Christchurch, New Zealand

We flew from Sidney to Christchurch, New Zealand and landed around noon.  We cleared customs and were met by our local Globus Host.  After an orientation session, we were ready to see the sights.  Lydia and Jerry chose the "hop on, hop off" city tram, and we headed for the weekend market where local crafts people were selling their art.  The many booths with quality jewelry, wood work, glass ware and fibre arts reminded us of the many similar fairs we attend in North Carolina. By early evening, we were met at our hotel by a home economics friend who teaches in Christchurch, Judy Coleman.   We met in

Switzerland at IFHE in 2008.  She had just flown in from her Spring Break in Viet Nam, but she still had energy to show us the sights at night. We had a great time and a nice meal in a local restaurant.

The next day, we had time to stroll down to the Botanical Gardens and also tour the City Museum.  Both were just fabulous.  The gardens featured many of the New Zealand native plants and trees as well as specimens from all over the world. We took so many photos of trees that it is a challenge to decide which to share with our blog  readers. The Avon River flows through the Botanical Gardens. The Museum, which was free, had exhibits illustrating the town in the mid to late 1800s. I loved the wonderful collection of costumes.  Christchurch is a lovely city (350,000) and we wished we had more time to explore.