New Zealand X - Christchurch

I was lucky enough to stay in Christchurch with some pals of Ralph (mate who I stayed with in Wellington). Considering that they had never met me before they were ridiculously hospitable and friendly. It made a great base for me to enjoy my stay in Christchurch. Not only did Ralph line up a place for me to stay but he also lined up a gig for me with the Court Jesters www.courtjesters.co.nz - Christchurch's premier improv troupe. I arrived on Thursday night and performed with them on Friday night. They have got a great theatre space and have built a strong audience following (for the show I was in it was an audience of 160+). They have a number of very experienced and talented performers, whilst at the same time bringing through new talent. I was impressed by their professionalism. I only met them an hour before the performance which wasn't the best preparation for a show. It was fun to be back playing short-form. I was a touch nervous beforehand as I was going in cold and only there based on Ralph's reputation. I think I did a pretty good job in the circumstances. I nailed one particular scene and people seemed pretty happy with the show in general. Quite a few people I had met along the backpacker route came along to watch and enjoyed the show. I also taught a workshop for them on the following Tuesday. I decided to teach the Improv Olympic Harold and concentrate on openings and games. The Jester's seemed to find it all quite bizarre, not surprising as they had never seen an iO Harold before. I wanted to teach them something completely different and show them what other things are going on in the world of improv. I think they enjoyed it and we covered a lot of topics so there should be at least a few things for them to take away from it. If you are in Christchurch on a Friday night make sure you go along and see their show it is well worth it.

I really liked Christchurch as a city. It is said to be the most English city in New Zealand and in many ways it is. There is a river running through the city centre, which is pretty, and there are big parks and old buildings. In the evenings Christchuch really reminded me of Essex with cruisers in their modified cars pounding the streets, drunk youths fighting, lads in stripey shirts and jackets, and ladies wearing very little. The weather was great during my stay (I was even able to get the shorts out), it set the city off nicely. Jarv (one of the guys I was staying with) was kind enough to drive me down to the Banks Peninsula (south of Christchurch) and to Akoroa a picturesque town in a sheltered bay (the French part of New Zealand).

Ralph came down to Christchurch for the weekend and drove me up to Waikari, his home town. I stayed at his parents place. Unfortunately the clouds rolled in, so while it is meant to be surrounded by snowcapped mountains I can't corroborate this. We drove to Hanmer Springs and spent an afternoon relaxing in the spa pools (its a hard knock life).