Faces of Christchurch

Christchurch, December 26th 2105

The City of Christchurch with Aotearoa stretching above.

South Hagley Park in the morning.

Deep pink, dark pink, light pink, pale pink roses seemed to be struggling for a spot to show off.

St Michael and All Angels, first Anglican church in Christchurch.

Christchurch Art Gallery, the largest art institution in the South Island.

The YHA hostel where I stayed previous winter.

I still can hear it in my mind, birds chirping early morning in front of my window.

Natural alarm clock.

Isaac Theatre Royal

Earthquake was here.

Still rebuilding.

Looking forward to the bright future.

New Regent Street, designed in the Spanish Mission Revival Style.

I'll show you the trams later :D

Quick! The best food trucks in Re:START only lasts for a few hours.

A mixture between ice cream and milk shake with a homemade texture.

The Changing Veil in Greymouth

Greymouth, July 24th 2015

I woke up to a morning yet still grey.

Grey Grey River in the morning.

About the above clock.

But a teddy bear behind a children's shop windowsill said, "Don't worry, be happy."

As I walked to Monteith's Brewery, the sun showed more of itself.

These are the flowers in front of Monteith's Brewery. They look more like just wild flowers instead of gardened.

**

After completing the fascinating brewery tour at Monteith's, having a hefty hefty brunch with of course, a glass of beer also at Monteith's... tadaaa! Surprise!!

That's the city of Greymouth when it's blue.

Grey River at 9:22

Grey River at 13:23, four hours later.

As a matter of comparison:

It would have made a great sunrise spot here, had it not been grey.

It would have made an interesting trail here, had I not been bound to an office desk :P

Greymouth, nice place. Loved it. Sadly, will have to hop back on TranzAlpine, back to Christchurch, because office holiday is coming to an end :((

P.S.

Coming up next, however, a couple of shots from Monteith's Brewery.

Grey Greymouth

I woke up to a grey sky in Arthur's Pass plus an extra powder of snow on the ground. The further my TranzAlpine rolled towards Greymouth, the greyer the sky. No more snow, but rain. It was time to indulge myself with a bottle of white wine form KiwiRail's cafe -- my best wine so far -- while listening to the commentary, and then catch up the lost sleep, for my hostel had been awful. Nevertheless, KiwiRail's cozy and spacious seat made it up for me well. Hence, no pictures.

**

Greymouth, July 23rd 2015

Plan A: sightseeing (= taking pictures) along Grey River, cancelled. Because it's grey.
Plan B: ???

Tasman Sea! I haven't been there. I haven't set foot on the west coast and I don't know if I ever will on next trip. But, it's grey, replied the other me.

No, no. This is for the sake of the feeling. This time I want to be one of those who are happy enough to be 'have been'. I left my camera at the hostel. A feeling cannot be pictured anyway.

Thanks to the maps I received from i-Site and then from my hostel, Noah's Ark Backpacker. One got wet by rain, crumpled, and then torn. The other one, finally let me to Tasman Sea, on foot.

Tasman Sea, captured by my smart Lumia.

If only Greymouth weren't being grey, this would have been an excellent sunset spot.

In an attempt of bringing out the best of grey.

I'm not trying to soothe myself. But, despite the grey, casting my sight to the right, to the left, and ahead, nothing but Tasman Sea Unlimited... listening to the thunderous roar only interrupted by a dog's excited bark a few meters away... I was spellbound.

Grey roofs under a grey sky in Greymouth.

The bay windows, the porch...reminded me of the old face of my home country.

Isn't it interesting to see man's journey on architecture?

This, reminded me of the modern side of my hometown.

I first saw Mitre 10 in Auckland and was hysterical. What?? Mitra 10!! Then I saw Mitre 10 again, and again. I don't think NZ got inspired by my home country. Do you?

In an attempt of seeking out the best of grey.

On my way back to Noah's Ark, I sought for some more meaning to make worth. Uhm. Sounding too philosophical. Stop talking.

Greymouth Baptist Church

Love the windows. Same base, different sizes.

Luckily still, it was Greymouth, not Blackmouth :D

Arthur's Pass Village

Arthur's Pass Village, July 22nd 2015

Arthur's Pass is a key link between east and west coast and for centuries has been so. The simplest way to put it is that it was gold on the west coast that initiated Arthur's Pass. You can read about the history on Arthur's Pass website. People needed a passage to get that gold. Arthur Dobson and his farther eventually created one. Then people needed a place to rest on the way. A town was settled. People got enhanced by the stunning beauty of the surrounding Southern Alps. Word reached travelers. In 1929 Arthur's Pass became the first national park on South Island.

Some of those cottages and the used-to-be the workers hut still remain today.

 

Formerly Coberger's Shop, currently the Wobbly Kea Cafe

Oscar Coberger came to Arthur's Pass in 1928 as an alpine guide. He established an alpine sport depot in this building.

Avalanche Creek

Arthur's Pass Railway Station, the vital link between west and east coast.

Happy Sunday from Wellignton Harbour

Wellington, July 19th 2015

Tranquil and clear sea at Wellington Harbour on July 19th 2015.

On the right there is Te Papa Tongarewa Museum, museum of New Zealand. It was unbelievable that this sea was predicted to be wild on this day. And, Wellington Harbour that Sunday wasn't just about food.

Seriously, I thought that was a bronze statue installed with a music player.

No. The singing statue is moving.

After my food truck expedition, I returned and realized. The kids were very excited. Music played from the music player on the ground.

Somewhat like a pantomime show.

One of the kids' grandma (maybe) dropped a tip.

This kid appeared the most enthusiastic.

"Can you do this? Can you do that?" he required endlessly ignoring his mom's call.

Vibrant Sunday along the wharf.

Along the wharf, some people were seen jogging, another common sight in New Zealand. Oh yeah, inside that building on the background, were lots of food stalls, seemingly just in occasion of the Sunday Market.

Happy Sunday, Everyone!

Hey! Why not play with me?

If you know Japanese, you'll know why I took a picture of this restaurant. Wagamama. Ahahaha. No offense. Just felt it funny.

A close up on the hills.

Wellington is said to be San Fransisco's twin.

Shall we fly?

 Coming up next: Sails and Feathers :)