I don't do cold very well. It is getting cold. Fall has arrived, it is raining more, the trees are turning, and my only hope is that the sun comes out in some part of the day to warm me up. It reminds me of being in Boston in November during my working years. That cold air off the ocean cuts right through you. I moved to Texas 13 years ago to get away from the cold. If I wanted cold, I would move to Minnesota, and live like my cousins, who think 65 is a heat wave. OK I am a thin skinned, but Rule # 4 on the boat was that if it is too cold, go south 100 miles. If it is still cold, keep going. Whoops, I am in the Southern Hemisphere, so that means I have to go north. We are.
This is the last leg of our New Zealand trip. The horse is definitely headed back to the barn. Today (Saturday) and Monday will be our last here in Christchurch. Tomorrow we are taking the Kiwi Alpine Express train from Christchurch over the Alpine pass and through the Southern Alps, then back. It should be beautiful.
We arrived in Christchurch today, with just enough time to go to the Botanical Gardens. I know, you laugh. I waxed poetically about the beautiful Gardens in Wellington. Heh, I like them, and so does Shelley. Shelley REALLY likes them. She talks to these trees, and these flowers. Look how big the hydrangeas are! She wants to grow these at home....but no. Probably not in Texas. Too hot. Maybe in Lawrence. These New Zealanders plant every type of tree and flower in the world in their gardens to remind them from where they come. It is amazing it all grows here. It grows Big.
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| Look at the eyes of this tree looking down at you |
Purple Beech, Red Beech, 3 types of Oak trees, 3 types of cypress, (including a really cool Algerian Cypress) Giant Redwoods, a Linden tree, a Ginko, and many more that we forgot.
Remember the scene in the Lord of the Rings (not sure which book) when the trees all came to Frodo's rescue. They had massive roots, and you could see faces in their bark. Look at the roots of this tree, and its bark all hanging and dripping down. It is ready to stomp on some orcs rear end. Really.
The sun came out this afternoon after a day of rain, so it was a nice time to be outside. But it feels like fall, about to turn to winter. It rained in the lowlands, but at a certain elevation, it was all snow in the mountains.
The Alpine Express will take us to those mountains tomorrow. The weather is supposed to be clear, and hopefully we will see much of the Southern Alps that we missed due to heavy rain and clouds when we passed through them earlier this month. It is just a day trip. From there we plan to take all day Monday in Christchurch, walking the city, which is small enough to do that. There is considerable rebuilding still going on after the massive earthquake (or a Shake as the NZ's say it) hit this city hard 5 years ago, killing hundreds. We're anxious to see the recovery and more of its history.
On Tuesday we turn our camper van back in, and fly to Sydney. It has been in the mid to high 70's in Sydney. Yes!! There is a bit of sadness to turn our camper back. It has worked pretty well, and taken us safely all over these two islands. Here are a few more memories she has afforded us:
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| Akaroa this morning on the Banks Peninsula, with a cruise ship arriving. |
Robinson Bay and the Akaroa Sound are the sunken part of a caldera. If you look at a map of the South Island, look at the round peninsula southeast of Christchurch. It consists of two massive volcanoes, and then this caldera that collapsed. Imagine the ocean rushing in to that fiery caldron. Today it is a beautiful landscape, and cruise ships come to see it. Us too.
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