wandering

My first day in Christchurch, I had a lot on my plate to accomplish. But, nothing could go forward until I had my trip to the Coffee House. This place is in my Top 5 places to be in the world. I hunkered down at a table from my little corner of the earth with my journal, my coffee, and some of their tasty toasted banana bread! Lucas and I started the season there and I was sorry we were not able to redeploy at the same time and end the season there, too, but I did have a Belgian Coffee in his honor! The beverage pictured is called Thunder Thighs and was fantastic!

I had to go to the Antarctic Center and pick up my bags and then pare down my belongings to a meager 20kg so I can fly my domestic flight in Australia. I ended up mailing a couple big pieces back to the States before taking the opportunity to use the free internet at the travel office. The Antarctic Program offers us some nice services. We are able to store bags there if we need to, we can mail things with US Postal rates back home from the APO box there, we have free internet access and they also handle our accommodations while we stay in Christchurch.

After getting through with the business there, I took the bus back to the YMCA, where I was staying, to drop my lightened load in my room, and then walk to the travel agent to pick up my tickets and travel information. I carefully crossed streets, looking right first, then left. I was self-consciously trying to obey traffic flow the sidewalk (you don't realize it, but people walk similar to the way they drive; sticking to the left side of the path if they drive on the left side of the road).

I like staying at th Y because a lot of Ice people stay there an it is right across from the Botanical Gardens; which, after accomplishing a number of tasks during the day, was my reward. It is the end of summer in the Southern Hemisphere and the rose garden was near its' peak bloom. I'm not sure if my eyes were not used to seeing such vivid colors, or if these roses were particularly rich, but I was overwhelmed by the saturated variety of colors around me. It's important to stop and smell the roses, too. Upon landing in Christchurch, after having the sense of smell suppressed for five months, I again remembered what the smell of "green" is. It smells like grass, and flowers, and trees, and all sorts of living things. It smells sweet and alive; rather difficult to explain unless you have the experience, but something close to the aroma of mowing the lawn.