of distinct architecture and feels really European. It was beautiful and really alive. It was also a little sad because I’m sure Christchurch had that vibe before the earthquakes, and I wish I could have seen it.

Dunedin Train Station

St. Paul's Anglican Church

Inside. So beautiful!

We ALSO went to see the World's Steepest Street, which is Baldwin street. After climbing to the top, I can certainly attest to the validity of its title.

The Beatles ain't got nothin' on us!

We ended our big day in Dunedin with a night on the town, which was really fun! There’s an area downtown called the Octagon that had a ton of pubs and bars, and it was poppin'. We had a great night but were happy to get to bed when the time came.

This morning I woke up and headed to Knox Presbyterian for Easter service, which was lovely. The church was very old and very beautiful, and it was really calming to be at church. All the old people were super nice to me because I was there by myself, so that was cool too. The service itself was really interesting too; the pastor said some of the liturgy in Maori, sign language, and gave the children’s message with a puppet. Thoroughly entertaining. AND I got a free Cadbury egg as I walked out. Win Win! Afterwards, I met up with the rest of the crew for an incredibly delicious Easter brunch at a lovely little café called Capers.

The church I went to on Easter. Not too shabby, eh?

Lovely stained glass. The organ could wail, let me tell you.

A giant chocolate chip pancake filled with whipped cream and fruit and drizzled with chocolate syrup. Happy Easter to me!

We’re in Invercargill for the night, and we’re in a kick ass three bedroom apartment with a kitchen and everything. It’s SO NICE, especially compared to the kind of shady hostel we stayed at in Dunedin (some drunk person puked in our bathroom the first night...). Tomorrow we’re heading out to Milford Sound, which I am so stoked for!

Fun Facts/Updates:

-We also stopped at the Cadbury factory in Dunedin, where I bought a hollow bun bun for Easter. Yummyyyyy!

-I thought I had already seen lots of sheep, but holy guacamole. There area gajillion between Oamaru and Invercargill. They're EVERYWHERE. Just grazing away. They've got to be pretty much the happiest creatures on earth.

-GETTING STOKED TO BUNGY.

-I sent out like twenty postcards before I left, so check your mailboxes if I promised you one!

I should be able to update again in two days, when we reach our house in Queenstown. Look forward to even more photos!

Cheers!