Christchurch

I rocked up to Christchurch NZ this afternoon to attend the MODSIM07 conference. Took a bit of time getting through customs, etc. Despite its laid back atmosphere and reputation, the passport control guys in NZ can be a bit cheeky. Before I could even say hello, my friendly neighbourhood immigration agent said "you again, didn't I see you last week? Why are you back so soon?". This was followed by, "what were you doing in Thailand?," "Do you smoke marijuana?" and "What kind of conference are you attending?". Despite this interrogation, the guy on the x-ray machine that was supposed to be checking whether or not I was smuggling large quantities of dope into the country was, I believe, asleep. Meanwhile, as I was walking around the streets of Christchurch this afternoon, I noticed a large number of shops that appear to sell nothing but "energy" and "sex" pills (but then it makes sense that one would sell these together). So maybe immigraton just wanted to know if I was going to be contributing to the local economy.

In any case, so far I'm really enjoying this small gateway to NZ's southern island (despite the fact that everything was closed today, presumably because it's Sunday, but who knows?). NZ continues to be the only place in the antipodes where one can score a decent burrito, and the influx of students, backpackers and nerdy conference goers makes for a diverse town. Given it's summer, the tourists and flocking into the country, and given it's distance from the rest of the world, I reckon Christchurch has the highest incidence of jet lag of any country on Earth. Perhaps that's what all those energy pills are for.