South Island – Christchurch and Kaikoura

Flying in New Zealand is a bit more slacked than the US. I found this out on February 2nd as I departed for Christchurch on the South Island. On my way, I saw a sign that said:

“I miss the way you used to talk to me when you were a kid.” – God

Looking back, I can see this was God totally speaking to me because I was about to embark on one crazy adventure where I truly needed to be closer to Him than I had been in the North Island.

Dave and Sarah, a married couple from the church in Christchurch surprised me at the airport when I landed. I had expected to just go to the hostel and hang out downtown since I was leaving on the Stray bus in the morning, but they took me all over and showed me some beautiful sights.

That night in the hostel, I was speaking with two Danish girls who told me that I’m “not a typical American.” Call me crazy, but I loved being told that while I traveled. I didn’t want to leave a bad taste in people’s mouths, I wanted to prove that we aren’t all that stereotype most countries hate. I also met Vanessa that night, a girl from England who would be traveling with me on Stray. From the moment I met her, I liked her. She’d just come from Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam and her stories inspired my current fascination with going there myself. Needless to say, her friendly demeanor and attitude on life had me excited to travel with her.

We left for Kaikoura the next morning. This was one place I was seriously excited about. It’s known for swimming with dolphins and seals. On the bus ride there, Vanessa and I started talking to another girl, Claire, who was from Scotland/Australia. Claire went deep sea fishing while Vanessa and I went with a big group to go seal swimming.

When we arrived at the beach, we had about a ten minute walk to the spot we’d swim to. The swim was actually scary and I’m a strong swimmer. There was one part where we had to wait for a break in the waves before we could swim through, otherwise we’d be smashed into the rocks. I’ll tell you what…the moment the guide said swim, I took off. The adrenaline was amazing though and when I reached the seal colony, I was in awe. These creatures are absolutely gorgeous with their big blinking eyes and their love for attention. At one point, one seal swam at me and jumped over my arm showing off. It was so cute watching them come up close then quickly dart away. I must say that these few moments will stay with me forever. Summer will never be the same…not when I know what the summer consists of in NZ.

That night, Clair cooked the fish she caught and the crayfish they gave her. The crayfish was the size of our lobster. Surprisingly, I ate some of the seafood and actually enjoyed it. I guess there is a first time for everything.

On the North Island, I had gone to bars…but only when I knew people and trusted them. I suppose this is when I started making some mistakes and started going out every night on the South Island. Now, people knew my beliefs and they saw that I didn’t have more than two drinks, but I regret how frequently I put myself in this atmosphere. It’s weird…I don’t miss that life. I see it so clearly, but while traveling, I would go out because that’s what backpackers did. We went to The Whaler Bar that night and Claire introduced me to the Chandy…half beer, half sprite. Sounds weird, but it’s actually pretty good. Needless to say, this was the first of many nights like this.

On a sad note, there was a horrific Stray bus crash on this day. The bus was about three days ahead of ours and flipped, killing one tourist. I don’t think the reality of it hit me until I met a girl on that bus two weeks later.