24.11.2017: Splendor of colors at Lake Tekapo

Today our vacation really begins. We're getting a car :) Shortly after 10 o'clock we'll be picked up from our hostel by Apex and taken to their branch. When we want to get our luggage out of the trunk, he just says, 'Leave your luggage in the car. This is your rental car.' That surprises me; I reserved a Nissan Tiida - just like the last two times. In front of me is a white Mazda Axela, which we quickly name Alexa. To my regret, it doesn't have the ordered parking assist, but our suitcases fit in the trunk and on the back seat I can transport a half soccer team. Furthermore, I shouldn't have as many problems driving uphill with this car, because the Mazda Axela comes with Tiptronic. Nevertheless, I would have preferred a smaller car with parking assist.

I'm glad when we leave the city with its many construction sites and one-way streets behind us and finally turn onto the highway. We have

230 km ahead of us to Lake Tekapo. On our way there, a thick cloud soup is brewing and light drizzle begins. With every meter, my mood sinks, because the mountain panorama completes the picture of Lake Tekapo with the blooming lupins on the shore. 8 km before our destination, the miracle happens: the sky clears up. For this gift, I can overlook the fact that I can't show Eric the turquoise lake from my memory. This time, he welcomes us in a rich blue and the lupins are in full bloom.

Our second hostel is very nicely furnished, has a large kitchen and a pretty garden with animal roommates like the dwarf rabbit Coco, some guinea pigs and a cat; but only one bathroom for two rooms with 4 people each. But we don't stay there for long, we head out again immediately. 

The two points on my agenda are also new territory for me. First, we walk to the Church of the Good Shepherd - a small stone church with a view of the lake and especially in connection with the dense starry sky (as long as no clouds impair the view) a popular postcard motif. Unfortunately, the tour operators and tourists also know this - the church is well visited and it's not that easy to get a photo without people.

As the second and last point, I have the Mt John Observatory in mind. The original plan was to drive up, but now you have to pay 8 NZD for parking and despite the great view, I'm too stingy for that. So we walk - initially on level ground, but soon uphill steadily. We are on the road for a total of 3 hours, and after 2 hours, 8 NZD doesn't seem so expensive anymore. Shortly before reaching our goal, our water supply runs out. We ignore the sign that says the last section of the hiking trail to the observatory should not be entered after 5 PM (it's already 6 PM now, but we won't turn around 200m before reaching the goal) and arrive at the top exhausted and thirsty. The prices in the cafe, which is about to close, are high, but water is free and so we eagerly gulp down 2 cups each.

However, we don't have much time to enjoy the view. We have an hour-long walk back to the town of Lake Tekapo ahead of us, which neither of us really wants to do (especially since Eric is hungry), nevertheless we're happy to have skipped the car, as otherwise we would have missed the beautiful views of the lake, which accompanied us almost the whole time. While Eric takes a short break, I look for the starting point for the return journey. As soon as I find it, Eric catches up with me and tells me that we were just offered a ride back to town by a tour group. Music to my ears. We even get to enjoy the last few minutes of the guided tour, find out that the Star Trek actor Chris Pine was here, and get to see a huge telescope before we can take our seats on the bus. Something like this only happens in New Zealand - when do you ever get such a nice offer without asking for it back home in Germany.