Nelson – Greymouth

The three hour ferry ride took us from Wellington to Picton. It was pleasant especially since the rental car company had booked us in luxury (I wonder if we paid extra for that?) We were in a special cabin with free food and beverages, comfortable lounge chairs, splendid views, and separation from most of the other passengers. I took advantage of the quiet time and read my book while Mike switched between taking pictures and watching/listening to his Zune.
Upon arrival, we immediately hit the road again with destination, Nelson, programmed in our TomTom. (The TomTom had been behaving much better since our arrival, with the only irritation being it doesn’t necessarily find the satellite right away when we turn it on. I wonder if that has something to do with New Zealand’s location on the globe?) It directed us on a ‘short cut’ which took us on a windy scenic tour of the northwest coastline. I’m sure it would have been quicker than the highway if I could maneuver the hairpin turns at the designated speed limit of 100 kph. Realistically, it was more like 25 - 45 kph and Mike was still complaining of an upset stomach partway through. The views were awesome and the drive was thrilling so I didn’t mind.
A couple hours later we landed in Nelson. Immediately the city appealed to us. We took a quick driving tour of the area before settling on a motel at the entrance to the city center. We booked for one evening and then began walking into town to grab an afternoon snack. Over a sampling of breads and dips we discussed our afternoon and following day’s plans and easily decided we wanted to stick to the area for an extra day. We lazily wandered back to the motel, picking up some locals wines on the way, and then stopped at Reception to extend our reservation.
We made dinner plans at a local seafood restaurant located on the marina based on recommendations made by our host. The food and atmosphere did not disappoint and topped the day off nicely. We slept in the next morning and dragged ourselves out of bed with intent to visit the outdoor market and area wineries. We spent much longer than we should have wandering the neighborhoods in search of the acclaimed market before finally stopping at a gasstation to inquire to its location. (I thought I had a general idea based on our guide’s description). Unfortunately, the day’s weather had canceled it (it was rainy) so there would be no market (no wonder I couldn’t find it!). At least we can say we thoroughly toured the city. 
We went to the Grape Escape to taste some wines. It was Mike and my first winery tasting so we weren’t quite sure what the procedure was. I must say, it’s much more straight forward with Breweries. With breweries you walk in, buy a ticket, they give you a tour, tell you how the beer is brewed and then you use up your tickets on glasses of beer. The winery was not as obvious. We eventually figured out that we pay per taste. You select the wines to taste with the host and your selection is limited to those bottles opened. Should you choose to buy a bottle, the tasting is free. We enjoyed the activity especially the conversation with the hostess who was an immigrant from Italy, and did walk away with a few bottles of wine. Mike even figured out that he is a fan of Riesling wines.
Our next plans took us to Greymouth with a quick stop in Punakaiki along the way. Our host in Rotorua had strongly recommended we make a point to stop at the Pancake Rocks in the area. The rock formations are layers of limestone formed by the ocean that include blowholes that come alive at high tide. Unfortunately, our timing was off so we could not see the blow holes in action but the view was still awesome. We made our way onwards to Greymouth in time to go on a tour of the Montieth’s brewery. The tour ended with tastings of their famous brews and a quick trip through the gift shop. We of course, could not walk away empty handed.
We booked a hotel for the evening and spent the afternoon discovering just how empty Greymouth was in the fall/winter months. The city was deserted. The shops were closing early and hardly any restaurants were open for dinner. We ended up finding one, ate, and then retired to our room. Tomorrow, we’ll continue in the general direction of Queenstown.