The next morning we arrived in Christchurch (Lyttelton) and immediately got swept away to the Waipara wine region. The weather was cold and rainy again – this trip was so long it was hard to get an accurate forecast for the whole trip. I started to get worried that I was going to run out of cold weather clothing, but made due with a thicker dress and a shacket.
Christchurch had a massive earthquake (6.3) back in 2011 that devastated the port area. 185 people lost their lives in the quake. It took them YEARS to rebuild the infrastructure and for the area to return to a sense of normalcy. Our guide/bus driver was from the Lyttelton area – which was the epicenter. He said the area woke up that morning with 9 pubs, and after the quake none of them were standing.
As we drove north to Christchurch (and beyond to Waipara) – the evidence was apparent. You could actually see where housing developments used to be – but New Zealand decided not to rebuild there because the ground wasn’t stable. The streets were grown over with grass and the streetlights still stood next to street signs. It felt a little post apocalyptic! However, there were some areas where they decided to convert into parks.
We were originally supposed to go to three different wineries, but I think with the holidays some of them were closed. The agenda for the day shifted to going to 2 different wineries, and then a local restaurant that had many of the local wineries on their list. (We would get a glass included with our tour – as well as lunch).
The first winery that we visited was called Georges Road – the owner was actually our host. Their wines were all pretty good, but we liked their rose best. They had an adorable wine-dog, Pepper! She was very cute. Our driver was incredibly prompt, so we were only there for about 30 minutes.
We made our way over to the next winery, Torlesse Wines. We were still on a tight schedule, but our server made it her mission to try to serve us as much wine as possible. They had a large variety of whites and reds – I wasn’t sure what we would get when wine tasting in New Zealand. I had assumed it would end up being a lot of Sauvignon Blanc, but I was completely wrong!
From there, we made our way to a restaurant called, The Better Half. They had a buffet set up for us – and we tried some New Zealand wines. During lunch, we got to meet one of the acrobats, Viktar. It was definitely the highlight of our wine tasting day! We learned a lot more about what it’s like being part of the entertainment team. (And what it’s like being an acrobat!)
We had dinner at the French restaurant, Normandie. It was good! I had their baked Brie and chicken Kiev for dinner. It has been fun being able to try the different main dining room options on this ship.
Up Next:
- Napier (Hawkes Bay wine tasting)
Scribbles and Snapshots 