"Knights of the Sky"

After snatching only a few hours of sleep - the big guy in the room had the loudest snore imaginable - I had a shower and ate some breakfast before walking to the bus pick-up point outside the i-Site. The bus that would take me into Blenheim was dirty and cramped which was disappointing after the immaculate Intercity bus that brought me here a few days earlier.

The bus dropped me off at the train station so I walked to The Grapevine hostel, where after checking in and dropping off my bag I set out for the Aviation Heritage Centre. It was recommended to me by the woman who ran the hostel since I’d arrived too late to take one of the many wine tours that Blenheim has to offer.

The museum was about 5-6km outside Blenheim town centre and I decided to walk instead of hire a bicycle. After walking past Belnheim’s endless parade of car dealerships, supermarkets and churches, plus two vineyards I arrived at the aerodrome and the site of the museum.

The museum was surprisingly good! It has been set-up by WETA (the people responsible for the special effects and costumes in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and King Kong films) and instead of endless glass cases and boring facts, the planes were hung or stood in some dramatic action complete with mannequins, great lighting, sound effects and movies.

Afterwards I wandered back to the hostel - stopping on the way to eat some fish - where I showered, read my book and feel asleep.


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(I was awoken at just before 4am in the morning by the fire alarm. What have I got to do to get an undisturbed nights sleep?)