We spent three weeks in New Zealand for our honeymoon.

There's too much to tell you about this gorgeous place in any detail... So belt yourself in for this quick photo guide to the Land of the Kiwis.

We spent three weeks in New Zealand for our honeymoon.

There's too much to tell you about this gorgeous place in any detail... So belt yourself in for this quick photo guide to the Land of the Kiwis.

We spent three weeks in New Zealand for our honeymoon.

There's too much to tell you about this gorgeous place in any detail... So belt yourself in for this quick photo guide to the Land of the Kiwis.

001 - Day 01 - Christchurch

We arrived in Christchurch around 34 hours after leaving our Gloucestershire home. We threw our bags into the room and went out for a wander in what is widely believed to be the most British of New Zealand cities. You can buy a tram ticket which will take you around the city's most famous landmarks - you can hop on and off as much as you please over two days... ideal for travellers. Peter Jackson fans will of course know that models of these early 20th century trams were used in the film Braindead - which was actually filmed in Wellington. The tram takes you passed the city girl school which featured in PJ's Heavenly Creatures.

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002 - Day 01 - Christchurch

The jetlag hit us early afternoon so we headed back to the hotel for some shut eye. Despite both of us still being dead to the world at dusk, we managed to make it out onto the streets to see some of the sights by streetlight. This pic shows Christchurch Cathedral in the background with the Vortex in front - a bizarre looking giant vase structure which was commissioned to commemorate the new Millennium. Not far from here is the main backpackers lodge in Christchurch, and next door to that is a lovely Irish style pub which kept us in the land of the living for about an hour before we had to give up fighting the tiredness and go back to the hotel.

003 - Day 02 - Christchurch

We had an early start to our second day in New Zealand. Quite a gray day with a few showers here and there. We were heading for the train station to make the three hour journey north to Kaikoura. A small town known for it's stunning views and wildlife. This snap of the Cathedral was taken from our hotel window and also shows part of Cathedral Square - the centre of Christchurch. The train station is actually on the outskirts of the city, a couple of kilometres from the centre. As well as Kaikoura, the rail runs right up to Picton, where you can catch a ferry to the North Island as an alternative to flying.

004 - Day 02 - Christchurch Railway

It's amazing to see just how many creeks, rivers and streams New Zealand has running through it. The mountains gather snow and ice during the winter months - which all gets melted and washed away during Spring. September is an ideal time to get the most out of this climate change. This is one of the creeks which the Christchurch to Picton rail service passes over. The track also navigates it's way through numerous tunnels as it heads up the east coast of the South Island. The train runs just once a day; to get from Christchurch to Picton and back takes eleven hours. By car you can make the journey by heading north on Highway 1 from Christchurch.

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Christchurch

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005 - Day 02 - Christchurch Railway

The weather produced more rainbows in the three weeks we were in New Zealand than you'd see in Britain over an entire year. This brief storm made a complete arch over the farmland. It is true that New Zealand has somewhere in the region of sixty to eighty million sheep (depending on the time of year) compared to only four million humans. This area of the country is quite hilly and rugged so you see quite a large number of sheep farms as you pass through. There are also some wine growers here. New Zealand wine is one of the fastest expanding regions in the world, so you're going to see vines pretty much wherever you go.

006 - Day 02 - Kaikoura

That's the town of Kaikoura on the left of the picture, with the Kaikoura Range to the right - the Pacific Ocean laps up against the side of this peaceful town. We had six hours in this town before we headed back to Christchurch on the return train. Kaikoura has one main street of shops and restaurants, with scores of gorgeous sea-facing homes... most of the roads in the town are named after beach resorts in the UK. We popped into the tourist office to find out details about vantage points to go looking for whales and seals. All of the brochures tell you that whale watching is the thing to do in Kaikoura... but we wanted to find the seals instead.

