Signs of New Zealand

Typical.  Watch out for a really cute, flightless, defenseless bird.

I love signs, here are some from my recent time in New Zealand!  (You might recall that I posted my favorite signs from my NZ trip 5 years ago, as well: http://www.whereisholden.com/2008/01/signs.html )

I have no idea what this one means, but I understand it means go to the right.  There was no visible obstacle.

Nothing confusing, but I like the styling of this "Keep Out!" sign (from a ferry).

Some signs are made for famers, and a bit confusing for the rest of us:

Rogue windsock ahead - beware!

Caution: Wave Pool Dance Party ahead!

Equal opportunity rocks falling ahead.  (Really, it's for glacier ice (top of photo) and rocks (bottom of photo).)

Electricity signs are always cool.

Sometimes, gates are noteworthy.

From Christchurch:

Cute!

Helpful on lonely roads!

Luckily didn’t come across any of these victims in the wild:
 

  

The Shire

We did a very touristy thing: We visited Hobbiton, otherwise known as the Shire, from Tolkien's writings of the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings trilogy.  (More specifically, the extra-length movie(s?) from Peter Jackson.)

It's quite photogenic, though I didn't set a new record for photos in a day (current record: 1077 photos!).  Overall it was a good experience, though definitely very pricey (NZ$75 for a 1.5 hour walking tour and a local beer).  Great for superfans, and for those who like cute spaces.  Mild fans, and those who haven't seen the movies might skip this one in favor of another of New Zealand's amazing experiences.

The tree on top of the hill (on top of Bilbo’s hole) is completely man made.  The one used in the same spot in Lord of the Rings was original to the hill, and real.  But when they came back to this site to shoot The Hobbit movie a few years later, they needed a tree that looked 60 years younger.

 
(the sheep were carted away each day while shooting, as they’re the ‘wrong’ kind of sheep.)

 
The hobbit holes (houses) are all various scales to use with the different characters (humans appear large by the holes, but hobbits feel right at home; use different holes/sets in different shots!).

 

View from on top of a hobbit hole; just a chimney sticking out of the ground.

 

  

Christchurch 2 years post-quake

Christchurch, New Zealand was rocked by an earthquake back in 2011, magnitude 6.3 on the Richter scale, roughly 10 km (6 miles) from city center. (More info: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2011_Christchurch_earthquake )

I figured that since it's now 2 years later, that the city would be fairly rebuilt and the thought hadn't even entered my mind that there would be no night life, since the city was so vibrant when I last visited: http://www.whereisholden.com/2008/01/christchurch-itself.html

Turns out that the city is starting to rebuild, but that it's still a ways off.  We entered town on a Friday night, hoping to get dinner downtown and possibly go dancing at a club.  Almost no restaurants were open (6pm), and we found no late-night dance opportunities.

In the morning we went to the city center where a shopping mall made from shipping containers has been erected, and we were impressed with the quality of building, the number of people out and about (despite what my in-opportune-timed-photos suggest).

 

 
 
A model drinking a coffee in front of a fashion store (which happens to be made of shipping containers):



 

Food vendors made the shipping containers work as well; here’s the inside of a second story cafe (the ground floor was packed, but the upstairs empty!

 

And apparently busking is still a reasonably big deal there.  This guy was definitely wearing a straightjacket, riding a tall unicycle, and there was fire involved in his act.  :)