Awesome New Zealand ~ Unforgettable Honeymoon

Finally, the long awaited honeymoon has arrived!! ;p

Day 1 - 09 Dec 08

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As our flight was in the evening, hubby and I relaxed at home in the day... I double checked our luggages and off we went to the airport. We reached early and had coffee and brownie at Gelare.....

At about 7.20pm, we boarded the plane... NZ here we come!!! For the 9 hours flight, we only managed to get 2 hours sleep. There were lots of babies crying and screaming!!

Day 2 - 10 Dec 08

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We arrived at Christchurch airport at about 09.30 am (NZ time) They are 5 hours ahead of SG. I was surprised that they were quite strict in visitors bringing in foodstuff into their country. Later then I found out that NZ is a country, away from the world. They are worried that visitors may bring in some unknown virus into their country. Oh ya, do you know that there are no snakes in New Zealand...Upon arriving, I took a pic from the plane... The mountains are covered with snow, so pretty! Their customs is also quite strict...After collecting our luggage, we had to queue up for customs to check our luggage. This is similar to US... Finally after customs check, we met up with the representative from NTB Tours. They worked together with NZ Specialist in S'pore. He had our names - Tang & Ng... We thought it was funny.... Haha! After going through all the vouchers we should have, he drove us in a salon car to the hotel - Chateau on the Park.

Chateau on the Park Hotel.... Does it look more like a resort?

We were unable to check in as it was too early. We left our luggages with the reception and they locked it up for us. Hubby then took a map from the hotel reception and we started exploring the city.... Although it was summer, the weather was cold.. I left my windbreaker in the luggage and had a sweater on. It was freezing! First, we went to Hagley Park. It is the biggest park in the world. Only realised it on the last day of our trip...Hee! We then went to Botanical Gardens and back to Cathedral Square. Lots of walking on day 1...Haha... As we walked around the city, we came across a small stall that sells home-grown cherries. - NZD 12 for a huge packet.... This is really cheap and very good. Told hubby that we will buy some home on our last day.... Soon it is time for lunch...We had sushi and ramen. It is very expensive but good. As we strolled, we saw a confectionery and bought bread and cake. They were very good too. Starting to feel that all the food is good in NZ. Wahahaha....

Botanical Gardens - I love the flower arches!

Ducks swimming happily in the lake

Cathedral Square - this is the city centre

We went back to hotel to rest. Hubby took a nap while I checked on my blackberry.... Then it was dinner time! It was arranged in the restaurant in the hotel itself. We had western food -appetiser, main and dessert. Food was not bad.... There is a very beautiful garden in the hotel whereby lots of roses are blooming. Very beautiful.... We snapped some pictures and walked around the hotel.......Freezing....Very cold..... I was wondering if it is less than 10 deg c.... We were really tired after the long flight and went to bed.

Day 3 - 11 Dec 08

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Woke up early today. We had to take the shuttle bus at 7.30 am to Christchurch Station and depart on "TranzAlpine" train to another city - Greymouth. We had breakfast in the same restaurant. American breakfast...my favourite! Yummy! But the sausages had beef in them. Hubby and I can't eat.... They had kiwi fruit in the buffet and they were huge and sweet. I started to think that they might keep all the good fruits in NZ and export the sour ones!! Haha..

During the 4.5 hr train journey, we braved the cold and were so close to the mountains, lakes, greenery, rivers, valleys, rain forests etc.... Both of us had to quickly take pictures and try to balance ourselves on the viewing carriage.... Although the winds were cold, the air was so crisp and fresh..... Every time we passed a tunnel, there was a surprise for us..... Beautiful nature.... Many people were like going "Wah...wah..." Keke! It is so so scenic....

Surprised to see pink & purple lavender look-alike...

They are "living together" with the mosses!

Later we found out their real names - Lupin

Upon arrival at Greymouth, we were supposed to be picked up by the hotel transfer but they didn't come. Hubby called the hotel and they gave us instructions to walk to the hotel - less than 10 mins. I must say hubby really good in drections.....so we got to the right place! This is our second hotel - Kingsgate, under the Millenium hotel group. After the check-in, we had to get ready for our next item in the itinerary. The representative from Kea Tours, Linda came to pick us up in a Mercedes SUV. There was supposed to be another 2 visitors but they did not arrive at the hotel. So it turned up to be a personal trip for both of us. Yippee!!! We went to the Paparoa National Park. There is a rainforest, limestone cliffs, canyons, caves and underground streams, all in one national park... The rocks look like pancakes and were formed millions of years ago. We enjoyed the walk in the rainforest. It was cooling and the air is so crisp and fresh. We learned a lot about the greenery....

