We originally were planning to go to the west coast but Joelle and Matt were supposed to book a place to stay and left it a bit late and EVERYTHING was full. So after some frantic Expedia searching Matt found us a spot at the Scenic Hotel in Dunedin. We got two adjoining rooms and were a 5 minute walk from the Octagon which is the city centre.
On the drive down we stopped in Timaru for lunch and some pix.
The next stop was to see the Moeraki Boulders. However it was high tide and everyone got a bit wet.
then off to Dunedin.
Our hotel was great! For the 1st time EVER we had booked adjoining rooms and actually got them! I don't know how many times I have booked adjoining rooms and we have been separated or waited for an hour or more to get the situation sorted out and the rooms were ready as reserved and we just waltzed right in. I loved this... It's the small things that count, happy sigh...
Our 1st evening we just walked around the city centre and had a great dinner at The Terrace Bar which had a fab kids menu and lots of good food and beer. Thanks to Gareth our waiter who (almost) let us trade Luke for dinner. In New Zealand it is not customary to tip for services such as dinner. When you do (as we did that night) the wait staff are very surprised. Kinda fun actually!
Dunedin is gaelic for Edinburgh, I've never been there but Matt has and we both agreed that Dunedin reminds us of Halifax Nova Scotia. There is one spot on Prince's St that you would swear you were on Barrington street. It has that mix of old and new, the funky little shops next to a heritage building, downtown businesses with good pubs and music. And of course university students.
Saturday morning we headed off to Speight's Brewery for a tour. Our very fun tour guide was Kevin from Halifax NS. How appropriate.
The tour was very cool the brewery was shut down for the long weekend so we did not get to see any action but you do tour the actual brewing facilities.
This the water treatment room.
The Mill room with the steel door and reinforced frame designed to keep the door in place in case of a dust explosion.
25 000L of fermenting BEER!!
The Mixing area.
Now the best little secret about this tour is that at the end they give you beer. Yeah yeah you say, everyone gets a little taste. Noooooo you get to belly up to the bar and pour your own and you can stay as long as you like... And try as many and as much as you like. REALLY you CAN!! But for us it was only 11:30 am and Matt and I only had 2 each (I think Matt had only two). There were 6 different beers on tap and I think a few people were going to try them all. Plus they had beer flavoured ice cream (it was very nice) and Adrian got his pix done while behind the bar. I have to scan that in, someday.
This might actually be a big enough draw to get Dad to fly to New Zealand!
We also hit the gift shop and got Matt some new jandals (New Zealand for flip flops) with twistie openers in the sole (to replace the ones that floated to sea a couple of weeks ago when he took a header while fishing).
Luke toeing up at the bar, the closest he got was a ginger beer.
Matt in nirvana.
Saturday afternoon we walked around the downtown and Adrian and I did a bit of shopping... One longboard and a couple of pairs of shoes later we were ready to join the rest of the family back at the hotel. And then we went to watch SUPER RUGBY!!
The Highlanders (the local team) vs The Stormers (from South Africa) were playing in the new and only covered stadium in New Zealand. Note I say covered, not enclosed. In typical NZ fashion this is a stadium meant for the hardy who wear merino wool. See those corners that look open to the night breeze? They are.
Sunday morning brought the Easter bunny (yum yum) and a trip to... The Cadbury Chocolate Factory. And they give you chocolate. Chocolate for showing up, chocolate for holding the door, chocolate for answering questions (right or wrong). Luke was in heaven! Check out the open mouth on him below.
That's one tonne of liquid chocolate pouring down.
We then headed out to the Peninsula to see Larnarch Castle and it's amazing gardens. To get there you head out on High Cliff Road. This is an amazing drive which is along the crest of the peninsula and you can see water on either side. The cliffs, as usual, are frightening with lots of scary turns and not enough guardrails (yes, I am a total wuss).
These are taken from the turret of the castle, unfortunately for us, you are not allowed to take photos inside, to preserve the contents.
Look, Adrian is actually smiling!
The gardens were amazing and there were all kinds of hidden things to find along an Alice in Wonderland theme including Alice and the Cheshire cat.
He was hiding in a tree about 7 feet up. Personally I think he looks a bit creepy.
We then headed back to Dunedin to have supper (tea in New Zealand) with Shawna and James and their boys Hunter and Ethan. Shawna is the daughter of my friend Sandra Evans from home (she came to visit us when she was in NZ). James is doing an orthopedics fellowship in Dunedin before they head back home in July. The kids had a blast playing lego together and it was great to get together with some fellow Canadians! and I forgot to take any pictures. Bad me.
But thanks guys for letting us invade and feeding us, much appreciated.
and Blogspot is telling me I am at my photo limit for one post... to be continued...
No comments:
Post a Comment