TranzAlpine

 Today, we travelled across the South Island from Christchurch to Greymouth. The TranzAlpine Train was our inspiration for this New Zealand trip. We first saw it on the World's Most Scenic Railway Journeys on SBS. Ever since, we have been determined to enjoy this amazing train journey.

It didn't disappoint. We left Christchurch at 8.15am. Once we were outside the city, we spent some time crossing the Canterbury Plains. Then, we started heading up into the mountains of the Southern Alps. As we went higher, we could see snow capped mountains up close with the Waimakariri River below. In between, we saw long valleys and huge pine forests. The three of us spent most of the trip in the open air carriage where we could experience the scenery without the barrier of the train window. It was jaw dropping and astonishing and as impressive as anything Europe has to offer.

We met some lovely people on the train. Everyone was in such a good mood and so happy to share the experience. The trip took 5 hours and finished at Greymouth which is a very historic town but is pretty downtrodden these days. No doubt, 2 years of COVID lockdowns has really damaged the local economy. The town must be heavily dependent on the TranzAlpine Railway running for so much of its regular income.

Tonight, we stay in Greymouth to get some sleep and be ready for an early start. Tomorrow might even be more spectacular than today as we drive down the west coast of the south island past the Franz Josef and Fox glaciers.