01/02/2018 - Camera repair in Timaru

We have arrived on the East Coast of the South Island - in Timaru. One big highlight of the city is definitely the little blue penguins, which nest on the public beach. On the day of our arrival, we visited them - we were so excited to see the little penguins. Every day, at sunset, these cute creatures waddle out of the sea after a hard day of foraging for food, and search for their nests among the rocks on the edge of the beach. Visitors watch them from the road. Fortunately, there are volunteers who keep some of the more inconsiderate tourists in check. The penguins are very shy and as soon as a person gets too close, they disappear back into the water, leaving their hungry chicks in the nest.
When we reached the spot where we could observe both the rocks and the beach, we immediately spotted a young penguin sitting in its nest. The fluffy bird kept peeking out from between the rocks until it disappeared completely. Soon after, more penguins emerged from the water. It was truly entertaining to watch them make their way out of the sea - or perhaps it would be better to say struggle? Because they were often knocked over by the waves, even though they had just managed to stand up. But once they overcame this hurdle, they waddled across the beach to their chicks. Upon reaching the rocks, the little blue penguins ran from one shady spot to another, trying not to stay in the light for too long. We watched this spectacle for a while, and more and more penguins made their way to their nests. As the spectators slowly disappeared, we were able to observe two penguins in peace. They were standing in a protected area, behind a barrier. They are also small, cute dwarves. :)
The cold wind became increasingly uncomfortable. Around 11 p.m., we headed back to the campsite. Our nest was reached after a 20-minute walk in the darkness.

The next day, we first visited a photography store. Our DSLR camera had gotten very dirty during one of our beach visits. We couldn't clean it ourselves. After being unsuccessful in Christchurch, at least the staff member gave us an address. That's the exact place we went to today. After a brief inspection, it was clear - it would take several days and cost us 65 dollars. We submitted the camera and now we had to stay in Timaru longer than planned. We have to admit - we felt a bit uneasy handing over the camera. But the store seemed professional and the online reviews were consistently positive.
Without the camera, we continued to the city's botanical garden. On the way there, we noticed a very strange fog coming from the coast into the city. Every time a fog cloud passed over us, it became extremely cold. We could sometimes see barely 100 meters ahead. We had never experienced this weather phenomenon before.
The botanical garden is beautifully landscaped. We think it's great that many cities have botanical gardens that are completely free to visit. We explored the garden and came across a small pavilion. On the ground, we saw various painted stones with different drawings. One stone had the inscription: "Timaru Rocks". When we looked up the name on the internet, we found a large community on Facebook. If you want, you can paint some stones at home and distribute them in the park. People can take the stones or place them in new locations. They also serve to bring a smile to people's faces - and it worked for us. :) As we explored the rest of the park, we kept discovering more of these creative little pick-me-ups. Whether by the bird pond or under tree roots, the pretty stones were hidden everywhere. We think this initiative is fantastic, especially children have fun with it. In the pavilion, we met a family who were looking for their stones. The girl, probably around seven years old, found her painted stone and was thrilled.
We went back to the city center and visited the shopping street. In the evening, we had a Greek salad with feta - a special treat because the delicious sheep's milk cheese is very expensive here. ;)

Today would have been our departure day - but without the camera, that's not possible. So we extended our stay for two more nights and hoped that the camera would be cleaned by then.
The weather was wonderful - 30 degrees and blue sky. Today, we just wanted to relax. So we went to the Timaru swimming pool for the equivalent of 1.50€. We enjoyed the day at the outdoor pool. Of course, we got sunburned that day. No matter how often we applied sunscreen, the sun showed no mercy.

With a slight sunburn, the next morning we received a text message that our camera was ready and we could pick it up - yippieh!
Unfortunately, it was pouring rain that day (yes, the weather in New Zealand can change very quickly). We would have liked to test if the spots were still visible. For that, you need a bright background, like the blue sky. But we had a good feeling and hoped that our instincts wouldn't deceive us.
Due to the bad weather, we took refuge in the library that day. We continued to work on the blog and charged our electronics. As the weather improved in the afternoon, we went to the beach again. There is a lot to see here. First, we played a round of Frisbee golf, then we walked through the rose garden and visited a large aviary.

Overall, we can say that staying in Timaru for a few days is definitely worth it. One downside - State Highway 1 runs right through the small town, so it can get very noisy. But above all, we are most happy that the camera is spotless again and that we can continue our journey tomorrow.