Greymouth is a small city and all the shops closed at 5 pm. By the time we got back to the hotel, the shops were closed. Linda told us that there is a good Indian restaurant and we went to check it out. But but....we saw KFC and finally decided to have our dinner there. They do not have my favourite popcorn chicken...Hee! We ordered a chicken wrap and also the usual chicken pieces..... I still think KFC in SG taste better! Then hubby feels like having soup... We came across a HK restaurant...The place looks a bit run-down but we still decide to explore. A Chinese lady came to ask for our order. After looking through their huge menu on the wall, we still did not know what to order. When we asked for soup, she said she only had chicken soup. So we ordered that. We waited for a long time before it was ready. The soup cost NZD 10 but portion was huge. There were lots of minced chicken in it and it tasted alright. We had the soup in the hotel..... Then it is bedtime...... Yawnz....

Day 4 - 12 Dec 08

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A scenic + slight adventure day. After breakfast at the hotel, we waited for the guide from Kea Tours to pick us up for our glacier tour. Surprise! We were the only 2 visitors again.....So Dave became our personal guide. He drove us to a small town called Hokitika. It was founded during the 1800s when gold mining is popular in NZ - the goldrush period.... But the town became quite dead now... We then drove to another town - Ross. It is a small gold mining town, made famous when NZ's largest gold nugget was found there in 1909. There is an Information and Heritage Centre here and it is actually a replica of the old Bank of New South Wales. Vistors could pan for gold.....but the mad rush for gold is over...Haha...what's left now is gold dust!!

As we continued our drive, there were more sheeps and cows grazing... Really amazed! No wonder when we first arrived, the guide told us that there are at least 2 million sheeps in NZ! Oh remember the advertisement on TV when we were young... The population of cows in NZ is more than SG's population. Hee! Dave told us that we could stop by a place to feed goats and deers. He also told us about possums. There was a dead one in the middle of the road. Yucks! We thought that it looks like rats.... We stopped by the place - The Bushmans Centre and the owner reared the goats and deers. They sell products made of possum fur too. Later we realised that there are many souveneir shops that sell products of possum fur. I don't quite like it, cos' I kept thinking that they belong to the same family of rats..... Hahaha...

It was fun feeding the goats and deers. They came really close to us as they wanted more food.. I was a little scared when they came too close. But it was quite an experience... After that, we continued our journey.... About 1.5 hrs later, we reached Fox Glacier. Dave told us the Franz Josef glacier is actually more popular with tourists than the Fox. But he felt that the Fox Glacier is more magnificent. But it was closed for the past 2 days due to heavy rain and some construction....It has to depend on our luck to see if we can go in...I must say we were really lucky. We managed to go in and Dave was a great guide. We climbed up and down the rocks and crossed the little rivers to get as close as possible to the glacier. We can't imagine that the entire place is a block of ice millions of years ago. As time goes by, the ice melted and form little rivers.. It was very cold when we got close to it. But the air is still fresh...We battled with the cold wind again. It is really soooo beautiful... Next, we went to Franz Josef glacier and also Lake Matheson. You could actually see the glacier reflection in the lake.... Nice! For lunch, we had it at one of the cafes. Dave, hubby and I sat outside, had chicken panini sandwich (toasted bread with some cheese, chicken and mushrooms in it) and long black coffee.... Again, the scenery is so beautiful....
So relaxing to eat and chat in such a scenic place......

We were tired after Dave dropped us at our hotel. It was actually a premium b&b.. We were very satisfied with it. Homely feeling... The kind lady owner even offered to deliver our breakfast earlier as we need to leave early on the next day. We decided to venture to the town to source for dinner.... It was a long walk...and raining too. We tried the whitebait fish pancake... looks like our 银鱼. They said it is a must try in NZ! It was delicious.... We went to shop for sourvenirs and to the supermarket for water and snacks. After that, we headed back to the b&b. It was still raining. We were lucky that it was not raining earlier during our glacier walk. As we walked back, hubby and I listened to mp3 songs from his hp. This made the walk seem faster. Hee! I actually enjoyed the walk.......

Day 5 - 13 Dec 08

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Today we embarked on our coach journey...9 hrs! To Queenstown.... Hubby initially thought that it would be a difficult one, as he went to Penang by coach and it was a terrible 9 hours drive.

