Before hitting the road we stopped again for a breakfast of savory pies and a tostie sandwich. I really wish these pies would catch on at home!
Breakfast was more little savory pies and an egg & bacon tostie sandwich
Got a room for the night in the costal city of Tarunaga as it was close to the tour we booked for the evening. Had to wait to check in so we walked around town for a bit, and decided to grab a snack and beer, and ended up getting to watch a classic car parade cruise by. Kinda weird seeing classics with the steering wheel on the right, but some of them still had the wheel on the left.
Watching a classic car parade go by
Checked into our room with a view and hit the pool for a bit, which was really needed on this very hot day.
Terrible views
Shawn relaxing in front of one of our two king bedrooms
Close to sunset we drove to start our night kayak tour to see New Zealand’s famous Glow Worms. We kayaked into a dark gorge with high walls on each side and the cliff walls were covered in them and it looked magical like someone had hung Christmas lights through the canyon. Pics don’t do it justice so here’s a similar video.
Waiting for sunset before jumping in the kayaks
Paddling towards the canyon at dusk
me doing all the paddling while Shawn takes selfies
NZ natural xmas lights
pic stolen from the internet that gives a better idea what the canyon walls looked like
Our tour ended late after 11pm, and we were ready for some food, but the only thing open was trusty ole McDonald’s so that’s our snack for the evening. Since it was the only thing open in town with food, we had to wait about 40 minutes in line because a big music festival had just finished as well, but it was worth it. Learned a lesson though that New Zealand MCDs are sadist that don’t put salt on their fries or even provided ketchup! 💀💀😬😬 Luckily we were able to get some from our hotel, but I don’t understand how people choke down plain fries. (all other restaurants the fries are seasoned).
Hallelujah for the beacon of the Golden arches late at night
local big mac
Next is a four hour road trip to the mountains for a few days. Staying in the town of Ohakune, and will be spending New Years Day adventuring in Whanganui National Park. We were lucky to get spots on the tour as it was full, but we’d been on the wait list for a couple of days and some people dropped out.
Thanks for tuning in, our next post will be in 2023. Fun fact, New Zealand is the first major country to ring in the new year (behind a couple of small island nations like Kiribati). Stay tuned ♥️🎉🍾😎