South Island at last

After being on the North Island for the last 8 months we've eventually made it to the South.
Unfortunately the weather was really bad on the ferry crossing so we didn't get to see much of the Marlborough Sounds. After overnighting in Picton we headed straight for Hanmer Springs (we've to try to get to Christchurch in time for the World Cup final). The drive to Hanmer took us down the east coast which was really beautiful and through Kaikoura. Just outside the town of Kaikoura we passed a sign warning us that there might be Seals Crossing! How strange but we stopped the car to have a look and there they were - about 50 seal's lying back enjoying the sunshine.

Then we ran into a little adventure. We hadn't quite judged how much petrol was required to get from Kaikoura to Hanmer. Considering there's less then a million people on the Sth Isl there aren't exactly petrol stations everywhere. Left us in quite a predicament really as Hanmer was on the other side of the Southern Alps to Kaikoura - we ended up driving up hill and then turning off the engine to roll down the other side - had to do this for about 30 km's with the empty light on! We were both having a heart attack as all we saw during that 30 km's was snow and sheep!! Not to worry though, it was our lucky day and we made it to Hanmer. What a gorgeous little town (population 550). Great hostel, great pub, great people and the best hot springs we've been to. Sitting in the outdoor hot spas surrounded by snow capped mountains - heaven!