… to earthquake-damaged Christchurch …

… two years later. The Oosterdam anchored outside of Akaroa because the docks normally used by cruise ships were destroyed by the earthquake. After a long tender ride, we took a scenic hour and a half bus ride to Christchurch. Along the way were lovely flowering trees and shrubs, sheep and cows, lakes and mountains, pretty boathouses, and Victorian cottages.

 

The bus dropped us in front of the Canterbury Museum with four hours to spend wandering Christchurch. We spent a pleasant couple of hours perusing the interesting collection, including an extensive display about the exploration of Antarctica with lots of original artifacts, a large exhibit about the now extinct Moa bird, which was hunted by early inhabitants of the area, and galleries devoted to fashion, geology, etc. There were displays of Maori (pronounced like the word marry) greenstone (aventurine) carving, and the requisite dinosaur and mummy.

   

Arguably, the best exhibit was the “lounge” (living room), from Fred and Myrtle’s Paua (POW-uh) Shell House. Married for 73 years, in the 50s they began to nail the paua shells Fred collected and polished on the inside walls of their house. They opened the house, on a major road, to tourists, of whom there were more than a million from around the world. The living room was moved to the museum, which plays a short film narrated by Fred and Myrtle. The curator showed us their favorite shell and why it is a special one among thousands: it’s the only one with scalloped edging. One of Myrtle’s shell arrangements is also on display.

     

Photos don’t do it justice!

We emerged from the museum later than expected, and quickly made a beeline for the many shops carrying handmade New Zealand items. Typical items include hand-carved wooden bowls made from exotic indigenous varieties of trees, jewelry and talismans made from greenstone, beautiful hand-knit woolen wear of every type, hand-tooled leather bags and pouches, and the ubiquitous Uggs. One of the more unusual items was a “leather” jacket carved from wood. This would look great over Dennis Thompson’s carved wooden dress!

  

On Worcester Street, we spied punts for hire on the River Avon. Two nattily dressed young men ran the boat concession, and helped us into the almost-flat-bottomed boat, identical to those found in Oxford, England. Poling against the shallow, rock-covered bottom, he sent us slowly up and down the river, beautifully lined with weeping willows and other lovely trees. Our bus driver later mentioned that the punts had only recently begun running again, but customers were scarce.

 

We hadn’t had lunch so after our ride we stopped at a street vendor’s stand for a ham and egg pie with New Zealand soda – sold in a glass bottle with a pull tab! Frank bravely tried the Feijoa & Pear variety, even after being warned about its perfumey taste! It was a lovely lunch by the river.

  

There is a lot of earthquake damage still visible in Christchurch, but not much in the area we were in. Houses on the hillsides are still dangling precariously. Many people simply fled, afraid the next earthquake would be worse. The city sits on a fault line, so there will be more earthquakes. Proposals have been made to move the entire CBD (Central Business District) off the fault line and place it somewhere outside of the city. Plans are still tentative. The lovely cathedral sits, half destroyed, awaits a plan; money is scarce for the type of restoration needed. Buildings are being repaired throughout the city. This one sits near the museum.

 

We climbed back on the bus for the ride back to the small fishing village of Akaroa where we walked around the shops, and tried unsuccessfully to buy some fish and chips made with the local blue cod. Everyone recommends that you specify blue cod when ordering; consequently, by the time we got there, the blue cod was gone for the day. Perhaps in the next port.

… ride an Argo …

… outside Dunedin, near Port Chalmers. New Zealand consists of the North Island and the South Island. Dunedin (duh-NEE-un) is the South Island’s second largest city; it was first called New Edinburgh, and then renamed Dunedin, which is the Celtic name for Edinburgh. Like Australia, New Zealand also had a gold rush, starting in 1861, which was located in the area around Dunedin and ensured its growth and importance.

