AKAROA This is a town on a peninsula to the south east of Christchurch, so we had to bypass our final destination (Christchurch) to get to it, but It was worth the drive. The village of Akarua at the end of the road was the only French settlement on New Zealand in the 1800s, but the Brits negotiated a treaty with the Maori people and in the future Brits dominated the settlements. Akaroa still has French named streets and one hotelier who flew a French flag to give authenticity, but otherwise it did not seem particularly French (not that I am an expert) It was very very nice though. The Akaro peninsula was formed by three volcanoes, and two of the towns, Akaroa included, are located in the respective craters. Scenery was as close to
... read more