After Hopewell, I made my way to Golden Bay. The road from Nelson to Takaka is…quite interesting to say the least. I talked to someone who counted all the bends and he came to about 300! It’s a very windy road and I was very groggy! But I survived and lived to tell.
I first stayed in Collingwood for a few days and took a tour to Farewell Spit. It’s not possible for regular tourists to go to the end of the Spit because it’s a protected area, but this organisation had special permission. It was beautiful! Absolutely beautiful! The weather was amazing, we were very lucky with that. The guide was awesome, he knew so much and told the stories with some humour thrown in the mix. The scenery was so gorgeous, I thoroughly enjoyed myself that day! What I also liked is that there was no rush. Sure we had so much time for a break, so much time for lunch, but we got back an hour late and it was no problem.
After Collingwood, I stayed in Takaka for a few days. I really disliked the hostel very much. The owner was friendly, but there was so much wrong with that place in my eyes, that I regretted my decision to stay there for three nights instead of two. I was glad when the time came for me to leave.
Then it was time to head to Nelson. I really like Nelson a lot. It did mean however that I had to go over that windy road again. Such joys when you’re travelling, lol! But I made it to Nelson in one piece and I don’t know what it is, but I just really like this city! The people in my dormroom were so nice, we chatted heaps. The next day I went to the Saturday market. I really love going over it and checking out the arts and crafts. I bought a few things as well. There is a food stall that sells ‘Dutch oliebollen’….I use quotation marks because they are so wrong! The mixture, the preparation, everything about them is just wrong. Needless to say I didn’t spend three dollars on a ‘Dutch apple donut’ (like what even?) and bought a crêpe at the stall next door. But yeah, I enjoyed my time in Nelson a lot. Spent a lot of time in the Bead Gallery, making all sorts of bracelets and other cool things. Unfortunately, they are in the process of closing down. They said the summers are good, but in the winters they have to scrape by and I can imagine that’s hard when you run a business. I didn’t do much else besides relaxing, working with beads and enjoying my time in the city. I will be back, for sure!
Alive and Trekking 