Wednesday, August 31, 2011

September 1, 2011

As we fast aproach our two week mark here in NZ, we feel as though we are settling into our new home here at the Osterley Trial Farm. Jay has thought of everything so the lovely two bedroom cottage is fully stocked- we even had cold NZ beer in the fridge waiting for us. We walk every day and made a small fire pit in the backyard, under some Pine trees. There's plenty of dead wood around for fuel. John visited a special education school on Tuesday and was welcomed with great enthusiasm. They wanted to know just as much about the USA educational system as John wanted to learn about NZ's. They even had a cake with red/white/blue frosting with USA or NZ printed in each corner! This particular school deals with 26 students (ages 5-21)with severe physical/mental handicaps. They are taught very basic concepts. John will be visiting the Allenvale School soon which is the main hub of special education activity here in the Canterbury region. There was another aftershock yesterday (4.6) but we really didn't notice and the townspeople have begun to feel like the worst is over. We have so many choices here as far as day/overnight trips. Jay recommends Akaroa, a sea side town about an hours drive, built on the edge of an extinct volcano. The middle of the extinct volcano is the Akaroa Harbour!! The beach sand is crushed shale, various shades of grey, black and if you sift through it, you can find pieces of Agate, a type of Quartz. It's 5:30 in the pm and it's begun to rain. If temps drop tonight, we might find a dusting of snow tomorrow.

Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Lyttelton Harbour

Day 4- we headed up into Port Hills, SE of Christchurch and followed the narrow, winding road up into the elevations where sheep could be seen grazing on the hills. Sumner Rd. which has scenic walking trails is still closed due to rockslides from Feb.s earthquake but we followed the alternate route, taking us to Governor's Bay with it's breathtaking views. As we approached Lyttelton (one of the hardest hit areas) we could see large cargo ships laden with boxes in the working port. Signs of the EQ damage were quite evident and most of the quaint shops and waterfront cafes have not re-opened. Talking with one shopkeeper, when asked about the rebuilding efforts, he said "there is no rebuilding, just demolition". Both buildings on either side of him are set to be torn down. When I asked him how his building fared, he replied "it has more wire holding it up than his Grandmother's corset". We decided to take the road tunnel back towards Christchurch and find some place to eat lunch. After stopping at a pub for meat pies and a beer, we returned to our cottage for the day. Soon will be the one year anniversary of the first EQ on Sept. 4th and people here say things will never be the same as before. Thousands of people have moved away from the Christchurch area permanently, schools have reported a 20% decline in enrollment and 100,000 homes have been damaged. Yet the people who remain are very resilient. More later.

Sunday, August 21, 2011

WE MADE IT!

We landed on Sat. 8/20/11 after 25 hrs of flight time - RI to Christchurch, NZ. Last leg was the hardest (and longest) and it was not easy to sleep on the plane. Our friend and host, Jay, picked us up and drove us to our cottage on the edge of the Osterley Trial Farm, located a half hour or so outside of Christchurch. To the East, we have a view of the Port Hills (the tops covered with snow) and to the West, we have a view of the Southern Alps (all covered with snow). The farm is very peaceful and quiet, not much activity, as it is winter here. This would be February in Rhode Island USA, but the weather these past 3 days, since we arrived, has been sunny and in the 50's (f). We've done a little exploring but not a lot b/c we are still trying to adjust to the time change. I had to reset my watch 4 times in the process of getting here. There are many sheep, cattle and deer ranches all around us. We are staying at a seed farm where they grow many kinds of crops. The only domestic animals are 4 laying hens- Rhode Island Reds!! We have adopted them. More later.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Starting out

Leaving this morning!!!!!!!!!!!
Providence to Chicago to LA to Auckland, NZ to Christchurch, NZ total travel time 25 hours!!