Sunday 15th April 2007. Christchurch, New Zealand.

I must be looking like such an old man these days. The young teenage group also waiting for the bus stood back politely to let me board first. Thank-you I said and 'sweet as' came the standard kiwi reply.

Today I meet up with my friend Lee Harris from the Canterbury Museum for brunch. She and I dine at the Swiss Cafe on New Regent Street and watch the tram going by with live jazz playing onboard as part of the city's International Jazz and Blues Festival.

It was funny that when the tram stopped outside they were playing and singing...You are My Sunshine (memories for me of the Marae).

Lee and I head off to explore Edmonds Rotunda which was presented on September 26th 1929 as a bandstand for the city by T.J. Edmonds of the Edmonds Cookbook family fame as a celebration of fifty years of residence in Christchurch.

Appropriately this is now a very nice restaurant and a great use of this former bandstand. It is only open Tuesday to Saturday but we did manage to get a look in the kitchens where they were preparing for a wedding function tonight.

Off via the central library for afternoon drinks at Viaduct on Oxford Terrace. Having a holiday home in Arrowtown, Lee insisted that we have a Central Otago pinot noir from Mt Difficulty and it was lovely.

In the late afternoon I am off to see Cats at the Isaac Theatre Royal where my mate Michael Lee Porter, one of New Zealand's top actors, is starring as Old Deuteronomy. After Cats mikie has one more production (directing his students at the university this time) before he heads off to Melbourne to begin a two year run in Australia touring with Phantom of the Opera.

Cats was a simply stunning production. The West End and Broadway could not have done better. This is arguably the best production of Cats I have ever seen. Even when the cloth got caught in the trap door they dealt with its removal very professionally.

I round off another perfect day with dinner at The Brickworks in Cashmere with Gabe and Steve.