Dunedin

We are in Dunedin, which is down near the bottom of the South Island as against when I last wrote a blog in Hamilton, which is just under Auckland. I am using the laptop which belongs to the motel and the internet connection is free, which is fantastic. The security on my laptop would not allow access to the internet connection here. Dunedin is a hilly city and very Scottish, especially if the clouds are down. Thankfully the sun is shining so it looks less forbidding. In fact the place looks very friendly!
Yesterday morning we cleaned the van out, and paid careful attention to the toilet, as I would hate the next people to think we were unclean people! We spent $16 on the washing machines to ensure that our clothes were clean for the SI and then set off for Auckland, stopping along the way for our morning cup of coffee.
The sun was shining and temperature lovely and warm. We were sorry to hand the van back but delighted that we were not charged for the little mishap that occurred in Russell
We caught the flight to Christchurch, which took 1 1/4 hours and we had lovely views of the snow on the mountains as we came across the top part of the South Island. It was very chilly when we alighted in Christchurch which was a bit of a shock after the warm weather that we left up north.
As at Auckland Airport there were no clear signs as to the exit, no one to ask, and the pick up area was a mystery. The extensive building work at the airport did not help. Communication definately needs to be improved so that the helpless tourist feels welcome. The driver who finally picked us up said that people get lost all the time.
We were glad to arrive at the hotel which was minutes from the airport and the welcome was warm! We loved the big bed and ensuite bathroom, all very luxurious. There were a few cracks in the walls in the corridors otherwise no other damage from the earthquake. Luckily there were no tremors while we were there, although I did go through the earthquake drill in my mind, just in case.
We have a six year old Nissan Sunny car (not rentawreck you will be pleased to know, Donna) which is very cheap at $700 (350 pounds) for five weeks. When we drove from Christchurch to Oamaru it was on a straight road, which is the first in four weeks. What bliss. All very comforting too as the mountains were on our right and the sea on our left. This is the NZ I know well. The Southern Alps looked fantastic with their coating of snow. We stopped for coffee of course, a quick look at the supermarket that my nephew runs with his wife, a delicious lunch (hamburgers which included beetroot) at a hotel in the middle of nowhere and a stop to look at the Moeraki Boulders. These are very strange round rocks, and I am not sure what they are made of but they came from the cliffs above the beach. I will include photos in the blog tomorrow.
So now its off to bed to try out the electric blanket!