Christchurch - a wedding and a Family catch up

Father of the Bride, Don, with his wing men
Bill & Trevor. All looking very smart😉

Leaving Nelson for Christchurch we stopped over night in Kaikoura at the new NZMCA camp site on the northern side of Kaikoura. It's a lovely big site - once finished it will be able to hold 100 Motorhomes. We were surprised how busy for a week night it was.
We had only just parked up when around the corner of the Shed came Paul carrying empties for the bin! Debbie & Paul, also from Nelson, had decided to have a night here too in their caravan and check out the new site.
They had a plan to do the Kowhai Cycle trail in the morning, and as we were in no hurry, we decided to join them. It was a very pleasant 26km ride mostly off road, with a mixture of coast, river and bush trail. Stopping for a coffee for some and beer & cider for others at Donegal House, we quenched our thirst before heading back to camp for a late lunch.

Mother of the Bride - Marg, with Vicki
& I - looking every bit as sharp as the Boys

Our lunch was almost ready, when Vicki & Trevor dropped in to eat their lunch with us as they passed by on their way to Christchurch to attend the same wedding we were heading to.
Timing was perfect 👍

Bill enjoying the view from
H&R's rooftop.

Arriving in Christchurch early evening at Helen and Ralph's once again, just in time for dinner. Another perfect timing!
 A wedding the next day was a great catch up with old friends and Marg and Don's daughter Jenner who was marrying her Spanish Diplomat Luis. It was a good sized wedding party in that we were all able to mingle. Lovely meeting Jenna's new Family and catching up with friends and family we haven't seen for years, mainly back in Nelson from the days Marg and Don had lived there.

Vicki & Trevor stayed at H&R's too for the night with their offer of wonderful hospitality as usual. No one was suffering too much the next morning (must be getting older) so it was off up the hill for a couple of hours to have the most wonderful date scones on the planet from The Sign of the Kiwi. Another stunning day in Christchurch. We caught up with the wedding party again in the afternoon out at Scarborough to debrief after the ceremony the day before now all the stress was over! Except was it!! The newly married couple looking at their marriage certificate the next morning, spotted an incorrect date of birth for one of them - It was a mad dash to catch up with the Witness's again before they flew out. Panic all over by the afternoon, everyone was nice and relaxed. Phew!

Spot Bill! Hanging out on the roof.

As normal on our visits to Christchurch, Bill once again visited his dentist. This time to deal with his German tooth for a final time, sadly. An extraction was the decided solution but now with a denture I don't think it will be! Bali is now on Bill's list of places to visit!

Bill playing with the kids toys-
note no children in sight!
They are hiding on the left 😊

Rochelle was arriving back in NZ in a week with her work and was to catch up with us in Christchurch this time to play Tourists once again. And once again, H&R offering their hospitality (I think they offered 😃).

Okaines Bay - a quintessential Kiwi Campground

Recreated slab Totora Cottages

So in the meantime H&R had compiled a list of jobs to keep Bill & Ralph busy. As mentioned previously in posts, H&R are ready to move on from their lovely nearly 100 year old family home and downsize a bit.

The big job this time was the roof required to be finished painting. EQC after the 2011 earthquakes, paid for 1/3 of the roof to be painted after chimney repairs. So Bill & Ralph were going to finish the job. Which wasn't an easy task when the front was like 3 stories of a modern day house! It took a few days of cleaning and replacing nails before they reached the point of being ready to paint.

Helen was busy babysitting grandchildren and I stayed downstairs catching up on computer work so we didn't haven't to watch! I'm hopeless with heights and even worse watching others!! It looks great now, but with only one coat it will require a  second.

The Christchurch Cathedral  is finally about
 to start it's repairs

Before Rocky arrived we had a couple of days away over on the Banks Peninsular at a lovely wee beach called Okaines Bay (15km from Akaroa). We struck a couple of Canterbury's hottest days - at 35 degrees we struggled to get out the door of the Bus. Nice and cool inside for reading though. The plan of coming over here was to catch up with Nelson  neighbours Jo & Dave and visit the Museum which hosts huge celebrations on Waitangi day ever since 1977.  Dave had mentioned the museum to us so we thought we'd join them the day before Waitangi of course, and look around the early Maori & Settlers museum that started off as one man's (Murray Thacker) private collection before becoming a Community Trust. The museum shows life of the early Maori & European settlers from the area, and the effects of the whaling and farming from that period. It's a significant cultural and educational centre for the area. Great replica Totara slab cottages have been rebuilt on site - they were pretty solid buildings.

