Queenstown, the eighth wonder of the world and almost the Antarctic

Hello,
on New Year's morning we fortunately slept well and long so that we did not regret the morning of the rainy day. In the late morning, we went to shower, shop and visit Queenstown. We walked along the promenade and saw many small and large boats, expensive restaurants and exclusive shops. When it started raining again, we decided to make our way to the next campground. The road ran alongside the long lake, but the mountains disappeared due to the many clouds and rain. Our overnight spot was right by the water, but we were forced to spend the evening playing board games and cooking in the van because of the weather. The next morning, the sky cleared up a bit and we continued driving over Te Anau towards the north into a 100 km long valley. In the afternoon, we reached a hiking trail that led to the high-altitude glacier lake Marian. The climb passed by the roaring mountain river, numerous streams, and tree roots. When we reached the lake, we were greeted with a phenomenal view. The descent was much easier and after a short drive, we found a campground by a babbling little river. We enjoyed dinner in the last rays of the sun. Early the next morning, we ventured to the end of the long valley, Milford Sound. This is a fjord and one of the rainiest regions on Earth. Once we found a parking spot, we took the bus shuttle to the harbor. A boat tour was quickly booked and soon we were on our way. The tour took us through the fjord, between huge snow-capped mountains, and out to the sea. Julia even got to see dolphins and on a large rock, we saw seals sunning themselves in the wild. After the impressive tour, we admired the small planes and helicopters at the airport among the rocks. They came and went every minute, because the view and the approach from the air must be something special at this place. For us, the journey took us back through the valley and then further south to the sea. In the evening, we found a place to stay by the roaring ocean. The wind made it impossible to cook outside, so we rested in the van. Today, we continued along the east coast towards the east. We took a walk to a lighthouse and even saw a baby seal near the water. A few kilometers further, we admired a cliff coast with huge waves, on which a large bay with a fine sandy beach lay. According to the signs, penguins are supposed to live in this area, but unfortunately, we could not spot them. Before we reached our overnight spot at an impressive bay, we made a short detour to a high-altitude waterfall in the forest. Tomorrow we will continue along the east coast to the north.
See you,
Malia