April 22nd, New Zealand Day 7

On this day, our travels took us back through the heart of the South Island and back to Christchurch. It also signalled the end of the tour for those who had only signed up for the 6-day component. There were only a few and we would not be taking anyone else on board the tour, as sometimes happens as there is another 6-day North Island component.

The day began with trip to the tiny Lake Matheson for in its reflection you can see the peaks of New Zealand's 2 highest peaks, Aoraki/Mt. Cook and Mt. Tasman. Luckily the Fates decreed that the day should be sunny and when we arrived early that morning to Lake Matheson, we were greeted by fine mist which created a nice effect. The hike to the viewing point on Lake Matheson was quite easy and when we arrived, we were treated to a spectacular view. The lake was completely still except for the occasional ripple but I still managed to get the 2 mountains and their reflections in the lake.

After leaving Lake Matheson we did not stop until we reached the town of Hokitika (HOH-kee-tee-kah) on the Tasman Sea coast. It is home to some fine jade workshops, which is fairly common on the South Island. The original European inhabitants were not aware that the green mineral found was actually jade, being of a different type than the more famous Chinese variety, and so they simply called it "greenstone" and the name has stuck in New Zealand. The Maori name for jade is "pounamu" (pohw-NAH-moo) and it is so important to them that they call the South Island "Te Pounamu", "Land of the Greenstone/Jade", in their language.

I wandered Hokitika and eventually made my way to the beach where there was a fantastic surf. A nautical term of the white foam that the waves create is called "stampeding horses" for a number of reasons. Firstly, "stampeding cows" or "stampeding chickens" just doesn't have the same ring and secondly, if you use your imagination, the foam does actually look like the manes of wild horses in full gallop. If you think back to the scene where Arwen raises the Anduin at the Fords of Bruinen to wash away the Nazgul, you should remember that the flood's leading edge foam came in the form of horses. I wonder if this is a coincidence, did Tolkien know of the term "stampeding horses" or is it just an invention of Peter Jackson, director of The Lord of the Rings, or one of his associates and did they know about the nautical expression?

After Hokitika, we drove through the Arthur's Pass, again flanked on either side by towering mountains. Eventually, as the day wore on, the familiar site of the Canterbury Plain came into view and we drove into Christchurch. We stayed at the Camelot Cathedral Hotel which is adjacent to the Base Backpackers Hostel I stayed in my first night. That evening, to toast those leaving the tour at that point, we all went out to inner at a local pub/restaurant. On the television there, I watched the All Blacks, New Zealand's national rugby team play Australia. The All Blacks performed the Maori haka (HAH-kah), a war dance, that they always do before any match. There will be more on the haka later on. Unfortunately, the Kiwis lost but it was a good game nonetheless. Again we all went to sleep knowing that tomorrow meant a new day of travel and I took note of the fact that this marked the half-way point of my tour, where it was half over, but there was still half to come.

Photos are now available at: http://newzealandday7.blogspot.com/