Okay, okay... it's not quite summer yet! But it's definitely been feeling summery the last couple of weekends, and what do you do in summer?? Go to the beach of course!
So that's exactly what we've been doing.
Our favourite beach to go to in Christchurch is, without a doubt, Sumner. It's just a half hour drive from the city centre and is a charming little village with a beautiful long beach to walk along, surf at, paddle your feet, or simply sit on and read a good book.
The village itself is full of boutique shops, bakeries, surf shops, cafes, restaurants and even a cinema; the Hollywood cinema has been serving the people of Sumner since 1938! It's really got everything you need. Oh, and if that wasn't enough, on Sunday mornings they have a great little market selling all sorts, from street food and craft beer, to dog accessories!
Despite all this, my favourite thing to do in Sumner is simply walk on the beach. The views are amazing, the smell of the sea air is soothing, and it's a great opportunity to do some people watching.
In the past couple of months we've been to Sumner at least once a week. In fact, we've been so often the staff in the local bar there are starting to recognise us... oops! But we seriously love it. Moving here from a landlocked part of Germany (and before that, landlocked Wakefield in the UK), it's such a novelty to be able to get to the beach in 30 minutes. And who doesn't feel better after a good dose of sea air? There's just no excuse to stay in the city on the weekend, when these views are so close to home.
Since moving to Christchurch, D has been keen to get back to surfing, and luckily, Sumner has some great surf schools and places to hire boards and wetsuits (check out Aaron's surf school on the Esplanade https://surfcoach.co.nz/). While I'm not quite brave enough to get in the water yet, I'm looking forward to some summer swims at Sumner (try saying that quickly three times!!), and may even be persuaded to try the surf school... We'll see! For the time being I'm keeping my feet firmly on the dry sand.
After all that hard work and exercise, the 'Beach' bar (Beach on the beach.. who's confused?!) is one of our favourite places to grab a bite to eat or a drink here in Sumner, as you can enjoy dinner whilst soaking up the beach views. In the winter, or on a cold day, you can do this from the comfort of the indoor eating area, thanks to the huge glass windows. And if you feel brave enough to battle the beady-eyed seagulls waiting to pounce on any leftover food, there's the outdoor deck that leads straight onto the beach.
Set back from the beach (the sandy one, not the pub!), you'll find Sumner's little high street, with its array of shops and cafes. For such a small place, there's a fair amount of choice, but if you like ice cream (and who doesn't?!) then Utopia Ice is the place to go. It's the perfect post-walk/surf/swim/lazying-on-the-beach treat. The shop is in the cutest courtyard, nestled between two buildings. It's a gorgeous haven of deliciousness. Utopia even has vegan ice cream and yes, I'm going to say it... it may well be the BEST vegan ice cream I've ever had. Dark chocolate and sea salt? Chocolate and coconut? Blackberry and coconut? YES. PLEASE.
What more could you want for a weekend beach day? Sun, sea, sand, delicious food and heavenly ice cream. Living. The. Dream.