007 - Day 02 - Kaikoura Peninsula

We discovered that there was a seal colony on the peninsula but it was a bit far to walk. Luckily, the town garage hires out bicycles for the journey.It's true ehat they say... you never forget to ride a bike. Luckily for us the roads are very quiet in this area! We got to the Peninsula to find we had the choice of walking up the hill and following the footpaths around (pictured is a man standing on the footpath) or you can walk along the beach itself provided you don't get too close to any wildlife. We decided to go for a flatter option. This is a very rugged coast where luscious green grass abruptly gives way to sharp pebbles, seaweed and slippery, weathered rocks.

008 - Day 02 - Kaikoura Peninsula

After about half an hour of walking along the rocks we saw something in the distance that resembled a seal... more than an hour later we found ourselves in a prime location to watch a group of seals, a confrontation between two males, a baby seal cuddling it's mum, and this fine collection having an afternoon doze on the rocks just off the mainland.The weather conditions weren't very reliable while we were out on the peninsula and we had to keep putting the cameras away because of rain. We did manage to get some lovely video footage of this group which we might be able to post online one day... as soon as we can afford a new camera!

009 - Day 02 - Kaikoura Peninsula

A bit distorted but we were very pleased with this shot of a lone seal who we stumbled across accidentally while we were heading back to the mainland. He shouted at us for waking him up before plodding off to find a more secluded location. They seem to be very tolerable of humans spying on them every day, but then very few people opt to physically wander across the bay to find them. We passed less than a dozen people in the four hours we were there. It isn't unheard of for penguins to be seen in this area as well. We weren't so lucky at spotting any other forms of wildlife, but we were happy with the amount of seals we managed to observe.

010 - Day 02 - Kaikoura

We named the leader of the flock Shaun - these sheep roam to footpaths, hills, dips, cliffs and coastline of the peninsula and were very keen to pop down to say 'Hello'! We got back on our bikes and headed back into Kaikoura to have lunch at a café, do a wee bit of shopping and to relax on the pebbly beach while we waited for our train to arrive (which turned up more than an hour late)! We arrived back in Christchurch at around nine in the evening. Still suffering from some jetlag because of the twelve hour difference, coupled with a long train journey, plus the fact that we'd been riding bikes for the first time in a decade, we called it an early night.

011 - Day 03 - Christchurch

Here's a different view of Christchurch, taken from our new hotel room on the twenty-second floor of the Grand Chancellor. We moved two blocks down because we were going on a ten day group tour, and the operators needed everyone to be in the same hotel at the same time. Christchurch is the biggest settlement on the South Island - that said, less than 350 thousand people live there. New Zealand roughly works out to be the same size as Great Britain, but our population is fifteen times greater. NZ has two national languages, English and Maori... you'll find that in many places signs are written in both languages... just like over the Welsh border.

012 - Day 03 - Christchurch

We had this day to ourselves as the rest of the tour group wasn't arriving until the evening, so we set about visiting as many places in Christchurch as we could. We tried going on a tour of the Cantebury Brewery (you must try there beer if you get the chance) but it is closed on Saturdays. We popped into the Toursit centre in the middle of the city, and were surprised to discover that it housed an aquarium and a kiwi house. The Southern Encounter Centre is home to fish, eels, lobsters, turtles - this little fella is a red-eared turtle - and in a seperate enclosure (away from all the screaming kids and camera flashes) is a pair of kiwis.

013 - Day 03 - Christchurch

Kiwi's are a flightless bird, which has been driven to endangered status by mammals and predators which have been introduced to New Zealand over the years. Possums are the main threat to kiwis, a creature which is seen as a pest in New Zealand. They are allergic to bright lights, have incredibly sensitive ears and are nocturnal. Understandably people aren't allowed to take photos of them. Here is a view of the Southern Encounter Centre from the reafters. From here, we visited the Art Centre and then one of the city's many museums, followed by a bit more shopping. We then headed off to the Botanical Gardens, a few minutes walk from the centre.

