Visitors - human and canine

I was lucky enough to have a visitor for a long weekend, Annie, my neighbour's cute collie. She s rather demanding, knowing how to make you feel bad for not throwing theball! Good company though and great walking every evening after dinner.

 

Dare I say, even cuter! Grandkitten Stormy who endeared herself/himself to me by her love of tea! Actually Stormy was thought to be female but now turns out to be male! Still gorgeous! I am sure he will be a regular visitor to my blog.

 

As in previous weeks I really enjoyed yet another glorious afternoon of music in the shade of the huge trees around the archery lawn of the Botanical Gardens on a very sunny afternoon. Singer this time was an Icelandic lady, Hera,  who grew up in Nz, and has such a melodic voice and relaxed style. I shut my eyes on a couple of occasions and felt as if I was floating along with this captivating sound. Singing seemed utterly effortless to her.

 

Then, an arrival from Pfaeffikon - Peter. It was great to catch up again and we have had a fabulous week looking around the Christchurch area. Hot day today, so instead of the concert in the park, we are sitting in my private park enjoying a very lazy day.

First stop is nearly always Riccarton Bush, so fantastic after a long flight and a great introduction to New Zealand. The forest is a haven on a blustery norwest day with its warm, drying winds. It is a magnificent remnant of ancient forest and with  the massive trees towering overhead , the roots of the trees spreading out wide. We were treated to a marvelous flying display of the many fantails , who were fluttering and twittering around us as they twisted and turned collecting insects. Peter was certainly given a wonderful first impression of this lovely country.

 

Brilliant shapes of the roots.

 

A trip to Christchurch is not complete without a visit to its beautiful, fragrant rose garden, which is at its very best now. The colours are so intense.

 

And of course, the city centre is of huge interest and every week I visit, I enjoy seeing the progress of new structures. This one in the background in front of our poor , fast disintegrating cathedral, is the library. What a fascinating way of building. 

A dream come true for me too, as a couple had put money into a washing machine which has been adapted to work as a music system, and were dancing on one of the city's amazing gapfillers. I have always wanted to dance there and so here I was surrounded by my beloved city , which has lost so much and yet remains a fascinating place to visit. It was great to forget all the demolition and damage all around and to just dance , as if no-one was watching!

 

Just beside the dance floor was the gorgeous street art painting of the young girl with fern, painted onto a brick wall when the buildong next door was removed. This is certainly one of my favourites. I hope she stays. She certainly enhances the parking lots which are there now in place of what used to be a fabulous bar.

 

This is my favourite cafe, previously called The Coffee House, with only the yellow building, but now the Villas, with two colourful houses with cafes inside with the most delicious food and coffee in a very relaxed and friendly environment.

 

Lyttleton is another place I have mentioned before and always visit with guests. The cute wee wooden cottages survived the quakes and make this place really special. Of course, the incredible weather helps to accentuate the colours of rooves, walls and flowers.

 

I loved this sign. Couldn't help thinking that Annie would be thinking of a tennis ball rather than a bone!

 

We had lunch at Governor's Bay one of the many pretty little bays overlooking this marvelous harbour area, previously the crater of Lyttleton volcano and epicentre of our most destructive earthquakes.  Looks too idyllic for that, doesn't it! Wish we had taken our swimming togs. The water looked so inviting. 

 

From the bay we wound our way up Dyers Pass to the Sign of the Kiwi where the views from the Crater Rim walkway were breathtakingly beautiful. Just over the hills in the distance is Akaroa, to be visited in a few days. How lucky we are to have all this so close to the city.

 

That evening we enjoyed a Summertimes theatre in the grounds of Riccarton Bush. There are dozens of wonderful events going on in summer around Christchurch, mostly free and usually excellent. So with a picnic, chairs and rugs, we set off and enjoyed a modern twist on the tale of Robin Hood, played by very talented and energetic young actors amongst the magnificent old trees of the first home settled in Canterbury. The trees were imported by the owner of the home because she was so homesick for Britain! It was a gorgeous setting.

 

Another seaside area I love is Brighton with its pier. Not as exciting as England's Brighton pier but still great to walk out on and enjoy the views. We had the most incredibly huge bowls of soup at a cafe  there to warm us up - it was a surprisingly chilly day.

The next day with perfect weather, no wind, pleasantly warm temperatures, we set off to Akaroa for a perfect day. 

A parking place under theshade of a  very colourful 'New Zealand Christmas tree', a pohutukawa. What a blaze of colour. 

 

Having done a harbour cruise recently I very nearly didn't go, but I am so pleased I did. The weather and sea conditions were perfect, which meant we could go past the Akaroa Heads and out to sea. This gave us the chance to visit a bay with dozens of fur seals with their pups. It was lovely to see them moving so gracefully in water and struggling on the rocks. It was also a beautiful part of the coastline where one could clearly see the lava flows and sediment. You might spot a couple of seals on closer inspection.

