The long journey up the winding harbor soon saw us tied up a few minutes from downtown Dunedin. From here some enjoyed an amazing train trip through the beautiful Taieri Gorge, but only after visiting the famous railway station. The second group travelled to the Otago Peninsular and were treated to a combination of penguins, fur seals, a gigantic elephant seal, the mighty Lanarch castle, and the world's steepest street, Baldwin St. And the third group enjoyed a very informative tour around university and other famous landmarks.
Most enjoyed the chance to explore the historic city. Once the money capitol of New Zealand (during the gold mining era) Dunedin is now a thriving student city with a strong Scottish influence. Every year about 20,000 university students descend on the city and make it their home for the next 9 months.
All too soon the sounds of the Dunedin City Pipe Band fare welled us as we made our way from the wharf. The voyage back up Otago harbour ended with views of Port Chalmers and the nesting royal albatross colony on Taiaroa Heads.
We soon turned north and headed for a place Captain Cook thought was an island but was in fact a peninsula, now known as Banks Peninsula (named after the famed botanist, Joseph Banks).
