Hawke's Bay

After traveling around for two weeks it was comforting to come back to The Museum and sleep in my yellow room with the familiar framed cross stich pictures hanging on the wall. The week in Hawke's Bay with my parents was a special time. I loved being able to show them around the place that I've made my home. We couldn't have asked for better weather. In fact, it was sunny all week, and the day after I put them on the plane, winter started-it rained for three days straight!

Our first outing was the tractor ride to Cape Kidnappers and the Gannet colony. The majority of gannets had all taken off for the winter, but there were a few stragglers left behind that we got to see. The cliffs and scenery were beautiful and they have been at my doorstep this whole time! I took Mom and Dad up the windy road to Te Mata Peak to see the panoramic view of all of all of Hawke's Bay. We could see all along the coast from Wairoa to Waipukarou. Another day, Jeff took us bird watching in order to help Dad cross off as many NZ birds as possible. We stayed after dark with the hope of hearing a morepork owl (Supposedly it sounds like it's saying, "more pork!" I think it sounds more like a "whoo-whoo,") We didn't hear a morepork, but we did hear a kiwi! It was very exciting.

The honey farm turned out to be quite interesting. Who knew there were so many different flavors of honey?
We also spent a lot of time eating tamorillos, kiwifruit and fejoas. Mom and Dad loved the different fruit variates. Gary even made a fejoa smoothie one night-it turned out surprisingly well.

I said good-bye to Mom and Dad on Monday morning. As we sat together in the Napier airport we were all silent. We didn't need words to tell each other how much we loved each other and what a great time we had had for the past three weeks. I was sad when they left, but so grateful they had wanted to come see me in NZ. What a great blessing to have parents like mine!

Kawakawa Loo

It's our last day together before the Russell's head down to Hawke's Bay, and the Jutzy's head back to Montana. We are all sad to leave Ahipara. But we decided to get closer to Auckland today to save some time and stress getting to the airport tomorrow. On our way South we stopped in Kawakawa which looks like just another small, ordinary Kiwi town. However, the local loos are not ordinary. Apparently they were designed by some Austrian artist and they are the most photographed toilets in all of NZ.
That afternoon we stopped at an Auckland mall to find some sunglasses. I was so excited to actually be stepping into a proper shopping area! As much as I love Hawke's Bay, the shopping leaves much to be desired. I found that I didn't like the large crowds of people or the high prices. I think the Orange County life is starting to fade away!
Devonport is where we stationed ourselves for the night. We had some difficulty finding a place due to the school holidays. I got tired of getting in and out of the car and checking out each hotel, so I stayed in the car and played Mom's "intendo" (Nintendo.) But Uncle Jay's persistence soon paid off and we found a place to spend the night.

Ahipara

Kaitaia is perfectly located near the bottom of Aupouri Penisula for travellers coming back from Northland. However, Lonely Planet describes it as, "The highlight of no-one's trip to NZ." We thought is couldn't be that bad and decided to try and find a place to stay anyway. We drove down the main street and unanimously decided that the Lonely Planet was right. We went just a little bit further off the beaten track to the wee town of Ahipara. After several tries we found the perfect place to stay-overlooking the ocean! This was probably the most posh accommodation we had the whole trip, and definitely worth it.

Sand Surfing

90 Mile Beach is actually only 55 miles/ 88 kilometers long. Nobody really knows the reason for the misnomer. But regardless of the name, it's a unique place to see-different from the rest of New Zealand. We opted out of a bus tour, and decided to walk on the beach instead. We saw several buses zoom by while we were exploring. Cars have been known to hit soft sand and get stuck in the tide; however, unfortunately, we didn't get to see any trapped vehicles. We did get to do some sand dune boarding, though! We hired some boogie boards, trekked up to the top of the sand dunes-which turned out to be way steeper than we originally thought, and then boogie boarded down. It was great fun! Except for having to walk back up the sand dune again. And for the fact that sand got everywhere and in everything!

After the excitement of the sand dunes, we headed to Cape Reinga. In Maori the Aupouri Peninsula is called, "Te Hiko o te Ika a Maui" which means the tail of Maui's fish. As legend has it, Maui pulled a huge fish from the ocean, which became the North Island. Cape Reinga is the very tip of the peninsula. A lighthouse overlooks where the Tasman Sea and Pacific Ocean meet, which produces a visible line of waves in the water. The setting was beautiful when the sun was out, however, on our walk back up to the car, we got stuck in a rain shower. Oh well, no worries!

Pukenui

There in no denying that Russell is absolutely beautiful, we thoroughly enjoyed our stay there. The Thai restaurant was so good, in fact, we ate there both nights! However, all good things must come to an end and so we packed our gear and set off toward Aupouri Peninsula and the very tip of New Zealand.

Our journey that day led us to the tiny village of Pukenui where we found a holiday park to stay at. The only available housing they had was a single room with two bunk beds and a double bed. It was a pretty bare room with the loos and showers off in a totally different building. But I have to say my parents and Aunt and Uncle were very flexible and were completely fine with everything. It made traveling with them so easy and enjoyable. It was dark by the time we had checked in and we had trouble finding our cabin which was labeled "R." We drove around the complex several times before we realized the buildings didn't exactly go in alphabetical order, instead it spelled the word "F R E D." We figured it was the owners name!

Pukinui didn't have much to offer, as far as food goes, so we headed to the local pub for some grub. We were pleasantly surprised by the gourmet pizza and fresh salad served in fish-shaped plates!