The weather was beautiful for a bus excursion to the Otago Peninsula to see wildlife. The bus took us first through Dunedin with a quick photo stop at the magnificent old train station. Only in Dunedin will you find a set of giant molars to commemorate the first school of dentistry in New Zealand!

 

 

Although it stalled several times, our bus made it up the steep, windy roads along the coast leading to “Natures Wonders,” a family-run sheep farm and wildlife attraction, including a Royal Albatross colony at Taiaroa Head, a very windy spot. An albatross has a wing span of more than 12 feet, but is so heavy it needs at least 15-knot winds to become airborne. They mate for life, with a single egg each year. Most amazing, a tagged albatross flew an astonishing 80,000 miles in a year. Here is an albatross in flight. They look similar to seagulls but are 10 times larger!

   

Once there, six of us squeezed into an eight-wheel-drive off-road vehicle called an Argo, first putting on slickers provided by our driver. The trip over badly rutted, hilly terrain was extremely dusty and precarious, especially for the two passengers in the very back of the Argo, who were in danger of bouncing out as it climbed the steepest parts. Our co-passengers in the back were an elderly couple from Japan, who hung on for dear life!

  

 

We stopped at a seaweedy rock outcropping to watch a colony of fur seals. It’s mating season, so the males had joined the females; usually this area is for the ladies only, and is where babies are born and spend their first months with their mothers. A male was perched on the rocks above the observation trail; after checking us out, he decided to join some seals in a pool below us. He calmly waddled right past us.

  

Our second stop was above a penguin nesting ground. Natures Wonders has built an elaborate and very steep enclosed wooden walkway to descend to an area where the penguins can be observed. Much to the guide’s surprise, two yellow-eyed penguins were sitting inside the tourist enclosure! They had apparently sought shelter during a recent storm. We were not allowed to photograph them because they are so easily spooked they have been known to have a heart attack when approached by humans. On our way back up the path, we saw a little blue penguin sitting on an egg. Quite a treat, as penguins had not been mentioned in the excursion description. Sorry there are no penguin photos.

Leaving Natures Wonders we headed back toward Dunedin. The air-conditioning didn’t work on the bus, so the driver gave us a cooling break to stand in the brisk air at a scenic spot.  We were in the back seat, where it was hottest. After a half hour in the bus, the windows steamed up and had to be wiped to see out….

 

We got a short tour of Dunedin, then the bus dropped us at the center of town, on the Octagon. While shopping, we ran into our friends Terri and Lyn, and stopped for a glass of Speight’s (spaytes), the local beer, and a snack. We also stopped at Cadbury World to ogle an entire shop full of mostly unfamiliar chocolates. Cherry Ripe or Fry’s Turkish Delight, anyone?

  

It was good to get back to the ship to rest and relax!

… check out “at sea” activities …

… like “find the missing library.” On the maps of the Oosterdam there is no library shown, and although we had looked in the most likely spots, we hadn't found it. When Frank stopped by the Crow’s Nest lounge on the Observation Deck on all Holland America ships, he discovered the library, re-branded the “Explorations Café Library,” is located right next door. In fact, the Library is so popular that during the day the Crow’s Nest is filled with library users. Most of the time it’s hard to find a seat, what with the puzzle-piecing folks, the people using computers, laptops, iPads, tablets and other devices, passengers reading Kindles or actual books, and the crowd drinking premium coffees accompanied by delectable pastries. This is clearly a winning combination: it’s the most crowded place on the ship!

We’ve attended some of the very popular free Digital Workshops, co-sponsored by Microsoft. Classes offered include Meet the New Windows 8, Learn to Use Your Digital Camera, Keep Your Photos Organized, Reinvent Your Email with Outlook, and Discover SkyDrive. The courses are well-taught by our perky Techspert, Jessica, who also has a few hours of “Techspert Time” each day, for all the Windows questions not covered in her courses.

