Day 41 - Oamaru

I was actually able to observe the two penguins that live under the kitchen of the place up close yesterday, as they went from the beach, which is about 50 meters in front of the campsite, to their nest. I had never seen wild penguins from such a short distance before. Unfortunately, they quickly disappeared when about 30 Asians approached the little creatures from an uncomfortably short distance. With such noise from the tourists, I would also have quickly disappeared into my invisible hiding place.

By chance, I met Markus, the Austrian cyclist in Oamaru today while shopping. We agreed to have a beer at the nearby brewery in Oamaru. I spent the rest of the day until evening doing laundry and taking a walk. Similar to some places on the North Islands, the architectural impression of the British colonial era is impressive. Many small, narrow streets with old stone buildings that do not fit the style of the 'newer' cityscapes. In the brewery, besides Markus and me, Owen from Canada also joined us. Owen has also been cycling the Alps2Ocean Trail in the past few days. The three of us had a really fun evening at the brewery before we went to a nearby bar with 3 others, where a small concert by a New Zealand songwriter was supposed to take place. It was the first time I was out in New Zealand in the evening outside the campsite. When we arrived at the bar, Owen, who could be about 55 years old, could sing along to many songs. It turned into a kind of cover concert, but it was really good! It was a great evening! Tomorrow I'm going to Christchurch, where I'll spend a night in a hotel! I've been looking forward to this for the entire trip. After 6 weeks of camping in 'wind and weather', a night in a hotel comes at the right time before I rent a car from Monday. This will mark a new phase of my New Zealand journey. With the car, I will drive back to Auckland in the next 11 days, and then my return flight to Germany is already scheduled.