At last today I was able to put no less than 145 pictures online in the new NZ South Island collection! This was quite a difficult task to go again through the hundreds of images I brought back from two trips in New-Zealand and only select 145. This country is so beautiful! And I went there only in autumn. I still have to see winter in Otago for instance, or spring in Canterbury. One day maybe...

Anyway, for the time being, let me invite you to a 4000km journey through New-Zealand. Now that the South Island and North Island collections are online, you can make it as we've done it back in 2006 and 2010. On those two occasions we began our trip in NZ at Christchurch. Landing at the International airport, we picked up the camper van and then on the road!

Christchurch has been badly hit during the February 2011 earthquake in NZ. Many buildings collapsed or were damaged beyond repairs. Sadly, the beautiful Cathedral has been damaged also, with its spire completely destroyed. This adds to the emotion I feel while looking at my images from downtown Christchurch...

Apart from Christchurch, the other large urban area in the South Island is Queenstown. This place is simply gorgeous! Surrounded by moutain ranges such as the Remarkables and on the shore of Lake Wakatipu, Queenstown is a small but dynamic city. The city center is charming though it lacks the historical dimension europeans are used to. But many sport activities can be planned from there such as skiing, paragliding, speed boat riding... It was also the departure city for our scenic flight in 2006, when we booked a plane to go directly to Milford Sound and back, over the Southern Alps.

Don't miss the pictures and panoramic views from Poolburn Reservoir. This was a truly moving moment when we spend the night there. In the middle of nowhere, surrounded by dark rocks evenly spread on the plateau, not a single sound could be heard. Disturbing. No plane, no car, no bird, no city sound. Only your heart beats in your hears! And what a light at sunset and sunrise!

Many more images are available in the South Island collection, and I still have few more in the archives that will need to be added too.

So enjoy the ride and if you like it, spread the word and share with your friends!