From a wee bit ugly to beautiful

I know it's been a while 😅 The time flies by so quickly and I got something to do almost every day but that's a good thing I guess! :) Anyway two weeks ago I went to Invercargill for one night and I chose one night because of the weather (and money haha), but when I arrived there I was actually happy I only got one night because to be honest.. Invercargill isn't really one of the most beautiful cities I have seen so far haha. But of course I planned a whole trip for the Sunday to do by car and I will gladly talk you through it :)!

On Saturday morning I stepped into the car and this time with my passport haha, because you need that to check in at some hostels or hotels and also for my ciggies or I can't smoke for a whole weekend 🤭 And check in was at 14.00 so I made up my mind and wanted to see the 'beautiful' city named Invercargill but as I already have said the city wasn't what I expected it to be so I used my lovely friend Google Maps to look for interesting things to do near the city and I ended up at Oreti beach. You were allowed to go on the beach with the car but there was like alot of loose sand on the road before you enter the beach and although I have quite alot of faith in my Suza (Subura Impreza) I didn't want to take the chance of getting stuck with her, better to be safe than sorry right? 😁 I took some pictures and picked up some seashells and then went back to the car to drive to the hostel to check-in.

The picture above here is made by me while I did a short track after checking in at the hostel. I guess this one is considered a normal, plain track by locals, but the view was spectacular. This is one of the many examples that there is beauty everywhere around you in New Zealand. I just sat there sheltering from the wind and just listened to the birds and looking at them and it made me completely at ease and I think the photo I took quite reflects my feeling I had right in that moment :)

FIRST STOP: BLUFF / STIRLING POINT

And on the sunday morning I went to Bluff, that is a small village that is known for fishing and from here you can take the ferry to Stewart Island, where I might go to later on as there are kiwis on that island. But Stewart island is not the only island, there is Dog island, Ruapuke island, Bird island, Codfish island shall I stop? 😋 There are quite a few let's say. And at Bluff there is Stirling point this is named for Captain Stirling (1812–1851) who operated a whaling station for Johnny Jones in this location from 1836 to 1844 when he took on the site's ownership. Stirling, he was born in Broadstairs, England and ran away to become a seafarer when he was aged 14 well.. according to the signs over there:) Stirling Point hosts a signpost with multiple directional signs, it is one of the most photographed items in Southland and of course I did too but I think it is nice to have some more original pictures on here.

NEXT STOP: FORTROSE / CLIFFS AT FORTROSE (MATAURA RIVER MOUTH) / SLOPE POINT 

At Fortrose you can already see some of the sea but in the distance, I just rested here for a little while to stretch my legs and get a fresh nose as we say in Dutch which I think doesn't quite translate in English haha. After Fortrose I went to the cliffs of Fortrose on a road with alot of turns that is really fun to drive. I'm really adjusted to driving on the other side so I confidently drive almost the same way the kiwis do in a safe way, of course! (no worries mum and dad) 😇 🤭

By the time I arrived at Slope point the weather had changed, it was still sunny but the wind became stronger and stronger. I walked over to the cliffs and you almost had to hold onto something or you would blow away, especially tiny people like me. But because the wind was so strong  the waves were higher and more powerful too so that gave me the chance to take some awesome pictures of the cliffs.

It surprised me that we were on that point only 4803 km away from the South pole! Sometimes it still feels a wee bit unreal that I am actually in New Zealand even though I'm really getting used to living here :) Oh and a wee bit means a little bit. Every now and then I have problems with understanding what kiwi people say especially when they're mumbling in combination with their accent. Or the other way around.. that I'm saying some things in more Britain/ American English and the kids I'm looking after are just laughing in my face 🤭😂!

LAST STOP: CURIO BAY / CURIO BAY CLIFFS

This was the last but definitely not the least stop, there is so much to see over here. If you're lucky (which I wasn't) you could see the blue penguin, the yellow-eyed penguin and some seals but hopefully I will see them when I'm going to Milford Sound this weekend. Anyway even though I didn't see them the scenery was worth it! 

The waves were majestic and it almost frightened me a little, I felt so small standing next to these cliffs and the rough sea pushing against the rocks. At this Curio Bay there is a fossilized forest and that is extraordinary because it doesn't happen alot that wood is being fossilized. The reason that this happened is because the ash from the volcano ended up in the floodwater and was rich with silica which impregnated the standing trees, literally turning them to stone in the space of months. This fossilized forest is 170 million! years old and what is even more rare is..

The living forest that has the same trees as the fossilized forest, is still standing. New Zealand is the only country that has a fossilized and a forest that is still alive so close to eachother. There are alot of different bird species living in that forest and one of them is the fan tail, the bird that stole my heart. For a small bird like that, they have alot of courage. They can be really cheeky, like what happened with me, a fantail just dancing in front of me while I was holding my camera. As far as he knows it could've been a gun, but the bird didn't seem scared of me at all while other bigger birds fly away only by the sound of what my camera produces when it is taking the picture. 

When I was about to go back 'home' I saw some surfers getting out of their car heading towards the sea so I stopped for half an hour for a walk on the beach and to breath in the fresh air coming from the sea. I've found some beautiful shells which hopefully I am allowed to bring back to The Netherlands 🐚.