South Island Trip - 24th April 2018

For the skydivers, the morning started at 6 am. The rest of us, including me, were able to sleep in until 9 am. At 9 am, the skydivers returned and told us about their jumps while we all went kayaking in Abel Tasman. We were split into two groups - one group went kayaking first, while the other group went hiking. I went hiking first. We set off and walked along the coast for about an hour until we reached a small beach bay. I have to say that this scenery reminded me more of Thailand than New Zealand. It was a warm day, so walking through the tropical-looking forests felt more like being in the jungle rather than on the West Coast of New Zealand. After having our packed lunch at this beautiful bay, the groups swapped and I went kayaking with Simon. I had already tried white water kayaking in New Zealand's rivers, but kayaking in a real sea kayak was a whole different experience. And with the strong winds at the sea, kayaking was even more fun, especially when a kayak got stuck on a rock. After the challenging kayaking, we deserved a reward, so the other guys and I booked the hotel's whirlpool for 10 dollars. Unfortunately, we had to leave after half an hour, but we cooled off in the cold pool next to it. In the evening, we had a good dinner and this time there was also an interesting evening program where our Maori tour guide taught us a bit of the famous Haka. And so, a very action-packed day came to an end!