The Cook Strait

Our apologies if the last post was rather dull, perhaps it represented the day we had, we expect this to be much better. The people of Wellington refer to it as " The Coolest Little City in The World", a bold claim which we set out to investigate by eating out on Cuba Street last night, the atmosphere and food stood the test.
This morning was to be the day that we reached what has always been the ultimate destination of this adventure, the South Island and it was more promising: drier, warmer and calmer. Mount Victoria offers far reaching views over the city including the airport, well known for its runway with ocean at both ends and what appears to be about 10 metres of clearance!

The rest of the morning was spent along the waterfront, a very interesting mix of old and new, warehouses, bars and restaurants, the museum and some funky art/sculpture.

We boarded the M/V Straitsman and set sail, fortunately the winds were low and we had a following sea and a very pleasant journey, this stretch of water can be extremely rough. The channel into Picton weaves through the islands of Queen Charlotte Sound, steep fingers of land jut out into the sea. It is a dramatic way to arrive but it was to get better on the short drive to Havelock, as we reached the summit the sun came out on cue and the view below was inspiring.

This little port is the green mussel capital of the world, and the area (Marlborough) is also home to some of the finest Sauvignon Blanc, what more could one ask for? Did you know that you can tell the sex of a mussel by the colour? Males are creamy white and females are pinky apricot, that should be easy to remember. Fish dinner at The Mussel Pot, not to be missed.