Findlays On Linwood Christchurch

... we haven't found any shiny stone shops!! We have purchased sensible walking sandals, because we are going to get fit!!!! (have you heard that before!) and Trudy bought a beautiful tapestry from the art gallery.
Tomorrow we are off to help at the Health Retreat (wwoofing!) we are gardening and helping with party preparation - we told the lady we were party pixies so I am not sure she knows what to expect!!
So until the next time............. baa for now!

... about going to Speight's Brewery – another of New Zealand's favourite beers, but we had been told you only get 15 minutes to taste the different beers, so we didn't see the point! Instead we wasted our money on going on a tour the Cadbury's factory – the promise of free chocolate lured us in, although it wasn’t really free because we paid $12 to go on the tour!


Anyway, it was pretty funny on the tour because the tour ...

... so I won't go into detail except to say the ride up to the top of the hill on the gondola is really worthwhile.

June 20
Off to Te Anau
June 21
Milford Sound -running out of superlatives!
June 22
Oamaru- blew me away with the majestic buildings in such a small place. Great restaurant at the old Post Office.
June 23
Christchurch- stayed at Pavilions Hotel Papanui Road, another great deal
June 24 - My Birthday
home The customs chappy wished me Happy Birthday

... distance it was from me. The attendant urged me on and talked me through it - saying I'd regret it if I did it and that I'd done one before - so 3-2-1.....nothing. I couldn't - no matter what the guy said (including some woeful cliches such as "it's not that you can't, you can - but if you don't want to then OK you don't want to"). The americans and even the tiny japanese shouted encouragement - but I couldn't - I bottled - game over. FAILED.

I sat back ...

... traffic to find a campsite.  We soon came across a couple of possibilities near the beach, but they weren't so inviting with the cool wind & overcast skies. They offered little protection from the elements, so we consulted the DOC bible and decided to check out Trotters Gorge. It was about 4.5km off the beach road. We noticed a sign hanging on a fence adjacent to the final entrance road to the gorge proclaiming "Please Don't Shoot our Pet Pig". Hmm. Oh well, what's to lose? My ...

... and its just a little closer to the sun than the Northern hemisphere, so the sun actually is more intense. It's second only to Australia. Water You can drink water right out of any tap, without chemicals or filtration, because it is filtered through the gravel and sand laid down by glaciers. It has that mossy taste of pure water. It used to be the cleanest tap water of any city in the world (guess that's changing, as things do). Everyone gets weirdly excited ...

... the kitchen. The service was really bad here as well. At one time I asked for some more bread and the waiter brought me some sugar syrup drizzled on a plate! And it was not a language problem. He spoke perfect English. I think he was stoned or something. Now I should give you a word about tipping people here in New Zealand and Australia. Tipping is not common in New Zealand or in Australia unless you receive exceptional service. That sounds really great at ...

... brigade and gives us the freedom to get off the beaten track. The first couple of nights in the tent - Kate thinks...it'll be ok, just smells a bit of 'tent' and 'sleeping bags'. Hmm...oh dear...after that 'Chris's feet, chris's feet, chris's feet, chris's feet...' We leave Auckland and drive South West into Waikato a region which hints at the magnificent countryside ahead of us. First stop is Raglan, a cool laid back surf town. We loop around the region taking in stunning ...

... Planet'! Very early in this little journey, which consisted of admiring the outside of a large number of buildings, we ran into a couple we had spent time with in Cairns. They had worked in the hostel in Cairns at the same time as us and we had spent a lot of time chatting and generally spending time together. They had just finished their time travelling around NZ and were heading home the next morning. Stunned by this random meeting, we stopped and chatted in the main ...

... br>
Eventually Katie was able to speak to her Mum & Dad & brother James, which made her feel much better, but which also upset her because she missed them all so much.

My heart was breaking seeing the pain Katie was in, it's horrible watching someone you love go to pieces and knowing that nothing you say or do can make much of a difference.

Eva was a lovely old lady who'd been in and out of hospital for the last few years ...