Day 27 Christchurch. New Zealand

Trollies thru out downtown Christchurch

" "Punting the Avon"

Lilies for our new daughter in September, Emily


White roses for my Tracy (ignore me there)

Today we docked in Lyttelton, New Zealand which is the port city for Christchurch. This is our only stop on the South Island. Lyttelton is a relic of a town squeezed between the mountains and the ocean harbor. Its better days are in the rear view mirror. Today is is used mostly for loading coal, lumber and other industrial products of the South Island.

About a 20 minute ride through the mountains that constrain Lyttelton is Christchurch. By contrast the city of Christchurch is surely the ideal city. It is a beautiful city with a decent sized population, about 400,000. It seems to have a lively economy judging by the number of people we saw throughout the day. The most lovely feature is the river Avon which runs through town. It is only about 40 feet wide but it winds gracefully throughout. The river is highlighted by the landscaping that invites you to stroll along its banks. There are two streets that follow the river bracketing it on both sides, one called Oxford the other called Cambridge. The most beautiful part is where the river passes thru the Botanic Gardens. Here in the roughly 500 acres are all kinds of trees and flowers. When you combine the gardening heritage these folks got from the British with an ideal climate and a canvas of such natural beauty you get a magnificent park. We walked its length and were stunned by the central rose garden and the flowerbeds scattered along the many gravel pathways that crisscross the grounds. There are by my count seven ponds within the park that accentuate different areas. The trees in the park are exceptional examples of their species each one grander than the last. The river does not travel straight thru but rather turns as it reaches the end of the park and doubles back creating an irregular shaped U that the gardeners have taken full advantage of. Just outside the park there is a small boat livery where you can enjoy a boat ride propelled by a gondolier, called "punting."

The city seems to extend outwardly around "Cathedral Square" which is a large esplanade reserved for pedestrian traffic. There are some other streets that surround the square which also have been closed to vehicles and act as pedestrian malls. Even though the weather was overcast and a little cool you could not help but appreciate the way of life its residents enjoy. Although there was a great deal of activity in the city central there was a subdued hustle and bustle that gave you the sense things were proceeding, but at a civilized pace. One can easily see why anyone would find Christchurch enchanting. It has easily earned its reputation as "The City of Gardens"

Tomorrow Wellington.

Chris " Give a rose to Christchurch" - Paul didn't leave much for me to say other than Christchurch is BEAUTIFUL! I LOVE flowers, water and trees and Christchurch embraces and features all three. While Auckland is very much a big, bustling, cosmopolitan city (the number of people on the sidewalks reminded me of NYC), Christchurch is 1/3 it's size and feels a lot more quaint and very clean. It reminds me a lot of Brugge, Belgium in it's picturesque river beauty. I look forward to coming back with the kids and "punting the Avon" with them, something my Mom insisted I do if I ever got there.