Clevelys and Salzwedels of Geraldine AND Peel Forest

Having had summer on Wednesday and Thursday this week, we are back to overcast days, spots of rain, and wind. We have been trying to find a suitable day to visit Geraldine and Peel Forest; yesterday was clear but cold and windy so we left it for today which was not as clear but not as cold. Glad that we waited as it was a lovely day even though the cloud cover was vast. 

First thing to do was visit the Barkers shop - as the name "Barkers of Geraldine" suggests, they are situated right here; the factory itself is on the Barker family farm about 8 km outside of Geraldine. 

I picked up strains of music which sounded live; leaving the others to hopefully follow or not, I wandered off to find the source.  Turns out Geraldine hosts a Farmers' Market every Saturday from October to April, with music, fresh produce, and craft goods on display.  This trio was lovely - I guess they each must have played at least three instruments and just kept swapping out.

These albion strawberries are like nothing I've ever seen - they are enormous!  They are apparently sweet and delicious.  I really should have bought some to try but couldn't concentrate on anything what with most of my brain capacity being taken up in listening to the folk music.

Revisited the mosaic and puzzle shop, wanting to show Nick who wasn't with us last time we went.  He was suitably impressed.

Above: today's photo of the jersey.  Below: the same photo, two years ago.  The parents thought it would be an interesting comparison of the boys' heights, and it truly is!  Look how little the boys were.

We had brought along ingredients for a picnic lunch so popped in to buy drinks at the local store, then drove around until we found The Domain, a large park and garden area.  We ate lunch next to the bowling greens, protected from the wind, and thus fortified were ready for the Peel Forest expedition.  Ready were we?  Well, that was up for debate.  Nick wondered if perhaps everyone had had enough of an outing and wanted to go home.  The votes were polar.  The boys were not shy to try sway the rest to go home - they had no interest in walking through the forest.  Mom was on their side.  Dad said he was happy either way but leaned more to the side of Foresting; Nick was Switzerland.  I wanted to go simply because that was the intent and we wanted to show Nick, which was why we had waited until he could go with us.  No one wanted to make the call so in the end we tallied up our ages on the 'for' and 'against' sides.  Nick voted for both sides; the 'yesses' won out 153 against 135.  Ha!  If only the boys had had more years on them.  The 'nos' were counseled to buck up and zip the complaints so that we could all enjoy the rest of the day. 

Mom needed some help with the inclines as she battles to breath but graciously pressed on.

The boys disappeared ahead, eager to get the walk over with.  Unluckily for them we caught them on their return and turned them back around, but they did end up waiting with mom and escorting her back to the car when she had had enough. 

Here is the Big Tree of the Big Tree Walk.  Although not very high, it has an amazing girth.

We were home around 4 pm which left enough time to finish sewing a pair of trousers (all it needed was the button) and hem a skirt for mom; pack away the sewing machine, tidy the house, and cook a meal before Cody arrived.  Cody was the speaker at a Scripture Union camp in Te Anau this week, and Nick knows him well from the School of Theology.  This was the posed "oh it's for the blog so let's look like we're having a serious conversation" photo...

Christchurch: place of extreme hot and cold!

We had decided ahead of time to visit the International Antarctic Centre in Christchurch, and with a bit of research beforehand we had an idea of what to expect and the fees payable.  It's expensive but well worth it!  The boys got in free as the centre is running a special for Canterbury residents (still valid until the end of January for any would-be explorers; we just had to produce proof of address).  In our eagerness and over-anticipation of morning peak traffic we arrived a good 15 minutes too early so had to kill a bit of time in the warm nor'westerly winds outdoors.

Once through we made our way to the cold places, after experiencing a surprise snowfall in the first room.

In the "Ice and Snow Experience" room we donned jackets and overshoes and played in the snow before subjecting ourselves to an antarctic storm - the temperature in the room was -8C but with the windchill factor and 40 km/h winds we experienced -35C.  Fun!  Yeah, it was cold.  But honestly, before the storm hit and we were braving -8, it felt much like any winter's day here at its worst. 

