New Zealand, New Zealand

5:30 am the alarm went off L. Dragged ourselves out of bed, and down to the lobby to wait for the shuttle bus. It seemed to stop at every hotel on the way to the airport, but finally got there at 7.00am. Checked in by a very rude Qantas check in agent (Qantas are not a patch on BA in any respect, planes, lounges, airline food and customer service).

We were lucky that our flight was not delayed as there were many cancellations and delays as a result of the previous night’s storm in Sydney.

The flight to Christchurch was short but very bumpy. It didn’t help that they were serving lunch at 9.30am when I was still expecting breakfast. Apparently the meal they serve depends on the time of landing at the destination which in our case was 14:00 because of yet another time shift.

Finally in Christchurch, we were first off the plane, first through customs, although they did inspect our walking boots (for illegal soil?). Sorted out the car rental swiftly and ended up with a Toyota Camry 2.4 Automatic which was the only car where our suitcases would fit in the boot.

Bed & Breakfast : Menteith Country Lodge, was only 30 minutes away. Lovely place, welcoming hosts and the most comfortable bed I have slept in for a long time. We went out to eat but, we were so tired we went straight to bed at 9.00pm