On our final morning in Wanaka, it was a dreary, grey day. We’re lucky we got in some good ski days before that. Before departing, we stopped at the famous Wanaka Tree, known for being one of the most photographed trees in the world. Although the weather was grim, it was still a beautiful site and a nice place to skip rocks.

After leaving the Southern Alps of New Zealand, we drove northeast back toward Oamaru where we had our homestays. Near there is one of the maraes, a Maori meeting and community house, for the South Island principal Maori tribe (also known as iwi) called Ngāi Tahu. We loved spending the day there learning about Maori culture, customs, and history from two local Maoris named Wendy and Teware. In our conversations, we touched on so many topics, not only about Maori culture but also comparing and contrasting life in New Zealand and the United States, current issues, the environment and climate change, and so much more. Juliette helped spearhead some of this conversation for her passion project. We loved the exchange of thoughts and ideas. We then had a big sleep over on the floor of the marae using mattress foam pads and sleeping bags. Many of us felt like we were at camp — it was a fun experience!

The next morning, we said goodbye to our friends at the marae and left for Christchurch. We went to the mall to walk around and then split into two groups to see the Lion King and Spider Man: Far From Home. We hit the hay early since we had to wake up at 3:45 AM to catch our flight to Australia! We first flew to Sydney, then connecting to Hamilton Island, and finally taking a ferry to Airlie Beach, where we will stay the night before boarding the sailboat tomorrow. We are all pretty exhausted from a long day of travel but excited for several days of sailing!

With that being said, you won’t hear from us on the blog until we’re back to land. We look forward to sharing our tales of Australia!

— Jaimie & Stephen