I had hoped to have a beautiful view of the alps this morning with sunrise, but it’s gray and raining outside when I wake up. I decide to start driving, since there is not so much else to do here.

I drive to the first small town and stop at a coffee place, called The Shack. A friendly woman takes my order and brings me a nice cappuccino and a muffin. Inside the coffee place is music playing softly and some local people come in an drink coffee at another table. I haven’t found good coffee so much yet here in New Zealand, but the cappuccino here this morning is delicious, perhaps the best I’ve had so far. I brought a book with me and start reading. What a nice start of the day.

After staying for a while in the Shack, I drive to a place called Edoras in Lord of the Rings. It’s Mount Sunday, a really familiar landscape. The drive there is pretty heavy, since it’s more than half an hour on gravel roads, but it’s a good practice for my driving skills. Unfortunately it’s still raining when I arrive, but I don’t let that stop me from hiking the small mountain. It’s a beautiful walk where I have to cross a few small rivers and then have to walk uphill. It is so enormous wide here. Fields stretched out until the mountains. This is the landscape I expected to see in New Zealand and I love it.

After almost two hours walking I arrive back at the car and start driving again. Sadly it keeps raining the whole day and I drive until it gets dark. The weather here is typical Dutch the last week, lots of rain and grey skies. I don’t mind it too much, but I do hope it’ll get better soon, because that would allow for more and longer hikes and better pictures.