A Southern Sojourn # 16

In which we are in Dunedin.

Again this is a mainly family history visit - video interviews with cousin Margaret (of the Manapouri family) & Aunt Pearl - my mother's sister-in-law.

But we also visited the Hocken Library, where both found documents of interest and collections of photos relevant to us both.

The Portait Gallery in the Settlers Museum
Apparently the Edies don't qualify as 'settlers' (and the Clearwaters do!), ...
... so we're not too sure just who this 'Edie' is or how she fits in.
The Etrusco Restaurant has lovely ambience.
And so does The Craic in the Octagon
An exhibition in the foyer of the Hocken Library

And that was our Southern Sojourn! It was time to go home.

A Southern Sojourn # 15

The drive from Invercargill to Dunedin takes about 2 hours. We made it last all day, by going the long way around and making a sizable detour.

Firstly we went up Highway 1 to Gore. The iconic Sergeant Dan graces the side of large food processing plant where Creamoata Rolled Oats are manufactured. Sergeant Dan has been around for a long time now, and has, over the years, been subtly re-shaped to meet modern body-shape perceptions and to de-sex the character.

Then it was on to Waikaia, the home & last resting-palce of James Bryson - aka 'Jimmy the Packer' - who may or may not have been one of the original Bryson party on board the Sir William Eyre. He was the 'other' possible mysterious James Bryson, although it now seems the one in Eastern Cemetery might be the relation. Waikaia, or Switzers as it was also known, was quite a long way out of our path.

The Museum at Waikaia
Tourist Information display
The Bottle House

Having not really got any value from the diversion to Waikaia, we retraced our path to Gore, and then headed to Lawrence via Edievale. At Lawrence we stopped for coffee and a wander about the museum, and Desiree became a 'citizen' of Lawrence in honour of her family history. En route we made the obligatory stops at Edievale Road, the shop and entrance to Springfield.

The last stop, after Lawrence and before Dunedin, was to divert into the Waitahuna Valley to the Miners' Memorial.

A Southern Sojourn # 14

Of course, Invercargill wasn't just about family history, although it did keep cropping up. We made the obligatory stop at the main cemetery, where I found what seems to be the headstone for the 'mysterious' James Bryson.

And an amazing hardware store called Hayes, which says it is the "home of the World's fastest Indian" - the story of Burt Munro. It has an amazing collection of motorcars in the store.

Needless to say we also went to the Museum.

Desiree took herself off to see a collection of Roman artefacts, especially, but not solely, military ones: