NEW ZEALAND SOUTH ISLAND

After staying a couple of days in Hawera we drove to Wellington Maureen coming with us to stay for two nights in a hotel prior to crossing on the ferry to South Island. We said our farewells to Maureen and did the ferry crossing in three and a half hours then caught the Alpine Express train to Christchurch.

This journey took six hours then we took a taxi to our hotel for five nights so that we could tour Christchurch and the surrounding areas.

After a good night’s sleep we picked up our hire car found a parking place with no charge and then with Wayne pushing me in my wheelchair we spent all day taking photographs and exploring the wonderful city of Christchurch. It was so English and laid back almost as if time had stopped for fifty years. It was with great sadness that later in the year we saw pictures of the total destruction to the heart of the city by a major earthquake.  Our hearts go out to all the great people we encountered during our visit who have suffered due to the devastation of their homes and work places.

The following days were spent driving round some of the beautiful countryside of South Island but there were so many sights we didn’t have time for and always said we would like to return one day and tour the Island in a camper van.

Our stay in Christchurch soon ended and it was time to start our journey home to the UK via Los Angeles. The flight was faultless but what we didn’t know was that a volcano had erupted whilst we were in the air dispersing volcanic ash into the atmosphere.