Christchurch, New Zealand (Aotearoa)
43° 31' S 172° 37' E
Dec 23, 2003 04:51
Distance 150km

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Christmas in Christchurch

Text written in: English

On Christmas eve we decorated a tree we bought at the Warehouse (where everyone gets a bargain) with shells and rocks and stuff we'd accumulated on the trip. It was pretty small, but it was definitely better than nothing.
Christmas in New Zealand is pretty weird. They have all the same songs and wintery images as in North America, but without winter. On Christmas day, the sky was clear and blue, and the temperature was 26 degrees. The hostel had an "international feast" for dinner, a pot luck with everyone bringing something from their own country, so we spent the day making maple cookies, then eating a lot of really good food with friendly people. All in all, Christmas away from home was pretty good.

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Photos / videos of "Christmas in Christchurch":

The courtyard of the Old Countryhouse -- kind of strange to see blue skies on Christmas Eve. Note Matt's mom's crocheted snowflakes on our window. Decorating the Warehouse tree. The finished tree. Look, it even has presents underneath it! Our tree was topped by Ferdinand the Christmas Pirate, who has a bouquet of real flowers. Little flowers. A very unimpressed Matt. I don't think he appreciated the sequined green Santa hat as much as Cat did. for stockings, we filled up wool socks (made by Matt's mom) with candy. Christmas breakfast -- rasberry pancakes with whipped cream, fresh pineapple and banana, and sausages. Cat making maple cookies for the international Christmas feast. She also made a giant mess. Cat making maple cookies for the international Christmas feast. She also made a giant mess. The puzzle Matt got for Christmas filled up a large chunk of the afternoon. Matt after the international Christmas feast. Note empty plates. Murphy is part black lab, part Newfoundland dog, part bull mastiff, and part Rottweiler. He's very dignified, even when he's wearing a Santa hat under duress. We learned some new games from a German couple and a Dutch couple we met. We learned some new games from a German couple and a Dutch couple we met. German Christmas reveller. Irish Christmas reveller. She couldn't play the guitar very well, but she did try. English Christmas reveller. It was his birthday on Boxing Day, so at midnight we all toasted him and sang. Christmas revellers.
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