What a trip! Adam, Elena, and Madeleine are out with a group from our parish visiting the Carmelite nuns up in Tokyo (who make the gorgeous Christmas cards), so Claire and I get to relax and tidy. And post pictures! Just a fair warning, there's a real risk of sharing more photos than anyone can possibly care to look at. But I'll put them up for Grandpa, and no hard feelings if he's the only one to read through. ;)
Day 1: Christchurch
Let's not talk about the real first day. Several airports, several airplanes, many hours, a decent amount of sleeping children! That's as much success as anyone can ask for. And really, the girls are pretty good travelers.
We spent the first full day exploring the downtown area of Christchurch, the largest city of the south island. We walked around the sights, but most of them had been greatly affected by the huge earthquake in 2011. It was hard to imagine the magnitude of the destruction that had practically leveled the city, but there was creative regrowth as well. There was a shopping mall made of shipping containers, and a huge "cardboard" cathedral (which looked quite normal, except that it used giant cardboard tubes on the inside for structure). Our hotel was within walking distance of the city's beautiful botanic garden, and we spent a great deal of our time there.
Kayaking down the Avon
(within the garden)
The water was only a few feet deep,
so we all got to go together. Eventually we tied the two kayaks together,
after Claire decided to get serious about splashing. :)
They had punts too,
but the girls wanted their own oar.
Easily the coolest teeter-totter/swing
I've ever seen
Claire's hair never ceases to crack me up. :)
Beautiful rose garden!
Day 2: Hanmer Springs
The real start to our adventure! We picked up our campervan, Nana and Papa, and headed up to Hanmer Springs for a little touristy soak. The girls loved the splash area and the lazy floating river, but my favorite part were the little thermal pools sprinkled all over.
Not too hot for kids, though. Claire had fun exploring!
And splashing!
We finished off the day with mass (a cute little church right on the main street),
and ice cream!
And to think this was only just the beginning. :)
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