Woke to a fine but cloudy morning, and had a lazy lie-in…there’s no point hurrying, since the shops don’t open until 9am. It’s already much warmer than yesterday, and the weather is expected to improve, but as in Oz, the locals are a little mystified by the recent weather trends. Eventually I got going and wandered off looking for breakfast, finding a café open near the supermarket.

Finding what I wanted in the supermarket took a while longer.  Many of the brands are unfamiliar, but eventually I found most of what I needed.  New World supermarkets seem to be the local equivalent of Coles – I can recall the days of Coles New World supermarkets in Oz. There is no shortage of products here, and if anything the range is better than at home.

Next, a visit to a fishing tackle shop, to pick up a few more shiny lures and pump the locals for fishing information – and very helpful they were. I came a way with some goods tips and locations to fish.

After surveying the route yesterday, I’ve pretty well decided to take the train out of the city. My preference is to have a few easy days at the start of a tour. A steep climb on the morning of the first day invites a muscular injury and is to be avoided. So next stop the railway station to make a booking, then a quick turn around the city centre before returning to my room to assemble the bike.

The assembly went smoothly, and by mid-afternoon the bike was ready, my gear organized and bike bag put in storage until my return.

And since I’ve now been here for two nights, it’s time I had some of those fush’n’chups.

Dunedin Railway Station

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