Nibbles in the Square

By the time we finished our visit it was time to pack up and return to Christchurch. Picking Rocky up from the airport later that day, it was time to play Tourists for the next few days.

This covered a tram ride in town that gives commentary of Christchurch's past and the damage the earthquake caused back in 2011 and how the city is progressing now. We had perfect weather for strolling around, not too hot like earlier in the week.

We did a trip out to New Brighton and checked out the Pier after its repairs. This sadder suburb of Christchurch is still struggling, as it was before the earthquake. Such a shame but I guess the weather doesn't encourage the crazy prices of other coastal properties around New Zealand are asking for!

The lovely Avon River through the City 

We did a walk from Lyttleton up over the bridal path, stopping for a coffee at the Gondola before coming down the other side into Christchurch on the Raupaki Track. With H&R joining us for the walk, they were able to return to the car and drive back around to pick us up. Hopefully you Guys will do the walk soon too from the Raupaki end!

The lovely old heritage buildings on the Cashmere Hills near H&R's have been restored after the earthquakes and look amazing. And as the Sign of the Takahe has resumed being open for meals, Marg joined us and we all walked up for dinner one evening. Beautiful building, beautiful location.

Ralph on the keys ♭♭ at the Old Stone House

The Jazz Club has been having some of their local bands playing at another historic venue near Helen & Ralph's - The Old Stone House, which has recently reopened after restoration work. It's a beautiful building and ideal for any smaller events. So we had a few Sunday evenings there while we stayed in Christchurch. Perfect spot for a drink and a picnic on such warm evenings. Nice catch up with Christine and Ray too. Ralph - nice job on the keys.

The weather wasn't that great out at the Brighton Pier.

Dinner at The Sign of the Takahe

Helen, Rocky, Bill and Ralph with the North East views
out over Christchurch

We enjoyed our four days with Rocky once again and great all 3 of our children have had a recent visit to the Woodham's too before they move on from their lovely Villa with many happy memories our children have of our visits when they were young.

After her departure, Bill had a few more days working with H&R, getting a few more jobs done. Not the roof though - that will be for Ralph and one of his son in law's now.

It was time to head south and look for more salmon, while waiting for Easter and our return to Nelson.

Our last night relaxing before moving southward.
Who won??

House work and Family catch up in Nelson

Beautiful view from the Barnicoat Walkway out over Nelson/Tasman Bay

Hmmm - just a small hole 😏

Hmmm ok a bit bigger than first thought!

All finished, I can relax now, maybe.......

Bill giving his opinion on one of the beers at Eddyline Brewery.

AC " Do I really have to get wet!!)
Shannon's posture says it all 😆

Anyway, there were a few others already in.

Another beautiful evening at Queens Rd Reserve

The finish was well worth the hard work!

Always plenty of cleaning to do around a house.

Room for a Bus to easily travel down the Drive now.

