Shaky Ground

Hello all! Warm regards from the chilly east coast of NZ. I'm currently in Kaikoura for the evening until morning hits and I take the ferry from Picton to Wellington. Staying at a lovely little inn for the night where the hospitality is quite something as is the surfing apparently. Going to fall asleep in a bit to the sound of crashing waves and the taste of poor man's lobster in my mouth. (First one to emAil me what PML actually is gets an amazing postcard). Travels today went smoothly although some areas of the drive were a little sketchy. Two snowy passes, and winding twisting mountain roads along the coastline at night have drained my mental capacity for continuing to drive on the left side of the road safely tonight. Wanted to get to Picton tonight but I had one close enough call to make me think otherwise with waves crashing over sea walls while it rains and compact semi-trucks pass me at 100kph. Started seeing stuff and the lack of radio probably wasn't helping either. Excited to see the view in the morning but have nothing to show for the drive to the coast the weather was right on the deck today.

Drove through Christchurch late this afternoon which sadly is still reeling after that 6.3 quake in February that killed 181 people and frightened some 26,000 residents into moving elsewhere within this island nation. Roads are still torn up and Downtown CC looks like a war zone with buildings badly damaged or still being torn down. Nothing is open in the city centre except for a few shops as I'm sure some of the larger buildings are inhabitable due to damage. Things move a little slower down here that's for sure. There is Park City time and then there is Kiwi time. The ground is always moving on the Pacific Ring of Fire, in fact an earthquake just happened less than an hour ago with a magnitude of 3.8 with an epicenter 80km west of Christchurch. Www.geonet.org.NZ. Nothing to write home about really but makes one conscious of how volatile this region can be.

Drove by one of the wineries I will be representing in Auckland today and tried to drop in and maybe get a bite and maybe a bed but no one was home or they say a grungy twenty something in the rain and decided not to open their massive Beverley Hills gate. Pegasus Bay winery in Waiapara, North Canterbury. www.pegasusbay.com. Would have loved to hop in and tell the owners on my way through what my plans are. Hopefully I will see them in Auckland.

Off to bed for now but I'll catch up tomorrow hopefully when I stop. Leave you with a photograph of one of the CC churches trying to be salvaged.