Ramble
Quest - Christchurch -- Good Gardens and Bad Ice.
My last stop in New Zealand is Christchurch, a mainly boring town with a nice river and excellent botanic gardens. Since I'm staying at the Rolleston House across the street from the gardens and there isn't much to do, I make a few visits to this great place.
My first botanic visit is on a cold, rainy Sunday and the place is completely deserted. I relish the emptiness and the great smells, popping into the greenhouses when the downpours get too bad. Returning when the sun is out still finds the place peaceful. Certainly this is one of the best botanic gardens in New Zealand and would be for the trees alone. Some of the best parts are tucked away in corners so some time is needed here.
Other than that, well, Dux Lux across the street in the Arts Center, converted from the wonderful Canturbury College buildings, serves up a dream combo for me: a vegetarian/seafood brewpub. Why aren't there more places like this in the world?
The only reason I wound up going to the International Antarctic Center was because it is right next to the airport and I have a 10:20pm departure and nothing to do with my bag all day. I'd been dreading this late night flight that arrives in Melbourne at midnight. Had I known better I would have dreaded a trip to the Antarctic Center even more.
Shockingly, for a place that is egregiously bad, they are shameless in trying to hype it up. "The world's best antarctic center!" "Twice voted New Zealand's best attraction." Yikes, inside this place is pathetic, consisting of a Antarctic simulation, which is just an ice box with a fake igloo and some snow. You put on boots and parkas before going in a push a button to have cold air blown in your face. I could get colder back home in Chicago. The rest is some lame displays and a bunch of educational films to watch, some describing how life is like for people who live in the antarctic. Just say no.