BOTANICAL GARDENS !

After lunch we ventured out to Kidnappers bay, but the tide was too high for a coastal walk so we opted for the Botanical gardens instead. These were filled with white doves and rhododendrons, in masses of pinks and reds. There were some interesting signs, telling you what you couldn’t do!





At the top of the Gardens there is an old graveyard in which some famous New Zealanders are buried. Most of the headstones were thrown over and cracked in the earthquake and the locals simply glued them back together. At the very bottom of this is the Jewish section, where it is impossible to walk and the land is disappearing over the edge.



Here we found William C who was the first missionary to land here and Bishop William Williams, who, if his family plot is anything to go by, named all his sons William and four of them became Bishops too!



The weather was not so windy, brilliant blue skies and you can get sunburned if you’re not careful.
We passed a little town called Meeanee on the way home and made a detour – well, you would, wouldn’t you?
“Where do you live?”
“Meeanee!”



Anyway there were signs stating that the place had an historic church, so we followed them until we found an impressive yellow and white, weather boarded church of an impressive size. Imaginatively called... wait for it ...The Old Church! It was surrounded by sturdy vineyards and had a pretty flower garden at the back; it looked idyllic.



When we went through the wooden doors it was a bit of a shock though .. it was a restaurant, filled with baroque furniture, rich red fabrics, curtains hung from the carved columns and a giant chandelier in the middle. People were being served luscious teas and the waitress asked us if we wanted help and we managed to tell her that we had thought this was a church.



It had been de-consecrated and bought by a restauranteur and is now used as a wedding and events venue! When we got back outside we noticed that all the grape vines were hung with little fairy lights and giant batteries were on the ends of the posts. You could have a real knees up there! But I’m sure it would cost you.