Day 20: Lyttelton to Kaikoura

In retrospect I should have probably cancelled my Kaikoura night too, as it was only meant to be a stopover on the way down from Nelson, and I've been there twice before, including one interminable rainy day between trains. But I thought it would be nice to see the coastal scenery and get out of the town one last time.

The drive was supposed to take 2.5 hours according to Google, but somehow with stops for coffee and toilet breaks and roadworks it ended up taking about four, and I got into Kaikoura about one-thirty. It was spitting rain and the cafes in the main street were full of tourists from coaches. The sensible thing to do would have been to find a quiet pub, but I had a coffee and an overpriced pastry instead and wandered around town a bit. I have learnt by now to ask for a latte rather than a flat white, but even these are often terribly bitter.

Very sticky weather, so that after going uphill your outer garments are soaked with rain and your inner garments are soaked from sweat. And I sunburn much more quickly in these latitudes, despite the clouds. An hour or so of that was enough, and I drove out of town to my accommodation at the Donegal Inn, a faux-Irish farmhouse with prefab accommodation extensions. 

I had bought a beer on the way out, and I had that first, then I had another one at the bar there--a Kilkenny Ale. I made some inroads on my remaining food for dinner. The couscous turned out to be a good idea, since it doesn't require anything else but hot water and butter, and I still have hardboiled eggs left.

The humidity cleared and the sun came out eventually, and I had a good view of the mountains from the back garden behind the hotel while they played horrible Hollywood-Irish songs on a loop in the bar. And so to bed.

I should have mentioned that I saw a couple of Hector's Dolphins from the ferry to Diamond Harbour, so I am bagging a few of the native fauna.

--

Jon Jermey
Indexer and database consultant
042 535 0422
webindexing.com.au

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