March 15--WOW WOW WOW

All my life, my heart has sought a thing I cannot name.  --Hunter S. Thompson

    We left Wellington early today, bus and all on the huge ferry to Picton. Everywhere one turns in NZ, the scenery is stunning. This was from the ferry:

    We landed in Picton on the South Island and headed for Christchurch. Much of the drive was along the coast, so there were magnificent mountains on the right and the ocean on the left. 

    We stopped briefly to get a look at the seals, mostly mothers and babies, as the big males are out at sea. 

    The South Island is the Sauvignon Blanc capital of the world. There are literally miles and miles of vineyards. There are windmills in the vineyards which they use if there is frost danger. Just the air movement keeps the frost from settling on the grapes and destroying the crop. As we got further south, we noticed many of the grapevines were covered. Those are grapes for Reisling wine, left to get extra-sweet on the vines. The covers keep the birds away. 

    Wayne took us on a walk around our hotel area before supper. Most of the town was destroyed in the 2011 earthquake, and the rebuilt city is beautiful. Alas the Cathedral in the Square was severely damaged and they do not have the funds to repair it, so it pretty much sits there as an eyesore at the present time. 

    We had a buffet supper at the hotel and we get to sleep in (woohoo!) after a LONG travel day. 

        Leta