Day 1: Christchurch, NZ

April 4 2:00am

Above: Cool purple flowers

Below: One of the many ponds with a lot of ducks

Today was a good day walking around Christchurch. It is such a beautiful city. It is pretty obvious to see why they call it the garden city as there are flower beds everywhere with all different types of plants and trees and everything. There is a river running through the city with different bridges everywhere that look pretty cool and are nicely designed. First I walked down the pedestrian mall, which kind of reminded me of Queen Street in Brisbane only on a much smaller scale. I got lunch at this Korean/Japanese restaurant and it was really good. I got a sweet and spicy pork dish that was more spicy than sweet but it tasted amazing. Best part? It was only $10/NZ so it was even cheaper USD.

Above: Central Rose Garden in the Christchurch Botanic Gardens

The next stop was Cathedral Square. The Christchurch Cathedral is very pretty. It is almost hard to describe but I believe a pic will do enough of that. The inside is really nice too. The ceiling is high with arches intersecting over the top. I didn’t take any pictures inside because it felt weird but it was pretty much just like any other cathedral I’ve been in. One thing caught my eye immediately on the East inside wall: a mural with swastikas around the outside of it. Naturally, when you see a swastika the first thing that comes to mind is Nazi Germany. However, the swastika was commonly used in ancient Christian art and had religious meaning before Hitler implemented it as the symbol of the Nazi party. Also, the cathedral has different nation’s flags hanging up on the inside. Curious, I asked one of the people in there what they were for. He asked if I was from America, said he picked out my accent, and then said they were friendship flags given to the church from people of the different countries. He said the American flag was there because they hold a service at the cathedral before American expeditions to Antarctica depart.

Above: Central Mall in the gardens

Below: Christchurch Cathedral

Next I walked down the street where most of the arts and cultural stuff is located. There was an open air market that was interesting to walk through and many different street performers out showcasing their talents. There was a lady playing a saxophone and further on down was a young girl singing to try and raise money for a choir trip to Canada. I must say both acts were very good and I stopped to listen for a little bit. At the end of the street, I finally got to the Christchurch Botanic Gardens. I really wanted to see these today because I’d be able to walk around at my leisure. The gardens were gorgeous. Absolutely beautiful. I took so many pictures, I wish I could post them all on here but it only lets me do five per post. I definitely could live in this city when I’m old I think...it’s nice and quiet and just a nice place to sit and relax. After all that walking around, and after not getting any sleep last night, I was pretty beat. So I came back here and slept for several hours, probably several too many cause now it’s almost 1:00am and I’m not feeling very tired. My room is really nice though. It has this mood lighting so I’m bathed in blue light right now but I can change it to green, orange, purple, or red. The bed is really comfortable too, especially since I got upgraded to a bigger one. Tomorrow, the rest of my group gets here so we’ll spend the day doing who knows what and then Monday we pick up the RV. I’d really like to go to the Antarctica exhibit tomorrow but if we don’t make it I have another day after we get back here before I have to fly back to Brisbane so maybe I’ll get to do it then. There’s also a gondola that goes up the side of one of the mountains, giving you 360^o views of Christchurch and the surrounding area. Only problem is, I have no idea how to get there and I’m pretty sure you have to drive there so that could be an issue. We may just have to stop in after we get the RV and do it that way.