014 - Day 03 - Christchurch Gardens

Ellie stands among one of the displays in one of the giant greenhouses that make up the indoors part of the Botanical Gardens. With around ten thousand different types of plant, tree and shrub on show, covering about thirty hectares of land just outside the centre of Christchurch, this is a brilliant place to come to relax for a few hours. In this section we came across a garden of cactii, a building containing tropical plants from all over the globe, rare specimens of plants (including a small flower called a Westonbirt which we think got it's name from the Westonbirt Arboretum - the Gloucestershire site where we got married - small world!)

015 - Day 03 - Christchurch Park

Roaming around in the chilly outside of the Botanical Gardens, we came across many amazing sights, such as this ancient, twisty tree. There was also a section full of magnolias, another part dedicated to herbs, and a huge display of daffodils. There are also some pleasant looking structures and displays overlooking the River Avon which flows around the gardens and through the city centre. If all this walking gets too much for you, you can enjoy all the sights from the river by hiring a punt boat. Time was getting on so we missed that opportunity - instead we headed back to the hotel to prepare for our journey west.

016 - Day 04 - Tranz Alpine Rail

Back to the railway station in Christchurch, this time heading out of town on the Tranz Alpine Rail... a track which runs to Greymouth on the opposite coast some 255 kilmotres away. Just over halfway is Mount Rolleston and Arthurs Pass where we got off the train and met our tour bus. The weather had turned showery again and was very rough when we reached Arthurs Pass. However, the two hour train journey offered a coutnless number of breathtaking views across the valleys and mountain ranges which divide the west and east of New Zealand's South Island. Here is a picture of icecaps melting and making their way down towards the Pacific Ocean.

017 - Day 04 - Arthurs Pass

The train winds and weaves it's way through the mountains and gives a surprisingly smooth ride considering the terrain. This area is home to several large ski slopes in the winter, accessible on Highway 73 which runs a similar route to the Tranz Alpine railway. By the time we reached Arthur's Pass (some 2000 metres above sea level) the weather conditions were so bad that even seeing where you were going was a problem. Apparently there are a view buildings up there, including a backpacker lodge, visitor centre and café. Our tour bus didn't take us into the coastal town of Greymouth, but instead started to take us south along the west coast on Highway 6.

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Christchurch

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Greymouth

018/019 - Day 04 - Hokitika

A word of warning if you're driving into Hokitika, the road comes to a single track bridge which traffic has to share with the railway! If you see a big vehicle with one light coming towards you, give them right of way - that was the advice we were given by our guide. Reassuring! We ended up in Hokitika, a very quiet little down which is famous for it's numerous jade sellers. Also known as Greenstone it's very popular in jewellery. We opted to run away from the guided tour of a jade factory and instead walked back up through the town about a mile where we found a cove (right) which is cased in glow-worms. Sadly they only glow when it's pitch black.

020 - Day 04 - Hokitika Beach

This isn't a black and white photo and we didn't use any filters to give everything that neutral colour look - that's how it was. Still in Hokitika we followed signs for the beach, it must be one of the eeriest beaches in the world. The waves came crashing into the grey sand and rocks. Washed up on the beach was deadwood and seaweed. There was no wildlife, no bird calls, just a resident walking his dog and the loud crashing of the waves. After taking in just how much this beach is in contrast to the rest of New Zealand we headed back into Hokitika centre to catch the bus to our next destination. The Franz Josef Glacier about 180 kilmoetres south.

021 - Day 04 - Franz Josef Glacier

This photo shows the Franz Josef Glacier as it cuts it's way through the mountain ranges. To give you a sense of scale, we have zoomed in on that small white square to show two people walking towards the base of the glacier. From our position we were a fifty minute walk from the foot of the glacier. This part of Earth is unique - glaciers usually move a couple of metres a year at the most. This one is moving that amount every day! Glaciers move in cycles and will spend a certain amount of time advancing, and will then retreat. Franz Josef is currently moving forward. You can take specialist hiking tours across the glacier, or you can charter a

helicopter to fly you up the side of the glacier. There are two glaciers in this area, the other is the Fox Glacier just a short drive south. There are plenty of companies in the towns which are offering tours of the two sites. Shame we didn't have time to go on one of these our- selves. See the OZ section of the Posse Pages to see our mates going on one of these tours.

