Our stay with Christine was perfect for us. We landed late at night and woke up to a Farmer's Market, a running trail for us just out the front door, an organic cafe and coffee shop, a sweet walk away. This was our base camp while we waited for the rest of our family to arrive from the states. The grocery was close by, as was a hike in the hills that took us up high enough to overlook Diamond Bay on one side and all of Christchurch on the other side. For dinner we went out to a cool spot for local food, microbrews and live music one night and had a nice picnic dinner on the back patio the other night. Christine and her husband were incredibly helpful as we navigated new logistics for one child who was caught in a snow storm trying to get out of Denver. Christine even helped look up alternatives for flying from Australia to New Zealand. It was nice to have a Kiwi's local wisdom in that situation! It was a wonderful spot for us to to be introduced to New Zealand. Only bummer was I left our picnic cheeses in the fridge in my rush out the door. Oh well, hopefully they were enjoyed anyway!