Delayed in Christchurch

So our flight was delayed. At first they were saying that we will still fly on the 27th, just we will have to go at night. It has been unseasonably warm in McMurdo and the runway was too slushy for the airbus to land during the day.

Let me back up a little bit. So originally we were scheduled to fly on an airbus A319 - it is a civilian plane, with actual seats, stewardesses and service on board. I was really excited - going south in a luxurious seat and all ;) However, the airbus has wheels and can only land on good solid runway. So our flight on the 27th was cancelled all together - even nighttime conditions were not good enough for us to land (although the sun does not set, there is a considerable difference in solar angle and a diurnal cycle in temperature is still quite noticeable). I have also heard rumors that our airbus went to Hobart to fly to Casey station -(where it is also quite warm, so I'm not sure how they will go about that). I am not sure if it was poor planning, poor weather or a combination of the two, but the airbus is not an option for us anymore.

In any case, we are now scheduled to take the Herc (LC130) - a military plane equipped with both wheels and skis for landing. People are saying the flight will be way less comfortable - you seat along the side of the plane in a net, it is loud and it can get cold. But on the plus side - there is a chance we will actually be getting down to the ice!

So we are now scheduled to fly on Saturday morning (December 29th). We have been issued our winter gear and we were told to pack a "boomerang bag". A "boomerang bag" is a bag you check in, but it will be returned to you in case your flight "boomerangs" back to the main land. It has happened before - the LC130 flight gets all the way to McMurdo (8 hrs!),  but can't land due to poor visibility. The flight then returns back to Christchurch (boomerangs) and you're stuck waiting for the weather to improve. Let's hope this will not happen to us - we have been waiting for a long time already. 16 hours on a loud plane will not be an ideal way to spend the next day for sure. But, better safe then sorry - I am packing my "summer/normal" clothes + books + knitting in a separate bag - to make sure I don't feel like I have nothing to do in case we don't quite make it to the ice.

I was originally planning to post more pictures of my adventures in Christchurch, but this post is getting a little long and I am about to go to dinner with my fellow co-travelers-stuck-in-Christchurch. We all are really looking forward to spending New Years on the ice - there are tons of fun events going on. So keep your fingers crossed for us, while the pessimists in our group are starting to plan an "alternative" New Years celebrations in Kiwiland.

***I googled some pictures to give you an idea on what it is like, these pictures are not mine***

Christchurch adventures

Before we go to the ice Zozo and I have a couple of days in Christchurch - so we decided to explore a little.

I have visited Christchurch in August 2010 - before the earthquake(s). I only had a couple of hours back then - so I got to see the city center with its famous church, walk to botanical gardens and shop for souvenirs. It was really heartbreaking to come to the city center in ruins. The heart of the city suffered the most - many buildings collapsed and many are now being demolished because they are unsafe. I guess it is one thing to hear about a devastating earthquake on TV - seeing it with my own eyes made it much more real.

I did however really admire christchurch(ians) for dealing with the disaster face on. They brought trailers to the city center and opened temporary shops and cafes - great tourist destination and a way to earn money. Zozo and I decided to support project Re:start. First we had coffee there:

Then we walked around and shopped for souvenirs.

Went to botanical gardens to cheer up.

It was raining off and on all day and it finally cleared up a little. I decided to ride a bike - something I was planning to do all along, but was trying to avoid the rain.

The first half an hour of my ride went really smoothly - I biked along the river enjoying the scenery. Then it started raining again, really hard. I was biking back to return the bike, going through the ruined buildings and getting progressively wetter with every minute. The Mayan prediction of the end of civilization all of a sudden did not seem so unrealistic. Ruins and rain - that's how it all ends ;)

After unsuccessfully trying to hail the bus in the rain, Zozo and I walked to the bus terminal and caught the next bus out. It turned out we were hailing the bus from the wrong side of the street - it was a one-way street and I did not anticipate the bus stopping on the left side of it. I was wet and tired and not thinking straight I guess. Oh New Zealanders drive on the wrong side of the road... Either or ;)

Anyway, all is well that ends well.

Thanks for reading ;)