I slept late, ate breakfast and rode my bike to town to look for a new handlebar bag holder. It was hard to find the right model, so I kept searching and explored Christchurch.

Outside the mosque there were lots of flowers and stuffed animals and police guarded the area. A completely incomprehensible event and it becomes even more incomprehensible when you are so close.

Linwood Islamic Centre was a Sunni Islamic mosque in Linwood, opened in 2018 and later targeted in the 2019 by a massacre carried out by Brenton Tarrant, his second attack same day!

I read a little at the posters and pictures and get teary–eyed. It takes a while before I regain some kind of peace.

After a hour and half I entered New Brighton which is bathed in sunshine. The beach resort is not large, just under 2500 inhabitants but has a gigantic long beach, 17–18 km. As all other beach villages lots of small shops that sells souvenirs and knick-knacks, cafés and bars.

Brighton Mall pedistrain street

New Brighton is a coastal suburb of Christchurch,  It is one of eastern Christchurch’s main entertainment and tourist centres. The most striking thing about New Brighton is the 300-meter-long pier and its 18 km-long, child- and dog-friendly beach.

What characterizes New Brighton is its unique pier that stretches straight 300 meters straight into the sea. It was rebuilt and completed in 1997 and then repaired in 2016 after the earthquake that happened here in 2011.

New Brighton Pier 300-meter-long landmark for Christchurch.

It’s not just two–legged people who see this beach as a playground, our four–legged friends also love this beach and today there are many who walk their doggies after it.

Gigantic armchair

Even dogs like water and this beach

However, there are signs urging owners to keep an eye on their dog and during the high season November to April ril are not allowed to pass the surfers lifesaving clubs within 100 meters without being on a leash.

Almost 18 km long and child-dog friendly

There are some bathing tourists but they are few, the season is partly ove,  however the seagulls are active vocally They like to keep an eye on those standing on the pier and fishermen and also check me out when I open my backpack to get something to eat.

These birds are both curious and thieving so You have to watch up…!

Before I cycle back to the Christchurch a coffee break at pier’s barm Salt On The Pier which is located in the same building as the beach resort’s library and quite well visited.

I took another route back to Christchurch, follow the Avon river. The road was  winding and low traffic, passing lots of small residential areas. In the river

Avon river flows through small residental areas and a nice cyclepath follow

Seabirds and swans have found their safety after Avon river. A proud and determinated black swan searching something to eat.

Before I’m back and forth at my hostel, I stop at a supermarket, New World, for some provisions. Later, it will be mostly to laze in the common dining room and kitchen that exists. Here it is never empty. French and French dominate, some from Brazil and some from Germany and then a crazy man from Ö–vik

Something that is typical of the French speakers is their food culture. While I’m cooking pasta, frying sausages and making some bagged pasta sauce, they’re preparing stews, pies, boiling vegetables, beating eggs and god knows everything.

If there are three or four pairs, they basically take up the entire kitchen interior including the stove and oven, but where there’s room for one more, there’s room for food.

The atmosphere is good.

See Yeah Later
P-G
//The Global Cyclist

The flight over the Tasman Sea to New Zealand is going well, and we land almost exactly at 11:30 PM local time.

I have some comments about the landing. First, the plane tilts quite a bit, almost as if there was a big bump in the middle of the runway. Then, there’s a sudden stop, causing us to almost hit the seat in front of us. Neither I nor anyone else seems to be hurt

After that, I went through passport control, which is self-manned. A scanner reads the passport, and you’re supposed to be allowed into the arrival hall, but not for me and a few others. We have to take the regular route, because on the plane, we had to fill out a form about what we have in our luggage, where we’ve been, and so on.

The form also asks if you have camping equipment, medications, explosives, weapons, and so on.

I indicated that I have a tent and other camping gear and that my last destination was Borneo, where I also camped. The passport control officer wants to take a look at this form and notices that I marked a few ”yes” boxes.

