Finding solace in Banks Peninsula, 1
Posted: 06/07/2025
Partly derived from a desire to distract myself from odious thoughts and loneliness, partly to rediscover a part of New Zealand I had not fully appreciated despite living there for some time, and partly because I was aching too much to continue skiing, on the second of July I took my truck over Dyers Pass to enjoy - what was once an island, before the glaciers created the Canterbury Plains - Banks Peninsula.
If you take Dyers Pass your first stop after the Sign of the Kiwi (a nice cafe, but I have never actually been there!) is going to be Governors Bay. Continuing past the intersection that takes you to Lyttelton, you'll find this driveway.
Going up the driveway and to the right, there's a three storey house perched on the side of the hill, much like most of the other houses here. This house was the one I lived in around 2015; I remember having to take Dyers Pass every day to get to school. One time my mum's Fiat 500 got stuck in the gutter at the entrance to the Dyers Pass road - I was very late to school that day.
I remember it being a cold, cold house, with a wood stove; it had a beautiful view of the harbour, and a large "front" garden with a flying fox. The flying fox seems to be gone, but whoever the owners are now, they've kept up the garden well. I imagine my cat Ellie still rests there. I hope so.
Allegedly, Governors Bay is named for George Grey, who was a governor of New Zealand in the 19th century. Although Grey's history is controversial (my high school history teacher called his actions in the Waikato tantamount to genocide) he certainly picked a phenomenal place to give his title to.
Afterwards I had a little walk around the town, which I did not really get to see in the time I lived in Governors Bay, since I was young-ish and I went to school in the city. I continued down to the jetty, and realised that I could see my old house from it, though I don't remember if I could ever see the jetty from that house.
I had eggs Benedict (on brand you might say, but I also hadn't had one for years and had to take the opportunity) at the Otoromiro Hotel. That meal got me through most of the day - and it had to, brunch isn't cheap these days, especially now that I pay for everything myself! I remembered there was some sort of chocolate cafe across the road from the hotel, but there was some sort of closed down pizza place instead. My memory wasn't wrong; the lady working at the Otoromiro told me that the chocolate cafe had moved out a while ago; but they are now in the central city. So maybe before the holidays are up I'll have something from the She Chocolaterie in Riverside.
After finishing my eggs Bene, I started up my car and went in the direction of Diamond Harbour.
Continuing... soon
Addendum: Summit Road
I think my appreciation for Summit Road is pretty apparent, given that it's what you see on the main page of my website and I've talked about it a bit in the past as a place of reflection. It straddles the side of Banks Peninsula bordering Christchurch, which is known as the Port Hills. The view is brilliant at night, but it is as beautiful as anything by day, and you can see all the way to the Southern Alps on a clear one.
