Gay of A Certain Age - The Big Five-Oh! Part 4

So, I woke up in Christchurch on my birthday, October 3.  Having just had a delightful sexual encounter the night before, I thought I'd hop a trolley and have it take me around around town to see the sites...

I saw some great art on construction fences

Some great old buildings

Some fabulous new buildings

 Some great street art

and quite a few buildings going through reconstruction.

Then I hopped off the trolly to have a delicious breakfast at Fiddlesticks 

with a turmeric latte

and a view of the Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhetu

After breakfast, I continued my journey on foot, first getting closer look at the art on display outside of the museum

and stopping to play the piano.

I walked along the river

I traced my steps back to get a closer look at the stuff I'd seen from the trolly, 

like the street art

 I became more knowledgable of local landmarks, like the Chalice sculpture in Cathedral Square!

seeing the Cathedral as it's being rebuilt... 

and I discovered that New Zealanders are runners!!  Everywhere I went there were people out jogging & running!

Run, hot mens! Run!

I, on the other hand, rested from my exhaustive walk.

Then I made my way over to Christchurch Botanical Gardens

As I stepped out of the gardens, I felt like I wanted to see more, out of the city.  That's when I caught a shuttle taking me to the Christchurch Gondola!

I travelled up, up, up and got a fabulous view as a birthday gift

I walked, meditating and marveling at the view, along a long trail, 

making my way to the other side of the hill where I saw a fantastic view of the coast!

It truly was a calming and beautiful place to sit and reflect, basking in the celebration of my 50 years on the planet.

I made my way back to the city where I found an enchanting restaurant to dine in. Casa Publica, with it's Spanish influence, employed a handsome bartender who poured me my birthday Negroni

 

Which went well with my dinner of skewered calamari

and crispy polenta

I was quite happy!

Finally, I made my way back to the hotel, where I treated myself to a birthday Ice Cream Sunday!

I had a wonderful day of roaming free, adventuring and reflecting and found myself to be the perfect companion.  There was no need to worry, I may have been by myself, but I wasn't alone...