After our two weeks off over Christmas, it was time to knuckle down and catch up on all the maintenance jobs that were required to be done before the new Tenants moved in.
We had made a brief list before Christmas but with family staying in the house, a few more came to light.
We had known the conservatory floor was a bit soft in a couple of spots, but once Bill started on it, it became apparent it was actually quite a big job! It had lasted nearly 30 years (when Nick was born, Bill started building it with my Father), so we can't complain. But so much better now and no one should fall through! The carpet was  absolutely rotten after another 5 1/2 years in the sun, but Trevor came to the rescue with a piece he had stored away. Thank you Trevor 👍
The lounge/dining area's ceiling had an oil stain in a small corner (from one of those automatic fly sprays - wouldn't touch one of them again!) that had appeared worse over time and really bugged me (not Bill). If it bothered only me, it was then up to me to repaint it. I had hoped I may have got away with just a decent wash - but that just left it with shiny spots everywhere fly pop had been (and this was most of the ceiling), so I couldn't get out of repainting the whole ceiling. Looked fabulous (well as fabulous as ceiling tiles can be) once completed.
With both showers having leaks just outside their doors, light fittings needing a bit of work, extractor fans requiring to be vented outside to comply with the new Healthy Home Standards the Government is bringing in this year, wooden windowsills requiring a paint, and a few other minor jobs, we were kept quite busy. Plus out in the garden finishing off the pruning I wouldn't let Bill do before Christmas 😟, the time just flew.
In amongst this, we also had Shannon & AC come and have Wellington's Anniversary weekend with us which was lovely (and an excuse to have another couple of days off 😉). They drove over from Wellington as they wanted to do what will probably be the last road trip in Shannon's Nissan Skyline before they sell it prior to them heading overseas later in the year for a 4 month European excursion. The weather was perfect for the weekend, managing to get a walk up the Barnicoat Range which Bill & I hadn't got around to in the 30 odd years of living in Nelson. A sample of beers at Eddyline Brewery after we sadly found the other couple of local brewery's were closed Saturday afternoons. A swim off Rocks Road like the days of when the Kids all lived at home. I think AC thought it was a bit weird just to stop on the side of the road and jump into the sea. But there were too many others also enjoying a swim for it to be more than a quirky Tyler tradition!😆. And also fit in another lovely evening up at Queen's Road Reserve along with Vicki & Trevor, Joan and a local cat who made itself at home.
S&A headed off back to catch the ferry after they had paddle boarded down in Tahuna that morning, and met us for lunch in Nelson City at the famous (maybe soon) Burger Culture where we had truly delicious burgers - even Bill commented how much he enjoyed his, which is high praise indeed! Simon & Nicki also have their Hop Federation Beer in there, so a glass of that had to be had of course.
As January was moving on and our Property Manager had sorted out new Tenants to move in, it was time to move on.
We headed off to Christchurch for a wedding and to spend a bit more time down that way annoying H&R, and then onto maybe catching another Salmon 🐟!!

A Nelson Christmas & New Year

A lovely lunch in Golden Bay (Takaka) with Rocky, Myself, Joan & Bill

Deep conversation while walking along Rabbit Island

Deep in thought in his "Media Room"

Bill with his new "Toy" in the driveway!

Another stunning morning in Nelson 

Rocky helping Bill to cut
down the Christmas Tree 🎄

Merry Christmas Everyone

Joan with her "Boys" -
Ian, Bill, Neil and Alan

Very relaxed at Rabbit Island with the Tristram's and
Sophie catching up with Rocky

The token children - Annabelle & Rocky

Celebrating M&N's engagement at Queens Rd Reserve

First stop at Eddyline Brewery

Great bridges on the Great Taste Trail 😎

Rocky helping with my puncture 😉

Last stop - The Honest Lawyer!

Great conversation pit 🔥

Daisy helping Simon on their ride -
Wayne waiting to quench his thirst 🍻

Lovely evening after such a busy day - with
my precious possession (new lawnmower)

Great day out at Cable Bay for Rocky & Bill & Club

We've been enjoying our views once again.

Our Tenants of two & half years had given us 3 weeks notice that they were vacating our home, having bought their own home. This was to take us up to the week before Christmas.Timing was perfect for us to be able to celebrate Christmas in our own home once again with Rocky, who was home from Perth. This would be the first time in 7 years, back in 2012, when we last celebrated Christmas together as a family in Nelson.
We parked up in our Bus in the garden as we were limited with furniture in the house and as our sleepout has no view, it was more pleasant in the garden.
All we needed was already on board, so it was perfect.
Arriving back at our empty home gave us the opportunity to catch up on a few maintenance jobs that after 5 1/2 years of renting were
required.

