Marlborough and Picton

On a cloudy day we appropiately visited the Cloudy Bay Winery. Tara and I did the hard work of sampling wines and choosing a couple of bottles for consumption on our trip. The day ended at a very nice campsite with showers and early to bed for all. We must be on the ferry early tomorrow to cross to the North Island. See slide show of pictures.

Kaikoura Beautiful Coastline and Seals

Trip is going great. Al's an excellent driver and we've figured out all the switches and workings of our camper van. See slide show of pictures.

Camper Van Will Roll Soon

We've loaded the van and will leave soon. See slide show of pictures

Segway Tour

One more thing off my bucket list. We had a good time on our Segway tour today. See slide show of pictures from our trip.

Museum and Earthquake Exhibit

Tara dropped us off for a second visit at the museum to see the newly opened Earthquake Exhibit. Had a nice lunch and mandatory flat whites overlooking the Botanical Gardens. We saw more evidence of the rebuild efforts and anniversary remembrances on our walk to catch the bus home. See slide show

Restart Mall

We had lunch at the Restart Mall made from shipping containers. Max visited the Radio New Zealand tent set up for broadcasts because tomorrow is the one year anniversary of the deadly Feb 22 earthquake. We also visiedt the Chambery Museum butterfly and wearable art exhibits. We hope to go back on Thursday to visit the special earthquake exhibit that opens tomorrow on the anniversary of Feb quake.

NZ Flight

Flat Correy joined us on Air New Zealand Flight 1. We were surprised by champaign at breakfast to celebrate our 45 anniversary. We think a Canadian couple we met in LA must have told the staff. The Sky Couch did allow us to get some decent sleep but required gymnastics that was less than dignified at times. Our transfers between domestic and international terminals were a challenge especially in Auckland when we had no time to spare. We love being with Tara and Al. It's reassuring to see them safe and happy in their environment. Tara drove us on a quick tour to see the quake damage and rebuild efforts. More to come now that Blogger is working. See slide show  of pictures from our flight and first day in Christchurch.

We almost ready!

We have our sun/rain hats but our plants are probably wondering why we moved them inside on a gorgeous 80 degree day. If we don't, I'm sure San Antonio will get a good freezing winter blast.