After a very comfortable night in our self-catering apartment we were ready to set off for Christchurch. After the gloomy, misty-moisty weather yesterday you can imagine our surprise when we opened the blinds this morning and found we were extremely close to some mountains we hadn’t been able to see before. After checking out the good views in Kiakoura now the mist had rolled back, we set off on the drive to Christchurch. (One problem Kaikoura is famous for whale watching and we could not see any boats). Nigel very kindly took me to a lovely quilting shop where I found the fabric and a pattern that I wanted to make a quilt that will remind us of this holiday – I know just the spot in our bedroom that I will hang it.
The drive was really interesting. We went through a very mountainous area, having decided to go inland rather than follow the coastal plain. What we began to appreciate is just how many sheep there are on the plateaux between the mountains and we have not seen the Canterbury Plain yet. Also we saw lots of cattle, a couple of deer farms and even alpaca. I addition there were vineyards. I said to Nigel that it felt like a geography lesson from Junior School and will seem even more so when we get to the plain on Thursday Nigel also found the Weka Pass preserved railway!!! Really interesting old locos and station. I vividly remember learning about the Canterbury Plain and all the Marino sheep. Christchurch is a lovely city, set in the bowl of the mountains next to the Pacific Ocean .Before we returned the car we drove round the hills above the city and were rewarded with some spectacular views of the city and Lyttleton. We are in a hotel right in the middle, next to the cathedral and can walk or take a tram around everywhere we might want to go. We plan to take the full loop of the tram tomorrow with a hop on and off ticket.
We chose to go to a pub to eat tonight. Nigel was more than pleased to find they were serving their own brews – apparently his credit will be high with Thomas! We had a good supper and a couple of pints. (Not sure they were pints, more half a litre)! A great start to our visit to Christchurch. Marion underestimates her prowess the pub was a micro-brewery and had hand pumped ales on tap. Who can resist a brew called Old Blighty. Checkout the Twisted Hop in Christchurch.