Ditching a class early from uni on Friday, I made my way to the domestic terminal of the Auckland airport. I was expecting the standard large airport waits and security so I got to the airport at 2 for my 3:45 flight. Well, I was unnecessarily early. Security consisted of an X-ray scanner for my bags and walking through one for myself as well. I took my phone and wallet from my pockets and walked through, no need to take off my sweatshirt or boots. My carry on backpack had a full liter of water in it in my - unsealed - nalgene bottle. Whatever, not a problem. Security took 5 minutes. Not even that long. Wow. So, I had plenty of time at the gate which had nothing more than a vending machine and a check in counter leading to a door to the tarmac. All of the food and restaurants were outside of the security checkpoint. Wow, domestic flights are easy here. The only downside is that they are super strict on carry on weight and sizes since the domestic planes are so small. Well, an entire hour and fifty minutes later we landed in Dunedin and walked off, onto the tarmac into an even smaller terminal. Flying almost the entire length of the country took under 2 hours!
Paul picked the five of us University of Auckland students up and had three other study abroad students, from an earlier program who are currently studying in Otago University, in the car already and we headed to dinner. Dinner was fresh fish and chips from a local restaurant and we ate at Pauls father-in-laws house before heading an hour south to the Catlins to the farm where we would be spending most of the weekend. The rest of the night was spent getting to know each other and eating delicious biscuits and tea while watching rugby in the comfort of a welcoming southern home.
Saturday morning we awoke and had a filling breakfast before heading to our adventure for the morning. We went on a horseback ride through a friend's farm to Surat Bay Scenic Reserve where we got to ride on the beach and see some of the beauty of the South Island. They let us spread out and I got to work on some of my horseback riding skills and horse control on Mick, my horse for the morning. I could use some work, but at least I can ride and steer successfully still. From the beach we went up a hill so we could see around the area from a better vantage point and wow it was gorgeous.
Following the ride we went back to the farm house and had lunch on the patio looking out over their property. The farm we stayed at is an organic meat farm that has 1,100 acres of land, with 1,000 cattle, and about 3,000 sheep. After a hearty lunch we all piled into the back of the pick up truck and went around the property while Grant, our host, demonstrated some herding as he moved sheep and cows from paddock to paddock. It was amazing to watch how he and the three dogs could move the sheep around so quickly. They rounded up and shifted about 800 sheep in a matter of minutes before we continued on. While watching this we had to take in the view from the top of their property, with rolling hills and white, sheep spotted countryside all around us. It was gorgeous!
After the farm tour we went into one of the sheds and saw the sheep sheering facilities and sheep gates to organize and divide them. After a demonstration of proper sheering technique we got to try our hand with the buzzer while Grant held the sheep still for us. It's certainly a lot tougher than I had imagined and I am incredibly impressed at how someone can sheer a sheep in under a minute.
Following the lesson we showered and relaxed around the house for a bit more before supper. Supper was a home made feast. It consisted of muffins and veggies and the most delicious lamb I have ever had. It was a leg of lamb from one of the lamb's from the farm, and it was amazing.The remainder of the evening we hung out and made friends with our new acquaintances and hosts before heading to bed for an early wake up. Sunday morning was a painful awakening at 5:30 so we could get to Nugget Point for sunrise. The point was certainly beautiful, with rocks in the ocean that give it its iconic name. And, once the sun came up we even got to see some baby seals playing in a little pool on the cliffside. Afterwards we had a quick lunch and went to a local hike to Purakaunui Falls where we hiked and explored. Our last stop of the trip was to this local gadgety shop.
This guy created all these cool little doodads and doohickeys that are his tinkerings and inventions. All sorts of things that run off of crank wheels to little music machines to circuit boards that lined the ceiling. It was really cool to see such creativity and craftsmanship. Finally, we went to Dunedin and had delicious and massive scoops of Tip Top, a kiwi ice cream, ice cream before heading to the airport to return to Auckland for the last week of school before mid semester break.What a great way to procrastinate on my tests.
