Free wifi

I wasn't planning on posting a blog until this evening, but on the basis of never missing an opportunity to use free wifi......

I stayed in Christchurch again last night.  Met up with Pen & Alex Holland for dinner (Pen is the daughter of one of the band's callers) - after a few days of not really talking to anyone, it was nice to sit and have a good chat.  They also had a ton of advice to offer about touring and living in New Zealand as they have been here for two years now.

I'm currently mid-drive to Lake Tekapo - supposedly the best place to view the night sky (except that it is exceedingly cloudy today so not sure there will be a lot to see).  With luck I will manage to find a guided walking tour leaving in the next few days to introduce me to tramping in New Zealand.  If that doesn't come off then I will start looking at flights around Mount Cook / glacier landings / other exciting stuff.

The drive out of Christchurch was as tedious as Pen & Alex promised.  The Canterbury Plains are just flat and boring with a long straight road.  I did chuckle though at the signs at the side of the road.  In amongst all the "Fresh Strawberries", "Fresh Asparagus" and "Fresh eggs" offerings, was a "Horse Poo - 50c a bag".  Presumably this was also fresh, although to be fair that was not explicitly stated ;-)