7th Jan - Picton to Wellington

Up at 5 to get everything packed up and bike down to the ferry for 6. I met a dutch guy called Chime while waiting to get on the boat. He is also touring by bike. We chatted on the ride to Wellington. On the way out of Picton Harbor hundreds of Dolphins decided to join us. It was absolutely amazing. I have never seen so many dolphins all at once. They were all jumping out of the water and showing off. You could see them for about 1 mile behind the boat - literally hundreds. It made a tired girl very happy to see. In fact the ferry ride is really worth doing not just to get from one island to the other. The views through the bays and little islands are really great. It was a shame that it was a bit cloudy etc. The ferries are so large that they take on trains underneath the passenger parts. We saw this as that is where we put our bikes.

I arrived in Wellington at 9.30 and decided to met up with Chime later on in the day to go and see Narnia to the cinema as the weather was not great and we thought it would be fun. I then headed straight to the Indian Embassy who said that my passport would be ready to pick up with my new Visa by 2 (I had already sent off all of the paper work several weeks ago). I then headed to McDonald's to spend some time on the net and get some coffee and breakfast. I have a problem that when I have not been getting enough sleep over many days I get really really hungry! What I actually need is sleep but as that is often not possible my body just craves energy and sugar for several days. I was sooooo hungry today. I ended up buying a massive McDonalds breakfast (rather than just coffee so that I could use the free internet) when when I had peanut butter and jam sandwiches on the ferry. After a while in McDonald's the weather cleared up and I went for a bike ride around Wellington.

Wellington is totally different to what I expected. So far it seems like the South Island and the North Island are totally different countries. Wellington is a proper city with high rise buildings and cultural things... It reminded me of a mini Melbourne. It had not realised quite how rural the South Island had been until I arrived in Wellington and saw civilisation again. The South Island is absolutely beautiful and it is great to spend time in an area that size with a population of only 1 million but I did miss old buildings and architecture. The houses on the South Island feel very temporary as they are mostly made of wood and maybe only 50 years old. I was not particularly enamored with the towns in the South Island. The South Island is also very White and conformist. In Wellington I actually saw some punks on skate boards..... The bike ride around the bay and to the harbor was actually very beautiful. It is a small Harbor for the size of the city though. I am missing sailing again. I had a look at the parliament buildings and the other famous sites. I met Chime at 1.15 after going to get some sweeties for the film. It was nice to have some company to go and do something very normal... The film was good fun but nothing special. If you can just suspend disbelief for a few hours and not notice the cheese then it is ok. I did fall asleep for a few minutes though as I just could not keep my eyes open. Chime is a nice guy and hopefully we will meet up on route somewhere in the North Island.

After the film I went to the Embassy to try and get my Visa but it was not ready and so I wondered around Wellington again for a while and then headed back for 4.30. It was still not ready and so I sat and chatted with another guy waiting at the embassy. He was saying how he is physic and told me what I did for a living and then went on to tell me how I will be fine for the rest of the trip! Good to hear. Always good to meet a range of different people when traveling. Finally left Wellington at 5.15 and biked to Island Bay to meet Emma and Joss. I had got their details from Angie and Jean (farmers in the South Island) and they kindly invited me to stay. They have 2 young boys, Oscar and Matthew. We had a great meal and sat and chatted and watched the sun set over the sea from their verandah. They have a great house and are lovely company.