Mom sat outside sensibly watching us - the room went dark and the wind blew through, with great sound effects to match!

After that chilly time it was bliss to head outside again into the warmer weather (did I mention that summer started yesterday?).  Nick, Dad and the boys were ready for their Hagglund Ride, which Mom and I thought best left to the menfolk. 

We caught them at the end of their 10-minute trip just before they went through a duck pond.  The ducks would have to be good swimmers to get to the bottom.  Hagglunds can float!

Phew, safely out the other side.

Back indoors to meander through the many other areas of interest, and tried on some super duper warm clothing - pants, jackets, overshoes and mittens.  Boy do you ever feel clumsy with so much gear on.

Penguin feeding time!  Pretty cool to watch these guys being fed their breakfast, and hear an explanation about what the penguin encounter is all about - all the penguins here have been rescued from the wild where injuries and/or disabilities would have left them defenseless.

One more major stop after the penguins - the 4D movie.  Wow, I really won't comment on it here but will just say that it's excellent and very entertaining!!
Lunch at McDonalds before the second phase of our Christchurch visit...

...in which the men dropped Mom and me off at Spotlight (hands-on fabric shopping) and drove around some of the interesting earthquake-specific sights.  The following photos were taken by Nick and I may be a little sketchy on details.
First though, is the Transitional Cathedral which is made substantially of cardboard, earning the nickname "The Cardboard Cathedral".  This is a temporary replacement for the Christchurch Cathedral was was badly damaged in the February 2011 shakes.

The Chalice, below, is an 18-metre high sculpture celebrating the Millenium.  Its shape mirrors the top of the cathedral which was knocked off in the quake, although it was never designed with any link in mind in 2001!

Fences have been filled in with colourful squares to make the construction sites prettier...

...and clever graffiti-ists have been busy!

The tram only just reopened two weeks ago - the men were pleased to see it in action.

We left the city around 2 pm in the sweltering heat (it was up to 32C today).  Stopped near Ashburton at the Book Barn, which is exactly what the name says - a barn FILLED with books.  Picked up a few good things including a Readers Digest music book of old favourites, of which Nick and I played a few for my parents' amusement. 

Hospital to Chch via Akaroa

Our plans for today had an interesting turn when Dad bumped his head on the corner of the car boot - we were about ten minutes away from leaving for a mini-holiday to Akaroa and Christchurch, and from my bedroom window I heard "oh no" and the boys giving some sort of response.  First Aid to the rescue...there was so much blood gushing out Dad's head though that I got Nick to phone for an ambulance straight away.  The paramedics were lovely, and got the bleeding to stop.  Since we couldn't get a doctors' appointment until the afternoon, they took him to the hospital in the ambulance where we waited for about an hour.  The doctor on duty gave him a tetanus injection and applied medical glue to the opening - a much more efficient dressing than stitches and bandages. 

Pleased to say that Dad is none the worse and was still keen and ready for travel - certainly an unforeseen diversion! 
Stopping at the top of the hill before the descent into Akaroa itself is a must-do, especially on a clear day, and more so when you have spent a few hours in a hot car in summer (which apparently started today)!

Our plans for Akaroa initially were to spent the night and attend one of the International Music Festival concerts, but accommodation didn't pan out so we simply parked the car and spent an hour or two meandering the main streets and playground, stopping at the fudge shop of course.

 Mouse Choir set up in the church above...unusual idea!

 We were desperate for shade and refreshment, so found a spot on a bench under a tree to enjoy cold drinks.  Pity that the powers that be hadn't realized that the hedge right in front of the bench was a bit of a view blocker!

Arrived at our Top 10 destination in Christchurch early evening, and after a quick unpack, got back in the car and drove around looking for a suitable takeaway venue for tea.  We accidentally ended up cruising around the red zone area and even took a look at Re:Start, the container mall.  Lovely spot and quite ingenious.