Today has been a funny day really. We intended to get out there and see a bit of stuff but it’s really so freezing here that it’s hard to motivate yourself to go out. Despite this we were up early and had a fry up for breakfast before setting off for Otago Peninsula to see the rare yellow eyed penguins, the royal albatross and a seal colony in the wild.

What a disappointment it all turns out to be, we get there and find that the beaches where the wildlife live are owned by farmers who charge what we think is an extortionate amount of money to go and see them. The cost to see the penguins only was 120 dollars and as its icy cold my reaction is basically stuff it up your arse, we can live without seeing them. It is a shame though and we would have happily paid maybe half of that but still, our loss perhaps!

We were told that there are some public beaches on the peninsula where we can possibly see the penguins for free but when we head there we can see from above that the penguins aren’t there and in the end give up. A bit of a waste of time but we have seen some beautiful scenery on the way around the peninsula on the way so all wasn’t lost!

We drive for a few hours to the town of Gore. There isn’t much here although a sign proclaims it to be “The capital of brown trout fishing and country music” – help. We book into a motel which is a really nice place but rather chilly and leave the kids with strict instructions to keep pressing the button on the heater which has a half hour timer on it. Damn them!

The travellers we have met in New Zealand definitely seem to like a few luxuries and everyone us including us carries around any number of large grocery bags. So much for the image of penniless backpackers living on beans on toast, we’ve seen some tasty creations being put together in the kitchens of hostels and we’re no exception. Getting all we need for roast beef with yams and pumpkin, we want some decent food due to the wintry weather and are sick of eating take out. (A miracle for me)

Just watched a program on the telly- “The man with the largest penis in the world”. The highlight of the day.