Copthorne Central Christchurch

... because as a cost saver there isn&#8217;t any! <br>So thanks Aunt Kathy and Thanks Dad, I&#8217;m living it up here in NZ, tomorrow I will watch the All Blacks take on Italy I will choice to watch it live or a replay, I&#8217;ll do so in my room, in my space and it won&#8217;t be as good as watching it with the Hampstead ladies back home but it&#8217;d be pretty good!<br>The second bit of news was more of a shock, Tudor Jenkins my physics tutor at uni, died ...

... the heart of the city to be in Sol Square where everyone gathers around for a handle of beer in front of the rugby. Luckily we stumbled upon a cozy little French bistro called Le Petite Croix, and settled in for a long afternoon of great food and wine mmm...<br><br>Before we have time to get too cozy we were off to pick up our Spaceship, and head off on our whistle stop road trip tour of NZ.

... the Southern Alps. Then the clouds cleared and we had excellent views of the mountains, and the Canterbury Plains.<br>Looked in on choir practice at the cathedral and had dinner in the hotel.<br>Its great to be back in New Zealand!<br>Day 38 Wednesday 12th August Flight to Queenstown.<br>The weather is cold and grey. We caught a shuttle in cathedral square and headed back to Chch airport for ...

... I made a trailboss tactical decision and we stopped for lunch just out of town on the rising lakesedge road, near a track sign that said "waterfall walk". I'll go for a walk. Ha Ha - a steep clambering slide downhill to the waterfront for the next joke - no waterfall. Obviously the same signwriter as the parking lot. Lovin' Queenstown. I gouged my way back up the track to the wagons. SquawJenny waited patiently at the hilltop with my lunch in hand and comments that I look nice in ...

... we hung out with Greg from Canada, Fergal from Ireland, and Becky from England. We also spent awhile talking to Hutch, a Welsh semi-pro Cricket Player who had spent the season playing for a team north of Auckland. He had been on our Milford Trip. Good dude...couldn't understand a word he said...but still a good dude. Actually, I can't understand a word just about anyone says down here...oh well...they all seem very nice ...

... planes via radio and GPS positions. Secondly, they use a spotter named Mary who stands on the upper deck and looks for the spouts of the whales who have surfaced. Lastly, they also use a hydrophone to listen to their sonar and help pinpoint the area where they might be about to surface. Mary soon found a sperm whale and the boat captain turned the vessel in that direction and soon she had brought the boat alongside of the whale which had just ...

... vieux monsieurs qui s'amusent ensemble... (Allons encore, je vous entends d'ici avoir des mauvaises pensees encore) Ces messieurs font des regates de voiliers miniatures dans un etang specialement amenage a cette fin. Je me prend au jeu et j'ai moi aussi mon favori que j'encourage. Sur le banc a cote de moi, Rick de Washinton State, en est a son quatrieme voyage en NZ, il pense imigre ici a sa ...

... town of Sumner. The mountain ridge was a result of volcanic eruptions where two titanic plates converge. So the beach at Sumner borders an area of huge volcanic rocks and caves. Beautiful homes line the cliffsides leading up from the ocean. Just breathtaking. It is a cozy beachtown with great local eateries and coffee shops and ice cream stands. We walked the beach and examined one of the caves, and then back to Christchurch for the afternoon. We did a ...