Rainy day in Christchurch?
March 4th, 2008 by Tiffany Miller
I am out and about in cities and towns all day long, and my parade is definitely being rained on. Literally. The rain is following me. Often when I am travelling, I will read an entire book on a rainy day. But sometimes you have to get out of the hostel. A lot of travellers choose to go to a cinema, but you can do that at home.
While in Christchurch, I visited a place called The Bone Dudes. It is a gallery/workshop where you can learn about the ancient Maori techniques of carving bone into tools, weapons and jewellery - and how to make your own! It is run by a man named John, a gentle giant with an infectious passion for art of any form. He spends a few hours with each guest, chatting away, telling stories, and giving tips on how to make your own special piece. It is an incredibly easy thing to do thanks to him. You have many designs to choose from, but whatever you end up with will be far better than any of those mass-produced plastic key-chains they sell in tourist shops.
After three hours you have a very memorable souvenir. When people comment on mine, I will be able to say “A Maori man taught me how to make this in New Zealand” rather than “I bought it in New Zealand”. Cool.
I thought I would mention it as a good activity for Christchurch, but then I saw something similar while in Nelson, so there may be others; but John made my experience great, so I’m gonna recommend you do it in Christchurch. It is a great rainy day option. Far better, in my opinion, than watching Tom Cruise over-act for two hours.
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