New Zealand - South Island - Dunedin

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Hi everyone, well had very nice sleep in ATTIC !! Found out some history about spooky house, it was built in 1907 as a private hospital, after 50 years it became a hotel and has been a youth hostel since 1981, (same decor! ). It caters for over 64 hostellers, has 105 doors, 5 staircases, 11 loos and a roof garden but not ventured out there yet.

So this morning we went sightseeing, being a Sunday a lot of stuff was closed. It definitely is 30 - 40 years behind England. It reminds me a lot of when I was a kid about 8 or 10 years old on a Sunday in England, really quiet and no shops open and slow. We decided to go down to the railway station as it is a beautiful building and it really was, original tiles on the floor and beautiful bannister. From there we thought we would walk to the Rugby stadium and so glad we did because when we got there, there was a little market and a charity event was happening inside. Well so funny to see, there were people with beds, settees, armchairs and mattresses that were all around inside the stadium as they had been doing relays, walking around the stadium for 48 hours. These people had brought their own furniture so they could be comfortable throughout the night. They had food places set up and even a live band playing, it really was a good atmosphere and we got to see the stadium for free !! Bonus ! So from there we went to the Otago Museum and I could have spent all day in there, it is the best museum I have ever been to, there was a lot of history on the Pacific Islands and the Maori people, Stu and I found it fasinating, they even had a girl with a guitar singing, great place to spend a Sunday. We spent ages in 'Tangata Whenua' which gave an insight into Maori culture and taoka (treasures) and then we went into the area 'Pacific Cultures', journey through Oceania, looking at the masks, tools, weapons and cultures of Polynesia and Melanesia. Anyhow we had to go and meet some people in St Clair which is about a 25 minute bus ride. They were Heidi and Simon, Heidi is my friend Nikki's sister and she is a doctor here in Dunedin and Simon is a sports psychologist. We all went for a drink, they have a dog called Etta who stayed outside the cafe, we then all went to the supermarket and did our shopping and they brought us back to spooky house. They have a camper van, it was pretty full up with surf boards and bedding as they had been away for the weekend, so me and Stu squashed into the back. They said we could stay at their place and use the camper van and we would have done so, but we had booked the Speights Brewery tour and we are leaving early tomorrow morning. Anyhow it was really good to catch up with them and they also gave us tips on what to see and where to go.

This evening we did the Brewery tour, which was really interesting, then afterwards we went into their bar and were given free beer, really as much as you could get down you and not only that but you could pour you're own ! I really like the beer out here, it's not like the stuff at home.

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