Another week in Christchurch & Bus back to Twizel

A week working in Christchurch has flashed past. Once again I spent too much time in my motel room, and ate too much - My appetite from last week's cycling is still with me, and there is always food left over from SauKeng's work morning teas, lunches and afternoon teas. Lots of food. Help yourself. Take some back in case you get hungry later... The kitchen here is very good and everything very tempting...

Dinners at the motel are not free for me, but are generous also this week we went out to eat three times.

We had a company dinner on Wednesday (King of snakes - very good)

We had dinner with friends on Thursday and Friday.

Teresa and John, great to see you again!

I really am looking forward to eating less when we are start riding again!

Saturday, we are up early and take an Uber to the bus interchange at Christchurch. The city route platforms are well marked - where is the intercity platform? We are early so there is no stress... I'm looking for someone to ask then spot our bus outside :-) Most people have suitcases or packs, we have an assortment of small bags that will go in the tray at the back of the trike. The driver looks at them and tells us to take them into the bus. They all fit easily on the overhead racks. The bus is not full and there is no problem with space.

Soon we on our way. Very comfortable, except why have they removed the pockets from the back of the bus seats? There is nowhere to put things now and my phone drops on the floor twice.

It is an easy trip with good views, we are kept interested spotting places we have previously cycled. I also provided the bus with an entertaining false alarm, thinking I had left my phone in the Geraldine tea rooms.

The bus stops for lunch in Tekapo. We are content with sandwiches from the 4 Square. While we are eating I get to photograph the local black billed gulls. They look just like the gulls I have seen everywhere else except for the colour of their bills.

Black-billed gull, endemic to New Zealand, unlike our two other common gull species. Still common, but numbers have decreased substantially, one reason being weeds on riverbanks restricting their nesting sites (think lupins & Californian poppies)

Back in Twizel Arno is waiting and takes us home.

We shout Arno and Nicky dinner at the local club. Nicky is running the raffles, it's a busy job: They sell 50 tickets, draw the prizes and repeat - more than 10 times in a night. Since we are using the club facilities of course we support the raffle and buy two tickets. Amazing! One of my tickets won :-) Prize is any two items from the grey cupboard, or one from the white cupboard. Perfect! I choose a packet of Raro drink sachets, we were going to find a 4 Square and buy these, also a Mars bar :-).

Dinner arrives. Big again (and tasty). Life is so hard.