All good vacations must eventually come to an end. We are glad that the "end zone" for our South Island adventure was in Motueka. It was a really fun town, and the Motueka Top 10 Holiday Park was our favorite overall accommodation on the South Island. Last the best!
We loved our campsite. It had big trees, tons of shade and grass, and was situated across from a playground, a kitchen/bathroom complex, and a big bouncy pillow. Maybe not an ideal spot for some folks, but it was absolutely perfect for our family.
All of that was fine and nice, but the most popular feature, without question, was the swimming pool! Even though swimming in the ocean is awesome, there's nothing quite like a crowded pool, with the sweet scent of chlorinated water and the realization that you're soaking in the shared bodily fluids of dozens of complete strangers. :)
One really fun feature about this holiday park was Movie Time. There was a large building on the property with a massive kitchen area on the lower level, and upstairs there was a conference room with a huge screen and lots of couches and chairs. Two movies played each night, at 5 and 8. The movies were all different and all kid-friendly.
What goes better with a movie than pizza? Well, except for maybe popcorn...which is pretty much the best thing ever........
Oh, sorry, I was fantasizing about popcorn and lost my train of thought! Back to the pizza -- check out this awesome wood-fired pizza grill! This cute gal set up her portable oven every evening and produced some pretty dang delicious pizza. Yum!
That kitchen and covered eating area was the bomb. We used the grill one morning to cook up a big pancake breakfast...a requirement for any proper Caldwell/Scothern camping experience.
And naturally, what better to do after eating a million pancakes than jump on the bouncy pillow as a family?!
See Cameron suspended in the air on that last photo? Within only a few moments, after we grown-ups had made our way back to the tents, we heard a loud cry from the direction of the bouncy pillow and discovered that Cameron had landed weird and really hurt his knee. :( If you know Cam, he's not much of a complainer. He's got a very tender heart, but is at the same time pretty stinkin' tough when it comes to pain and/or illness. So, when he was moaning and couldn't bear weight on his leg, we were really worried. After examination, Steve was confident that there wasn't anything broken. Still, it was a serious sprain and Cameron limped and winced for the next few days.
The weather was absolutely lovely in Motueka and we hardly saw a cloud let alone any raindrops. It was so nice to sit around camp and visit with each other, reminiscing about our awesome trip.
Cameron has been wearing this shirt for over two years. Julia looked closely and discovered something a little off that none of us have ever noticed before. Do you see it? Funny. I bought that shirt at the Snowbasin gift shop and spent 25 dollars for it!
After two beautiful days and nights, it was time to tear down camp for the last time. Nights 11 & 12, some of the best of the trip!
After a harrowing drive back to Picton, covering a stretch of mountainous road so curvy and narrow that we were all praying for our safety, we arrived on time to take the ferry back to the North Island.
After a two-hour drive home to Palmy from Wellington, we were so relieved to discover that the only "casualty" of the earthquake was that the mirror in our entryway had fallen down, breaking the vase beneath it. Considering the more extensive damage that some of our friends had experienced, we were lucky.
So, there you have it. I never imagined that my report of our South Island trip would take up so many posts! Hope you've enjoyed them. Needless to say, if you ever have the opportunity to visit the South Island of New Zealand for yourself, take it!
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