thezorbster
23rd April 2007, 10:42 PM
Warning - long post ahead!
We got back Sat and just like Vixxann have the 4am wakey wakeys. I woke up at 4 this morning, got up when the birds started singing at 5 and by 7 had finished all the mountains of ironing so at least that job is over with!
So, we started at Christchurch and stayed 4 nights in a B&B in Redcliffs - Pegasus Bay View - highly recommend it, it was run by expats who were able to give us loads of useful info, pros and cons, picked up car and house brochures for us etc. My first impressions of Christchurch were that I couldn't live there and have to say I initially felt really down as, on paper, that had been our probable destination. My impressions changed over the few days we were there though and as our holiday progressed I looked back favourably on our time there. My problem with the Christchurch area is that it is flat! I knew that before we went and it was something I had said from the start, that I didn't know if I could live with flat. I have always lived in hilly locations so it may sound silly but flat is a problem to me. The city itself I liked, lots of green areas, loved Hagley park, the walks along the river etc. It also didn't feel like a city - it didn't seem busy, or loud and definitely not a skyscraper kind of place. Having said it was flat, I hadn't realised the Port Hills were actually so high! They are actually pretty big but did look very parched and barren - not really much vegetation. It was not until we took the gondola up to the top and saw the views out over Banks peninsula that I went 'wow', my eyes filled up and I began to think, hey, maybe we could live here! It was a perfect, blue sky day and the views were stunning. Later that day we drove round part of the coast past Governors bay etc (loved Governors bay ) and really loved the area so my thoughts about Christchurch began to improve at that point. We spent a bit of time driving round some of the residential areas and although there were some nice areas, we liked Sumner, Redcliffs, to me, a village girl, they still seemed like the city and not far enough removed from it. We would also like a bit of land, not loads but a reasonable sized garden with room for trampolines, veggies etc and being on the hills those places are not going to give us that.
We also looked round some show homes in Christchurch, picked up some house plans etc - quite interesting to see the open plan style homes and littl'un chose her bedroom.
We then had a relaxation day - a day out to Akaroa which was beautiful! Another bright blue sky day, in fact we only had one wet day on our entire trip and that was in Welly. The drive over there was stunning. We got there and decided that as the weather was so good we'd do a dolphin watch trip which was just fantastic!! The reaction of our little girl to the dolphins was worth the price of the trip. Her excitement brought tears to my eyes , she was just shouting Mummy, Mummy, oh Mummy, oh look Mummy. She brought a lot of amusement to the rest of the boat but it was a really emotional moment for me (in fact, I've just filled up again writing this).
Our last day in the Christchurch area we drove up to Rangiora, Ohoka and stopped just to have a quick look at the beach at Woodend as we hadn't really seen much of the beach areas locally. Again, the beach brought tears to my eyes, it seemed to go on for ever and was just empty. I liked Ohoka (village feel, very tiny) and quite liked Rangiora but we are now talking flat again! The plots are bigger though and we could have the land we would like.
Next, 2 nights in Kaikora - beautiful drive up from Christchuch through the hills & wine country. We stayed in a little cottage on a farm park which was great for Sarah as we were just allowed to wander around there at night when the farm park had closed. She helped with feeding the animals and she also had a little pony and cart ride and a pony ride so was in her element. We went whale watching there, prebooked and had perfect, calm conditions. Saw 2 sperm whales, albatrosses (huge) and hundreds of dolphins! Sarah was in her element again as these dolphins were really leaping and doing backflips which she thought was great ( she called them 'show off' dolphins). Seeing the whales dive for me was very emotional, I've always loved pictures of whale tails and seeing that huge tail above the water was just amazing.
On then to Nelson for 4 nights. Nelson on paper was our dream destination but the least practical one due to the lack of work for OH. It was beautiful though and we didn't even manage to do the stunning stuff such as Abel Tasman etc. We had a good look around at residential areas in the mornings and spent the afternoons keeping Sarah happy on the beaches and playgrounds. Spent one afternoon at Rabbit Island which was lovely and a couple on Tahunanui beach. Thought Mapua was lovely on the estuary and can imagine living there! We really loved the area, Nelson probably has everything we need although maybe a bit short on 'cultural' things such as museums, theatre but that's not the end of the world. I can definitely imagine living there and having the kind of outdoor life we want but work would be an issue.
On then to Wellington for 3 nights. Had a lovely calm crossing on the ferry but unfortunately I missed most of the Sounds as I watched Nigel Kennedy, the children's entertainer. I have to say he was very good but I would have preferred the scenery. Oh the sacrifices we make for our children!
Hit Wellington rush hour, not a good start, on a day when it turned out there had been a train line power failure so traffic was particularly bad. Eventually found our b&B in Eastbourne which was lovely. Also loved the signs just before we got there telling us to beware of penguins crossing! They nest under people's sheds and things apparently and come in at night. How brilliant is that! The next day was pouring down and freezing cold so we went to Te Papa in the morning, really great museum but we couldn't manage it all. When we came out it had stopped raining so we took the cable car up to the botanic gardens and walked down, stopping at the playground en route.
