NZ +23: Wellington to Christchurch

This was probably one of our longest journeys - it meant being up at 6.30. Which was fine by me but seemed to be a major problem for everyone else.

We were in Wellington at the quayside by 8.30, just in time to watch the Arahura come in to dock...



While we were waiting, we were reading the paper, and discovered that we had survived an earthquake the night before...



Admittedly, it was only a little one, and we were staying with Robin and Maureen whose house is so close to the railway line that the house shakes every time some moderate amount of freight comes through, so we probably didn't notice...

Now, the Wellington fault line runs right along the edge of the harbour, but undaunted, we got on the ferry anyway and you've already seen photos of that from when we travelled South to North, so I won't bore you with any more. Oh, go on then...



The ferry is great, just like a cross-channel ferry in size and shape, but loads more to see...



And then it was the long drag back to Christchurch...

Now, not far south from where the ferry docks at Picton is a small place called Seddon. Possibly named after a former NZ Prime Minister - a lot of places seem to be. It's a very non-descript place, but it does have the distinction of possessing a very scary looking (and crossing) bridge...



The railway line goes above the road and the road is a single track made of... wood. This, I will remind you, is State Highway 1...



There were long sections where the road deck had been replaced, or fixed back into position with huge metal bolts sticking up, which you had to swerve to avoid. I half expected any train running across the top to have hundreds of people sitting on its roof.

And then if that wasn't enough, to add to the earthquake and the third-world bridge, we had a volcano.



And if you think I am making this up, well actually I am. It was just controlled burning. Although the meaning of the word "controlled" is obviously somewhat different in the southern hemisphere. I am thinking of Photoshopping this onto the one of Mount Doom from yesterday and setting myself up as a digital effects guru (geek) ready for any fourth movie in the trilogy.

And the sun setting through the smoke was lovely...



It's great to be back with Nessie, and we all deserve a quiet day tomorrow. Which I'm sure we'll have!