Day 18 – Interisland Ferry from Wellington to Picton – 10:14 am

This morning I boarded the 9 am Interisland ferry from Wellington to Picton. Thus ends my 1 week on the North Island and in 2 hours I will land on the South Island and begin my final 3 weeks in New Zealand. My original intention was to stay in Picton tonight and proceed to Nelson tomorrow. However, after talking with multiple people, there was a consensus that there is not much to see in Picton.  Instead I will board a 2.5 hour bus ride to Nelson this afternoon.

Yesterday afternoon I booked my hostel in Nelson. It received tremendous reviews on Hostel World and it’s within walking distance to the center of Nelson. Once again, I’ll be staying in a 4-person shared room. I’m staying in Nelson until November 24. During that time I hope to take a day trip to Abel Tasman if possible and explore Nelson itself.

The weather in Wellington yesterday was rainy and windy. It provided a great opportunity to take care of the not-so-glamourous aspects of traveling: laundry and booking hostels and transportation. Most importantly, I calculated my finances thus far. Right now, I’m averaging $53/day. That includes the Alpine Crossing and a local flight within New Zealand; both costing more than I expected. Take those 2 items away and I’m well below my goal spending per day.

I’d also like to point out one particular subscriber (you know who you are) who apparently raves about the way I describe the food I eat, in particular my peanut butter sandwiches. It was never my intention to make the food a central part of these posts; but, I’m glad someone appreciates my descriptions. I promise to make this person a hand-crafted peanut butter sandwich upon my return to the States.

Be sure to check out the photographs from Wellington I uploaded to the New Zealand portfolio section on the Perpetual Footsteps homepage.