New Zealand Part 7

I've decided to post some journal entries from my travels in New Zealand for the benefit of those who won't get see the pictures or talk with me about it. Mind you, this is not a narrative meant to explain everything about New Zealand and my time there, only a reproduction of what I thought was worth putting into my own journal. Enjoy, post any questions as comments and I'll respond as soon as I can.

November 10th, Christchurch and Sydney

The center of Christchurch is very small and walkable. That said, I didn't really do much. The Cantebury Museum was fantastic however! Donations for entry, and loads of good Maori and Antarctic exhibits, plus some good bits on local wild life. I didn't go into the Kiwi house though. It costs nz$18.00 just to see them in real life isn't worth it. I settled for the stuffed ones in the museum.

FYI- you have to purchase and Australia visa before you fly there! No purchase on arrival - very odd.

Had a nice shuttle ride to the airport with a very amiable driver. We talk about the difference between the north and south islands. He's originally from Auckland, and thinks that some of the people in Christchurch have it a bit easy. I mention it seems that Christchurch is a very good town for cycling. "Of course it's a great town for cycling," says my driver, "It's flat! Many people cycle here because it's easy, in Auckland though we have hills, real hills, and people still ride there. Auckland cyclists are real cyclists." Made me smile.

Emirates Airlines is a real cush way to travel. Great seats and in-flight entertainment and the food was very nice for in-flight stuff. Also interesting was the fact that the flight announcements were in both English and Arabic, and the staff on-board spoke a total of 8 different languages fluently!

Found my shuttle driver for my complimentary ride to my hostel in town, and then went to find some quick take-away food for dinner.

November 11th, Sydney

Started finding my way around the city today. Visited the Opera House, the Rocks, Harbor Bridge, Hyde Park and botanical gardens. I was going to climb the harbor bridge but it costs $200! I've spent enough on this trip already, I think I'd rather pay to see a performance at the opera house instead.

I walked into St. Mary's Cathedral and noticed they were filming a Christmas special that evening. I decided to go. It was pleasant, Christmas cheer this early brings a smile to my face. But they sing some of their hymns/carols the wrong! The tunes were very different, so even the songs that I knew I couldn't sing along with. But at least the call and response parts were easy. But the fun part is I'm going to be on ABC in Australia on Christmas eve at 7:00pm - maybe my big television break? :)