The following day was beautiful weather again and we drove around a bit, trying to get a bit of a feel for the area. Welly was somewhere we had not really considered as a place to live, but I loved the setting, surrounded by hills, very green, loads of bush walks. The city definitely feels like a city though, something we're not used to and we don't know if we could cope with a busy commute. Drove around to Scorching bay and had coffee and cake at the Chocolate Fish cafe - Yummy! Then drove up past Porirua to a little beach called Pukerua - beautiful, empty and wild. Then drove a bit further up to Paekakariki to try to find a playground and found a brilliant one. Then drove up to Paraparaumu beach for yet more playground time and a little walk on the beach. it was getting late by then so we drove back down to Porirua and cut across to the Hutt valley and drove that way back to Welly.
We really enjoyed the area and will be posting questions as it is now a possible settling area for us. A lot more jobs than Christchuch for OH but definitely a city feel which we're not used to. Lots to do though, including wet weather activities, which are probably needed more there!
Roturua - 3 nights.
Touristy, fun stuff! Very long drive up from Wellington but stopped in a one horse town for lunch. We had a great time in Rotorua as this was purely holiday. Did Whakerewera thermal area/Maori village and took the guided tour there which was really informative, funny and interesting. They did a short cultural performance too which was fun. Bought Sarah some poi (the swingy balls on ropes) after the show so she is having great fun with those, putting on her own shows for us, including the Haka as it's an excuse for her to stick her tongue out! Took the gondola ride and went luging which was great fun. I was the baddy and Sarah and OH were the goodies, chasing me down the hill. I could hear Sarah laughing coming down and we all really enjoyed it. Also did the sheep show at the agrodome which was fun, went on the 'Duck' tour which was great - bright yellow amphibious vehicles which drive round then drive into a couple of the lakes there. You are all given duck whistles (shaped like a ducks beak) to blow at various times to try to get reactions from passers by. Very childish and very, very funny! This was a really fun trip with a great commentary. Also did the buried village which was interesting and, it had to be done, we went zorbing. The Zorbster is now a Zorbonaut! Did a tandem hydrozorb with OH and haven't laughed so much for a long time. It was brilliant fun, slooshing and slipping around. The staff looked after Sarah for us which was brilliant, she was behind the counter doing the stamps on people's hands as they came in which she though was great and they even gave her a bag of crisps as payment! So, we spent lots of money in Rotorua - great tourist destination and I'd love to go back and see more of the geothermal stuff but this is something a 4 yr old is not really into!
to be continued - too many characters in post!
We got back Sat and just like Vixxann have the 4am wakey wakeys. I woke up at 4 this morning, got up when the birds started singing at 5 and by 7 had finished all the mountains of ironing so at least that job is over with!
So, we started at Christchurch and stayed 4 nights in a B&B in Redcliffs - Pegasus Bay View - highly recommend it, it was run by expats who were able to give us loads of useful info, pros and cons, picked up car and house brochures for us etc. My first impressions of Christchurch were that I couldn't live there and have to say I initially felt really down as, on paper, that had been our probable destination. My impressions changed over the few days we were there though and as our holiday progressed I looked back favourably on our time there. My problem with the Christchurch area is that it is flat! I knew that before we went and it was something I had said from the start, that I didn't know if I could live with flat. I have always lived in hilly locations so it may sound silly but flat is a problem to me. The city itself I liked, lots of green areas, loved Hagley park, the walks along the river etc. It also didn't feel like a city - it didn't seem busy, or loud and definitely not a skyscraper kind of place. Having said it was flat, I hadn't realised the Port Hills were actually so high! They are actually pretty big but did look very parched and barren - not really much vegetation. It was not until we took the gondola up to the top and saw the views out over Banks peninsula that I went 'wow', my eyes filled up and I began to think, hey, maybe we could live here! It was a perfect, blue sky day and the views were stunning. Later that day we drove round part of the coast past Governors bay etc (loved Governors bay ) and really loved the area so my thoughts about Christchurch began to improve at that point. We spent a bit of time driving round some of the residential areas and although there were some nice areas, we liked Sumner, Redcliffs, to me, a village girl, they still seemed like the city and not far enough removed from it. We would also like a bit of land, not loads but a reasonable sized garden with room for trampolines, veggies etc and being on the hills those places are not going to give us that.
We also looked round some show homes in Christchurch, picked up some house plans etc - quite interesting to see the open plan style homes and littl'un chose her bedroom.
We then had a relaxation day - a day out to Akaroa which was beautiful! Another bright blue sky day, in fact we only had one wet day on our entire trip and that was in Welly. The drive over there was stunning. We got there and decided that as the weather was so good we'd do a dolphin watch trip which was just fantastic!! The reaction of our little girl to the dolphins was worth the price of the trip. Her excitement brought tears to my eyes , she was just shouting Mummy, Mummy, oh Mummy, oh look Mummy. She brought a lot of amusement to the rest of the boat but it was a really emotional moment for me (in fact, I've just filled up again writing this).
