Akaroa Museum

... had been scuppered we decided to head straight to where we had earmarked to be our second to last port of call in New Zealand, Akaroa and the Banks Peninsula South East of Christchurch.  We stopped along the way to get a few provisions from the ...

... my latest obsession), we daytrip to Akaroa in hopes of getting Emma in the water with a dolphin. Akaroa represents the last holdout of French culture in New Zealand. Jean-Francois Marie de Surville claimed the area in 1769. A month later, he and James ...

... you can swim with. Hectar dolphins are a little over a metre long and they only live off the coast of New Zealand, many of them living in Akaroa harbour.   Akaroa harbour is stunning, there are very few properties around it and the scenery is ...

... the hill. There was still snow in the hills, the sea was nice, and blue, adn there was red sea weed on the shores. Akaroa was originally a french settlement, and in the time that a frenchman took to go back to france, adn request the french government to ...

... in Berlin, Germany, although that was focused on it's subject to the point of over saturation.   Anyway, I digress. The museum was fantastic. I would guess during summer it is very popular and you can barely move for tour groups, but on ...

... that admission was free. The museum is excellent and would easily be able to charge admission. The displays highlight the lives of the New Zealand soldiers who have fought in all the wars; WW1, WW2, Afghanistan, Japan, going through a day in the life ...

... life and pulse of the peninsula.  It's a wonderful way to spend a morning and to learn a bit more about rural New Zealand life and the settlement and changing face of Kiwi culture. Robin is thoroughly lovely, and put up with my incessant questions ...

... Wolsey was the man who salvaged the disastrous Shackleton expedition to the South Pole on the Endeavor. He was an Akaroa boy and was a highlight of the Museum tour. We had been told of Akaroa honey and advised that there was also good cheese. We found ...

... mainly by the French and became a popular spot for people from Christchurch to come and relax. Highlights were the lighthouse, Town Museum, and all the shops. That night we went to see White Flippered Penguins. A couple discovered they had a number ...

... 's not joking but she's not serious either.  (Two days later, on a beautiful morning, we walked up 600 metres above Akaroa to Purple Peak Pass). To be fair, the Banks Peninsula Track (near Christchurch) is a brilliant walk:  "Four nights, four ...