03/05/2018 - Shipwreck and Dream Beaches

There are nights in New Zealand when you can hardly close your eyes due to rain showers. You know exactly that the next morning you will be greeted by a lake surrounding the car. That's exactly how the day started at the campsite in "Blenheim". Since the rain just wouldn't let up and we wanted to store our belongings at least somewhat dry, a solution had to be found. In New Zealand, you can only find a few covered parking spaces. But Blenheim had exactly one underground parking garage and that's where we went! We were pretty early, so there wasn't much going on yet and we could quickly shake out our bed. While doing so, we observed that even the Kiwis were seeking shelter from the rain. Right next to us, two locals arranged to swap their trailers here out of necessity.
Armed with an umbrella, we strolled through the Sunday market. We bought all kinds of fruits and vegetables for the next few days. Surprisingly, we got away pretty cheap. A big bag of Feijoas only cost us $3/1.80€.
With the car fully packed, we continued driving to "Nelson". The fifth largest city in New Zealand is beautifully situated by the sea and welcomed us with glorious sunshine. We took this opportunity to spread out and sort our entire shell haul from the past few days. - The question often comes to our mind: How will all of our stuff that we gather or buy here ever fit back into the suitcase when we return home?! We'll think about that more closely when the time comes. ;)
In Nelson, we felt like having homemade cake. So, we inaugurated the newly purchased baking dish for this venture. Once again, without the help of scales or anything similar, we baked with a good feeling. Initially, we were a little unsure, the oven was no bigger than a microwave - our baking dish just barely fit in the tube. After 45 minutes, the tension eased and we took the crumb cake out - it looked fully baked and quite delicious. However, we resisted the temptation and let the cake cool down until the next morning on the dashboard of the car.
The next day after breakfast, we cut a thin slice and tasted it. For some, it may be a delicious baked good, but for us, it was a little taste of home.

We didn't stay in Nelson any longer since we will pass through again due to our travel route.
Our next stop was the 50km north located "Motueka". The city is the focal point of numerous fruit orchards. Therefore, it was no surprise that the new campsite was right next to a kiwi plantation. Exciting to see the hairy fruits dangling in the hedges.

At this time, the kiwi prices were outrageously cheap. Harvest time was in full swing and the kilogram was offered for $2/1.19€.

Motueka had an important trading port for a long time. A ship sank there and since then it adorns the bay. During low tide, the section is exposed enough that you can even enter it. However, at our time of visit, the tide was rising. This invited for long-exposure photography. The wreck is an old two-master that was also used by the military. There is currently a discussion whether the ship named "Janie Seddon" should be removed.
After that, we strolled through the city center for a while. It mainly consists of a large main shopping street, so we arrived early at the new campsite. We washed clothes and bedding for the remaining day. After the laundry had dried on the clothesline, folded and the bed was freshly made, an important phone call was due. The previous days we had been in contact with the German travel agency by email, which is taking care of our flights. It was time to book a return flight. The official date was decided on the phone. We will leave New Zealand in mid-October and fly back home. - Even though the feeling of a final expiration date, which did not exist in our minds until now, was unfamiliar and we didn't want to accept it, we still have plenty of time to get to know the country better.

Said and done. We started today with great motivation to continue traveling. With the car fully fueled for the upcoming road trip, we were ready to go. We drove towards "Abel Tasman National Park". This part of New Zealand attracts with lonely bays and dreamy sandy beaches. We found one of them in "Little Kaiteriteri". The sandy beach was yellow, almost golden, the water brilliantly blue, and the location was beautiful. Any cold we had felt in the past month was forgotten. Shorts and a t-shirt were the right choice of clothing for this dream beach. We strolled along the beach and climbed a small lookout point at the left end of the bay. From here, we had a nice overview of Little Kaiteriteri and the neighboring village of "Kaiteriteri". This one also had a long sandy beach. The two beaches are separated by a large rock, on which we were at the moment. On the way back to the car, we found various intact shells. We will remember this beautiful spot for a very long time.
After a short drive, we passed by another lookout point, which offered a nice view of the bays of the two towns. New Zealand presented us with a completely new side of itself! The coastal region is very different from the rest of the country and invites you to explore.
Next, we visited the must-see landscape of the region. After a winding car ride and a ten-minute walk, you reach the "Split Apple Rock". The pictures will explain exactly why the rock is named that. When we arrived at the beach, we were completely alone. We searched the section of the beach for the perfect photo position. Just as we had found the spot, a group of kayakers paddled into the picture. Patiently, we waited until the cheerful paddling community continued their excursion.
In the early evening, we reached the entrance gate of Abel Tasman National Park - "Marahau". We parked the car at the assigned parking space and enjoyed the view of the sea after a beautiful day.