We had a pleasant drive back to Christchurch -- it was long but pleasant and we had a nice chance to chat and reflect on our trip and what we have ahead of us when each of us returns home. We didn't encounter any "sheep jams" as we drove through the Canterbury region, and I was secretly disappointed. Sheep jams are when all the sheep are walking in the road in your way. You're supposed to keep driving very slowly -- don't stop, everyone said, because then they will stop too and you'll be screwed. But alas, no sheep jams.
We also saw one of the most amazing things that we hadn't even expected to see: Mount Cook. It's at the head of this crazy aqua lake, another one of those with the top
soil-free water that is used for hydroelectric power. THE WATER IS REALLY THIS COLOR.
We got to Christchurch in plenty of time for -- what else? -- more walking around before dinner. One of the more amazing things we saw was a sculpture put in place for the October 2002 World Firefighters Games. It features pieces of rust-colored beams from the wreckage of the World Trade Center that were given to the city of Christchurch by the City of New York. It was really something. You could touch them. One of the beams, a plaque read, sh
ot down through the building and pierced the subway platform far below. Some of the girders have spray-painted numbers on them that, I wonder, if they are from when they were building it 40 years ago. Imagine the steelworker who sprayed those numbers on there, never thinking anyone would ever see those numbers again in his lifetime. It was awe-inspiring and very sad and very moving and everything.
The city is very beautiful and very English. Except for the Chinese Lantern Festival being held that weekend in one of the parks. We walked around for quite some time before settling on a place to eat, a very cute restaurant within a former college that's been turned into an arts center, where we ate outside and each ordered some avant-garde ravioli. We've encountered some very inventive cuisine here in New Zealand; I'm very impressed. Unfortunately we struck out on finding a place with the much-hyped Bluff oysters, which had just come into season and were all the rage in Auckland.
Then, as we were wrapping up the day -- and hence our trip -- looking for one last place to grab dessert or one more drink, we spotted it: A chalkboard sign outside a forlorn-lookin
g Italian restaurant. "Bluff Oysters." What a find. We went in and ordered just the oysters, which arrived lovely and perfect and cold. As Rachael Ray might say (and, sadly, as I caught myself saying throughout the trip): "de-lish."
Our last walk back to the hotel in the summer night breeze brought us past a bush of yellow roses. We stopped, and smelled them, before heading into the room to pack our suitcases one last time.
soil-free water that is used for hydroelectric power. THE WATER IS REALLY THIS COLOR.We got to Christchurch in plenty of time for -- what else? -- more walking around before dinner. One of the more amazing things we saw was a sculpture put in place for the October 2002 World Firefighters Games. It features pieces of rust-colored beams from the wreckage of the World Trade Center that were given to the city of Christchurch by the City of New York. It was really something. You could touch them. One of the beams, a plaque read, sh
ot down through the building and pierced the subway platform far below. Some of the girders have spray-painted numbers on them that, I wonder, if they are from when they were building it 40 years ago. Imagine the steelworker who sprayed those numbers on there, never thinking anyone would ever see those numbers again in his lifetime. It was awe-inspiring and very sad and very moving and everything.The city is very beautiful and very English. Except for the Chinese Lantern Festival being held that weekend in one of the parks. We walked around for quite some time before settling on a place to eat, a very cute restaurant within a former college that's been turned into an arts center, where we ate outside and each ordered some avant-garde ravioli. We've encountered some very inventive cuisine here in New Zealand; I'm very impressed. Unfortunately we struck out on finding a place with the much-hyped Bluff oysters, which had just come into season and were all the rage in Auckland.
Then, as we were wrapping up the day -- and hence our trip -- looking for one last place to grab dessert or one more drink, we spotted it: A chalkboard sign outside a forlorn-lookin
g Italian restaurant. "Bluff Oysters." What a find. We went in and ordered just the oysters, which arrived lovely and perfect and cold. As Rachael Ray might say (and, sadly, as I caught myself saying throughout the trip): "de-lish."Our last walk back to the hotel in the summer night breeze brought us past a bush of yellow roses. We stopped, and smelled them, before heading into the room to pack our suitcases one last time.
