Even though we changed the ferry crossing to a later one, we still had an early start for the Interislander across to South Island into Picton harbour. The vessel was past its first flush of youth, so the upgrade to the busy Executive Lounge was worth it – only six people and a private loo! In good weather, the three-hour crossing would be glorious, and even the overcast drizzle couldn’t detract from the grandeur of Queen Charlotte Sound. The dirt road we chose out of Picton round the headland to Port Underwood was just what Adrian wanted after four days of tarmac. The only traffic we encountered were a few 4 x 4s towing boats. From Ravangi village, it was back on tarmac into the wine-producing region of Marlborough, where familiar names like Cloudy Bay, Villa Maria and Allan Scott ply their trade. At the former, we tasted the ten available and found only two of the ones not available in UK would earn their weight in the baggage; a single vineyard Te Koko and a dessert wine. Recently, growers have started planting outside the alluvial plain, to much shaking of heads from older hands. Our B & B hosts have family in Leamington Spa, and enthused about Warwick Castle and Stratford, so we got on famously, despite the spotless chintzy cheeriness of the décor, bespangled with festive frippery and the breakfast room papered with maps and sea charts.
Marlborough town is a lively community with good-quality amateur dance troupes, theatre and music. The local yoof stravage about in the wee hours clunking cans and singing badly, as is the world over, but didn’t disturb our 4am slumbers for long. The Hotel d’Urville is the swankiest place in town for dinner, but they must have had their second chef on duty, or s/he was suffering from a heavy Christmas because the starter was inedible, pastry needing a chainsaw and beetroot like leather. With a mumbled “Chef says it’s supposed to be like that,” we were served with a very well-cooked salmon steak tempura – much better.