 

I have never seen so many of the world's smallest and rarest dolphin, Hector's dolphin. Very cute and very keen to be around the boat. It was a real treat. 

We had missed out on the Giant's House on my last visit, so I was thrilled we could visit it this time. I think it is one of the most beautiful manmade places I have ever visited. Actually it is the garden rather than the house which is the main attraction, though I am sure that staying there in the b and b must be extraordinary. 

 

Imagine  breakfast on the patio with these fabulous flowers everywhere and being serenaded by Edith Piaf's music playing from the grand piano!

 

What a magical place this is created by the owner, a landscape gardener and artist. She has transformed the garden into a masterpiece of colour, shape and beauty, made even more spectacular thanks to the views all around of the harbour, hills and native bush. Accompanied by the dulcet sounds of the bellbirds and the flapping of the wings of the massive wood pigeons, one wanders up and down stairs, inset with ceramic tiles and pieces woven into intricate designs

 

The different creations are all extraordinary and the number of hours spent on each design from start to finish must be amazing. She has kiwis

 

And fantastic seating areas, rivalling Park Guell in Barcelona!

 

The family area she has created has so much detail. It is incredible.

 
Believe it or not, the best is still to come. Afternoon tea in a beautiful shady spot overlooking the garden.

 

The fragrances, the music, the scenery, the intense colours and then a tray of tea made so beautiful by the simplest decoration of flowers in the tea and coffee spouts. 

 

It was a magical few hours before we set off back over the hills and winding road to Christchurch and a brief rest in my garden, which looked beautiful but rather plain in comparison, before heading out to a delicious Asian meal at a Noodle festival followed by the annual classical concert in the park. 

We were not alone! About 8000 were there wrapped in blankets as temperatures plummeted and the cold easterly wind started to blow. Our neighbour was very special. His face was just captivating with so many expressions!

 

a gorgeous, very well behaved creature who evidently enjoyed the music as he sat calmly throughout the evening. 

As night fell, the stage lights came on and the full moon came up (sadly not captured on camera).

 

then the Grand Finale to a very busy yet enjoyable week. Fireworks synchronised to music. It was exceptionally beautiful.

 

Now a quietish week before we set off for a short trip together and Peter will continue on around the north of the South Island whilst I come back to Christchurch. 

 

Wonderful weeks

Most important news! Meet my new grandkitten - Storm!

Isn't she beautiful and so well camouflaged in the sofa blanket - careful when sitting down!!

Mark and Emma got her in the New Year. She is absolutely the most gorgeous kitten ever! Sadly I can't go over and kittensit during the day!

Mark has just been round to finish the deck of my house. In my next blog I will put a photo of it with my new furniture. It will look very smart. Can't wait for Mark to come over for dinner and to have our first meal there. Provided that the weather continues to be so warm. Today it was 30 degrees and horribly windy. Off to see Lion now in the air conditioned cinema. Heaven! 

Wow, what a fabulous movie. Recommend it to everyone. Not a lion in sight I should add!

I have had a brilliant first month of the year. Busy with house and garden, but super to see the amazing improvements. Still a few to go but certainly getting there.

Not only that I met up with loads of longstanding dear friends. The first get together was a 70th birthday party for a wonderful musician friend and children's entertainer Kerry. 

 

He and his wife Mary have been friends of mine since my kids were tiny and we would spend hours singing with Natural Magic and watching the puppet shows, as in the photo above. Then we had marvelous evenings at Kerry and Mary's home by the beach with many of my international students from Polytechnic.   Musicians would just turn up and start playing in a fabulously relaxed environment. At the party I felt as if I had gone back 30 years with so many familiar faces and singing all my favourite songs. People were dressed as pirates as Kerry and Mary  are also known as the pirate band. It was great and everyone so happy - most of us without any alcohol ! Kerry enjoyed his birthday bottle of rum.

 

There is a ukelele group which I definitely plan to join either now or later in the year. 

It looked such fun and Kerry assures me it is easy. Was lovely to have my friend Kerstin there too.

 

The food was pot luck and really delicious as always. Atmosphere electric and although the wind blew nobody really noticed it much in the cosy little garden.

Next day I enjoyed heading to the airport for my 40 minute flight to Nelson, to my great friends Alison and Bruce. Super flight with wonderul views of the coast and mountains . Nelson airport requires the plane to take a short trip out to sea and then bank steeply to land very close to the sea. It is spectacular.  So too was the house Alison and Bruce have .  Below is a photo of  the kitchen and living area

 And here below the view from my bedroom 

 Pretty incredible and so fabulous to go to sleep looking at the stars and to wake to such a view. What a paradise! So quiet except for the bird song and the sound of their sheep. They all have very strong characters so I would certainly find it hard sitting down to dinner and eating 'hedgehog' (with the black tuft on her back) or 'intrepid' ( who tends to wander away).

 

We did have a great meal of Roger the ram but fortunately I had never met him!

