Our flight down to McMurdo station was scheduled out of Christchurch, New Zealand, one of the major support points for Antarctic operations. I flew down to New Zealand a week ahead of time to spend a little vacation time there. During my vacation time, I went for a couple of hikes through both the mountains and down the beach, visited an Early Antarctic Expedition photo exhibition at the local art museum, toured the local Botanical Gardens, and took a harbor cruise to see endemic endangered dolphins as well as sampled a delightful array of foods and spent time hanging out with a small group of multi-national European travelers.
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| The city's namesake, in the central downtown Cathedral Square |
During my set of flights to New Zealand, I met a fellow physical oceanography student, Eric, from Florida State who ended up being a welcome travel companion in a foreign (but English speaking) place. I surprised him in a humorous manner when I noticed his Florida State sweatshirt and that he was holding a book about Ernest Shackleton's Antarctic expedition, a famous but disastrous one, and I approached him and asked if his name was Eric? I had remembered his name from the endless list of info emails we've been receiving since November.
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| Eric on the mountain hike over looking Christchurch |
The first full day there, we hiked through a small set of mountains just south of Christchurch. The island is volcanic in origin and has mountainous features almost everywhere outside of the city. We first hiked up a very steep grassy mountain, then followed a ridge line along the top through an enclosed vegetation corridor butted up against rocky bluffs and then through a ridge top World War 2 anti-aircraft battery strewn with sheep, then down off the mountain to a small harbor town called Lyttleton. The hike had incredible views, but the thing that caught my awe the most was just how different everything was. Aside from the dirt, rocks, and generic grass, everything was very different. The plants looked entirely different aside from a few oak like trees, and the bird calls and insect noises were entirely foreign with different patterns and pitches. The following day, was a rainy one, so we walked through the cities Botanical Gardens and again the difference was entirely noticeable. Although in the confines of the Gardens, trees were allowed to grow to massive height and size, almost giant sequoia or giant redwood size. The giant gnarled Eucalyptus trees were quite a sight.
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| Interesting bird I don't know the name of |
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| Eric along the volcanic bluffs before venturing down into the vegetation corridor. Lyttleton harbor in the background. |
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| Vegetation Corridor on the hike |
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| Sheep strewn about the anti-aircraft battery |
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| sheep on the hillside over looking the entrance to Lyttleton harbor and the Pacific |
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| Interesting and very different looking tree in the Botanical Gardens |
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| Me standing next to a giant Eucalyptus tree |
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| View from the beach hike |
The harbor tour was also from the town of Lyttleton and while it showcased the harbor's beauty set in between the mountains against volcanic bluffs and out to the open Pacific Ocean, the main attraction of the cruise was to catch a glimpse of the Hector Dolphin, an specialized dolphin local only to the harbors of the southern island of New Zealand. We did see them, but only for a few minutes of intermittent surfacings. Still the harbor cruise was worth it, although I lost a red hat that I like lot to the wind and the harbor waters.
I very much like the New Zealand way of life. It is a very laid back and friendly one that is entirely welcoming. Perhaps this is due to the majority of their industry is tourism, but I just like to think it is the Kiwi way of life. Christchurch itself may not be entirely the New Zealand way either since it is very multi-cultural throughout, but I enjoyed it immensely.
I am keeping the New Zealand post here to a minimum since A. the main part of the travelogue is about the Antarctic trip and the ocean voyage, and B. it was my vacation time. But I've posted several pictures here to demonstrate my time there.
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| Statue of the ill fated Antarctic Explorer Robert F. Scott who was the second person to reach the South Pole |
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