NZ: Last stop - Christchurch (before the quake)

We arrived in Christchurch almost ready to go home, having been on the road for 4 weeks.  We were invigorated by a warm welcome from our dear New Zealand friends who made the remarkable city even more memorable.  We walked everywhere and enjoyed the classic neo-gothic architecture and serene streetscape.  What a beautiful city! It was with much sadness that we heard about the devastation from this year's earthquake.  But New Zealanders are strong and resilient - they will recover.

The bell tower from our hotel room in the historic Novotel.

Great War Memorial

Handy stroller hangers on the trolley

The Art Gallery - stunning!

Inside the Art Gallery

Arts Centre located in the former University of Canterbury buildings, sadly the Arts Centre was heavily damaged during the 2011 earthquake

This used to be the Engineering building.

Inside the Arts Centre

Gorgeous colours in the Botanic Gardens

Roses in all their glory

Christchurch Town Hall - also significantly damaged during the quake

The Town Hall Performing Arts auditorium known for its acoustics - reminded us of the Berlin Philharmonic Hall

The lovely banks of the Avon river flowing through Christchurch

Damage from the earlier quake

Our friends took us up to the top of the Cashmere HIlls for tea in this historic building The Sign of the Takahe.

Panoramic view of Christchurch and beyond

This wraps up our amazing trip to New Zealand and Australia - four memorable weeks in two remarkable countries -  doubtless people and places we would love to return to again.   Thank you all for coming along on the trip with us.

Next post - a retrospect on our 2009 Berlin trip

NZ: the TranzAlpine - Greymouth to Christchurch

We boarded the TranzAlpine Scenic Railway at Greymouth to begin the last legs of our NZ trip.  We have now been on the road for almost 4 weeks - it was almost with a sigh of relief that we sat down in our seats on the train and wait to be transported across the South Island to our final destination, Christchurch.  You can see below some of the scenery on the way - not the most spectacular we had seen, whether on this trip or in the Canadian Rockies - but quite unique in its way.

Saying goodbye to the west coast

The TranzAlpine approaching the long tunnel

The river meandering across the Canterbury Plains

Arriving at destination Christchurch's Cathedral Square

NZ: the Road to Franz Josef

One of the high points of our trip was the helihike to Franz Josef glacier.  We looked forward to it with much anticipation as we approached the last few days of our trip.  We took a bus from Queenstown to Franz Josef along a famously scenic route. 

Just one shot of the miles of vineyards we saw along the way - 

The bus stopped briefly at Wanaka to pick up passengers.  We were allowed 5 minutes to stretch our legs.  Here is a shot of the tranquil lake -

We continued along the shores of Lake Hawea - a beautiful lake in a glacial valley.  This shot was taken from the bus - I would have given a lot to be able to get off and take more photos.

Same lake, from another angle-

One of the many spectacular mountains we saw along the way

The bus driver got off at Haast Pass, the pass that took us across the Southern Alps.  A friendly young driver hopped on and took us from here to the coast.   The road followed an ancient trail used by the Maori in their search for pounamu or greenstone.

Looking down from the bridge -

The waterfall near Haast Pass and the famous blue pools fed by glacial waters -

We reached the western shore of the South Island.  Here's a view of the Tasman Sea.

The Tasman Sea from another lookout.   To our surprise, the driver took us onto the beach to hunt for greenstone after lunch.  What an unusual and hospitable gesture!

Could it be Mt. Cook in the distance?

Next post:  the much anticipated Franz Josef Glacier!

NZ: the famous Milford Sound

We arrived at Milford Sound in good time and in good weather - a pleasant surprise after all the dire warnings.   Milford Sound had the reputation of being the wettest place in New Zealand.  It was said that no matter how dry it was when you started out on the cruise, there would still be a good chance that you get wet weather once you're in the sound.  We were very lucky - we started off with threatening skies but it got sunny shortly into the cruise.  We picked the late afternoon cruise on the advice of one of the guide books as it would mean avoiding all the tourist buses that drove in from Queenstown for the midday cruises.  And it was excellent advice - we not only missed the hordes on the cruise, we also missed the buses and the traffic on the treacherous road to Milford Sound.  This was our view of Mitre Peak from the dock. 

Mitre Peak

Milford Sound, in Fiordland National Park, runs 15km inland from the Tasman Sea, surrounded, as you can see, by steep cliff faces on both sides.  It was acclaimed as New Zealand's most famous tourist attraction and Rudyard Kipling called it the Eighth Wonder of the World.  This landscape was reminiscent of that seen on the Western Brook Pond cruise in Gros Morne National Park in Newfoundland, Canada.  The difference is that the Western Brook Pond cruise started at the month of the fjord and went inland while the Milford Sound cruise started from the tip of the fjord and went towards the sea.  The flag in the photo below could have been Canadian and you wouldn't know the difference.   See the next photo of Western Brook Pond and you will understand what I mean.

Western Brook Pond, Gros More National Park, Newfoundland

Spectacular waterfalls - lots of rainfall here plus it's spring

What luck - a penguin!

Seals enjoying the sun

To make it more perfect - rainbows!

View from the dock in the early evening - still plenty of light for the drive back to Te Anau.  It was a good day!