CHRISTCHURCH & DUNEDIN

LYTTLEON (CHRISTCHURCH) 11 FEB 11
Having previously been here, we decided to spring for a ship’s tour and take the Tranz-Alpine Railroad into the center of the country. All our knowledge of New Zealand is on the coasts so we felt it might be nice to visit the interior. For $289 each, we were whisked on a local bus about 300 yards to a sidetrack where the Tranz-Alpine railroad cars were waiting for us. The regular trip leaves Christchurch every day at 7:30 AM so this was the “special Cruise passenger train”. Comfortable cars set up in tables of four, meaning every other person had ride “backwards”, but not a problem.

We traversed really flat land for about an hour viewing crops, mostly potato. As we reached the foothills of what is called the Southern Alps, the scenery changed dramatically to rapidly flowing glacial streams and humungous trees. Coffee/tea and scones were served early on, followed by beer/wine as we reached the mountains. Very scenic and enjoyable but as far as scenery goes, not up to the Denali train or the train in Skagway. Final destination was a burg called Arthur’s Pass which consisted of a railway station and a small museum. Here we transferred to the ubiquitous coach for the trip back to the ship. The sights were actually better on the bus trip which included a stop for a box lunch at a community center in a town with a population of 100. The box contained several white bread sandwiches of questionable content, some fruit, a quiche and a regional desert called Pavlova. Reminded me of a New England church bazaar.
Before returning to the ship we drove around Christchurch and stopped for an hour at a museum located right next to the botanical gardens so your option for the hour was either indoors or outdoors. We chose outdoors. Christchurch suffered an earthquake in 2010 and some of the damage is still visible. Construction guidelines notwithstanding, it was obvious this was quite an event. Ship’s tours are never a value but to get into the interior there just weren’t many other options.

PORT CHALMERS (DUNEDIN) 12 FEB 11
Port Chalmers is a quaint little village that is only about a 10 minute walk from the pier. First order of business was to stock up on vital foodstuffs at the local supermarket, beer, wine and chocolate being our only purchases. After stocking away the booty we took the free shuttle into Dunedin, the fourth largest city in New Zealand. As luck would have it, this was a special day in town. An event called Thieves Market was in full swing when we arrived. A multitude of people swarmed over the four block area closed to traffic. I would call it a glorified flea market with a little better quality merchandise. But the highlight was this is a city of free wi-fi.

Throughout the downtown area, wi-fi is a right, not a privilege. I was in pig’s heaven and was able to post some stuff I had already prepared. Lunch was a fish of questionable origin in a pub type environment, then back to the ship. A new acquaintance of ours was celebrating his 88th birthday and invited us to a “party” in his friend’s cabin. These two guys met on a world cruise 5 years ago and have been sailing together ever since. One is from California and the birthday boy is from Virginia by way of Newfoundland.
After we got back, I went back out to Port Chalmers by myself to see if I could locate a pub I visited last time I was here in 1998. I visited every pub in town, but none of them were the one I remembered. As I staggered back to the ship, I spotted where the pub had been and the building has been taken over as a museum. I guess that’s appropriate.

Joe Wagg