Day 6 (Part II): Party in the fiord!

Once we were safely anchored in Harrison's Bay, there was an opportunity for various aquatic activities. Some people went out on the tendercraft, a motor boat wildlife experience. Sounded great, but this girl opted for kayaking! I mean, how many times in your life do you get an opportunity to kayak in a fiord? I couldn't pass it up.

We all managed to get into our kayaks, and were lining up for a group photot, when the inevitable happened.

I fell out of the kayak. Into the fiord. In the winter.

My first thought was "Thank God I didn't bring my camera!" Followed instantly by "GOOD LORD THIS WATER IS BLEEPING FREEZING!" However, I managed to hand my flip flops to Felix, our guide, swim back to the ship, and got back into my kayak with some dignity. Of course, I was famous on the ship for being the one who fell in, but it's all good. Actually, I had my suit on under my clothes and had fully intended to go for a dip later, but it was shocking to go in so entirely unexpected. But all part of the experience, eh?

We paddled around the bay for over an hour and it was so beautiful! We saw nesting fiordland penguins, the second rarest breed of penguin in the world, and they were so cute! One little guy was hopping around on the rocks, putting on a little show. But really, when it comes to show-offs, the seals take the cake! New Zealand Fur Seals were swimming all around us as we kayaked around. Very very cool. I headed back a little bit before everyone else in order to go for the aforementioned swim. Scotty had said he would go, too, but when I got back, he was taking a nap, so I went it alone. Well, not entirely alone. There were a lot of disbelieving onlookers on the back on the ship when I dove in. The water was about 10 degrees Celsius (roughly 52 degrees Fahrenheit). Might as well have been freezing! But it was exhilarating and it only took me a couple of hours to warm up afterwards; I warmed up with a cold shower. I looked like I had a terrible sunburn, my skin was so red from the cold. Good times.

Dinner on the ship was marvelous! Tomato and lentil soup, seafood salad, scalloped potatoes, yams, roasted veggies, salmon, satay chicken, rice pilaf, pasta, and countless desserts. It was quite an event. After dinner, we watched a slide show about the fiord, then Chelsea, Scotty, Megan and I settled in for a nice long game of Monopoly. I kept calling the spaces by their good old-fashioned American Atlantic City names, but they were actually named after locales around NZ. Anyway, I can't remember the last time I played a game all the way through, and don't think I ever played a game where absolutely no one was cheating. Scotty won, possessing all 32 $500s (as he announced regularly for the next couple of days).

After the game, it was time for bed, but I went by way of the stern of the ship. And there, twirling and flipping in the water by the light of the ship, was a seal. I watched him for a while, marveling at the fact that I was in New Zealand watching a seal swimming in his natural habitat. Wonders never cease. Then I went back to my cabin (shared with Emma), and sank blissfully into the amazing pillows and fell asleep.