Our last day in the Christchurch area we drove up to Rangiora, Ohoka and stopped just to have a quick look at the beach at Woodend as we hadn't really seen much of the beach areas locally. Again, the beach brought tears to my eyes, it seemed to go on for ever and was just empty. I liked Ohoka (village feel, very tiny) and quite liked Rangiora but we are now talking flat again! The plots are bigger though and we could have the land we would like.
Next, 2 nights in Kaikora - beautiful drive up from Christchuch through the hills & wine country. We stayed in a little cottage on a farm park which was great for Sarah as we were just allowed to wander around there at night when the farm park had closed. She helped with feeding the animals and she also had a little pony and cart ride and a pony ride so was in her element. We went whale watching there, prebooked and had perfect, calm conditions. Saw 2 sperm whales, albatrosses (huge) and hundreds of dolphins! Sarah was in her element again as these dolphins were really leaping and doing backflips which she thought was great ( she called them 'show off' dolphins). Seeing the whales dive for me was very emotional, I've always loved pictures of whale tails and seeing that huge tail above the water was just amazing.
On then to Nelson for 4 nights. Nelson on paper was our dream destination but the least practical one due to the lack of work for OH. It was beautiful though and we didn't even manage to do the stunning stuff such as Abel Tasman etc. We had a good look around at residential areas in the mornings and spent the afternoons keeping Sarah happy on the beaches and playgrounds. Spent one afternoon at Rabbit Island which was lovely and a couple on Tahunanui beach. Thought Mapua was lovely on the estuary and can imagine living there! We really loved the area, Nelson probably has everything we need although maybe a bit short on 'cultural' things such as museums, theatre but that's not the end of the world. I can definitely imagine living there and having the kind of outdoor life we want but work would be an issue.
On then to Wellington for 3 nights. Had a lovely calm crossing on the ferry but unfortunately I missed most of the Sounds as I watched Nigel Kennedy, the children's entertainer. I have to say he was very good but I would have preferred the scenery. Oh the sacrifices we make for our children!
Hit Wellington rush hour, not a good start, on a day when it turned out there had been a train line power failure so traffic was particularly bad. Eventually found our b&B in Eastbourne which was lovely. Also loved the signs just before we got there telling us to beware of penguins crossing! They nest under people's sheds and things apparently and come in at night. How brilliant is that! The next day was pouring down and freezing cold so we went to Te Papa in the morning, really great museum but we couldn't manage it all. When we came out it had stopped raining so we took the cable car up to the botanic gardens and walked down, stopping at the playground en route.
The following day was beautiful weather again and we drove around a bit, trying to get a bit of a feel for the area. Welly was somewhere we had not really considered as a place to live, but I loved the setting, surrounded by hills, very green, loads of bush walks. The city definitely feels like a city though, something we're not used to and we don't know if we could cope with a busy commute. Drove around to Scorching bay and had coffee and cake at the Chocolate Fish cafe - Yummy! Then drove up past Porirua to a little beach called Pukerua - beautiful, empty and wild. Then drove a bit further up to Paekakariki to try to find a playground and found a brilliant one. Then drove up to Paraparaumu beach for yet more playground time and a little walk on the beach. it was getting late by then so we drove back down to Porirua and cut across to the Hutt valley and drove that way back to Welly.
We really enjoyed the area and will be posting questions as it is now a possible settling area for us. A lot more jobs than Christchuch for OH but definitely a city feel which we're not used to. Lots to do though, including wet weather activities, which are probably needed more there!
Roturua - 3 nights.
Touristy, fun stuff! Very long drive up from Wellington but stopped in a one horse town for lunch. We had a great time in Rotorua as this was purely holiday. Did Whakerewera thermal area/Maori village and took the guided tour there which was really informative, funny and interesting. They did a short cultural performance too which was fun. Bought Sarah some poi (the swingy balls on ropes) after the show so she is having great fun with those, putting on her own shows for us, including the Haka as it's an excuse for her to stick her tongue out! Took the gondola ride and went luging which was great fun. I was the baddy and Sarah and OH were the goodies, chasing me down the hill. I could hear Sarah laughing coming down and we all really enjoyed it. Also did the sheep show at the agrodome which was fun, went on the 'Duck' tour which was great - bright yellow amphibious vehicles which drive round then drive into a couple of the lakes there. You are all given duck whistles (shaped like a ducks beak) to blow at various times to try to get reactions from passers by. Very childish and very, very funny! This was a really fun trip with a great commentary. Also did the buried village which was interesting and, it had to be done, we went zorbing. The Zorbster is now a Zorbonaut! Did a tandem hydrozorb with OH and haven't laughed so much for a long time. It was brilliant fun, slooshing and slipping around. The staff looked after Sarah for us which was brilliant, she was behind the counter doing the stamps on people's hands as they came in which she though was great and they even gave her a bag of crisps as payment! So, we spent lots of money in Rotorua - great tourist destination and I'd love to go back and see more of the geothermal stuff but this is something a 4 yr old is not really into!
to be continued - too many characters in post!