Then I’m allowed to proceed towards the exit and the next checkpoint.

The next officer also looks at the form and then asks, ”Where is your tent?” I point to my North Face bag, and the officer tells me to follow the red line. There are also yellow and green lines. Now, I’m asked more questions about the tent, and they also want me to produce it.

I hand over my North Face bag to the female passport control officer, she asks me to wait and she walks through a door into an office.

After about 10 minutes, she returns and said…
– We found some ants in your tent, and you have two options. You leave your tent here, and we destroy it for free.

I look at the woman as if she’s joking and said…
 – Destroy?

She responds…
– Yes, but your other option is to let us send the tent for cleaning, but that will cost you about 160 NZD.

What do you do?
Starting an argument with these officers is out of the question, so I asked…
– How many days do I have to wait to get it back?
She replies…
 –  About a week.

I have no choice but to accept their offer, and I provide my address in Christchurch, my phone number, and email address.
She says…
– We’ll send you an email when and where you can pick up your tent.

Sigh, sigh, and more sighs, and now the time it’s almost half past two AM .

I’m tired and realize that my hostel tonight won’t be open when I arrive….

I hade to get out of the terminal with the rest of my bags and try to find a taxi or bus that will take me to the address 373 Gloucester Street.

A  Shuffle bus driver is standing outside at the exit and he asked if I attepting to go into the city. I gave him the address to my hostel .
He asks me to put my luggage in a wire cart that was standing right next to him and then he points to a gray Toyota van that was  standing in the parking lot.

Shuffel taxi at Christchurch airport

There are three more families going in the same direction and we have to share the space in the bus. The driver then reverses the bus towards the entrance and hooks up a large white fully covered trailer. He counts the bags and then we drive to Christchurch in the dark of night.

After dropping off the other families at various hotels in the city center, we head on traffic and deserted streets towards the Linwood district and Kiwi House Hostel.

A large fence surrounds the hostel but a small gate to the left takes me into another door that has an internal radio next to it.

I press the internal radio, just a lot of beeps and two lights shining right in my face. No answer. I’m thinking about what to do, whether I should stay until they open or leave my luggage and head into the center. I decide that I leave my luggage and head towards the city center to see if anything is open. I leave the luggage in the space between the outer and inner fence.

Before I left, I locked my bags to the fence with the long yellow strap equipped with a combination lock. It took me just over 30 minutes to find my way to the city center, but nothing is open except a hotel with a closed bar.

Before I left, I locked my bags to the fence using the long yellow strap with a combination lock. It took me just over 30 minutes to find my way to the city center, but nothing was open except a hotel with a closed bar.

I was allowed to sit at one of the window tables. The girl at the reception gave me a mug of hot water, and in my backpack, I had a packet of instant coffe so I could stay awake…

Then I slowly walk back to the hostel and just wait. After waiting for about half an hour, the gate door suddenly swings open and a young girl comes out.

She obviously hadn’t expected me to be standing there and lets out a short scream.

We talk for a while and I show her the SMS message I received from the Hostel and explain why I’m standing here with a bike box and six bags.

 – If I let you in, I could be fined 500 NZD$ from the host, says the girl.

 – Wait here and I’ll go in and talk to someone.

She comes back within five minutes with a face–scarred guy. They let me in and I get help with the packing. I’m now so tired that I feel bad. I drink several cups of coffee while I wait for the staff to show up at 8.

While I’m sitting at one of the wooden tables, more and more people come down to the kitchen to eat breakfast. It is now eight o’clock and the door next to the reception is unlocked. A younger woman already knows that I have booked and says that I can not get a bed until after ten.

She shows me the TV lounge and says than…
 – You can sleep at the sofa while we are preparing your bed.
Al–Jazira is the only news program I could find, but I let it allowed to sound in the background while I tryed to fall asleep, which I do eventually.

…zzZZzz…

See yah later
P-G
// TheGlobalCyclist1719