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| Merry Christmas! |
We spent Christmas in Kaikoura, a small touristy town on the northeast side of the south island. The name Kaikoura means “meal of crayfish” in Maori. They’re called crayfish here, but they are actually what we know as lobsters (a saltwater spiny lobster). A crayfish meal at a roadside stand goes for $70 NZD ($54 USD) - no steak included!. Kaikoura has an abundance of marine life due to the Kaikoura canyon which comes within 2,300 feet of the Kaikoura coastline and at its deepest point is 5,400 feet. The vast food supply from the cold deep water ensures the area is home to whales, dolphins, seals, and albatross. There are several NZ fur seal colonies in the area. Dusky dolphins (a small dolphin found in the southern hemisphere) inhabit the coastline and pods of up to 1,500 dolphins can be seen here. Numerous tours leave from Kaikoura, and for the right price you can swim with fur seals, or dolphins, or even go whale watching by boat or plane – the possibilities are endless!
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| Fur seal enjoying a beautiful Christmas day! |
On Christmas day we took a hike across the Kaikoura peninsula. It was a beautiful blue sky day and we shared the trail with many other tourists away from home during the holidays. We hiked the trail along the cliffs going out there and walked along the coast on the way back (during low tide). We saw lots of fur seals lounging on the rocks, looking very content in the sun. We enjoyed our time spent outdoors and were grateful for the nice weather (even thought it didn’t feel like Christmas at all!).
New Zealanders get two days off for Christmas, and if Christmas falls on a weekend (like this year), they get Monday and Tuesday off. All government offices are closed and many businesses too. The same goes for New Years – they get two days off for the holiday, which turned out to be Monday and Tuesday this year since their normal holiday days (1st and 2nd) fell over a weekend. The kiwis always associate Christmas with summer, and only recently have been able to get Christmas cards without all the snow and cold weather on them. Some people hang Christmas lights on their houses, even though it doesn’t get dark until quite late this time of year. It is summer vacation for the kids (last day of school was Dec 17th), so this time between Christmas and New Years is a very busy travel time for the country.
We miss our family and friends at this time of year and hope that everyone had a Merry Christmas!
Just catching up with you. It looks cold there but you are wearing shorts. I know you said it is summer. When it rains is it warm? Happy belated Christmas and New Year. Dad is looking great. We had a nice time at Christmas. Envious as ever of you both. Love, Troy
ReplyDeleteGood question, the weather! It's warm in the sun, but there's almost always a breeze that keeps things cool. For Daron it's the perfect temperature; for me I'm usually reaching for my jacket. The rain is cold, not warm. No humidity either. It reminds me more of Colorado weather than anything else.
ReplyDeleteGood to hear about Dad! Happy belated holidays to you too!
Love, Beth
The pictures are really nice as always. What would it have cost to swim with the dolphins? That is something Kandi has always wanted to do. I am glad I do not like lobster that much. Even here, the price makes me shy away from ever ordering one. If we want one, we usually buy one and cook it at home. I am glad you had a nice Christmas. Blade looked under the tree and laughed at Kandi saying "Ha Ha, Santa got me something good and he got you a dumb old vacuum."
ReplyDeleteBe safe,
Love Troy and family
Hi Troy,
ReplyDeleteIf I remember right, the dolphin swimming was about $130 per person (in US Dollars) - a little out of our budget. Hope you and the family had a nice Christmas (even though it was a month ago!) - funny story about Blade and the vacuum! At least he liked his present - that's good!
Love,
Beth & Daron