Port Hills and Orana Wildlife Park, and some other stuff
I've just posted some new pics. We took a drive up around the Port Hills on Friday and took the boys to Orana Wildlife Park on Saturday.
Driving up into the Port Hills is not unlike driving the Kancamagus Highway but without the guardrails. It the ascent on the Chch side is nearly straight up (or so it seems) and winding. Fortunately, we were headed out of Chch and into Lyttleton, which means that for most of the drive the hills were on our side of the road and the chasm was on the other side of the road.
The pictures (except for the one through the windscreen) were taken on the Lyttleton side of the hills. Across the bay is the town of Diamond Harbor, which can be seen in some of the pictures.
Orana Wildlife Preserve is a nice little zoo about 15 minutes outside of Chch. We were able to get a membership for the whole family for about $80, which allows us to visit as often as we want for an entire year. Evan and Connor enjoyed seeing the lions and tigers--which I didn't really take pictures of--and Evan had a good time playing on the 'flying fox.'
I snapped some pictures of the unusual birds I've been seeing around. There are black ducks with white bills and some birds that look almost like crows with white highlights. It's amazing to me how many of the birds are black and white, rather than other colors.
I also bought a car today. Again, it's all thanks to the wonderful people I've met here. Brent, from AAA Car Rentals, took good care of me. Nigel from the motel recommended his agency for the rental that we drove for the past two weeks, and when he picked me up at the motel he told me that when I was ready to buy a car, he'd help me get sorted. Well,I took him up and his offer and he drove me around to a couple of wholesalers--which I normally wouldn't have access to--and we looked at several cars. Today, he and I picked up the car, a 1997 Toyota Camary Gracia--a station wagon model not available in the US--and he helped me get it inspected, registered, and introduced me to his mechanic!
He spent about 4 or 5 hours helping me out. Why? Just to help me out. As beautiful as the land is, the people are the best thing about it.
Driving up into the Port Hills is not unlike driving the Kancamagus Highway but without the guardrails. It the ascent on the Chch side is nearly straight up (or so it seems) and winding. Fortunately, we were headed out of Chch and into Lyttleton, which means that for most of the drive the hills were on our side of the road and the chasm was on the other side of the road.
The pictures (except for the one through the windscreen) were taken on the Lyttleton side of the hills. Across the bay is the town of Diamond Harbor, which can be seen in some of the pictures.
Orana Wildlife Preserve is a nice little zoo about 15 minutes outside of Chch. We were able to get a membership for the whole family for about $80, which allows us to visit as often as we want for an entire year. Evan and Connor enjoyed seeing the lions and tigers--which I didn't really take pictures of--and Evan had a good time playing on the 'flying fox.'
I snapped some pictures of the unusual birds I've been seeing around. There are black ducks with white bills and some birds that look almost like crows with white highlights. It's amazing to me how many of the birds are black and white, rather than other colors.
I also bought a car today. Again, it's all thanks to the wonderful people I've met here. Brent, from AAA Car Rentals, took good care of me. Nigel from the motel recommended his agency for the rental that we drove for the past two weeks, and when he picked me up at the motel he told me that when I was ready to buy a car, he'd help me get sorted. Well,I took him up and his offer and he drove me around to a couple of wholesalers--which I normally wouldn't have access to--and we looked at several cars. Today, he and I picked up the car, a 1997 Toyota Camary Gracia--a station wagon model not available in the US--and he helped me get it inspected, registered, and introduced me to his mechanic!
He spent about 4 or 5 hours helping me out. Why? Just to help me out. As beautiful as the land is, the people are the best thing about it.
posted by Jon A at
8:12 PM
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