Day 2 Christchurch

We finally made it to New Zealand! Landed safe and sound in Christchurch! We spent the whole wondering around the city center. There were beautiful botanical gardens all along a meandering stream (called the Avon River) that runs through the heart of the city. It was interesting to be here at this time because a lot of the cities most popular attractions were blocked off due to earthquake damage. There were two large earthquakes here one in 2010 and one in 2011 that were absolutely devastating. The famous Christchurch cathedral was in shambles. But other than that the city is really beautiful. Christchurch is known for having a very “English/ European feel”.  The gardens are so amazing, we were told they are some of the best in the world, with magnificent rose and water gardens. There was another very interesting shopping center called the Re- Start. After the earthquakes they were in need of a shopping district so they shipped in a bunch of shipping containers and created little cafes and shops out of them. It was really cool!  We also had amazing food, coffee and wine! So Far We are loving New Zealand!