Had a very nice breakfast in the main house of the Fyffe Country Lodge. Michael and Candace, a couple from Christchurch, were the only other guests, and we enjoyed chatting with them. Candace was a native Californian who had been living in New Zealand for several years. Michael was a Kiwi in the liquor business. Our hosts, Chris and Colin, served us a nice homemade breakfast, and we hit the road to the Pacific coast town of Christchurch.
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| love the fiddle hanging on the pot rack |
Our two-hour drive to Christchurch was fairly uneventful - just more beautiful scenery. We pulled into our hotel, the George (gotta love that), and were able to check in right away. Soon after we arrived, staff knocked on our door with a complimentary teddy bear and some chocolates. The location of the hotel was great, and we were able to go out and explore on foot.
This was a wonderfully green city, with lots of trees and a huge park just minutes away. Upon entering Hagley Park, we stumbled upon a gathering of people dressed in costumes - it was a Steampunk picnic. From Wikipedia:
Steampunk is a subgenre of science fiction or science fantasy that incorporates technology and aesthetic designs inspired by 19th-century industrial steam-powered machinery.[1][2] Although its literary origins are sometimes associated with the cyberpunkgenre,[citation needed] steampunk works are often set in an alternative history of the 19th century's British Victorian era or American "Wild West", in a post-apocalyptic future during which steam power has maintained mainstream usage, or in a fantasy world that similarly employs steam power.Think League of Extraordinary Gentlemen or Hugo. The participants were gracious enough to allow me a couple of photos.
We continued further on into the park, passing several people enjoying the sunshine, and crossed a lovely old stone bridge into the huge botanical gardens. The botanic gardens were founded in 1863, and sit on over 50 acres in the center of Hagley Park. We saw only a portion of the natural beauty and stately elegance of the place, including a stunning rose garden still in bloom well into the autumn, and some imposingly-massive trees towering over it all.
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| Peacock Fountain |
We hustled back to the hotel for Tim's massage appointment with "Jax," arranged by the concierge. Not being a huge fan of massages, I figured I'd go out and let the locals honk at me for a while as I found my way around.
Driving into the downtown area, I saw several sobering reminders of the tragedy suffered by Christchurch over five years ago. Christchurch was devastated by two earthquakes: the first, 7.1-magnitude quake occurred in September of 2010. But the real damage was sustained by the second quake, a 6.3-magnitude event in February of 2011. Nearly 200 people were killed, and Christchurch lost a significant part of its population as people moved away after losing their homes or jobs.
The effects of the quakes are still evident here. Several buildings are fenced off, with walls still in ruins. A scarred cathedral sits prominently on a busy street corner. When the recovery began, building and property owners knew the wait for new buildings would take too long. Shipping containers were brought in to the shopping district as an innovative way to give proprietors a place to conduct business. The Re:Start Mall has become a tourist attraction in itself - the containers were painted bright, happy colors and have become a permanent part of the Christchurch landscape.
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| www.christchurchnz.com |
Reunited with my now very relaxed husband, we headed out for dinner. Passing on all the Thai restaurants, Trip Advisor led us to Mexicano's, just a couple of blocks from our hotel. Decorated in a dark dia de los muertos motif, the place was hopping when we arrived. We were told it would be a thirty-minute wait, so we inched our way up to the bar. The frozen margaritas weren't frozen yet, so we opted to wait. We were soon seated at a two-top squeezed in between too many other tables. We happily moved to another table when it was vacated a short time later, and enjoyed some really delicious tacos and, eventually, some frozen margaritas. The staff was harried with a big party arriving, but the food was definitely worth it.
Stopped into the hotel bar for dessert, then off to bed.
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