In the end, it was a pleasant one.... There were several stops along the journey. More sceneries to view.... We slept for awhile on the coach. But I was always "on the alert " for great views to snap! I was trying hard to take pics through the windows and to avoid the reflection. Haha! We also stopped by a salmon farm and we had some sandwiches and coffee.... To make us warm.... We also stopped by a fruits shop and we bought kiwis, honey and chocolate.

We reached Queenstown in the evening. Our room was on the ground floor and had a lakeside view.... This was the place that we spent 3 nights. After shower, we went out. From the map, we managed to find the cable car station. We had to take the cable car (gondola) to the restaurant for our buffet. It was a awesome view of the entire Queentown from above.... We even saw sheeps on the hill slopes when we were in the gondola....Was thinking how the sheeps manage to go up the slopes! Haha.... The food at the buffet was great... I was eating and enjoying the view....

The entire Queenstown from above

As we shopped around, we discovered an international food court. They have Thai, Japanese, Indian, Tukish food and McDonalds... Hubby was 'mesmerized' by the Asian cusine. Even after we had the buffet, he ordered white noodle soup from the Thai food stall. Hehe...The soup was very good. We were excited over having Asian food..... Yippee!

After the double "dosage" of dinner, we strolled back..... Saw beautiful sunset.... Again, I snapped a pic. We passed by some houses too. The owner planted flowers in the mini garden. Pretty pretty! :) Oh it is already 9 plus at night....then the sun sets.... In summer, the days are really long........

Day 6 - 14 Dec 08

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It was another coach trip... 12 hrs to and fro.... To the famous 'Milford Sound'. We walked to "Real Journeys" office and collected our coach passes. The seats in the coach are tilted in an angle whereby all passengers can look at the scenery through the windows. Innovative! There were several stops through the journey. One of them was 'Mirror Lakes'. We could see crystal-clear reflections of the 'Earl Mountain'. Next, we finally got to see NZ native bird - 'Kea'. We heard their 'kea kea' sound in the rainforest when we were going to the glacier. But we could not locate them. They were rather fierce as they flew on top of cars and started to poke using their beaks....

Before we board our cruise - Milford Sovereign, we were stopped by the photographer and took a picture... We were then told to go up to the second level for our buffet lunch... There were designated seats. I was puzzled as we were supposed to have lobster starter. Haha! After that, we found that it was prepared for us on the first level. It was not bad...we were the only ones that have this special treat. Meant for the honeymoon couple. Felt so privileged....Keke! But of course it must be included in our tour fare. We were also welcomed to enjoy the buffet...

After filling our tummies, it is time for photos! Hubby suggested that we should go to the deck to take pics. The wind was blowing strongly. Again we have to battle with the cold..... Hee!

We enjoyed the fresh air and the mountains that was formed around the sea. There were seals 'suntaning' on the rocks. Kawaii!!! I took a picture and zoomed in for a closer one.... So satisfied! Next would be the amazing waterfall. The commentary said that this waterfall is bigger than the Niagara Falls in US! There is a legend that if we drank water from this waterfall, we can be ten years younger. Wahahaha......

For tonight dinner's, we hadChinese food. The hot and sour soup was sooooo good! We also had yang chow fried rice, sweet & sour fish and vege with chicken. Hmmm....we realised that we had been eating brocolli and cauliflowers in NZ. They do not have green leafy vege. I miss spinach, cai xin, kailan..... Hee!

We went shopping after that and bought lots of souvenirs.... The cherries that we bought on day one are still with us.... We ate some each day.... Already 6 days, still looking good! Amazing cherries.... keke!

Day 7 - 15 Dec 08

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Free and easy day in Queenstown. For the past few days, hubby and I had been discussing what we wanted to do today. I am interested in hot air balloon and farm trips... Hubby is interested in Lord of the Rings tours.... Finally we made up our minds and decided to go for LOTR and farm.... We got the brochure from Real Journeys office yesterday and tried to call the agency that offers the most comprehensive LOTR tour in NZ. But I think the office was closed as we called them at 5 pm and there was no answer. Then we called up another agency - 'Nomad Safaris' and booked our LOTR trip. We also booked our farm trip yesterday.

Finally we can wake up later - about 8.30 am.... Haha...

Quite bored with breakfast...We already had American breakfast for the past 6 days..... I just had a little...