022 - Day 04 - Franz Josef

The glacier viewpoint is about a ten minute walk from the car park, so you get to walk along this charming - but very busy - little walkway surrounded by trees, streams and views, such as this waterfall which tore down the side of the cliff-face. There is very little wildlife in this area due to the high altitude so it can feel a bit creepy without a chorus of birds flying by. Over the course of this day we had travelled nearly 450 kilmoetres and taken in some spectacular sights. The day was drawing to a close so we had no choice but to leave for our last stop of the day in the next village over at Fox Glacier Village.

023 - Day 04 - Fox Glacier

We were staying in a mountain lodge about a 40 minute walk from the Fox Glacier. It was a bit too close to dusk for us to walk that far but we did find this charming little footpath called Wannahehe which took us on a half an hour cruise of some very strange looking forest... the only colours you could see were green and purple - because of the dank, wet conditions. The ground was like marshland and where you'd normally find grass and weeds there was a sheet of fungus glistening with dew . Most of the trees had been naturally damaged in some way or other such as this one which has been partially hollowed out by intense weather conditions.

024 - Day 05 - Haast Pass

We started our bus tour again in the early morning, leaving the glacial range behind us, heading south through dense fog. We went through the small settlements of Makarora and Hawea, and stopped to take in some of the views overlooking Lake Wanaka and Lake Hawea... although the foggy conditions meant we really couldn't see that much of anything. We stopped in Haast for lunch and then carried on to the Blue Pools. The fog began to lift around this time which gave us a great chance to take some lovely photos of the Blue Pools, named after the azur colour of the water. The best way of viewing the Blue Pools is by crossing this swingbridge.

025 - Day 05 - Blue Pools

A short walk later and we were on the rocky shore which stood next to the Blue Pools. When you look closely at a more shallow part of the water it is in fact crystal clear, but the reflection coupled with elements in the rocks give the appearance that the water has this un-natural looking cartoon-style colour to it. Again, we couldn't stop very long here because we had a few more stops to make before the end of the day, so we marvelled for a short while, took some photos and got back on the bus. I think we got ourselves a reputation among our fellow travellers for being the first ones off the bus, and the last ones to get back on. Nothing wrong with that!

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Franz Josef

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026 - Day 05 - Blue Pools Bridge

Ells poses on the swing bridge. Again, it was fairly showery while we were in this region. Because of the mountains creating a barrier which low cloud is unable to pass it is quite common for the area known as The Southern Alps to be wet and dark. From here we missed out on the town of Wanaka and headed straight for Cromwell - a town which was rebuilt on higher ground because the plain of land where it was originally built was now used as a reservoir. Because the town has been relocated it's missing out on any kind of historical feel. It's only claim to fame is that it is at the heart of New Zealand's stone fruit region.

027 - Day 05 - Kawarua River

From Cromwell we headed into Arrowtown. Before that though we stopped here to look back at the mountain ranges where we'd come from this morning (pictured). The water is actually part of a lake (either Hawea, Dunsten or Kawarua... we saw so many lakes and places on that day that's it's difficult to remember which bit was where!) Arrowtown looks like a Country and Western film set and was the centre for New Zealand's goldmining industry. The town centre is now nothing more than a tourist trap with souvenir shops spilling out of every building. Luckily for us we found a pub... where we stayed until the bus was ready to move onto Queenstown.

028 - Day 06 - Queenstown

This photo shows Queenstown in the background, Lake Wakatipu and the Remarkable Mountain Range to the right. The Remarkables are called so because the range runs in a straight line due north to south. This was the view from our hotel window at the Mercure. We had an entire day in Queenstown, known as being the place to come for adventurous sports. Not being of the Adventurous Sport persuasion we started the day with a guide, a knowledge of Peter Jackson and a 4x4... in other words, a Lord of the Rings Scenic Tour. Our guide actually starred as an extra in the film trilogy, playing a dead Ork in a post-battle scene.