Bay of Islands

The little town of Russell is described as "Romantic Russell" in all the brochures. However, it's previous name was, "The Hellhole of the Pacific!" Apparently, Russell used to be a whaling port where all sort of riff raff used to congregate! However, now it is the picture of tranquil beauty with beautiful coastline and crystal blue water. The Bay of Islands is extremely important in NZ history. It is the location of the first English settlement and the start European colonization. It was here that the Treaty of Waitangi was signed by 46 Maori Chiefs on 6 February 1840.

We took a short ferry ride from the town of Paihia, which is the hub of the Bay of Islands, in order to get to Russell. Our Top 10 Holiday Park accommodation was excellent, with only a short walk to get the shore.

Our first day there was overcast so we decided to visit the Waitangi National Reserve. In the Maori guided tour we were able to see the Treaty House, which was the setting for the signing of the treaty. The whare runanga (meeting house) was amazing with the Maori carvings representing the Major Maori tribes. We also saw Ngatokimatawhaorua, the 35 meter war canoe. It is named after the canoe which Kupe, the Polynesian navigator, used to discover New Zealand.

The second day in Russell turned out to be a perfect boating day. We took a cruise to the famous Hole in the Rock out in the ocean. I would have enjoyed the boat ride more, if I hadn't been so sea sick. I spent most of the time trying not to use the little white barf bag provided for such emergencies!

Going North

After exploring all the activities Rotorua had to offer we set off on Monday for Northland. Finally we were getting into territory I had never been to! Of course we had to stop in Waitomo on our way north. The day was rainy and dreary so we didn't miss anything during our boat ride tour through the glow worm cave. The glow worms still amazed me, even seeing them for the second time.

This was our day of driving. We had to go back through Auckland finally stopped in the beach town of Orewa. We hadn't booked any accommodation, but easily found a backpacker called Pillows Travel Lodge. It seemed comfortable enough, however, Uncle Jay found the bed spring sticking up out of his bed less then ideal!

Roto-Vegas Or Bust!

Rotorua, locally referred to as "Roto-Vegas," is full of tourist activities and a geothermal wonderland. We took the scenic route from Tauranga and had to make several stops for waterfalls, birds, plants and more birds-the usual stuff! However, it was a stunning drive.

I had only booked two nights in Rotorua, but it turned out we needed one more day to fit everything in. Zorbing, kiwi bird watching, sheep shearing shows (Dad got to milk a cow!), Maori cultural centers, buried villages and geothermal sightings were just a few of the activities in Roto-Vegas! Jeff and I were even filmed as part of a NZ tourism documentary. If you ever happen to be on an Air New Zealand flight, make sure you watch the "Welcome to New Zealand" informational show! Jeff drove up for the weekend and met Mom and Dad for the first time. I think everything went well-Jeff seemed to pass inspection!

Onward to Tauranga

Cathedral Cove is a must see for anyone visiting the Coromandel area. It turned out to be a beautiful day and perfect for the 45 minute hike down to the beach. This walk turned out to be a momentous one for the bird spotters in the group- we encountered several new birds one of which was the Tui.

By the time we reached Tauranga and the Yeatman's house it was sundown and just in time for dinner. We spent two nights with our friends from Zimbabwe and had a wonderful time reminiscing about Africa days. Uncle Les and Aunt Ruth are both extremely hospitable and made us all feel right at home. Each time there was a break in the conversation, Aunt Ruth would say, "can I interest anyone in a cup of tea?" I'm sure I've never had so much tea in a two day period as I did with the Yeatmans!

Thursday morning we drove to Te Puke "the kiwifruit capital of the world." Kiwi 360 is a kiwifruit orchard which offers an informative kiwi-kart ride through the kiwifruit orchard (how many times can I fit the work kiwi into a sentence?!).

Tauranga is known by a famous landmark-Mt. Mounganui. After our Kiwifruit excursion we took a walk around the mountain before heading out to Chinese food with Uncle Les and Aunt Ruth.

Route 309

We got up early, it was hard not to-the jet lagged people went to bed a 7PM last night! After a leisurely breakie at a fabulous cafe, where Aunt Natalie couldn't believe that you could order a latte in a bowl, we took off for Whitianga. Instead of going up and over the Coromandel Peninsula, we drove across it on route 309. This is really not a shortcut as the road in unsealed (not paved) and there is much sightseeing to do along the way. The two main attractions where Waiau Falls and the Kauri Grove, featuring 13 massive Kauri trees.

We made it to Whitianga and our place of accommodation, a backpacker called The Cat's Pajamas, and then set out for Hot Water Beach with our shovels and jandals. We didn't get to dig our own hot tub this time. Our timing was just a little off and the tide was coming in too far, but we could definitely feel the hot water just beneath the sand. It's a weird feeling standing in near-boiling water at the same time a freezing wave washes up!

Deja Vu

I'm back in the Coromandel Peninsula and it looks exactly the same as the last time I was here 10 months ago, except this time I'm with my parents. It's been almost a year since seeing my Mum and Dad. I met my parents, my Aunt Natalie and Uncle Jay at the Auckland airport. They all looked wonderful, despite being a little haggard and jet lagged! We took off in our Nissan Pathfinder toward Coromandel Town, and stopped at a little cafe in Thames for lunch before continuing on the ridiculously windy road up the Coromandel Coast.

I have to admit that since I've been here almost a year, I don't have to take quite so many pictures as I did when I first arrived. I forgot what New Zealand looks like through the eyes of newcomers. The first couple of hours I patiently stopped the car every time a picturesque scene appeared, which is pretty much around every corner. But as the sun started to set and we still hadn't reached our destination I had to limit the random stops for pictures! After that it was 5 stops per day-no exceptions. With 5 people and 6 cameras in operation someone had to put their foot down!