I hadn't been to Nelson since the boys were tiny, so I had forgotten how beautiful it is around there with all the long sandy beaches with hilly forested   backdrop. It is truly idyllic.

 

It is also an excellent wine region, so of course we had to sample some 😀

 Not only the wine is superb, the houses and scenery are also magnificent

 

We also enjoyed a bit of culture, visiting  the WOW , world of wearable arts, exhibition. It was out of this world with a definite wow factor. This is my favourite costume

 There were also some brilliant cars on display. What a cutey

 

We did lots of nice food and drink things in quirky places. This was the table at a cafe run by a commune. Delicious food (no snails on the menu) and fabulous environment. 

 

Just down the road this amazing old barn

 

And in Motueka an incredible church conversion

 

Not really my type of clothes, but nonetheless a place worth visiting.

We enjoyed a drink on our final evening at a spot near Rabbit island. Very pretty area and loads of great bars and cafes and of course fabulous views.

 

Sunset from Alison's balcony was spectacular as we together enjoyed the top class tennis matches at the Aussie Open. I was sad Stan didn't quite make it. 

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What a brilliant week!

The day after I got home I started my new career, as a tour guide! What fun, though I was extremely nervous and could not sleep the night before. 

I have no idea how many tours I will do but I have another this week and one in French next month. What a perfect day out travelling from Akaroa to Christchurch and back, practising my German and meeting nice people. 

 

Akaroa is always beautiful. Luckily I have good friends just outside Akaroa, so I combined the tour with an overnight visit to Liz and Brian. I realised just how lucky we are here to have such unbelievably special homes with breathtaking views. 

 

That was the view I woke to. Actually it is a pity to close your eyes ! 

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I hope to be a regular visitor over the next months when I do my tour guiding. It went so well and I got great feedback so I returned home feeling very fulfilled.

 

Of course, I had to stop on the way back at this lovely lake, Lake Forsyth, which is quite like the Scottish lochs with hills descending to its shores. 

Then a visit to a beach I have not been to for years but which I love, Birdlings Flat

 

No golden sands here but millions of coloured pebbles, worn flat by the pounding waves. This is a dangerous beach - no swimming - but fantastic to enjoy, especially with that weather and virtually alone. 

This is my saying for the week. So true for me! I try not to procrastinate. After all, who knows how long we will be blessed with all the senses and all these incredible places to see and people to visit. 

 

Post Christmas working bees and concerts in the park

 

Just after New Year David had one free day and we snatched the opportunity to transform the above rather sad looking guest room, with its badly stained carpet, into this beautiful guest room with freshly painted walls.

 

It was very exciting to see the transformation particularly as neither David nor I had ever painted before. David did the majority of the work, but I enjoyed doing my bit too. Today the new carpet went in, and now it is a room to really feel proud of.

David headed south to his new flat and job in Queenstown, and to cheer myself up and get out of the empty house , I headed to Lazy Sundays in the Park. What a wonderful invention, and thankfully the weather played its part too.

I have never seen so many people looking for car parks and heading to the concert, picnic bags and deckchairs under their arms. I had to park on the other side of the golf course but really enjoyed my walk through the park.

 

 The Archery Lawn at the gardens was packed and the Celtic music we listened to was fantastic. Sitting eating left over mince pies and drinking ginger beer in the shade of a huge fir tree  was simply blissful.

 

The colours everywhere were so intense it was breathtakingly beautiful.

 

This new edition to the Botanical Gardens is very special and a well used perching area for the local bird life.

 

The River Avon - such a restful spot near the heart of the city. I was thrilled to see a massive eel and huge trout. Sorry, no photos!

 

After a restful weekend and lots of fun with a group of German and Spanish guests , along with Tine a teacher from Zuoz, it was time to work. I am very grateful to Mark for giving up an entire week of his holiday, plus a weekend, to redo my deck at the back of the house. It was getting a bit scrappy and had a couple of holes, and it was clear as Mark ripped it up that it was definitely due for a change..

 

Even pulling up the old boards was a massive job and the sudden hot weather certainly did not help, with temperatures in very late twenties. Here the end of a long and for Mark, very hard day. Back breaking stuff. 

 

While he slaved in the garden, I had rooms to clean and curtains to save. I had taken my curtains down to wash before my guests arrived and the linings completely disintegrated on one set. I was faced with a big bill or some repair work. I am pleased to say I have been able to save them.

 

After four days of work Mark has produced what will be a beautiful place to sit. Considering he has never done this before, he has done an amazing job. I am so lucky to have such handy sons. I even became his assistant today,  and have definitely decided that I will not make it a new career! Such hard work and so tiring in the full sun. Still, it is great to be able to help a little and not just bake muffins, and watch him work!

 

Not finished yet. Tomorrow will be another big day. Forty square metres of timber needs a lot of screws! Once it is finished, I will stain it, but we need to wait for the temperatures to drop a bit.