South Island !

We boarded the largest car ferry we have ever taken, in Wellington…

… to cross the Cook Strait…

… to reach the South Island.

We noticed right away that it was much hillier than the North.

Our next town to stay in was Blenheim, which is in the heart of Marlborough wine district.

So guess how we spent our time here??

Yep. Wine tasting.

This region produces 75% of all New Zealand wine! The main grape is Sauvignon Blanc, and we thought we liked their style of wine. But after tasting a number of them, and having our salivary glands squeezed very tightly, we decided other varietals appealed to us more. Pinot Gris was a happy surprise, and if you get the chance to try one from New Zealand, enjoy!

This was Clos Henri’s tasting room. :) It was one of our favorite wineries in the area.

At one of the tasting rooms, which they call “cellar doors”, we had a unique companion -

After tasting our fill of Marlborough wines, we moved on - south down the east coast. Our destination was Kaikoura, to join a whale watching cruise (looking for sperm whales). This was the extent of what we could see as we approached town:

On checking in at the reception desk, we saw that all cruises that day were cancelled, and learned that there were 40 mph winds out at sea! Continuing down the coast…

… we treated ourselves to a visit at Pegasus Bay winery as a consolation prize.

Well, when life gives you lemons…