Saw that it was raining outside when we were having breakfast in the hotel. We were worried about our trips. I was praying and singing "Rain rain, go away.....come again another day" in my mind.... We waited for our driver and guide for our LOTR trip at the lobby. She arrived in a land rover... 4 wheel drive... She brought us to several LOTR film locations. All reallife, but the setup were already removed several years ago. The Dept of Conservation in NZ is very strict. We also learned that most of the scenes we saw in the movie is actually super imposed onto the actual scenes. The director is so smart. Being a great fan, hubby can remember many scenes from the movie. Haha.... I am not a great fan and I was more interested in taking pictures than to listen to her explaining on the scenes. Hehe!

Fortunately the rain stopped while we were having coffee in the cafe in a nearby town - Arrowtown. I like the town as it has lots of well preserved buildings used by the Europeans and Chinese dating from the gold mining days..... I tried the flat white coffee for the first time. We always had long black for the previous days. It was good!! In NZ, flat white means coffee with milk while long black means black coffee and short black is just like expresso..... small serving of black coffee.

We also had a scenic four wheel drive safari experience on the world famous Skippers Canyon road.... We could see beautiful valleys from the top.....

We had an adventurous ride in the land rover as we crossed the Arrow river to go to another town - Macetown. It was bumpy but fun. Our driver was awesome. For a lady, she probably needs more strength. But she could handle the vehicle so well! Macetown is another historic gold mining settlement in the Otago region of the South Island of NZ. By 1865, most of the gold was extracted and many miners left. By the start of the 20th century, the town became desserted..... So access to this town now is via an unsealed road and to cross the Arrow river. It is not suitable for 2 wheel drive cars, only 4 wheel drive vehicles can handle it!

The half-day trip ended very soon.... we went to the international food court to have lunch. We had Thai food. The tom yam soup was fabulous! Next, we were ready for our next trip - to a farm... After we collected our tickets, bought a fruit juice, took some pictures of the wharf and a kingfisher, we were ready to board the steam ship to "Walter Peak High Country farm". The steamship was operated using coal...olden days method...so interesting. There is a pianist playing some soothing songs to entertain us..... Looking at the sea view and enjoying the piano music....really felt relaxed. Hubby again suggested that we should go out to the deck. Haha! The weather was warmer and we sat on a bench and enjoy the sea breeze..... I tried to "psycho" him to take some pics.... 自拍 again... Keke!

The owner of the farm was waiting for us at the berth.... First, he introduced his sheep dog to us. So cute! Most of us went to stroke his fur. We then proceeded to visit the lambs, sheeps and deers... We were surprised that there were black sheeps...Haha! The baby lambs are so so cute.... I waited for them to look at me and I took a picture of one of them. There were also rams that have horns on their heads. Hubby said these are the "lin yang" herbs.... I sympathise with them so I never want to drink lin yang. Hee! The owner encouraged us to feed the animals. As you may know, I already have previous experience of feeding goats.. So this is no problem for me. Wahahahhaa....But I used the dettol sanitizer to wash my hands after that. Next, we visited highland cattles. The owner whistled and all of them walked out from somewhere. Hee! But the mummies and daddies are drooling, not very cute. I like the babies. I tried to wait for the baby cattle to look at me and I took a picture immediately. Today the sky is so blue with white clouds.... I really like the 蓝天白云 effect!!! Beautiful.....

Soon it was teatime. Our trip included refreshments. But we did not expect that the owner would invite us to his house for tea. There were trees and flowers outside his house. Lots of roses and of course lupins..... There is a beautiful lake and ducks were swimming happily...... Envy right? I used to have a dream when I was a little girl.... I want to live in a house with a little pathway outside and surrounded by flowers..... So I sort of "fulfilled" my little wish..... At least I visited a house like that... We had coffee, juice and some English pastry.... The whole ambience is really so English..... if you know what I mean. :)

The owner then proceeded to explain the different trees he has planted. One of them is the gingko biloba tree! I was amazed and quickly took a picture again.. Then he asked us to see how his sheepdog can help to 赶羊. He used his whistle again and gave some verbal instructions. The sheepdog actually ran up to the hill and there came all the sheeps. So smart right? All the sheeps were super fat! Haha...But so adorable. However, they are not the gentle type.....They tried to "charge" towards people who stand near to them.... I took several videos of the whole process of 赶羊. :p Happy lo.....

We went to see how the sheep wool was removed....Feel so sad for them. But the owner said it is good, cos they will feel lighter and happier..... Maybe both of us are born in the year of sheep, so we don't feel good viewing the whole process. He then asked everyone to go forward to see the wool. Hubby and I walked away. Hee! We went to the gift shop and bought some souvenirs.... The cruise back was so relaxing...we sat on the deck again and chat..... How I wish I don't have to return to Singapore.....Haha! For dinner, we had Japanese bento set and curry udon...Yummy but expensive.... Actually so happy that we had Asian food mostly in Queenstown...

