As we drive on to the east, we are getting further south as we go. We are near the southernmost point of the South Island of New Zealand. The southernmost point is on private land and we missed the sign for that so we came close but didn’t get to that spot. One of my goals is to see penguins and we had already seen a pair at Curio Bay the day before. I woke Louise early this morning so we could get to Kaka Point in time to see the penguins leave their nests in the morning on their way to the sea to feed. We arrived just after 7:00 a.m. and met someone coming from the hide (a blind for spotting wildlife). They had seen several. We walked down to the overlook on the beach. From the hide I spotted several seals resting on the beach. There was little activity and the hide was quite cool early in the morning. Louise decided to return to the campervan.

Now I was on a mission, I had to see at least one penguin or this early morning trip would have been completely wasted. I prepared the camera for taking pictures, I needed evidence to support any report I gave Louise about seeing a penguin. Another couple came into the hide and we talked briefly when all of a sudden, there was a penguin standing on the beach. It paused, moved closer to the surf. Soon it was hopping from rock to rock. Then it walked out onto the wet sand and into the surf. As it moved into deeper water it finally dove into the water and was gone. I had my pictures and now had seen a penguin in a completely natural setting. It was a yellow eyed penguin, the same we had seen the day before.

From here the scenic route moves inland. We were now on our way to Dunedin, the second largest city on the South Island. We were now on a mission for Louise. Dunedin is the home to the Cadbury Chocolate Company. They have factory tours and she wanted to take the tour. We arrived at noon and were quickly signed up for the 1:15 p.m. tour. Our guide called us shortly before that time and formed up our group. We were escorted into the factory after being suitably outfitted with hair nets and other protective clothing. The tour took us through the factory. Some equipment was operating, other was idle. We were given the history of the Cadbury Chocolate Company and information about chocolate refining and the basics of chocolate manufacture. If we answered questions correctly we got a candy bar! We also got samples of candy, some to be consumed on the spot and others for our pleasure later.

At the end we were ushered into a large vertical tank that was at one time used for storing chocolate crumb. The tank is now empty except for some equipment. It was moved from its former location when the plant expanded. Even though they had no use for it now, it was a landmark with the Cadbury name across the top of the tank. A very expensive, very large sign. After our guide arranged everyone we were treated to a liquid chocolate waterfall as one metric ton of liquid chocolate poured from above into a large funnel. As this pour started they took a photo of the group. That is Louise in the blue shirt. She obviously enjoyed the sight of so much chocolate pouring down in front of us. It lasted about 20 seconds before it slowed to a dribble. Our guide explained that they do this “because they can.” That liquid chocolate will never be used for any product, it is used for demonstration only and what a demonstration it was!

Leaving Cadbury we returned to the campervan which was parked in a street parking spot. We had better than an hour on our parking pass so we decided to take a look at the train station which was only a block away. We found a train tour that looked interesting and booked that for the next afternoon. That done, we headed for the TOP 10 Holiday Park in Dunedin.