It's French! It's in the belly of a volcano! It's Akaroa! We'd been wanting to visit since our first trip to Christchurch, so we couldn't resist when a new friend suggested a little road trip on our first weekend back. It's only an hour and twenty minutes by car, so by Vermonter standards, basically nothing. I don't need to tell you it's adorable because you have eyes. Look! Look how cute it is! |
It's full of little shops aimed at the tourist set, where you can buy things like fudge, or doilies, or commemorative magnets. One of them boasted Akaroa passport stamps, which I assumed was a gimmick to get people into the store, but which they actually charge for as a service. They don't tell you that until after they've stamped your passport, which I was annoyed by, but c'est la vie. I have a penguin in my passport now. |
Because the only thing better than a beautiful view is a beautiful view with food, my favorite part was the beach cafe where we had lunch. We heard they had the best fish n' chips in town, and we could not wait to investigate that claim. Granted, we didn't eat any other fish n' chips in town, so I wouldn't call it a thorough investigation, but the food definitely did not disappoint! It was so fresh! When we ordered they warned us there would be a 45 minute wait and we're pretty sure that's because they were out catching our fish. It's hard to mind waiting when there's a sweet breeze and a view like this.
Also at this cafe is, apparently, a famous bathroom. Here's some extremely local history for you:
History of a Bathroom
I found this sign when I went to use the restroom, proving that bathrooms have been a source of contention long before now.
The bathroom that made this debate possible.
And because my blog apparently has a polling feature, let's add a poll! Why not?!
Back to the beautiful landscapes...
Later in the day, on our way home, we were treated to this:
And this:
Not a bad day.