Tonight is the last night in Queenstown.... Slept early....ZzzzzzZzzzzzz

Day 8 - 16 Dec 08

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American breakfast again.... We waited at the lobby for coach ride to the Pukerangi station. From there, we will depart on the world famous "Taieri Gorge Railway" to the next city, Dunedin.

I was very excited as we waited for the train to arrive. We were about to embark on a journey through the rugged and spectacular Taieri Tiver Gorge, across wrought iron viaducts and through tunnels carved by hand more than 100 years ago....

The ride was pleasant and there were lots of greenery and beautiful scenery.... It was not bumpy... Hubby and I went out to the viewing gallery and we were so close to the nature.... Saw pine trees and the commentary mentioned that NZ is the biggest exporter of pine trees in the world...

We saw herds of sheeps.... Mother sheeps with the babies tailing behind.... The scene is so cute...
There were also more cows and horses.... Grazing and grazing and forever grazing..... Keke!

Finally we reached the next city - Dunedin. As we disembarked from the train, it was freezing. We boarded a mini bus and they drove us to our hotel. We immediately fell in love with this hotel.... The bed looks more comfy...and it really was. There is a separate living room from the bed room. After we put down our luggage, it is time to walk around the city and look for food. Haha!

We were surprised, as Dunedin has lots of historical buildings.... Looks like we are in London...Kekeke!! Even the hotel is a historic building... We took some pics and settled for chinese food. This place is called 'Great Wall Takeaways'.... We bought fried rice, noodles with vegetables and a side vegetable dish.... The portion was so so huge. But this is the cheapest chinese food we have eaten in NZ - NZD23.00 in total. We were so hungry as we walked back to the hotel in the cold. We were not disappointed...... as the food was yummy!!! We had a memorable cheap n good dinner takeway.. Wahahaha...


Day 9 - 17 Dec 08

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We decided the night before that we will not have breakfast in the hotel today. We were already quite sick of the same Amercian breakfast serving in every hotel. Haa! Hubby made cup noodles and we shared the muffin we bought last night from the supermarket. Cup noodles was so good......

We then went to the hotel counter to check out and waited for the bus to continue our journey to Mount Cook and Lake Tekapo. The weather was still the same..... freezing. I saw on the TV that the southern part of NZ is only between 6 and 10 deg c.... And it is summer now! Unbelievable.....

The hotel staff was so kind to tell us that the bus might be late and invite us for coffee at the bar.... We ordered flat white coffee and it was so good! I went to the breakfast bar and took some mushrooms and hashbrowns to munch... Finally our minivan arrived. We were the only passengers.... The driver cum guide is a very knowledgeable man. Told us a lot about the country... I left most of the talking to hubby while I snapped pictures. Keke! He said when we stopped over at one of the towns - Omaru, we will pick up another passenger.... Then we will head towards Mount Cook and another bus will send us to Lake Tekapo.

The weather was so perfect.... Sky is blue, big clouds, green grass..... I was so excited cos the pictures were so beautiful.... We stopped over at several places - beautiful sea view with sun rays reflection, lupins along the lake, perfect view to catch the first glimpse of Mount Cook, rock formation called "Elephant Rocks".... We were also lucky to meetthe other passenger, Qiulan. She is from Malaysia and she lives and works in Northern part of NZ. Every year, she will come to the southern part by herself and she loves to take pics. She has a professional camera and she really "looks pro"...Haha! She helped us take pics too... Today is the first day that we can only wear our T shirt and blouse without our windbreaker/sweater.... Finally this is the real summer!!! Wahahahaha...

We enjoyed this journey to Mount Cook alot... It wass not boring and we learned alot from the driver and Qiulan. Too bad that we forgot to ask for the driver's name.... Mount Cook is the highest mountain in NZ. But it is very difficult to spot it as it really depends on the weather. Hubby and I had to have our cameras ready so as to snap Mount Cook! We managed to see the peak.... According to the driver, it is already very good... Qiulan kept telling us how beautiful Lake Tekapo is......so suitable for couples! There is a little church whereby many Japanese couples chose to hold their wedding ceremony there... How sweet & romantic........

