Dunedin

Dunedin is a college town and it boasts its Scottish Heritage.  We bussed from Te Anau, passing about three million sheep on the way.  By now, the Crystal Symphony had caught up with us and was in port a few miles away.  We kept our eyes open for anyone we knew, but didn't see a soul.  All the shopkeepers thought we must be on the ship and kept asking how our cruise was going.  We laughed:  we got off that boat over a week ago!

Our hotel, while nothing to crow about, was perfectly located: across the street from the Cadbury Chocolate plant, next door to the police department, right in between two huge grocery stores, and an easy walk to the sights.

The town is very proud of its train station, which dates from 1906:

Inside, the train station is really beautiful and it's not just for show.  They run about 100 trains a day. Check out the waiting area:

The inlaid floor:

And stained glass:

There's a church on every corner in Dunedin, but their pride and joy is the First Presbyterian Church of Otago, which also dates back to late 1880's and was founded by William Cargill, Captain of the 74th Highlanders, and Reverend Thomas Burns:

Inside the church:

We wandered by St. Paul's Catholic Church just as they were starting a short pipe organ concert "for cruise passengers".  Close enough.  We enjoyed the concert:

Dunedin marked almost the end of the adventure.  From there, we took a beautiful bus trip across the plains and hills of Central Otago, back to Queenstown.  A quick overnight stay and we were on our way home.  The latest (they say it's the last) Hobbit movie was about to premiere, and Air New Zealand was doing everything Hobbit.  The Boeing 777 was decked out in a Lord of the Rings paint job and even the safety film was produced in Middle Earth.  Fun!  Watch the safety film on YouTube here:

https://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt=Av6a9N6wIofVAOsBQ4W3dO6bvZx4?fr=yfp-t-103-s&toggle=1&fp=1&cop=mss&ei=UTF-8&p=air%20new%20zealand%20hobbit%20safety%20video