This Is England?

Our time in New Zealand was fast drawing to a close and we had one of the biggest cities to visit, Christchurch. Having been devastated by the earthquake that killed 185 not so long ago we weren’t entirely sure what we would find there, but we were sure gonna find out.

The journey to Christchurch did not take long and we had blessed with glorious sunshine for the day to ensure our last full day in New Zealand would be a pleasant one. We managed to find a free parking area by the main park and it said it was good for 3 hours, but there were loads of places available and we were sure that nobody would mind if we over-stayed slightly. Besides, we hadn’t seen any traffic wardens wandering about the place.

The park was beautiful, and it almost felt like we were back in good ol’ Blighty. As a city Christchurch is very much modelled on England, with the River Avon running through it and many roads named after English counties. We didn’t know what to expect from the place, or what to see, as the CBD is still cordoned off to the public. We went straight there so we could witness for ourselves the effects of the earthquake, and they were still very real. Shells of buildings with no windows, buildings in semi-states of falling down, cranes everywhere attempting to sift through the rubble and build new buildings. It was very strange indeed. Soon enough we needed a break from the devastation and we headed along the River Avon. There was an old-fashioned boat available for punting down the river, but it wasn’t really something that either of us fancied. It was also hot. So hot that we only needed a t-shirt, and James had to eventually seek shelter in the shade as he had not put any sun tan lotion on, nor had he done for the last 25 days.

Buildings within the closed area

I desperately wanted to try a local pie or some fish and chips, but due to the affected areas in the city there didn’t seem to be anywhere that was serving. Eventually we found a pedestrianized area that seemed to be bustling with people. There were a couple of mobile food stands with many folk crowding around so I knew I would be in luck. And I would have been too, if I had wanted to order pizza, bratwurst, souvlaki or sushi. So my desire for a New Zealand pie or fish and chips went out the window and I ordered the spicy bratwurst (which was very good by the way!) and tucked in under the blazing hot sun.

Spicy Bratwurst

There wasn’t too much else to see really, so we went back to the campervan for lunch. And what did we see as we got into the car park? Two traffic wardens inspecting every vehicle. We then realised that we still had at least 20 minutes left of our 3 hour time slot so we should be fine, and indeed we were. Many others were not so lucky though as there were plenty of tickets pressed underneath the front windscreen wipers. The next port of call was a second-hand bookshop we had seen outside of town and we managed to negotiate a deal for an Australian guidebook by trading in the New Zealand one, plus one of James’s that he had finished and 3 dollars. A decent deal, but it was no Lonely Planet. Then again, we had survived New Zealand on a non-Lonely Planet too so I reckon they are all pretty much the same.

We hit our last Top 10 campsite mid-afternoon and had a list of tasks as long as a……well, we had a lot put it that way. After dinner (using up all the leftover stuff we had – Three Cheese Pasta ‘n’ Sauce with sweet chilli tuna, Louisiana Hot Sauce and an egg chucked into the mix was actually not all that bad) we stuck a wash on and I noticed something that I had never seen before in my life. A vending machine that must be very rare. I have seen them for soft drinks, sweets, even swimming goggles, but never for hot chips! Well this I just HAD to sample. They were terrible. Hot – yes. Cooked – no. They went in the bin after seven chips.

And then we spent the night packing, tidying, cleaning, blogging, searching for accommodation in Cairns and drinking the $20 six-pack of Heineken from Reception, as it meant that we would have exactly the right amount of money for when we hit the airport the next day. It had been an unbelievably brilliant second leg of the trip and we had seen and experienced some amazing things. However, we both knew that with Australia would come proper/comfy beds, private/clean bathrooms, warm mornings and perhaps a bit more of a tan.