Christchurch and Akaroa

We arrive in Christchurch and head into town for a walk. There is a lovely park called Hagley Park nearby which encircles the Botanic Gardens so we make our way through the park along the Avon River to the gardens. These are lovely gardens and have a fantastic rose garden. We have a walk around the city and see the earthquake damage to the buildings, which seems to be the older buildings and mainly churches.

We also make a trip down to Akaroa which is located out on Banks Peninsula which is about 85km from Christchurch. It is the only place in New Zealand that the French settled in and this is evident from the road names, such as Rue Lavaud. There are lovely houses, shops and cafes located around the bay area and we wander along enjoying the sunshine and views. For our route home we take the Summit Road which is steep and windy and follows the coast on the north of the Banks Peninsula. The majority of the road is sealed (tarmac on it) but there is about 20km of unsealed road, this is very narrow and steep and winding and bumpy, but what it does give us is the most incredible views down to the bays below and worth the effort of the drive!