Tourism on the Cheap

So, I've spent the last 3 days traveling the South Island. The first, a bus ride to Akaroa, secondly, a visit to a location where Lord of the Rings was filmed, and thirdly (yesterday) a Train ride over the southern Alps to Greymouth, with a one hour layover then the ride back. After spending cash on that, and the potential of possibly flying south today, I had nothing planned. I arrived back to the hotel last night hoping to find a letter under my door saying I would get to fly today, but alas, nothing. So spent the morning doing some laundry, and going to my favorite breakfast place; Cafe Roma. There are a few breakfast specialty stores around, and they are all REALLY good. And they are usually so busy that you need a "booking" to get a seat before the close in the early afternoon (a Booking Kiwi for Reservation, and "Takeway" is the same for "to go"). I managed to get in this morning with out a booking. Seems easier to do when you are by yourself, depending on how they have tables configured, or a bar to sit at.
After Brunch, I visited the Art Center, which is by the botanic gardens. Entry is free, and there are plenty of galleries on display, where you can buy pretty much everything you see. All types of craft are there, from Jewelry making, pottery, wood turning, weaving, painting, and photography. Very nice. I probably spent a good 4 hours walking around there looking at everything. On weekends they also have a local street market as well, which was nice. Lots different yummy food vendors to choose from. Egyptian, Greek, Japanese, Thai, Korean, and lots more. Within the Art center buildings is also an exhibit called "Rutherford's Den." For those of you who don't know who this man is, he is the discoverer of Nuclear Energy. That exhibit is free, and is very well done (Though Donation's are appreciated). You get to see some of the equipment he used to work with, as well as the actually room where many of his experiments have been done. There is also a well preserved lecture hall from when the building used to be part of the University of Canterbury.
After that, I walked across the street to the Canterbury Museum. Again, this was free, donations appreciated. It was way bigger than I expected. It has exhibits that explain the history of Christchurch, all the way to geologic history of the area, dinosaurs, Egyptian, Chinese, Japanese, Antarctic, and modern issues. All very impressive and well worth a visit. If you are ever in the area, I recommend stopping buy these places before you leave.