Hi all,

im now in christchurch after deciding that auckland was nt for me. i wasnt staying in the most friendly place and it got pretty lonely with noone to talk to except the lovely travel agent!! lol. i arrived into christchurch late this afternoon and had to walk to my hostel from the bus stop. i think this has been the first time ive "tested" my backpack since i bought it!! its a good backpack, i think i could have walk for alot longer than i had to (+15mins). the hostel is alot nicer than the one in auckland and i seem to be enjoying it more.

the flight was good, even though it was only an hour or so long, we were fed watered and i managed to catch up on some sleep...i hardly noticed us landing! my only full day in auckland was spent either in a coffee shop, at the travel agent and wondering the streets. i went up the sky tower (192m) and got an amasing view of the city and the water. got some good photos. they were doing base jumps aswell from the top...i thought id save my adrenaline junkiness for the south island. i also tried to get into a casino, they wouldnt let me tho because i had "jandals" on (aka flip flops!). instead i stood and took photos from the door! i continued to wonder the streets and finally went back to the hostel.

next came dinner...we were promised a free meal between 7 and 8. you think a free meal thats good of them! thats what i thought until i saw it. we all queued up, their were two sizes of dinner on the bar, the smaller one i thought was something that had been dropped on the floor and they werent using. got to the front and he says "this is the free one" (tiny side plate with about 7nachos on and a tsp of meat. the other dinner plate size would cost me $7! cheeky but i fell for it...it was food.

anyway, enough of auckland. ive left there and probably wont be returning until i have to get my flight to oz. christchurch is not what i imagined. its more city like than i thought. there arent flowers everywhere except the botanical gardens and the cathedral is more a church size. i found it amusing.

ive met a few people here already and im also on the job hunt now. see if i can find anything to tide me over then move on to the next place. im most likely going to be here at least a week so i can get some idea of the place and find some friends!! lol.

theres a mighty cheap internet cafe here. $3 an hour (just over a pound!!)

speak again soon xxxxxxxx