The next morning we made our way to Kaikoura. The bus journeyt was probably more remarkable than the little town itself. We had our first taste of New Zealand's breath-taking landscape: luscious meadows framed by emerald undulating hills and purple snow-capped mountains in the distance. Most of the coastal is totally flat around the south island so amazing views can be had from just about any road.
Just before arriving in Kaikoura, the bus stopped off to visit a seal colony that lives on the rocks. They were loads of them scattered around the rocks and bushes and we decided to stray a little from the rest of the group to get a better look at them. We crept carefully past one lazing under a bush - apparently they can be really vicious if they feel threatened - but didn't notice a whole family siddling through bushes on our other side trying to get to the water. They were lolloping andbelly-flopping along, and when they saw us the started to growl more intimidating than you'd imagine . We though best to leave them to it and crept away. They were a few seals posing out on the rocks and one was even seductively craning its head and elongating it's neck for us - it was clearly loving the limelight!
We arrived at the hostel where we had some awesome mountain views from our window and spent the afternoon watching films. Lord of the Rings was a particularly topical one as it was filmd in NZ unfortunately we didn't recognise any of the scenery . We also got to see some local crayfish that some people had caught on a fishing trip. It is reputed as being some of the best in the world. Forget little prawn-sized things - these were massive great lobster-esque things.We got up earlyish again the next morning and on our way out of Kaikoura we got another chance to see some more seals. This was even better as they were all seal pups playing in a pool below a waterfall. Their mums leave them there whilst they go hunting and the pups leave when they're big enough to go out into the ocean. There must have been a hundred pups frolicking in the water, jumping arcs and flapping about. A few were more tentative and sat on the rocks, but enetually plucked up the courage to go for a dip. One little pup was really interested in us humans and so cam ereally close whilst the others cowered behind him.We arrived in Nelson in the afternoon and went for a walk at sunset. We walked rapidly up to the viewing point atop a hill in the Abel Tasman National Park where views of the coast, the town and the park can be had. It is also the exact centre of New Zealand we were skeptical . We came back down and enjoyed a roast for dinner.The next day we made our way to Westport, but stopped off at the Nelson lakes for lunch. The views were amazing. A snowy mountain perfectly placed between frosty hills and a vast expanse of mirror-like lake met our eyes. We eventually got back onto the bus after taking in the amazing views. Westport was probably the most boring, sleepy town you will ever come across. We did nothing except watch Bill Bailey and talk to a couple of people who had been quaranteened for suspected swine-flu only to have their results lost and finally discover it was merely tonsilitis. The next day was a coastal walk and a quick look at the Pancake Rocks - not really very pancakey and quite dull. Then we arrived in Lake Mahanipua where we stayed at the 'Poo Pub' with a crazy 84-year-old publican owner called Les - the oldest publican in NZ. We walked up to the lake through some creepy forest track and were greeted by the best views yet. Pink sky and mountains, with a huge black lake and a picturesque pier. Many a photo later, we left the now not so silent lake the Korean tourists found us . That night we sat in the pub and talked to a bloke called Patrick who told us all about his long ago travels and about New Zealand being a gold country. We fell asleep in our toasty cabin and were up the next morning to go to Franz Josef.On our way to Franz Josef we stopped at a wildlife centre where they were 2 deer, a wallabe and a family of goats. We obviously took the opportunity to feed them which was good fun. The deer were craning their necks at all sorts of odd angles to get their mouths through the fence. The goats were pretty aggressive, except the baby goat which was missing out on all the food so we ended up tricking the parents and slyly feeding baby, before daddy butted him out of the way! The wallabe was really sweet and very gentle - it slowly chammed the feed as it batted its thick eyelashes. 
We arrived yesterday in the afternoon and considered a walk. No such luck as the bridge was closed due to flooding and we were too lazy. We had dinner, played bingo in the bar and then went to bed to get a good night's sleep before our hike.Today was the best day of our travels yet! We did a full day hike up the Franz Josef glacier - the fastest moving glacier in the world. We started at 9am at the hike centre where we were briefed and kitted up with hats, gloves, jackets, waterproof trousers, socks, boots and the all important crampons. We boarded a bus to take us to the foot of the glacier. The anticipation was building. Then across a bridge over a glacial river and a short walk through some frosted forest that sparkled in the morning sun. We reached the foot of the glaciar and it didn't look too far away. We asked how far to the top, only to be told that on the 8 hour hike you can only go a quarter of the way up. The ice creates an optical illusion so that the 12km high peak looks very close. Even just the walk over the morraine in the valley floor was 2km! We were split into groups and we opted for the fast group, feeling keen. Our guide then set off at such a pace that I started to worry whether I was going to be able to keep up, but luckily, this was just for the moment to get ahead of the slower group. Phewf! We began our climb through the black sand and rocks and sat down at the foot of the ice to don the crampons. Then for the real hiking! We zig-zagged up and over the peaks of ice, and then into the crevasses, through narrow gaps which Wass struggled in and slid over frozen water. It was pretty tiring but amazing. We stopped for lunch in a basin in the ice whilst our hunky Maori guide hacked away at the ice to make some steps. The afternoon was spent admiring the views from up the glaciar and making our way through more narrow passes. Two guys in our group even went for a plunge into an icey pool! We were disappointed to have to come down. Our guide promised that if we beat a group ahead of us he would perform a haka for us the traditional Maori war-dance . Wass and an American with impeccably white teeth managed to outrun them literally so we were given a show. Our guide got really into it, so much so that he cut his fist punching the ground. The tourists milling around the valley floor must have got more than they bargained for when they saw a rugby-sized Maori shouting at the top of his lungs and beating his chest! We came back, thoroughly exhausted and grabbed the last hot showers before dinner. 
