We're trapped!

Nomi and I are sitting in the hotel's restaurant, as we watch the strongest winds we've ever seen wreak havoc upon the beautiful gardens of the Hamner Springs Heritage Hotel. All through the night, and even now, powerful winds are tearing off branches, shaking windows and lifting roof tiles. The only bridge out of town has been blocked by a fallen tree, and debris is all over the streets.

Driving around the precarious clifftop roads which will take us to our next destination would be foolish and reckless, so we're stuck here, with dozens of other hotel guests, waiting for the wind to ease, and news of a clear road to come. I suspect we may be waiting for a while. I fear for the survival of the buffet, for when Nomi gets bored, she eats.

Speaking of Nomi, she wanted to fill you in on some more of the details of what we got up to yesterday, so I'll pass you over to her now.

Nomi: Hi everyone. Well yesterday we drove from Kaikoura to Hanmer Springs. It was a pleasant 2.5 hour drive. Lots of beautiful mountain scenery, lots and lots of sheep. Actually the amount of sheep here is just ridiculous. There are also lots of cows - very friendly too! When you pull the car over to take photos, they all come running over to say hi. Neil was having fun scaring them by turning around and yelling "Raaaa" - they all scuttled. I videoed it - could be funniest home video worthy!

The drive coming into Hanmer Springs was beautiful. There is a high bridge where people can bungy jump from and a spectacular view of the gorge and mountains. Probably the prettiest view so far.

After our harrowing morning of sea-sickness, we decided to book in for a massage. We both had a relaxation massage at a small place - actually a local couple who run a beauty centre at the back of their house. Great little business they have and they were so nice. They gave us a good recommendation for dinner too. We felt fabulous and relaxed. After that we went to the hot springs, which is what Hanmer Springs is famous for. So we left the massage smelling like roses and jumped into a pool smelling like rotten eggs. On hind-sight, should have done it the other way around!

They have numerous pools there ranging from 34 degrees to 41 degrees, which are the sulphur pools. They stink but you do feel healthy afterwards, and I particulary felt good. Neil and I were laughing, saying it's one of the few places you can let off and no-one would know!

After a shower to wash off the rotten egg smell, we went for dinner at the Rustic Cafe, which is what the massage centre recommended. We had an awesome tapas dinner, probably the best I've ever had.

After that, Neil went to access the net (surprise:)
and I went to bed. I slept like a log, but was woken once or twice with the storms, which are still causing problems today, hence me writing this whilst waiting for it to clear. Anyway, I'm going to get another cuppa from the buffet, before they clear it away!!!