One Tonne of Chocolate

Who can take a sunrise

Sprinkle it with dew

Cover it in chocolate and a miracle or two

The Candy Man

The Candy Man can

The Candy Man can 'cause he mixes it with love

And makes the world taste good

- Sammy Davis Junior

Morning talks ...

Day 2 of our Dunedin and Oamaru tour saw us up early to clean the crib and get on the road. As I have mentioned in previous posts, we prefer to stay in small vacation cabins rather than hotels. On the North Island, these are called baches and in the South they are called cribs. We like the little bit of extra space and the ability to cook our meals at home. We generally have breakfast in the crib, eat out for lunch and dinner, and return to the crib in the evening for snacks, reading time, and games. For longer stays, we will usually plan a home-cooked meal or two and might even take a lazy/rain day and stay inside. Our current favourite game is Uno and Little H is a ruthless player.

We had driven up to the crib on Otakou the first night, but it was late in the evening and we only caught the fading sun. The harbour lit by the dying sun was beautiful, but in the morning light it was majestic.

 

Evening views

 

Morning from the porch

 

The scale is difficult to wrap your head around

On trips like this, there is way more to do than we can ever fit in. We try to have a list of things we would like to do and see, but no set agenda. We never know how long something might take and if the weather will cooperate. We did promise Little H a tour of the Cadbury Factory in Dunedin and luck was on our side once again. We walked in the factory doors and scored the last spots on the next tour. If we had missed that, it would have been 2 1/2 hours until a spot was available on another.

We had hopes and visions of a Willy Wonka world. The tour wasn't nearly as magical as that, and I don't really like chocolate or sweets that much, but it was still a chocolate factory and the sensory explosion was amazing. One cool feature was a 1000L/3800 gal "chocolate dump". Standing inside one of the silos in the dark, they turned on the lights and a cascade of chocolate fell from above. We didn't get any on us, but apparently it can be quite messy. Unfortunately, they do not allow phones or cameras in the factory.

 

1913 delivery truck 

On Friday, when we first arrived in Dunedin, we got a little lost and had to drive around to find our restaurant. During that drive, we were on the "wrong" side of the tracks and passed by an old rail station. Walking to the Cadbury factory, we saw the front side with its amazing architecture and gardens. After the factory tour, we walked over to the train station. It was a grey and drizzly day with low cloud cover making for flat light. We managed to get a few outdoor shots, but it was the inside of the station that held our attention.

  

  

Our drive from Dunedin to Oamaru took us along the coastline for most of the way. We stopped to explore the tidal pools at low tide, pick sea shells, and play on some really odd rocks. The Moeraki Boulders are a handful of spherical rocks that look like marbles on the beach.

 

 

 

 

Death Star before ... and after

We arrived in Oamaru with time for a little late exploring and had dinner in a brewery. Tomorrow, we will walk around the Victorian Precinct, visit Steampunk HQ, and try to see some penguins.

All aboard ...