15.03.2020 Goodbye New Zealand ..... You've been fantastic.... I hope I will be back...

Well I'm sat here with my suitcases packed and ready to go in the morning - hopefully there will be no last minute changes on my flight to Dubai with the Corona virus situation. It's just as well that I am not just arriving here because now, anyone entering New Zealand, has to go into immediate 14 days isolation, regardless of where they have come from.

From Christchurch we took the Tranzalpine train back out to the West Coast at Greymouth and came back again later in the day. It is billed as one of the World's Great Rail Journeys and it has been featured on the Michael Portillo programme but perhaps we should have done it before we saw Lake Pukaki as we keep comparing everything with that which is unfair. The stretch from from Riccarton to Arthurs Pass has the best of the scenery with the track running through the river gorge with the mountains in the background.

We only had an hour to spend in Greymouth before we headed back and that was quite enough.

Christchurch itself has done an amazing job on rebuilding parts of the city centre since the earthquake but there is still a lot of work to be done especially at the Cathedral and in that area. With street art to try and distract you from the damage which still remains and the lack of tourists due to the Corona virus it has been a very quiet few days.

We did however, manage to catch up with more of my cousin's family - a cousin who she hasn't seen for 50 years and some of his family. We had a fantastic evening at their homes in Sumner which is a great place on the beach just outside of the city. Fantastic hospitality.

Well everyone that's the end of my blog for this trip. On Monday I will be back with my Dubai family for a short visit before I come home - that's assuming I will be allowed back and I'm hoping I still have a stock of toilet rolls!!!

I have really loved every minute of my journey through New Zealand - enjoying the absolutely incredible scenery, the warmth and welcome from friends and family along the way and travelling with Maureen, my mum's cousin. We had barely seen each other in the last forty years so I think we were both a bit worried about spending time together in the close confines of the car and agreeing what we would do and where we would stop but it worked out just fine.

There are still some places that I haven't seen and things that I haven't done but I have managed to cram as much as possible into my eight weeks here and realise just how lucky I am to have done this, especially when I look back at my photographs.

Keep safe everyone - I'll see you soon xxxxxxx