Today we took the ferry from Wellington to Picton. We slept in, took a taxi to the ferry terminal in stormy, rainy weather. The taxi driver mentioned that this weather was relatively normal here and that the cyclone 'Gita', two weeks ago, was at most a small storm in Wellington. A funny guy, the taxi driver. We arrived at the BlueBridge Terminal right on time for check-in at 12:30pm. We checked in three backpacks and looked forward to the crossing to Picton. We mentally said goodbye to the North Island and let our thoughts wander about our experiences at Tongariro, Taupo, Auckland, Tairua... Then came the announcement that the ferry would be delayed by almost 2 hours due to bad weather. Great, our time on the North Island was extended! The other 50 passengers in the waiting room of the small terminal also took the news calmly. Vacation is good for the soul :) We boarded the ship around 3pm and found two comfortable seats in the cinema. What was showing later? A movie about Christopher Robin, but it wasn't really Winnie-the-Pooh-like, it was quite serious... The second movie was with Robert de Niro, who as a retiree gets a trendy lifestyle store running again after some problems - quite entertaining, at least we could occasionally watch it and get right back into the plot. What else was there? At the beginning, after leaving the Picton harbour, sick bags were distributed and around us they were being filled well. Cool waves!! (according to Jörg) We spent the 4 1/2 hour journey (one hour longer than normal) writing blog posts, people-watching, dozing, and eating :) When we arrived, it was almost dark, but at least it was dry! So we climbed up the little hill where our accommodation 'Harbour Heights' was located. We were greeted very kindly, had a cup of tea with the owner of the house, and packed our backpacks for the upcoming mountain bike tour! Goodbye North Island, hello South Island! Waiting Time Compensation CookieTangaroa and Tawhirimatea couldn't agree, in front of the terminalJanina in the ship cinemaThe movie screenThe galleyFeasting!!!Port of Picton
