It’s a rainy day in Christchurch, which means I’m getting fully caught up! This will likely be the last post for some time to include photos, but we’ll see how we go.
It’s a rainy day in Christchurch, which means I’m getting fully caught up! This will likely be the last post for some time to include photos, but we’ll see how we go.The HSW (Hall School Wimbledon – my last school) tour of NZ continues with our current stop to see the Fouracres – or, as their sign very cutely reads, the “one-point-six has” to help with the metric conversion. Our arrival saw us both ecstatic at the prospect of hot showers and glasses of fizz (granted I get a little more excited about fizz than Rich does). There was brilliant sunshine, a BBQ, and a trip up and over Dyer’s Pass to Governor’s Bay and then back up top to see the whole of the city (or the parts still standing) at sunset. What a way to start a visit!
Day 2 in CCH was a bit of an exciting one, starting with a bonus trip to meet Sam, a local physio, after Rich slipped a disc in his back yesterday morning. The good news is that he can now move without looking like he’s about to shriek like a big ol’ girl. While Rich walked laps at home to keep his back from stiffening up and memorized how many steps before each corner of Jane and Al’s house, Jane and I went on a roadie. First stop: The Raspberry Cafe, where we shared a divine lamb salad some surprisingly filling corn fritters. Then it was on to the nifty little galleries of Little River before reaching our final destination: the French-settled town of Akaroa. It’s quaint, it’s pretty, the water was calm (and, unfortunately, the sky was grey), and it has a quietly apparent whaling and French history, evident in the whaling pots spread throughout town and the provincial-esque houses. Back to CCH to collect Al from work and Rich from home so that we could head to Dux Dine for a dinner that I’m still salivating over. Lemon. Butter. Clams. Scampi. Pasta. Crusted baked fish. Wine. Cheesecake. Oh. My.
We haven’t seen the city up close yet, and won’t likely get too much of a good look today because of the pouring rain, but it’s clear that this is a city on the mend. We’ve passed a number of empty shells and empty lots – a sombre reminder of what happened here two years ago. Al and Jane showed us a video of some of the footage of the second quake immediately after and a month after. IN-credible. While it’s a complete shame that the death toll was 185, having now seen the footage (the quake happened while we were in Asia and we haven’t ever seen footage from it), it’s a complete wonder that the death toll wasn’t significantly higher.
There’s a church on a corner not too far from the house that has no walls but the arches are still standing. Amazing.
We head out tomorrow and make our way to Queenstown, Te Anau, Milford Sound and up the west coast. I’ll update when we stumble across a WiFi connection, but rest assured that I’ll be loving the adventure. :)
Total Sunburns: holding at 2.25 (and not likely to change in this weather!)
Grateful for: old friends, foodies, washing machines, seafood, butter
