The bed
and breakfast facilities in New Zealand are all well appointed,
with friendly owner/managers. The people we stayed with happily
shared their knowledge of South Island with us, the best places to
visit and how to go about booking a camper van for less than what was
advertised by the rental companies.
What we found valuable information
was that we should ask the company to show us their vehicles that
were more than four years old. The reason for this is that the
insurance premium on them is as not as high as the new vehicles they
tout, and if you are not in the know, the rental agent will get you
to sign up and you pay almost a third more for a newer model!
As we wanted to visit my uncle who
was in hospital, (one of the main reasons for our trip to New
Zealand) we decided that we would visit him first, then spend the day
looking around the city, spend another night with our lovely B and B
hosts, then go and find the camper van of our choice the next day.
Christchurch
is a beautiful garden city, nestled on the coast with the Southern
Alps creating a breath-taking backdrop. It is the gateway to the
Canterbury
Plains which spread westwards towards the mountains.
South-East of the city leads on to
Banks
Peninsula, which is formed by two huge volcanic craters and
extends into the Pacific Ocean, like an old gnarled sharks-tooth.
After looking around a very modern
shopping mall and having a bite to eat, we took the historic inner
city Christchurch
Tramway.
Although the tickets are valid for
two days, we knew that this was the best way to see all of the city
in one day, as it took us past Cathedral
Square, Arts Centre,
Canterbury Museum and
the Botanic
Gardens.
In the evening we had a slap up meal
at a local Indian restaurant within walking distance of our B and B.
Upon our return our hosts had waited
up for us and had coffee and biscuits laid out on the kitchen table.
We felt that we were visiting good friends.
At breakfast the next day we
mentioned that we were going to book our camper van and asked where
the rental agencies were located.
“Oh, close to the airport,” said
our host, “No worries, I'll drive you there,” he said.
So off we set, Graham sitting
“shot-gun” in the front passenger seat and me squashed into the
back seat with all of our suitcases and travel bags.
“It's OK Babe, not too far to
go...besides, you are little, so you fit in there with the luggage
perfectly.”
“Yeah, that's me, economy sized!”
I though to myself.
Our Holiday Home on Wheels |
After going to a couple of places,
we ended up with a six berth camper from Maui
Rentals. It had all living, cooking and sleeping equipment
included, air-conditioning and bathroom facilities, 24 hour road
service and a handy road map and travel guide.
(Oh, and if you are wondering why we
went for a six berth, we did not feel like making up beds, then
folding them away to have a sitting area. Too much trouble, and we
were on holiday!)
Glad that Graham was at the helm and
I was the navigator, we drove to a large shopping area where we
stocked up on groceries and supplies before setting off in our
up-market Mercedes-Benz camper.
“Where are we going?” I asked
Graham,
“Dunno, let's have a coffee and
look at our map,” he said as he parked outside a coffee shop.
We found a table close to a window,
ordered coffee, cheese
and ham pies, then spread the map out over the table.
“Here” Graham said, pinpointing
a place with his finger on the map, “
Lake Tekapo”
“OK Babe, let's go” I agreed in
a flash, “looks a really good place to spend our first night!”
Taking the road along the east
coast, then onto Route
79 we drove through stunning scenery and pulled off at a lay-by
to have a snack. This was the first time we had ever had such a
luxury as a camper van, we were used to camping in the African bush
in our tent, so had not experienced the leisure of a mobile home
where you could simply stop, open up the kitchen, prepare something
to eat and sit in a comfy seat at your dining room table and look out
the window at the view. We both decided it was a good way to holiday
and see the country at the same time.
The roads in New Zealand are of high
standard, maps and places are well marked. It appeared, much to our
amusement, that the locals steered clear of tourists driving camper
vans. We were fine as we were used to driving on the left hand side
of the road, but noticed some vans swerved onto the wrong side of the
road on occasion. So, like the locals, we were cautious of fellow
camper van sight-seers from our first day on the road.
My first sight of Lake Tekapo |
Upon our arrival at Lake Tekapo in
the late afternoon, the sun was setting behind the mountains of the
vast Mackenzie
Basin, their faces reflecting in the clear turquoise waters.
We booked into Lake
Tekapo Motels and Motor Camp, set in amongst massive, shady
trees.
Our camping pitch over looked the
lake and as we parked we both looked out the front windscreen.
Neither of us spoke, we were too busy absorbing the peaceful beauty
of the place, there was no need to say anything.
The camp is run as a quiet family
camp, with security and cleanliness a top priority. There is a
laundry with four commercial washers, for commercial dryers and they
also have a TV lounge, should you wish to watch the goggle-box
instead of taking in the lake and all its beauty. For people who
choose not to eat “in”, the place has easy access to a variety of
restaurants, bars, a service station with LPG facilities, garage and
grocery store.
Autumn Colours at Lake Tekapo |
We went for a walk, taking a bottle
of beer each and sat on the shore sipping the golden local beer.
A couple walked by and stopped to chat. They informed us that Tekapo
was the departure point for the world renowned Air
Safaris Grand Traverse flight around Mount Cook and were going on
it the next day.
As they walked away, their parting
shot was, “By the way, make sure you don't leave the empties
behind...we Kiwis make sure the environment is kept clean!”
Graham and I looked at each other,
“As if we would,”
I nodded in agreement with his
comment, “Yes, we get deposit on the bottles. Can buy more.”
In that year the Springbok
Rugby Team played like Trojans, so we both decided that because
they “hammered” the All-blacks
15-12 in the Final game played on South African soil at Ellis Park,
Johannesburg, we had been told off on Kiwi soil.
Chuckling to ourselves, we returned
to our four wheel home, discussing how we remembered Nelson
Mandella wearing the Sprinkbok
Rugby shirt and cap when he presented the Ellis
Cup to the Captain,
Francois Pienaar.
That was a great
game and brought all the people in South Africa closer than ever
before.
Of course we admitted to each other,
that makes the New Zealanders the second best in the world.
Giving them credit where credit was
due, we started a good old South
African braai, and cooked our supper before turning in for the
night.
Early Morning at Lake Tekapo |
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Sounds like a wonderful trip! How long will you be there?
ReplyDeleteI bet it made a nice change not having to dodge or bump through pot holes or sticky mud too.
ReplyDeleteI used to have a pen-friend in the Canterbury area years ago, she and her husband weere sheep farmers, she sent me a brochure full of colour pics of the scenery there, very beautiful country.