Pre Christmas we weren't going to get into too much. Garden pruning was a priority and with Bills new toy (a wee petrol chainsaw) made it simple. Unblocking drains and water blasting the deck improved the place immensely.
Rochelle was home for two weeks and my brother Wayne and sister-in-law Kate were coming for a week as well. So we focused on playing tourists over the Christmas period. Being home was also an opportunity for Bill to have a bit more time with his mum Joan, like going to hearing appointments with her. Good bonding times!😄
Rocky's arrival into Nelson in time for a wine on the evening of our summer solstice was perfect timing. Simon had arranged for our Chiminea to get dropped off as he had it in storage while we have been away (he got a bigger one!). So we spent many evenings sitting around under the gazebo with the fire enjoying sharing a story or two.
Christmas Eve I had to borrow Trevor's lawn mower as ours had broken down and wasn't able to be repaired. Those of you that know me well, know how anal I am about my lawns. The previous tenants had guinea pigs so they had left their mark all over the front lawn but I managed to get them looking acceptable for Christmas.
Joan came and stayed for a few days to feel like she was on holiday as well. We had originally booked ten nights in Golden Bay for Christmas but with our tenants vacating, we had decided not to go. I think Joan was a little disappointed,  though she enjoyed her few days being part of us again.
Christmas Eve we had our token child to make it more Christmassy ( you are pretty good Rocky but a little one is even better!) Pippa, John and 4 year old daughter Annabelle joined us for dinner.
Christmas day was a bit different to last year in Perth. Shannon and AC were in Auckland with his family and Nick & Em were in Perth with her family. Daniel would have probably had a surf before catching up with his folks in Perth. Thank goodness for technology so we were able to talk to everyone over the day.
We held the Tyler Christmas dinner this year with Bill's brother's Ian & Trudy, Alan & Eare (with Nuana, Matt & Sarah) and Neil. It was a lovely relaxed day with plenty of food, wine and sunshine on the deck.😎🍷🍾 🌞
The big surprise of the day was Bill had bought me a Christmas present for the first time in years as we had abandoned this practice years ago. He caught me unaware so is now way ahead on the brownie points scale! I didn't realise my old badly fitting phone cover bothered him more than me.
Boxing Day was spent out at Rabbit Island along with a large proportion of Nelsonians.
Taking our Motorhome out there gave us our home comforts for the day.
Although the day was sunny the wind kept the temperature down so swimming was not an option. It was lovely catching up with the Tristram's, Watson's and Banning's, A very relaxing day.
While the Banning's were all home it was also an opportunity to have fish and chips up at Queen's Road Reserve to celebrate Michele and Nathan's engagement - well done Guys.
Having access to our home also gave us the chance to have some neighbours over to return the dinners we've had with them over the years. Good catching up on the changes in the area and what everyone has been up to since our last catch up.
A barbecue with all the Tyler's at Ian and Trudy's was also a chance to catch up with another family member who has also been living in Australia (Melbourne) for a few years now, nephew Michael and his partner Alex. Lovely catch up for the cousins too.
Wayne and Kate had arrived before the end of the year to see the New Year in. New Years Eve saw us  bike ride out to out to Brightwater and return on part of the Great Taste cycle trail with a few beer stops along the way of course! Kate drove out and met us for lunch.
The only downside to the day was my puncture just before returning home - thankfully Wayne had a spare tube otherwise it would have been a patch job. The Trail is a great way to see around the region without going on busy roads. And nearly all of us stayed up to see the new year in - well done Wayne!!
New Years Day was a different start to the year for Rocky and Bill with a paddle around Pepin Island with the Nelson Canoe Club. They had a perfect day with very calm conditions, even bringing home a nice Kahawai that smoked up nicely.
Joan and I walked along the recently upgraded Maitai River Walkway before meeting up with W&K for lunch down at the port. The port was pleasantly quiet and with the tide being in, looking picturesque. We were surprised to see at this time of year so many boats moored up. Sooooooooo much money $$$$.

The next day we caught up with Simon & Nicki and Family. Nicki's mum Sue is out from England for the summer so we ladies all joined up at WOW (World of Wearable Art) and Classic Car Museum - amazing the talent some people have and what they can create. The Guys were kept busy along with Daisy in tow, on a bike ride meeting up with us at "happy hour" at the Speights Alehouse down the road. Tahuna has a few pleasant drinking/socializing places now which is great, being able to walk to them. We finished the day with a bbq - perfect.👍

With Rocky's visit was coming to an end, we still had Golden Bay on our list to visit. Early flatmates of Rochelle's in Perth have moved back to Golden Bay with their two wee girls and are setting themselves up for tourisim. Perfect location, lots of ideas and a lot of hard work to come, very busy but exciting times for them. Nick & Em (through Rocky) shouted us lunch, which helped to complete a lovely day out with Joan too. Returning home where  W&K had cooked dinner for us, finishing the day perfectly.

Our wonderfu two weeks off over Christmas and special time with family was all over too soon. Rocky headed back home to Perth, Wayne and Kate headed back up north and we started on the list of jobs required to get done before new tenants were to move in later in January.