My Kiwi Experience!: Christchurch (Day 2)

On this wet Sunday morning, we had breakfast at a cosy cafe that had a large fish tank and a friendly cat. I have a feeling the person who runs this joint loves cats as she uses pebbles painted with different cats to identify her table orders. Creative.

We explored the city of Christchurch on this day, starting with Cathedral Square. It is what the name indicates - a square with a cathedral. As it is a place of worship, we were not allowed to have photographs taken, although there were quite a few shutterbugs happily snapping away.

The next place we visited also does not allow photographs to be taken because the animals are nocturnal. And they were so cute! We were quite lucky as when it was our turn in their enclosure, they were actively running around chasing each other and busy looking for food in between cracks of trunks and in the ground. These flightless birds are non other than the famous kiwi birds of New Zealand.

Petra then took us for lunch at a cafe housed in the old University of Canterbury campus. They actually do occupy one of the old lecture rooms, equiped with a fireplace and all. Snazzy... oh, and the salad that Petra ordered was yummylicious!

Right opposite the room we were in was the Rutherford Den. Does that ring a bell? Yup, it's the great scientist, Lord Ernest Rutherford whom we studied about in high school. The den was were he actually did his experiments and found out the things we learnt in school. Cool, eh? There's also the lecture hall where he studied and lectured:

Don't you just love the old charm the place is oozing? All the sandstone and granite... ahh... so English...

Why doesn't Macquarie have stairwells made of timber and stained glass like this:

My Kiwi Experience!: Christchurch (Day 1)

As promised, the photos of my trip. Luckily, I took notes of what I did. Some names of places are fuzzy but hey, what is Google for, eh?

Right, so, rewind the clock to this time three weeks ago. I was wandering at the airport waiting for time to pass. When you have an airport as small as Sydney International that is undergoing renovations, you'd be wandering around like a lost duckling, like me. Ok, I wasn't all that lost as I had a book but who wants to read amidst loud chattering of foreign languages and the rhythmic hammering of builders? To make things worse, when I finally arrived at my designated terminal, my flight was delayed due to the weather. Argh... the highlight of my wait at the lounge was this though: a couple doing everything they can to the vending machine that took their money but wouldn't let them have their packet of chocolates! They kicked, slammed, lifted and shook the machine. Even tried putting in more money for a second packet. And the result was? They raised their hands in triumph when BOTH fell out! Yes!

Pet had just arrived when I walked out of the arrival gates. Good timing. A very friendly cab driver took us back to her place. It was past midnight.

Pet lives on campus at Ilam Village. Including her, six people share a flat on the top floor.

Each have their own cosy room and they share the laundry, toilet and bathroom, kitchen, dining area and living room. She lives with a Kiwi, a Jamaican and three Germans. Made me miss life in DLC. Sigh.

Despite not sleeping, Pet still took me out. We ran some errands in uni. While she was in the pharmacy, I quickly took a picture of the cafeteria, which to me looks 10 times better than what we have in Macquarie and it is not the only one:

She had to return some books and videos to the library:

Don't you think their library is lovely? I mean, they may not have the green lawns that our uni has but hey, a water feature complete with a waterfall on one end and a fountain on the other? Pure coolness!

In the basement of the library, you'd find this:

According to Pet, University of Canterbury is planning to become a bicycle campus by erm.. I don't remember when. The uni is encouraging people to cycle instead of drive as it is better not only for the environment but also for the health of the cyclists.

Next stop: the Faculty of Law. *shudders* The walk there was lovely though:

Just imagine these trees exploding in pink in spring... aah...

They even have a creek running through campus! I was so in love with the clarity of the water:

No, that is not moss you are looking at. The greenish colour you see is actually the rocks at the bottom of the riverbed. Now, this is what I call crystal clear water. I don't blame the ducks for loving it here. If you think Macquarie has many ducks, think again. They have more here not only in numbers but also in variety.

We then walked out of campus onto Riccarton Road. Now, how do you pronounce that? When I first saw it, I pronounced it Ree-carton. The locals pronounce it differently. It actually is pronounce Ree-curtain, minus the 'r' in the curtain. Oh well, as long as you know where it is. We were to collect the key to our room at Ilam Motel. Along the way, I spotted this fancy letterbox:

We then took a bus into town where Pet returned some DVDs and rented more movies to watch. We ended the day having traditional food prepared by the Jamaican brothers and a friend of theirs from Trinidad and Tobago.

Oops, no, that was not how we ended the day! We had to go to the airport after that as Dor was arriving from Auckland. We brought Dor back to the motel where we had chocolate and wine and lots of yapping! As Dor and I shared a room, we talked till we heard birds chirping and decided, ok, think it's time to sleep.

Kia Ora!

Kia Ora! Hello!

I'm writing this from the main library of the University of Canterbury in Christchurch. It is currently raining outside, which means we have to layer up before heading off somewhere. The temperature is very similar to Sydney's but because you are in Christchurch, you tend to psych yourself in believing that it is in fact colder than what it really is. Yes, we or no, I, like to torture myself like that.

Maybe it is because I've not seen the entire campus but something is telling me that UC is about the same size as MQ. Pet has brought me around and yes, I did take photos but that will have to wait. I am only able to provide a verbal account of the sights for now. The campus is super green and if I studied here, I think I'd be reluctant to leave.

I am just amazed at the variety of trees they have here. There are towering trees that provide that enchanted forest aura. There are trees that skirt walkways like a curtain to a window. There are weeping willows that hang over the creek that flows through the campus. There are trees that would transform the place into a winter wonderland when there is snow. And my goodness, they have so many ducks here!

Now, if I continue writing about my stay here using words, I think you guys know that I'd go on and on. That's why, I figured that it would be better for me to just jot down a few words now before I set off with my week-long drive around the island tomorrow morning.

Despite the cold (which I don't have a problem with), this trip has been a pleasant one. Being able to catch up with Pet in person since high school is definitely the high of this trip. Oh, and the weekend with Dor as well. We cleared up misunderstandings, spoke of our futures and laughed at our pasts. We ate heartily and embraced each other for who we are and are not.

I think this trip will be like my graduation roadtrip. With so much of Mother Nature around me, it would be hard not to think of my place in the world. Being with Pet and her flatmates also make me realise that the 2008 Olympic Games motto really does apply to people from all corners of the world: One World, One Dream.

Alright, more will come when I have pictures to refer to. Now, it's just blab.

And I just found something out: Not only can Pet read at superbionic speed, she can type and think at superbionic speed, too! Why can't I have normal friends?!?!