A Ship Out of Its Harbor: "Time is the coin of your life. It is the only coin you have, and only you can determine how it will be spent. Be careful lest you let other people spend it for you." -Carl Sandburg

Forgive this post for being a bit piecemeal. To be totally truthful we're in a bit of a lull where we don't love NZ any less, there's just not a whole lot to post about. However, there have been a few visits from friends, some great nights out, and some gorgeous views from Queenstown that I can't help but throw pictures up of. I'm still working at the hotel and babysitting for my landlord's 2 boys and we've also booked our trip to Fiji! We're going for 8 nights and staying at Crusoe's Retreat which is an isolated resort on the south coast of one of the largest islands, Vita Levu. My plan is to park my butt in the sand, do some snorkeling, and relax and reflect on the 10 months we've spent in this amazing country. A year goes by SO fast!

I'll start with some pictures of Christchurch that I took on the last night of my trip with my parents. They flew home the morning we arrived, but Brad and I stayed the night so we could catch a flight at a decent hour. I didn't post the pictures on my last blog about my family's visit because it would have been a depressing end to a blog about such an amazing holiday. In September and December of 2010, there were two major earthquakes in Christchurch. Earthquakes of a large magnitude are pretty unusual for that area so it was shocking and did considerable damage to the city, but caused no deaths. Then in February, another huge quake hit that caused 185 deaths and damaged many of the most iconic buildings in the city. Despite coverage in the news and things we heard from people from Christchurch (many who moved to Dunedin after losing their homes), we had no idea how bad the damage was. Essentially from the center of the city for about a half-mile radius, you can't even enter the streets. Everything is either damaged beyond repair or abandoned. Even outside of the fenced off area, there is an incredible amount of damage. There are about 10 or so "container stores" built- some shops, a cafe, etc. that take up about 3 blocks and are the only thing to visit in downtown Christchurch. The day we arrived, the city decided it was too expensive to repair their most iconic building, The Christchurch Cathedral, and that it would need to be torn down. It was very eery, eye-opening, and sad to see what has become of the bright, modern, lovely city that was my favorite when I made my first visit to NZ in 2006.

New container stores

On the edge of the fenced off area. The photo posted allows you to see the before and after.

Click to enlarge and you can see what's left of the iconic Christchurch Cathedral

An abandoned restaurant. Notice the drinks left on the bar.

As sad as it was to say goodbye to my family, it was also great to get back home to Queenstown where...

...Tai discovered the sewing machine and made a pair of "shorts..."

...Tama is 10 years old and able to beat Brad and I in scrabble...

...we discovered a chickpea that looked like a chick...

...it got cold and Brad bundled me up...

...and I had to go back to work at Bella Vista. No fair!

A few weekends ago, some Dunedin friends came to visit: Gavin our old roommate, our friend Maryann, and 2 of their workmates Amanda and Maddy. They took Queenstown by storm doing the world's second highest bungy (Nevis, 134 meters), visiting the hot pools, and doing the street luge. Brad and I weren't brave enough to tag along for all of that, but we did have a few great nights out and of course, ate at Ferg Burger.

Making the traditional Dunedin pasta bake haha.

Gavin, Maddy, Maryann, and Amanda at Ice Bar.

Teapots at the World Bar... dangerous!

"Hello. Can I just have a small scoop of cole slaw please?"

Ferg Burger! <3

We've recently had some amazing weather and clear skies creating a beautiful transition into Autumn. We even got some snow fall on the surrounding mountains although the weather continued to be warm and sunny, making for some great photos.

Approaching the house after the killer walk home (but worth it for the view, eh?)

Taken from our deck

Snow covered mountains on an early day at work

The next weekend Clare, our friend from home, and her fiance Ger were in QTN for the weekend during their 3-week trip to NZ. We had amazing weather and it was so good to see familiar faces.