Tour Guides again

After an iffy start to their holiday – thanks foggy Auckland – Anne and Mark arrived for a week long holiday. They had booked an apartment in Fortitude Valley since there were no spare beds at our place.

We collected them from the airport and dropped their luggage off before heading out to find something to eat after the long day of travel. Next morning we met and walked through the city along the river to the Botanic Gardens and then to Southbank.

The main reason for their visit was attending the Truck Show later in the week, but we played tour guide when we could as well. My job had been extended, so my plans to have been able to do things with them during the day, or to loan them our car were quashed. However they hired a car and managed to get in a couple of days exploring without getting lost or frustrated in traffic.

We met them for dinner a couple of times through the week and again on the weekend, doing some sightseeing and truck viewing along the way.

Before you could blink it was the end of the week and time for them to squash everything back into their suitcase and head for the airport to begin the journey home.

Hooray, Hooray, it's a holi-holiday

So, the time since we bought those amazingly inexpensive flights has flown by and we're here !!

The flight was good - even the Friday night traffic on the way to the airport was not too bad. Getting through immigration was a wee bit slow - but not so slow as it was for the big queue that came after us !!

We found our bags, and went to meet my cousin Jackie who was picking us up. A few text messages later and we spotted each other, so our bags were bundled into the car and we set off on our way to their house.

We've had a great couple of days being shown about and treated to some yummy meals. We have walked and walked - from Santa Monica to Venice (and back) and today we did a bit more shopping on Main St and 3rd St Promenade. Probably more looking than shopping to be truthful.

It was gorgeous and sunny when we landed on Friday afternoon (that's right - we had TWO Friday afternoons) but the "marine layer" came in and it has been a bit misty or just high cloud most of the time. That has kept the temperature a bit cooler as well.

We've had a great time and tomorrow we will set off on the next part of the adventure.

Gondola ? Cable Car ?

When I think of a gondola I imagine a boat on a canal in Venice. Why then are the little bubble glass carriages that transport loads of tourists and locals up the sides of hills in Queenstown, Christchurch and Rotorua also called gondola ? Whatever the reason, they are a great way to get up and down a steep hill and to enjoy the scenery as you go and from the top.

We decided to go one frosty clear morning to see what it was all about. It was a beautiful day, with clear skies - but hazy, probably caused by the city slowly thawing from the hard frost earlier.

It's worth the trip if you are in Christchurch and have the time. A 20 minute wait for hot drinks at the cafe was a bit hard to swallow, but at least we were told when we ordered and weren't left wondering if they had forgotten our order.