Focus Motel & Executive Suites Christchurch

... finding tonight, so that I can be there for 6.45am. The Cathedral is round the corner from me, so it seems I'm in the centre, and across the road to open is a TSB Bank!!! Wow, Lloyds you didn't take over globally!! I'm so proud of TSB :) Found a 24-hour local shop for snacks, and a KFC restaurant.. that was perfect for dinner tonight, as can chill out back at hotel, get an early night & be bright & breezy for tomorrow..

Til tomorrow...

... a very exciting skype chat with Olivia, Amanda and Claire and a three way conference with Roger and Matt we drove along a scenic route to Akaroa. Here we booked ourselves onto a harbour cruise. Sailing round the calm water we spotted three Little Blue Penguins floating on the water and next we saw dolphins. They were the worlds smallest dolphins - Hector Dolphins. They swam around the baot and had fins like Mickey mouses ear!
Christchurch, South Island, New Zealand yelleandjon

... Blanc, Pinot Gris from the tanks, and numerous barrel samples of their reds and C******nays at various stages of development – there is some good stuff on the way!

Pegasus Bay is probably the best known producer in the region and has some iconic wines. It also has a fabulous restaurant which came joint first in the Cuisine Restaurant Awards Vineyard Restaurant category (joint with Terroir which I went to in ...

... me out, but no problem. There was a shuttle waiting right outside the airport ready to go, so we jumped on and he took us directly to the Chateau on the Park. He told us that this was the only hotel in Christchurch made entirely of timber, and that the Queen had slept here. We felt rather privileged, especially as we had booked it through Wotif on a super special rate of $NZ49. It is a lovely hotel across the road from Hagley Park, and has its own beautiful gardens, all 5 ...

... walk and enjoy free mountain bikes, spa, fishing gear and apple crumble at The Villa where we stay.


Picton to Marahau (Abel Tasman)

Meet the bus and the rest of the group at the Ferry Terminal at 11.45am. We head through the famous Marlborough vineyard area and the coastal town of Nelson before heading onto Motueka to get supplies on our way to our night stop of Marahau, on the edge of the Abel Tasman National Park.
We stay at ...

... transpiration area further away from the front door. I like my blue vein cheese to smell more like dirty socks, than dirty undies. I guess I'm really just a sophisticated kinda bloke... A stop at the Bungee cliff fort was mandantory. We winced, then cheered as the young men & women bravely proved themselves (Wait 'till you get older, kiddies. Meet my friend. Don't be shy. Say hello to Arthritis). Ol' Dolly walked onto the bridge for a better look and I informed him he'd look more ...

... everything, washing our clothes and attempting to re-pack our backpacks figuring that we couldnt fit everything in, so had to get rid of a few things, bye-bye thermals! we watched pirates of the carribean 3 in the movie room, which froze at all of the important parts. Next morning we were up showered and and headed to the airport to drop of the van and fly to Australia! P.S. thanks for allthe comments, we enjoy reading them all! xxxxxxxxxxxx

... Franz Josef is described as "a town set in bush (and) squashed between the Tasman Sea and the mighty Franz Josef glacier".  I think this is the only place in the world where the rainforest and a glacier exist side-by-side.  Remember what I said earlier about "fully equipped kitchens" being a rather flexible concept ?  Well, this one had a definite lack of bowls, spoons and cups.  We ate breakfast cereal out of small pots with our own plastic spoons liberated from air ...

... au bord de l'eau. En général si on mange seul au resto on ce prend un livre ou un magazine pour pas avoir l'air trop con, alors j'ai tout mon kit. Mais voila que je deviens complètement absorbé par le paysage. Il n' y que moi, les bateaux a l'ancre, les oiseaux, le soleil qui se couche, mon excellent repas et un petit Pinot Noir a se rouler par terre (Chad Farm Pinot Noir). Dolce Vita ! Photos a venir.

... oddities that would take a long time to crack open. We decided the only way to fall asleep properly would be a bottle of celebratory Jumponyou, or as the french call it Champagne. We hit the liquor store and met a friendly shop keeper whom gave us a few words of travel advice. Back to the franchise haven of the Holiday Inn and into the fruity bubble haze we went. Got a good sleep.