Hello to you all from Christchurch - our final destination in New Zealand! This will be my last entry, at one o'clock this afternoon we are flying to sunny Melbourne to begin the Australian leg of our tour - I'm very excited but definitely sad to be leaving NZ! We arrived in Christchurch on Friday afternoon, full of plans for a night out as it was Loz's last night. All seemed well with this plan, until we realised that everything (bars, shops, restaurants) were closed because of the bank holiday. Some restaurants are allowed to stay open, but can only serve drinks if you're eating a main meal, and they all charge at least 15% extra to cover the costs of opening on a public holiday! So we wandered all around the city, but didn't mind to find anywhere to go - our big night out ended up in a highly competitive game of Monopoly........ Loz left us on Saturday - very sad! Despite the fact that he was only here for 2 weeks, we packed so much into that time that it felt like ages! It was weird going back to just the three of us! And then on Sunday, the team took another blow when we had to return Subway, our faithful green four-wheeled steed. We'd got quite used to having him around too - watching the woman at the car rental place drive him away felt like watching him be stolen! Its been an emotional few days you see. Bit strange being away from home for Easter, but we did buy ourselves Easter Eggs, and we managed to get hold of some hot cross buns so its not so different! Tourist things were still open on the public holiday, so we spent Easter afternoon going on the city centre tram and the gondola (otherwise known as a cable car) - yet more spectacular views. We're going to miss all the scenery - hope Australia can live up to NZ! Yesterday we went on a tour to the Banks Peninsula, a volcanic creation, and out to Akaroa, an adorable little harbour town. Our driver for the tour, Ron, was absolutely brilliant - the drive was 3 hours long and he didn't stop talking once, he knew something about everything! It included a stop at a cheese factory - poor Sarah's worse nightmare! When we got to Akaroa we took advantage of the beautiful weather to go on a harbour cruise, and managed to get in some more wildlife! We saw a white-flippered penguin, more fur seals, and best of all the Hector's Dolphin, the world's smallest and rarest dolphin. They're rare because they're only found in New Zealand, but in Akaroa they're really quite common! They were really small and very cute - yet another dolphin to add to our collection! When we got back to the city we treated ourselves to a very nice dinner out and of course, a bottle of New Zealand wine! Not really sure what we'd done to deserve such a treat, but it seemed a fitting way to end an absolutely spectacular month. We really have had the most incredible time here, and we have done some amazing things, including some things I never thought I'd do! Swimming with the dolphins, whale watching, kayaking with seals, climbing a glacier, skydiving - all fantastic experiences and I am so glad we did them! New Zealand has been brilliant and I would definitely recommend it to any of you - I'll be back for sure. Until Oz! Caroline x