We picked up our new rental car on Wednesday morning. As Anne said, I won the argument and we're touring the South Island by car, rather than being sociable and getting the "Magic Bus", a backpackers' touring bus. I've bought a converter enabling me to plug my CD player into the cassette deck, which means we can travel through lovely countryside listening to I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue.
We first drove to Hanmer Springs. We wouldn't have been able to go there on the bus! (Well, it would have been harder.) This is a thermal springs resort set in alpine scenery. We sat in hot sulfurous pools and looked at the snow-capped mountains for a few hours. It was bloody lovely. We were too dozy to move after that.
When you're feeling dozy it's a good idea to drive for ninety minutes, so this I now did. We drove the scenic route to Kaikoura, our first overnight stop. Known as a place to go whale watching, we'd decided not to do this (having done it in Australia). Instead, this morning we went for a long walk around the peninsula. The views are just great. There are big snow-capped mountains, rolling hills, lush meadows, sheep and cows too. I felt like a Von Trapp.
The view from the kitchen and lounge in our hostel is just amazing (click the link there). We're right on the bay, and the mountains are across the water. A bonus is that the weather's been great since we left Christchurch. The view here is often obscured by clouds, we hear. Not at the moment - clear blue skies all the way!
So far, I like New Zealand.