Cruise The World With Us

Saturday – March 8, 2025

We have met many friendly people at all the cities we have visited in New Zealand. Joy is the newest of those. We met her on a bridge as we were going to shop in Christchurch. She is a volunteer who passes out maps of the downtown area of Christchurch. Not only did she give us suggestions on where to look but she also told us about her favorite store to shop and where to get some nice views of Christchurch from nearby. Her attitude helping visitors is captured in her name. From our perspective you couldn’t ask for a better person to represent Christchurch.

Christchurch did not have a facility to which we could dock so we did so in the town of Lyttelton which is a few miles outside Christchurch and over a high hill. Today’s media has a time-lapse as we arrived in the Lyttelton area then some stills of the dock to which we anchored. Prior to leaving for our excursion Kelsey checked on the deck 7 puzzle and found it was almost complete.

As you can see in the still photos we docked next to a working container processing area. This area is complete with robot container handlers – the type that have malfunctioned in Auckland. They are identified as blue in color. I included a short video showing them in action. Kelsey and Jan waited patiently in the bus to start our tour with Gail as the guide. This bus was a double decker so we chose to sit on the top (which was covered).

Our first destination was an overlook that would allow us to view the Christchurch area. To get there we drove through a 2.5 Km tunnel (1.5 mile). Originally the tunnel was for trains but it was converted for vehicle use. Only vehicles not allowed are fuel trucks. You’ll find several video clips showing the areas we drove through to get to that observation spot – starting at the dock (with lots of pine waiting for transport). There is a screen grab from iMaps that shows the area near Cashmere that contained the observation spot.

Along the way we were given information about the earthquake that struck Christchurch in February of 2011. The earthquake killed 185 and is classified as the fifth deadliest disaster in New Zealand history. Later in the tour when we drove around Christchurch we saw evidence of the rebuilding that has taken place over the last 14 years. We drove past what was determined to be the epicenter of the quake. Looked very peaceful now.

When we arrived at the overlook we took three required selfies – two with other people who wouldn’t get out of the way and one without anyone else. In the background you can see what is called the the Canterbury Region of South Island. Christchurch’s urban area has the second largest population in the country (around 500,000) eclipsed only by Auckland. At the overlook it was chilly but the sun appeared to be breaking through the clouds. I included a screenshot from AccuWeather showing the temp shortly before noon.

We traveled down from the overlook and headed to an area with beautiful gardens named Mona Vale. There is a screenshot from iMaps showing that location. At the homestead we, of course, took another selfie with some colorful flowers in the background. Kelsey and Jan headed out to the loo and I went to the rose garden. Included in the media are lots of photos showing some of the rose varieties in the rose garden. When Jan and Kelsey joined me we did a couple more selfies picking different flower backgrounds to make us look good.

We left Mona Vale to tour the city center and along the way Kelsey spotted one of Jan’s favorite signs – “Give Way” (our YIELD sign). You’ll see a video of that in the media. Gail noted a couple things about the rebuilding that has taken place since the quake. New construction is made with foundations and materials that will withstand quakes. Christchurch authorities consulted with Japanese builders who are familiar with earthquakes and incorporated their recommendations into new construction requirements. One such change was using cross-frame bracing which you can see in some of the video clips. It was also decided that local street artists would be used to decorate buildings that would be saved from demolition so we saw many wall paintings and included some photos of those for you to view.

During our drive in Christchurch we sent past a private boys high-school which Gail advised charges $33,000 NZ per year for tuition and $21,000 NZ per year for room and board. She commented attending there would discourage a family from having many boys! We also drove by a monument that included 5 girders from the World Trade Center. This monument celebrates first responders who have given their lives to save others.

We had the option to be let off downtown and take a shuttle back to the ship and decided to do that. It was a short walk from the shuttle area to downtown. As we made the walk we met Joy, spent time talking with her, got directions and a map and headed out to shop and explore. Blocking our way was a protest led by Palestinian sympathizers walking down the street waving Palestinian flags and talking through a bullhorn. We walked fast around one side of the street to pass them and continued to the street on which we planned to shop.

We arrived at the store Joy suggested and found a t-shirt we all liked (which we wore to dinner). Kelsey also found a kiwi toy that when wound would hop along a table. The saleslady had come to New Zealand recently with her husband (for his job) and one of their children. The other children were still in the Philippines. She hoped they could join the three of them soon because she really missed them.

From the store we walked to the Turanga Public Library. Outside the library there were 4 sheep we assume put there for kids to “ride”. Joy told us to go to the 4^th floor balconies to look out the front and back of the library. We did so and took selfies at both locations. While at the first balcony we met three people who had met each other on a plane coming from New York. Two of them were returning from a wedding and live in New Zealand. Their new friend is from Spain and was coming to New Zealand for the first time. The couple noticed our MSC ID’s and told us they had taken a trip on a MSC ship from Europe through the Caribbean and Panama Canal then up the US West coast. We compared notes about our cruise and had a nice time getting to meet them.

From the balcony facing the front of the library we could see the damage to the Christchurch Cathedral. Repair has not been completed in the 14 years since the earthquake because the money to make the repairs has been exhausted. They have not given up hope that money can be raised but have put all work on hold until that happens. There is a photo of the church from the balcony. As we were leaving inside the library we saw how the “stacks”  and sections are labeled – Maori and English. 

We left the library and walked across a square with more wall art and some pigeons making strange noises. Further down the road about a block from where we met Joy there was a flash mob singing and dancing. I included a short video of part of their performance. This was in the same area where the Palestinians had been protesting earlier in the afternoon.

Joy was still at her post distribution maps so we stopped to tell her about our shopping and library visit. We showed her the t-shirts and she agreed they were clever and fitting for New Zealand. When we told her about the shop clerk from the Philippines she said there has been a large number of people coming from there to New Zealand – that they are good dependable workers looking for a better life. We thanked Joy again for her directions and headed over to the shuttle area. Once a shuttle arrived we boarded and couldn’t help taking another selfie.

On our return to the ship we took another selfie with the ship in the background. I think we need to admit we have a selfie issue and consider entering a program to control that urge. We headed to our cabin to drop purchases then up to deck 13 to the buffet for some fuel. While there we saw people sailing in the harbor and a cargo ship preparing to move past the Magnifica’s stern to a place in the port. I marked our location on iMaps and took a screenshot.

Back in our cabin I took a few photos of things we could see from our balcony. There was a structure on top of a hill overlooking the harbor. We found it was the terminus for a gondola ride that gives you a view of both Christchurch and Lyttelton. We found out later that Jeff and Karen had taken that ride today. I also took photos of the entry to the 2.5 Km tunnel we had gone through going to and coming from Christchurch. I also took a couple photos of the large amount of lumber that was stacked on the dock waiting for export. Finally I set the camera to take a time lapse of our sail away from Lyttelton.

We wore our newly-purchased t-shirts to dinner. You’l find a photo of those. Tell us what you think. The night before we had gone to a Beatles trivia contest so it seemed appropriate to get those shirts. There are several photos of the evenings offerings in the dining room.

The entertainment for the evening was 2 singers from New Zealand with a show titled “The Voices of Aotearoa”. Aotearoa is the Maori name for New Zealand. Each song used the Maori language and one included a choir composed of passengers on Magnifica. At the beginning of each song the purpose of the song was displayed on a slide in multiple languages. They also included a couple translations of well known songs – you’ll see that as you view the video clips.

Tomorrow we call on Dunedin – our last port of call in New Zealand. Our tour there begins early so we turned in for sleep shortly after the show in the theatre.

You can view today’s media here.