New Zealand 2007 
 
                                    Day Eighteen Bleinheim March 31
                                               
                                            Travel day from Christchurch to Bleinheim presented several vistas of the Pacific coast.
                                            Road conditions were clear and the four hour journey had limited curves and foothill 
                                            mountains.  
 
                                            Lunch choice was the peninsula town of Kaikoura.  The area is known for it's seafood and 
                                            several restaurants and small roadside kiosks featured crayfish.  Once we saw the prices for
                                            a whole and half crayfish, we knew Kiwi terminology was different.  Seems that crayfish are
                                            not the small crawfish, but, the large lobsters.  Kaikoura was the Maine of New Zealand.
 
                                            After viewing the Pacific and seals from the Kaikoura point, we continued on the Pacific
                                            Route 1.  A couple of stops along the way were interesting - Ferrari car rally parked at 
                                            a winery and then a saltworks factory.  The saltworks uses large basins and outgoing  Pacific
                                            tide to capture sea salt.  Results were large mounds of salt to be processed.
 
                                            Our arrival town of Bleinhiem is being impacted by the growing wine industry.  New 
                                            streetscape and artistic shops enhance the town.  We learned another driving difference -
                                            on the two lane roads, right turning - across traffic - has the right of way compared to cars
                                            turning left on their own side.  Looks like it helps keep cars from blocking traffic - that's our
                                            guess.

 

                                                                Route 1 Scenes - Ferrari Rally     Route 1 Scenes - Ferrari Rally     Route 1 Scenes - Ferrari Rally    

                                                    Route 1 Scenes    Route 1 Scenes     Route 1 Scenes

                                                    Route 1 Scenes - Kaikoura Seal    Route 1 Scenes - Kaikoura Restaurant    Route 1 Scenes - Saltworks

        


                                                                                            Last Updated 2007 March email@ellerberoad.com