After that, we had lunch at Mount Cook visitor centre before we boarded another bus to Lake Tekapo... We were quite tired and had short naps.... Upon arrival, realised that our hotel is so near to the lake. Lake Tekapo is indeed so so beautiful and peaceful..... We snapped some pics before we went to look for dinner.... We decided to have chinese food at the restaurant. The food was disappointing..... Then I said I wished we had fish and chips instead. Hubby said we can have that later... We were already half full but we want to have something good since the dinner was not nice.... Maybe it is drizzling and is cold...So we really can eat!!! Hee..... We had fish and chips and sausage. Not bad but I find that the sausage has a strange taste althou' the shop said that it is pork and not beef....

We went to supermarket and souvenir shop after that before we headed back to the room.... There is a spa bathtub.... relieve our tired muscles...Haha! Hubby saw from the files that we could rent videotape.....Not DVD! So obiang! He then went to the reception to rent the player and Lord of the rings videotape..... He had watched it more than 10 times.... But since we are in NZ, we have to watch it again..... Keke!

I did my mask....for hydration and helped hubby do too.... Then dun know why, hubby stood up and walked to the door. He quickly asked me to take a look! We saw the sky filled with stars! It was so so beautiful..... I sat on the floor, near the door to watch the stars. Totally engrossed...... I told hubby that I want to go out...But he said preferably not cos' there were sand flies around...One of them was on the door. So we lie on the bed and watched the stars..... It is as if we were sleeping beneath the star- filled sky..... So memorable.....

Day 10 - 18 Dec 08
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We had American breakfast again.... But we have more choices on the menu. I chose french toast and hubby had the usual bacon, egg, tomatoes... At least we could swop....After that, we went to take more pics.... We tried to take ourselves and hubby tried the self-timer. So fun! We went to shop shop again.....wanted to try the ice-cream although it was cold. Keke! We had 2 sccops - hokey pokey (means vanilla in NZ) and passionfruit. Yummy!!!!

We went back to the same cafe to have coffee and muffin before we proceeded to the bus waiting area. I took a video of the beautiful Lake Tekapo.... then it is bye bye time..... The bus will take us back to Christchurch.... Sad sad... Holiday coming to an end... We finished our chips, candy and juice on the bus...

I took more pics again..... It was another beautiful sunny day!

After about 3 hours, we arrived at Christchurch. This is big city and it reminds us of Singapore. No more beautiful landscape..... We checked in and went out to explore the city. We went to I-site to collect info and brochures and proceeded to the tram stop. The tram is cute...kind of refurbished and is new...It stopped over at the art gallery and museum. We went to the museum and learned more about the beginnings of Christchurch. While waiting for the tram to go back, we saw one couple taking wedding pics...It reminded us of ourselves...taking pre-wedding pics not long ago...Hee!

We boarded the tram and after we sat down, realised that Queen Elizabeth sat at the same place in 1995...Haha... Hubby is very good with directions and he knew where to alight. We went to look for a restaurant known as Malaysia Delights for dinner. Hubby chanced upon their brochure in I-site earlier. There is a map and I just followed him..... But it is very far away. When we finally arrived, we were so hungry.... We ordered fried wanton, penang fried guotiao, penang laksa and steamed white chicken. Sounds familiar?! Haha..... The wantons and fried guotiao were so so delicious..... We finished all the food......

After that, we went to search for cherries.... We bought them here when we first arrived.... But we can't find.... When we checked with one of the convenience shops, they said the cherries season was over. Sobz..... But I bought some strawberries and kiwis from the shop. Then we headed back to the hotel. The kiwis that we bought on the way to Queenstown s still going strong. Haha! I just hope that they could last till we reach Singapore. They actually did, except that they are already quite ripe. : )

Time really flies, we started off our trip in Christchurch a week ago....and we were back again...but need to go back home liao......

Last day ~ 19 Dec 08

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After we had breakfast at the hotel, we went back to pack and got ready for check out. A minibus fetched us to the airport. The flight was delayed for a little while. We had coffee and curry chicken rice (the microwaveable type) while we wait to board the plane. Lots of babies were crying and we could not sleep....Haiz.... But there is a toddler who is so adorable. She played by herself and even came over to my seat to let me carry her....

The food was good.....at least it made the journey back a little better... Hubby took some pics before take off and when we touched down. Very nice.... We reached Singapore in the evening....

Overall, it was a good trip...we were so lucky that the rain season only came on the last day when we were on the way to the airport. Everything worked out fine. Hope we could visit NZ again on a different season.....

Thank you very much, lao gong.... for the memories we have in the "Land of the long white clouds".......

~Home Sweet Home~