029 - Day 06 - Mordor and Gandor

These peaks featured quite a bit in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings Trilogy. Give them some lightning, howling wind, black dead skies and you have yourselves the Hills of Mordor. Cover them with snow, get some nice fluffy clouds, get a fellowship to walk over them and you have Gandor. In reality these hills aren't too far from Queenstown. The town itself is surrounded by mountains with the Richardson and Harris mountains to the north, Remarkables to the south, Old Man Range and Pisa Range to the east and Thomson Mountains to the west. Not surprinsing then that this is a very popular resort with the winter sport fanatics.

030 - Richardson Range

These hills were also used for a couple of scenes in the film. Queenstown is behind us from this shot. Below we have zoomed in to the peak of this hill to show a couple of buildings surrounded by large security fences. This was the set of an American movie which was left behind by the creators in case they wanted to make a sequel. Obviously the film wasn't as big as a success

as they were

hoping because

a second film has

never been made,

leaving this set at

the mercy of the

rough elements.

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Queenstown

031/032 - Day 06 - Lord of the Rings Tour

Here's another couple of photos from the films. The valley in the left picture was used by the fellowship as they sailed downstream, in between two giant statues (you have to imagine that their boats would be sailing towards where we were stood...

this angle wasn't used in

the film. In the right picture

you can see a river which

was the place where

Aragon awoke from his

fall, and where the horse

shaped waves went crash-

ing into the Black Knights.

(We also believe this area

was used in the first scene

of Braindead.) We thought

this would be an ideal place for a quick cuppa before moving on.

033 - Day 06 - Queenstown Ranges

The tour also took us to a few places that weren't used in the film, but were really memorable nonetheless. This picture shows the rugged rocks of the mountain range completely covered in a natural carpet of grass and fungus. Any New Zealander will be happy to tell you about the history of pine trees and gorsegrass... and about what it's doing to their country. Both were brought over from the UK when the original settlers moved in. The gorse was used as a fence to keep animals in, the pine trees were used because they're fast growing and ideal for firewood. Now both are spreading like wildfire, leaving less space for native plants to grow.

034 - Day 06 - Devil's Rock

This is Devils Rock; a huge stump of land which sticks out above the rest of the valley. In the bottom right corner you can see Pine Rock - a smaller chunk of stone which has a rather fetching wig of pine trees. This has occured because of Birds of Prey who pick up smaller animals and rodents, fly up high and drop them onto the rock to make feasting easier. If the rodent has eaten any pine cones these will then be reintroduced into the Earth, which just happens to be on top of a gurt big rock. These two skyscrapers of the natural world apparently feature on a calendar of the twelve most difficult putting courses in the world!

035 - Day 06 - Queenstown Gondola

We headed back into Queenstown where we finally had time for a wander. There's plenty of eateries, surf and ski shops and trendy fashion huts. The whole town has a beach resort vibe because of the apparently-neverending waterway, but Queenstown is a good couple of hundred kilmoetres from the sea. We had lunch at the legendary Furgburger, went to the Kiwi and Birdlife Park (which houses rare and native birds, plus a few kiwis) and then we jumped onto a cable car which takes you up this high (pictured) where you can look over Queenstown, Lake Wakatipu and the surrounding mountain ranges. There's plenty to do on top of this big hill.....

036 - Day 06 - TSS Earnslaw

....including a restaurant, visitor centre, cinema and luge track (which has to be one of the highlights of the trip). There's also plenty of winter activities and helicopter rides. Our lunch was booked on the other side of the lake at Walter Peak Lodge. The only way of getting to it is by taking the TSS Earnslaw steam boat. The decor on board the vessel takes you back 100 years to when the boat was first commissioned (although it was originally an industrial boat). For fans of mechanics you can actually go below deck and marvel at the steam-powered engine, there is also a museum on board charting the history of New Zealand's boats and waterways

037 - Day 06 - Lake Wakatipu

This is Cecil Peak, standing at an impressive 1974 metres. Behind it is Walter Peak (1815 metres). The two hills were named after two brothers. It was on this shoreline where we were heading for a three course meal. The itinerary warned us that there'd be an after-meal show of a sheep being sheared. We left the Americans to be fascinated by that one, while we crept back down to the lake-front and finished off some complimentary wine. After the rest of our party had been well and truly sheared we reboarded the boat and made our way back to the hotel for another early start. We left Queenstown behind in the early hours and headed south.

