On Saturday morning we crossed over to the South Island. Everyone promised up that the difference would be stunning, but I had no idea how immediate the change in geography would be. The South Island has mountains that run directly into the ocean so one can look out a window and see snow capped peaks as well as hear the crashing of waves. It is really quite stunning. We spent Saturday night in Kaikoura, a sea-side holiday village famous for whale watching. We woke up early on Sunday to go on a whale watching expedition with the Maori owned Whale Watch Kaikoura.

Sunrise Sunday morning.


We were not disappointed in the whale watching. We saw three sperm whales and a large pod of Dusky Dolphins as well as many interesting sea birds. Here is a photo of the tail of one of the whales as he dives to the bottom of the ocean for food. These whales have to eat a ton of food every day to keep up their body weight.