Position 43 47.882S 172 58.26E

A lady at supermarket told us to visit Akaroa as very pretty.  It also happened to be a French festival as well.  Akaroa sits on the Banks Peninsula.  Formed following eruptions of three volcanoes.  Akaroa sits in one of the craters that have been eroded and now link to the sea.  Good old Captain Cook first sighted in 1770 and now called Banks Peninsula, after Sir Joseph Banks the naturalist.  Cook thought it was an island, but it is connected to the mainland by the Canterbury Plains – alluvial.  Once would have been island but not in Cooks time.   The reason Akaroa very French – Patrick you would like this - is because in 1838 Jean Langlois, Captain of a French whaler, negotiated with the local Maori the sale of what he thought was the Banks peninsula – turns out just a part thereof.  He sailed back to France and got together some settlers and then returned.  Meanwhile the English got the ebbie jeebies that French might claim NZ and they signed a treaty with the Maori, literally 3 days before he arrived, declaring NZ a British colony.  Meanwhile the French did settle here and so lots of French descendants, French names streets etc. but NO FRENCH BREAD.  How difficult can it be? 

View of caldera rim from campsite and our campervan next to iconic NZ caravan.  We thought this was permanent but a young couple hitched it up the next day and off they went..

View of Akaroa from the camp site.

This is a statue of Frank Worsley who was captain of the Endurance, which was crushed in the ice in Antarctica during Shackleton's 1914 – 16 Antarctic exploration.  He sailed a 23ft boat to South Georgia with the news of the disaster and subsequently all the 28 men aboard Endurance were rescued.

Blossom is out – so long since we have seen anything like this.  And some sea gulls.  They still have the tin roofs here but the buildings tend to be wooden clad.  Nice colours as well, grey blue, beige.

The French festival on in commemoration of the French landing.  Not as extensive as expected.  The lady in Christchurch tourist office told us we would never be able to book anywhere.  No problem!

Lots of red, white and ble buntng.

We walked around the bay.  Here’s some shots.  Kind of reminds me of Norway and Holland.

Looking up to the volcao rim.

Paul on town quay just after looking at blue pearls, which he didn’t buy me, and a view of the prir latter on.

Some lovely buildings - setters cottages but a bit big?

As mentioned before a festival on.  Not that grand though…..