We had a little get-together in our Halloween-themed suite on Saturday, with new friends and old. It came together with cheese plates from room service, a fabulous tomato, olive and eggplant relish from the Smelly Cheese Store, and wine from our various wine tastings. From left, Alan, Bev, Terri, Lyn, Nancy, Lynn and Frank. Lee and Troy on Lyn’s lap – as the original organizers of the cruise, and our common thread, they rated a special toast!

 

 

A highlight of Sunday was the ship’s passage through Fiordland National Park, a series of “Sounds”: Milford Sound in the early morning, Doubtful Sound at lunchtime, and Dusky Sound in the afternoon. We passed very close to shore during the transit; it was a beautiful, mild day with cloud-topped mountains and waterfalls everywhere. Doubtful Sound was so named because the discoverer felt sure he could get into the Sound, but was doubtful he could get out!

 

 

Frank got a didgeridoo lesson with Bruce Rogers, a master didgeridoo maker and player. We’re expecting much improved performance from his didgeridoo when he gets home! Bruce has also lectured on the culture, beliefs and life of Australia’s indigenous peoples.

I’ve had three acupuncture sessions for my aches and pains; very relaxing, I usually snooze while the needles work their magic. Frank’s had a few massages - with the same results. There’s also been quite a bit of napping, card playing and time in the Thermal Suite.

Tomorrow we’ll be in port again, and will visit a different port each day until the end of the trip in Auckland. It’s a good thing we’ve had a chance to rest up!

… to Hobart, Tasmania …

… to feed more hungry kangaroos and taste some Tasmanian wine. Hobart is Australia’s second-oldest city (after Sydney), established in 1804 as a penal colony for England. Hobart is on the south coast of Tasmania, an island south of the Australian mainland known for its parks and mountains.

Our day began with a bus ride to the Bonorong WIldlife Park. The Park rescues animals, responding to more than 5000 requests for help last year. The animals are rehabilitated, and returned to the wild if at all possible. Park residents include kangaroos, wallabies, wombats, Tasmanian devils, koalas, cockatoos, possums, sugar gliders, and more.

 

The wombat keeper is responsible for all wombat youngsters rescued. She takes them home with her at night, feeding them 5 or more bottles a night when they are very young. She currently has two charges, one about 17 months and the other only a few months old. Sadly, after all that tender loving care, around two years old the wombats suddenly turn on their keepers, and can attack them quite viciously. At that point they are released back into the wild. It was hard to believe that anything with a face this sweet would in a few short months become nasty.

This koala is about 3 years old, and was eating eucalyptus leaves with enthusiasm. Koalas sleep about 20 hours a day, so it was a treat to catch him doing anything energetically.

 

There were scores of kangaroos, mostly the smaller grey variety; we have yet to come face to face with one of the big red kangaroos which are almost as tall as a person.

After the wildlife adventure, we went to the tiny community of Richmond, site of Australia’s oldest gaol (or jail), and home to one of the first bridges built in Australia. The village’s buildings are quaint, and we managed to find both an antique store and a bead store! 

 

 

We left Richmond for a wine tasting at Moorilla Estate. In addition to its winery and restaurant, the estate is the home of the Museum of Old and New Art (MONA), with a somewhat controversial and diverse collection which has become the most-visited tourist attraction in Hobart. We saw only the outdoor sculptures because our time was consumed with an antipasto-style lunch, accompanied by seven wines, four whites and three reds. We were tickled to find that our new friends from Oklahoma were on the same excursion with us. From left, Nancy and Lynn, and Terri and Lyn, and, if you look closely, on the phone are our absent friends, Lee and Troy Harden who joined us in spirit.

Instead of returning immediately to the ship, we walked into Hobart’s business district to check out some of the shops. Hobart’s streets are lined with Victorian-era cottages, and the business section has many charmingly old-fashioned buildings.There was also a dog named Thompson (!), and the bustling harbor, filled with returning fishermen cleaning fish and stowing nets.

 

   

Back on the ship, it was Halloween, and Cabin 8046 was suitably spooky!