038 - Day 07 - Te Anau

Our coach took us along Highway 6 as far as Five Rivers, and then we turned west on our way to Te Anau. On our way we stopped briefly at this sight known as Mirror Lake, and for good reason. The water acts like a mirror giving off the perfect reflection of the hills and trees which surround it. The only thing that gives it away is the occasional disruption in the water by wildfowl and fish. Also on our morning's journey we took a brief toilet stop at a lonely little place called Bald Knob. Below shows another lake reflecting it's surroundings. The hill appears to be scarred but it is actually areas which have had recent landslides, taking out all of the trees.....

039 - Day 07 - Takitimu Mountains

New Zealand is sat on the edge of two techtonic plates, making it prone to dramatic Earth movements, landslides, earthquakes and avalanches. It sounds dangerous but this is what has made the country as visually pleasing as it is. Earlier in the week we were driving through one coastal town when our guide pointed out that during last years tours he would occasionally stop in the car park on the right... pointing to the sea and the point where the parking bay used to be. Glaciers and countless waterfalls are also helping to form the landscape at a speed unheard of in most other parts of the world. After reaching Te Anau we started heading north again.

040 - Day 07 - Birdspotting

This stretch of road runs north from Te Anau (where we were staying that evening) and Milford Sound (our destination for the day). To one side is Lake Te Anau, the other are the Livingstone Mountains. We stopped one more time before reaching Milford, at a location where there was nothing more than a bus park - the reason was so we could drink from a fresh mountain stream. A daily routine of tourists has led to a flock of keas (Pron Key-a) setting up camp here. The colourless parrots (apart from red undermarkings) have been known to break mirrors and rip rubber sealings off parked cars. From here on in, the road gets very rough.

041 - Day 07 - Highway 94

Taken in the same spot as the photo above, this shows the course of the road to get to Milford Sound. This stretch of road was on avalanche watch as we drove along it, even though the sun was shining down on us (apparently quite a rarity in these parts.) Despite the weather there was plenty of snow still perched on the mountain tops, and it wouldn't take much for a chunk to break off. At one point the road cuts through one of the mountains known as the Homer Tunnel. Not sure how long it is but it could twenty years to complete. It is then a very steep decline back down to sea level into the area known as Fiordland.

042 - Day 07 - Fiordland

This is a very popular corner of New Zealand with tens of thousands of  people going on the boat tours every week. The Fiordland area is well known for it's weather conditions... seven out of ten days are wet. This was the best week of the year for sunny weather... which was bad in a way because some of the waterfalls we'd come to see had simply dried up. Fiordland is made up of scores of fiords like this one pictured. Milford is one of the most northern, definitely the most popular and the most crowded. There are more than a dozen mountain peaks in this region, catching a lot of ice over Winter, leading to a lot of waterfalls in the Spring.

043 - Day 07 - Milford Sound

There is normally a gushing waterfall in this spot - the first one the tourist boat gets up close and personal with. But with the fine weather it was little more than a running tap. (Still, looking on the bright side, the dry air meant there were less midges and biting insects around!) The captain used the boat to throw a thrust of water into the waterfall and create this miniature rainbow on the water surface, which continued underwater. The boat then headed along the fjord to go out as far as the sea before turning round. On our way along the captain would occasionally give a name to a fall or point out a dry place which is usually a waterfall.

044 - Day 07 - Milford

This shot looks like somebody's just thrown a bucket of water over the clifftop, but I can assure you that this is a genuine waterfall, cascading down the cliff-face. It's just a mystery as to why it stopped falling temporarily (you can see there is only a small amount of water at the bottom of the picture.) This could have been caused by a rogue tree branch clogging up the channel. Looking at the map you can see that, from Queenstown, we have nearly driven a complete circle. That is because of several mountain ranges which are in the way. Driving a giant U-turn (around 300 kilmoetres) is the only way of getting from A to B - if the road is open at all!

