Explore NZ - Day 18 - 25 April 2018 - In Christchurch

When Rahul and Michael visited us last evening they had warned us that most shops would be closed this day because of Remembrance Day. The ANZAC day is celebrated every year on 25 April as a mark of remembrance of those Australian and New Zealand soldiers who laid down their lives serving their countries in conflicts worldwide. The day is when the ANZAC troops entered the stage of WWI in Gallipolli. We were a bit short on milk for the standard breakfast of muesli. There are two convenience store outlets of Countdown very close to our accommodation. Shukla agreed to do the errand when I was working on the blog. He returned after a detailed round of the neighborhood. He had been unable to get milk because the Countdown outlets would open only after 1 pm. A few Asian shops that were open did not vend milk. He also mentioned that the streets were full of people, many in ceremonial attire who looked as if they were going to take part in a parade.

To make do with what was on hand we decided to improvise the breakfast menu. I had baked beans with spam, while the Shuklas and Hetal had mashed potato, pasta and muesli. In the excitement of the successful completion of the journey and fading light, the photo session got postponed to this morning. The excellent Madhubani work of Hetal stole the show yet again. Record Drive had completed its 12^th expedition and all of them successfully.

Colonial settlers regarded Lyttelton as the ‘Gateway to Canterbury’. The busy harbor handles maximum freight business in the South Island. We drove up to the harbor and observed that the port was busy even on a holiday such as this. We used the harbor point as the entrance to the Port Hills. The Hills is a range that runs from the Gebbies Pass, above the Port of Lyttelton, to Godley Head, forming a wall between the city and the harbor. The range has many summits ranging between 300 and 500 meters above sea level. Sugarloaf summit is the most recognizable with a transmission tower located on it. The narrow roads on the Summit Road call for safe and concentrated driving. We enjoyed panoramic views of the city, the harbor and the surrounding waterbodies and islands from many vantage positions between the Gebbies Pass and Dyers Pass. The range of hills is considered to be remnants of a volcano that erupted millions of years ago. A portion of the Summit Road that connects the range from end to end has been closed following the 2011 earthquake.

At Dyers Pass is a prominent café called Sign of the Kiwi, which was originally a staging post from 1916. Remnants of the Toll Pass can still be seen there. It is a popular spot for locals and tourists alike. At the time of our visit there were bicycle riders everywhere. Many biking paths, of varying difficulties, have been listed on signposts. People of all age groups were seen indulging in hiking, walking, running, biking or simply relaxing in the salubrious environment. The New Brighton Pier and beach was crowded with kids and their parents because of the many attractions for children on the shore and even on the waterside. The facilities helped children explore their talents and also enjoy a good day out in the sun. The original timber pier decayed in about 70 years of its construction and was demolished in 1965. The present concrete pier, an icon of Christchurch, was commissioned in 1997 with substantial financial commitment of the community. Kayaking, surfing and gliding seemed to be popular activities there.

From the New Brighton Pier we beat a path to Sumner Beach. The weather was good, but the numerous beaches we had been to, stole the thunder from Sumner Beach. Taylor’s Mistake is another curiosity in Sumner. It is named after the master of a vessel who ran aground here thinking that he was going over the Sumner Bay. It was difficult to find a place to have lunch because the cafes and restaurants were full beyond capacity and the eateries were awfully understaffed due to the holiday. We tried many restaurants in vain and then decided to try some closer to our accommodation. Finally we had a huge meal in a Pizza Hut outlet that was almost opposite the accommodation. We even had enough left over to feast on at dinner time.

I was exhausted by the time lunch was completed. It is always like this. Once an expedition is over sleep becomes the predominant activity for a few days. Maybe, the subconscious stress gets released and manifests in rest that had been foregone in keeping up a tough and hard schedule through the many days. I have been on the double leg expedition for almost two months and the sleep deprivation was overtaking me. I slept for over an hour and then left with everyone else to check out a retail Kathmandu outlet, which we had come to know from Rahul, as a must visit store. The items on sale were indeed tempting to pick up, but given the fact that the next expedition is more than a year away, I logged the items for future referencing.

The car has to be returned to an off-site location tomorrow morning which was necessitated by an early morning flight out of Christchurch. I wanted to check out the location and the procedure to avoid any last minute surprises, including payment. The location was not difficult to find and an extremely friendly Neville told us that they do not handle any payments and that it is done by the rental company directly. They merely operate a car parking facility on behalf of companies they have contracts with. He also suggested that we offload the luggage in the airport and one of us drive the car to the facility, preferably before 3 am. He said that the procedure would involve only handing over the car key and that they would drop me to the departure point in the airport. With this information under our belt we decided that we would leave the accommodation by 2.30 am the next day.

The University of Canterbury is one of the oldest in New Zealand. It has reputed departments for all faculties except medical. Rahul met us at the University bookstore and took us on a walk in the campus. The huge campus looked impressive with huge open spaces, large fields for rugby and football and outstanding library facilities. Even at the late hour, in nippy winds, children of different age groups were being coached in rugby. Rahul also took us to the Ilam House, which is a faculty interaction center and that which has been immortalized on celluloid based on twin murders that took place in that building in 1954. With a heavy heart we took leave of Rahul, who was a constant source of support, along with Michael, to appreciate the life and times in that part of the country,

The final matter that needed to be settled was the accounts. I had been keeping track of expenditure and maintaining accounts against the cash that had been handed over to me. It did not take much time to finalise because I had to only update this day’s details. Once that was amicably settled it was bedtime, albeit for a very short time.