Labour Day weekend, Darin and I did a road trip. What an outstanding trip we had! Over 5 days, we drove 1500 kilometers across two islands. We flew Air New Zealand from Auckland to Christchurch Wednesday evening, and picked up our rental car the next morning. Our first stop was to be the Simpson's Movie donut in Springfield, but we discovered it was gone. We had a good breakfast at this cafe instead.
Moving on toward Arthur's Pass, heading into the mountains, we were surprised by these lovely large boulders. The weather was fine, so we went exploring. This was one of the highlights of the road trip. This place is called Castle Hill, and is popular with climbers. Not on this day; we basically had the place to ourselves.
Moving on toward Arthur's Pass, heading into the mountains, we were surprised by these lovely large boulders. The weather was fine, so we went exploring. This was one of the highlights of the road trip. This place is called Castle Hill, and is popular with climbers. Not on this day; we basically had the place to ourselves. 
Continuing on through the mountains, we stopped in Arthur's Pass, where we had ice cream cones for lunch (hey, we're on vacation!) and met the local Keas (photo on the previous post). They are very entertaining. When one jumped up to the water fountain, I turned it on and the parrot drank water. Afterward, we walked up to the base of the Devil's Punchbowl waterfall. We carried on to Greymouth. We had the brewery tour at Monteith's (140 years old!), and discovered that beer tastes so much better when freshly made.
Have I mentioned how expensive beer is here? The Monteith's range is typically $13.00 for a 6-pack. So this was a special treat, because we just don't drink it that much due to cost. We stayed at the Cathedral Hill Bed and Breakfast a few kilometers south of Greymouth, and it was really good. The hostess seved us port in crystal glasses and visited with us. We went to visit her sheep in the morning, and they were very friendly. 
Leaving Greymouth, heading north along the West coast, we were awed by the scenery. It reminded us of the norther California coast, except more green and tree ferns. We saw a sign for penguins, but didn't stop to look for them. We were on our way to the Pancake Rocks, which are best at high tide. We were really impressed. I love the picture below:
I'll post more about this trip in my next update. Before we left for this trip, our Rottweiler puppy, Ruby, now 10 months old, came into her first estrous cycle. She and Fargo were booked into the kennel, so I called to tell them about it. I was told to not bring her, she would be too disruptive. The trip was not-cancellable, and I there was little chance of another kennel being available to take her, even if they would accept her. I rang her breeder, and she fortunately agreed to take Ruby.
I finishedthe book Persepolis, and really liked it. I needed something else to read, so picked up State of Fear by Michael Crichton. I really disliked it. It was totally predictable and the story had massive holes in it. The characters are shallow, the dialog is laughable, and you feel like you are being lectured to. I still hadn't gotten anything off my request list at the library, so I picked up a book that's been on my shelf for awhile, that I started and never finished. The book is Complications, and it's a collection of essays about medicine. I enjoyed reading about decision making and intuition. Now I'm reading Pitcairn: Paradise Lost. This is about the island where Fletcher Christian escaped the British navy and scuttled the Bounty after he and the crew mutinied. What started with an alleged rape of a 12 year old Australian girl became an inquiry into widespread sexual abuse. It was written by one of only 6 reporters allowed on the island to cover the trial. So far, very engaging and interesting.