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Te Anau

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Milford Sound

045/046 - Day 04 - Milford

The photo on the left shows the tourist boat in front of us heading towards one of the dozens of giant waterfalls. This puts the photo on the right into better perspective. We didn't quite go under the waterfall, but we definitely got close enough so that anyone who was stood on deck got absolutely drenched. The two hour ride went far too quickly, but that's what happens when you go on a guided tour. We got back on the coach, back up over the mountains and headed back to Te Anau. While everyone else was settling down to the evening meal, we snuck off to the Te Anau Visitor Centre and got two tickets to the glow-worm......

047 - Day 08 - Te Anau

....Caves. Boats leave Te Anau Harbour in the pitch black and head across the lake into yet more fjords. You get taken to a visitor centre where ten people at a time are taken on a guided tour of some caves under Mount Lyall. Water rips through the caverns in a way that puts Wookey Hole to shame. You go deeper down until the deafening watercourse can't be heard at all. We then all get into a boat and are taken into a cave which is illuminated by glow-worms (who are brighter the hungrier they are!) No photography sadly so you'll have to take our word for that and make do with this seagull sat on a post in Lake Te Anau at the crack of dawn.

048 - Day 08 - Speights Brewery

Today we headed back to the east coast. We left Te Anau and took to Highway 94 stopping in the sleepy town of Gore for lunch. It wasn't long before we were back on the bus and making our way to Dunedin. The tour bus was heading for an old house on the town's outskirts ('Old' for Newland is around 1830... so fairly modern by our standards) so we checked which hotel we were staying in, hopped off the bus and wandered around Dunedin for a while. We soon came across the Speights Brewery - one of New Zealand's leading brewers. They have tours running every hour of their building. This is a photo of the copper drums used for formentation.

049 - Day 08 - Dunedin

Speights has a really interesting layout. The original ingredients are taken to the top floor, and then each stage of the brewing process happens on the floor below until you get to the final product on the ground floor. They use water from a natural spring under the building - and they've been kind enough to put a tap on the wall so you can have a drink for free (water that is, not beer). These signs made us chuckle - where else would you find a brewery in a liquor restricted area? If the creation of booze isn't your thing, just a couple of blocks over is a Cadbury's chocolate factory. On this tour you can watch a tonne of hot chocolate drop into the mixing vats, we kept with the beer.

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Queenstown

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Te Anau

Five Rivers

Milford Sound

050 - Day 08 - Dunedin Railway

..We still had a couple of hours in Dunedin before sundown, so we had a rather steep stroll down to the quayside... except we didn't quite get that far as I misjudged the scale on the map! Instead we stopped to look at the incredibly impressive spectacle that is Dunedin Railway Station; Yes, that --> is a railway station. And (just in case you were wondering) it's not on fire on the left side... there was a bush fire which firefighters were tackling for the whole time we were there. Next to the railway station is a train museum. Large plates of glass let you peer in to view a handful of gorgeous engines from the days when New Zealand rail was just being established.

051 - Day 09 - Dunedin Churches

Today we headed ion.

052-054 - Day 09 - Baldwin Street

....Caves. Boats leave Te An

055 - Day 09 - Dunedin Churches

Today we headed ion.

056 - Day 09 - Moeraki Beach

....Caves. Boats leave Te An

057 - Day 09 - Moeraki Beach

Today we headed ion.

Half Way There

This page is taking yonks to piece together. I still have fifty pictures to write captions for (and these ain't exactly short synopses I'm dealing with!  So I'm going to leave it at this for the moment, and I'm give you a promise that the rest of our trip will be online r-e-a-l soon including Akaroa, Auckland, Waitakere and Russell. If we can get our hands on a MiniDV camcorder we'll also try and get you some video (The video camera is no longer with us!)

Thanks for your patience