Kiwi-Land continues!

Well, shortly after my last post (the next day, as a matter of fact) Jeff and I went our separate ways once we reached Dunedin. I was fighting a cold, and not feeling my best, and he seemed to want to do what he wanted. So no hard feelings were felt, and we even went out to a pub that night and watched the All Blacks vs. France--in an Irish pub, of course. I'm starting to wonder why it is that Irish pubs are so universally popular and why, no matter where you are in the world, they all seem pretty identical: everything from the names, to the music, to the decor, to the Guinness paraphernalia. And never having been to Ireland, I can't compare them to the "original" but I imagine they're more of an idea, an imitation of what people think an Irish pub should be.

Any-hoo, back on topic: I stayed two nights in Dunedin, though the one full day I had there I spent most of the morning in bed, nursing my rotten cold. I felt bad for my roomies, as I was sniffling and blowing my nose all night. I promised them it wasn't swine flu, though, so they were fairly understanding :) I then went to the centre of Dunedin, the square that is called--wait for it--The Octagon. Because it is, in fact, octagonal (yes, I counted). The art gallery was free, so I went in for an hour or so, and I have to say, it was certainly worth the visit. On the main floor, they had a selection of 18th- and 19th- century European art and an exhibit of France Hodgkins, a 20th-century Kiwi artist. But the second floor had a selection of exhibits ranging from Russian icons to avant-garde Russian art to Iranian photography. It was a really neat selection, and small enough not to be overwhelming. Leaving the art gallery (and having had a cup of coffee--vital) I started walking towards Baldwin St., the "steepest street in the world." My map of the city didn't show it, just an arrow at the edge of the map saying, "This Way." So I started walking, and after nearly an hour I reached the edge of the map, and found another sign saying "Baldwin St., 1750m." As it was already 4 o'clock, I figured by the time I got there it would be nearly dark, so I turned around and went back. But as least I got a walk!

That was Sunday, so Monday I bought my bus pass and headed out to Te Anau, in Fiordland. But before my bus left in the afternoon, I did manage to squeeze in a visit and tour of the Cadbury's chocolate factory in Dunedin. Considering how expensive chocolate is here, and how good the prices were in the factory store, I was exceedingly restrained with my purchases -- and I still have most of it left! Shocking, I know. :)

Te Anau (rhymes with "Keanu") is a lovely little town on south end of Lake Te Anau, and the capital (if it can be termed such) of Fiordland, which includes most of the SW portion of the South Island. I took a cruise from Te Anau to Doubtful Sound, going by tender across Lake Manapouri, then by bus over the Wilmott pass, and down into Deep Cove and out into the Sound. According to the tourist postings, the Sound was named because Cap'n Cook was "doubtful" that if he sailed in he'd ever be able to sail out again. Not very original. The sea was calm enough that we were actually able to make it out the mouth of the sound, and we got to see NZ fur seals basking in the sun, and a couple of Buller's Mollymawks (the albatross's smaller cousin) chasing our boat in the hopes of scraps.

Also in Te Anau I met Janet, a firefighter from the 'Peg, who's travelling around NZ following the All Blacks. We had some great chats, and we both happened to be heading to Queenstown the next day and were staying in the same hostel there, too, so we ended up having wedges, pizza, and beer for dinner -- delish!