Christchurch, NZ

Our New Zealand vacation began in the tiny town of Christchurch on the East coast in the Cantebury region. We flew in and stayed there for two nights - it was a wonderful town, very Oxford-like, with a crisp coolness in the air that we hadn't felt in quite a long time!
The town center was lovely, with the cathedral as the anchor point...
Beautiful botanic gardens and a river passes through the whole town.
And yes, they DO take their rugby seriously! Right in the middle of town was this countdown clock to the 2011 Rugby World Cup.
Two excited travelers at the beginning of a wonderful journey!
The town has a tram that circles around the city, giving a slow look at everything - you just plop the stroller on the front!
A local school at lunchtime...it definitely had a British/Oxford feel!
On the tram, relaxing.
Such a beautiful city, and so clean - here's the main tram stop with a cool glass rooftop.
It definitely was cool, so some hats were purchased - we looked like serious tourists with our matching black Rugby "All Blacks" (their team name) hats! (But we were sure they thought Finn was with the team)
Finn chases some ducks in the park...
Daddy and Finn take a stroll, it was nice not to sweat through our clothes on a walk!
Feeding the ducks in the gardens - Finn loved doing this, right up until the point when one feisty duck snapped a piece of bread from his fingers!
Swings in NZ are pretty much like they are everywhere else - FUN!
Finn found this game to be "too funny."

The road out of Christchurch began on Tuesday, with the giant southern alps in the horizon...and the first of many lush green fields filled with sheep!
We often pulled the car over (not a whole lot of traffic!) and stopped for rests and scenery breaks.
So we left Christchurch, recovered from our flights, and eager to explore more. Next stop - Mount Cook!
Love,
A&E