We got away from Franz Joseph in good time and set off on the drive to Greymouth up the west coast. It was a very pleasant drive and we were making good time, but there are so many lovely places along the way to attract your attention.

We stopped briefly at Ross, the old gold mining centre. It is so quaint and interesting, a fascinating place and we would have loved to stay longer if time had allowed. We will be back!!

From there we travelled on to Hokitika which was another place that looked well worth spending a little more time which was sadly not possible. As it was, we stopped to visit the jade factory and admire all the wonderful products made of local mountain green stone. In the same building we visited the stone painter who was creating intricate designs by hand on stones from the local beach. He was a South African and we were soon deep into interesting conversation which we would have loved to continue but the time was passing far too quickly and we had a train to catch!

We headed for Greymouth as fast as legally possibly and time was really tight. On entering the town we couldn't find the railway station which lost us precious minutes. Once there we unloaded the car at breakneck speed and Amanda rushed to check in and get the luggage on board while Simon returned the rental car. With minutes to spare we went to board the train. We were in car P which was the very last car of the train, sixteen carriages in all!! It was way past the end of the platform and we had to tiptoe along old sleepers before we finally reached our car and clambered gratefully aboard. We were scarcely seated before the train lumbered out of the station and we were on our way.

It was a lovely scenic trip of about 4 hours with many viaducts and tunnels and so many breathtaking views before eventually reaching Christchurch. On arrival we were picked up by a charming chap named Frank who whisked us off in a BMW 7 series to Otahuna Lodge, about 30 minutes drive from the town.

From our first moment of arrival we were completely blown away by wonderful Otahuna Lodge. It is a genuine stately home. Built by Sir Heaton Rhodes, the house is recognised as an architectural icon of New Zealand by the Historic Places Trust and is often cited as the finest example of Queen Anne architecture in Australasia. From our point of view it is just the most fabulous place we have ever had the good fortune to stay!

We were shown to the amazing Rhodes Suite, which was to be our home for four nights, and scarcely had time to take in the elegant surroundings before it was time to go down to the drawing room and meet our fellow dinner guests, Pat and Dennis from Auckland, for pre-dinner drinks and delicious canapes.

We were then invited into the sumptuous period dining room where we were to be served dinner at the long, oak dining table. We were treated to a fantastic 5 course degustation dinner with each course introduced by Jimmy McIntyre, the ,who is clearly as passionate about the quality of all the ingredients as he is about choosing the best ways to prepare them. With the meal we enjoyed a selection of regional and national New Zealand wines chosen by the lovely Emma to perfectly compliment the cuisine. Emma is a multi-talented lady who, as well as taking great care of us here, is a serious cyclist and is also currently training to take part in a charity boxing match coming up soon.

We had a wonderful first evening at Otahuna and fell asleep thankful for the opportunity to sp end some time in such uplifting surroundings.