We got up early Saturday morning to catch the Interislander Ferry to the South Island.(The man taking our ticket said, "Five passengers? Lovely." It was great. I mean, lovely.)
This ship, whoa. These people just know how to please! There was a family area with TV's, play area, video games, and they even passed out activity/coloring books and crayons. They offered a cinema and a large playground on the lower decks. There was a cafe, a bar, and a food court, reclining seats, and an observation deck. Not to mention the hundred or so cars and trucks riding beneath us.
And the scenery was stunning as well.
My favorite thing: the "nursery" rooms. Private rooms open for anyone who needs to nurse their baby and put him/her to sleep. The room had a changing table, armchair, bathroom, and crib!My other favorite thing: Nigel Kennedy, the in-house magician who showed up to entertain the kids for an hour, then passed out balloon animals. He was great! I mean, lovely.
The "Big Kiwi Breakfast": toast, hashbrowns, sausages, bacon, eggs, grilled tomatoes, and tomato sauce (which is ketchup-ish).Anyway, we disembarked in Picton, got our new rental car, and headed west. We stayed at Baker's Lodge in Motueka that night, a former bakery renovated into a backpackers lodge, (I liked the nice large kitchen and inviting patio space.)
That evening we drove up to Abel Tasman National Park and did the longest hike we could manage.
Hiking has always been a nice time for us to talk, and now we do it with our kids. We have a great family. I mean, lovely.
These birds are called moa's. But they're extinct.
4 comments:
so, i'm curious-- how long of a hike CAN you guys manage with three young kids? we tried it with all three kids for the first time a few months ago and realized even 2 miles was pushing it when you've got a whiny four year old! hope your kids are much tougher than mine!
You're making me so incredibly jealous! I miss NZ; gotta get back there soon. I love reading about your trip!
Those nursery rooms are a great (I mean lovely) idea! Why don't they have those in more places?
You DO have a lovely family. Quite right. Hiking is one of my favorite things to do with my husband, too--we went hiking on our first date, in fact. And Xander is a pretty high-endurance low-whine hiker. And Elodie isn't, but she's small enough to fit in a backpack still.
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