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Christchurch, Lyttelton, Banks Peninsula
This morning C had a meeting arranged with the international students office at Chch University, leaving me free for a couple of hours to pursue my own interests.
Somehow - I forget how - I became aware a few weeks ago of the existence of the postal service of the Ross Dependency, a sector of Antarctica formerly claimed by NZ which includes their Scott Base. For many years the base had its own post office which issued Ross Dependency stamps, but that was closed down when NZ Post was overhauled in 1987. Bowing to the demands of philatelists worldwide, RD stamps were resumed in 1994... The internet told me that an entity called the Ross Dependency Agency existed, was able to sell RD stamps and first day covers, that mail posted there would be cancelled by hand with a special RD postmark, and that (as of 2001 or so) one of the NZ Post Shops in central Chch was also acting as the RDA. We had deliberately gone past both central post shops on Sunday but (being Sunday) they were closed. So this morning, after dropping C off at the uni, I went back to town and to one of the post shops to enquire. It turns out that the Ross Dependency Agency still exists, but now as part of the Real Aotearoa gift shop on Cashel Street...
We had walked past that on Sunday as well, and they had been open - if only I'd known! *facepalm* A batch of postcards was duly finished off, stamped with rather fetching RD whale stamps, and handed in to be cancelled and forwarded (and I got myself a first day cover set for good measure). Mission accomplished!
This afternoon we drove one of the scenic roads "over the top" to Lyttelton and a little way along Banks Peninsula towards Akaroa. We didn't feel like going the whole way - it would have been another 120kms of mountainous driving, and we're going to have enough of that in the next few days.
Nevertheless when we came down from the Summit Road turning towards Lyttelton, our jaws dropped to see the natural harbour for the third time, of course from a different angle again. The water was a ghostly turquoise colour and seemed almost flat when compared with the ocean breaking against the coast, though we were viewing it in the context of some particularly crinkly igneous landscape. It's hard to convey the scale; a little sailing boat out on the water was almost a pin-prick - but the three supergiant cruise liners in the port weren't!
This evening we are taking it easy for a long drive tomorrow. Hell Pizza comes well recommended in this town, so we're minded to give them a try.
This morning C had a meeting arranged with the international students office at Chch University, leaving me free for a couple of hours to pursue my own interests.
Somehow - I forget how - I became aware a few weeks ago of the existence of the postal service of the Ross Dependency, a sector of Antarctica formerly claimed by NZ which includes their Scott Base. For many years the base had its own post office which issued Ross Dependency stamps, but that was closed down when NZ Post was overhauled in 1987. Bowing to the demands of philatelists worldwide, RD stamps were resumed in 1994... The internet told me that an entity called the Ross Dependency Agency existed, was able to sell RD stamps and first day covers, that mail posted there would be cancelled by hand with a special RD postmark, and that (as of 2001 or so) one of the NZ Post Shops in central Chch was also acting as the RDA. We had deliberately gone past both central post shops on Sunday but (being Sunday) they were closed. So this morning, after dropping C off at the uni, I went back to town and to one of the post shops to enquire. It turns out that the Ross Dependency Agency still exists, but now as part of the Real Aotearoa gift shop on Cashel Street...
We had walked past that on Sunday as well, and they had been open - if only I'd known! *facepalm* A batch of postcards was duly finished off, stamped with rather fetching RD whale stamps, and handed in to be cancelled and forwarded (and I got myself a first day cover set for good measure). Mission accomplished!This afternoon we drove one of the scenic roads "over the top" to Lyttelton and a little way along Banks Peninsula towards Akaroa. We didn't feel like going the whole way - it would have been another 120kms of mountainous driving, and we're going to have enough of that in the next few days.
Nevertheless when we came down from the Summit Road turning towards Lyttelton, our jaws dropped to see the natural harbour for the third time, of course from a different angle again. The water was a ghostly turquoise colour and seemed almost flat when compared with the ocean breaking against the coast, though we were viewing it in the context of some particularly crinkly igneous landscape. It's hard to convey the scale; a little sailing boat out on the water was almost a pin-prick - but the three supergiant cruise liners in the port weren't!This evening we are taking it easy for a long drive tomorrow. Hell Pizza comes well recommended in this town, so we're minded to give them a try.
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