Woken up at 7 this morning by a most welcome text. Jonny had asked Adele to marry him. She accepted.
We couldn't be more delighted: absolutely wonderful news.
Happy faces.
Thursday, 22 August 2013
Interruption
Woken up at 7 this morning by a most welcome text. Jonny had asked Adele to marry him. She accepted.
Up The Mountain
Discovery Lodge, where we were staying, was warm and cosy. Outside was VERY wet. Nevertheless, we drove up to the ski area on Mount Ruapehu and soon Cat and Richard had embarked on their first snowboarding lesson....
Who said you can't teach an old dog new tricks...?
Signs
We drove out of Wellington hardly looking at the road signs. Driving here isn't complicated - there are so very few roads to choose from.
We drove down to pretty Wanganui on the mouth of the Wanganui river, then up alongside the river itself..The Whanganui runs down a spectacular gorge from Mount Ruapehu.
Tuesday, 20 August 2013
Satiated with sightseeing...
Our next port of call today was breakfast. We found a cafe we liked the look of, sitting outside, warm in the winter sun.
This is the equivalent of mid-February, people, and here we are in shirt sleeves #definitelynotcomplainingabouttheweather.
Bacon and brie croissant, blueberry pancakes with bacon and a cooked, gluten-free breakfast and ewe were good to go.
First tourist sight was the Te Papa museum on the waterfront overlooking...the port.
The building itself was imaginatively designed, the layout inviting exploration of the brilliant exhibits.
I now know huge amounts of information about the geology, flora, fauna, indigenous history and culture and more recent details of immigration and development of this amazing country than I can hope to remember.
A trip up to the viewing platform gave wonderful views over the harbour: our next destination.
A coffee, watching businessmen and families, runners and cyclists, and we were ready to catch the ferry to Matiu/Somes island.
A former prisoner of war camp and animal quarantine centre, the island has this name because authorities could not agree on which name name to choose-so they used both. This little island in Wellington harbour is a wildlife sanctuary, with a strict quarantine procedure. When we landed, we were taken into a hut where a ranger explained the history and wildlife of the island. We had to empty our bags, remove every vestige of plant or animal material and prove that we were not smuggling any rodents onto the island.
It was good to know that I didn't have any mice living in my handbag.
A quick stroll revealed many sightings of the kakariki, a parakeet with bright green body and red head.
Beautiful. short ferry ride took us back to the harbour - and the Wellington City and Sea Museum. Wandering through 150 years of history filled us with admiration for these resilient people who, leaving family behind - in most cases for ever - created new lives. The sense of lives intimately bound up with and dependent on the sea, struggle to survive, close community and hardship was strong.
A trip in the quirky cable car up to the Botanic Gardens gave us another unique New Zealand Bird: the tui. Known as the parson bird because of a white tuft of feathers beneath the chin, it has an exquisite song.
Back down in the cable car and a weary walk home. More than enough sightseeing....
This is the equivalent of mid-February, people, and here we are in shirt sleeves #definitelynotcomplainingabouttheweather.
Bacon and brie croissant, blueberry pancakes with bacon and a cooked, gluten-free breakfast and ewe were good to go.
First tourist sight was the Te Papa museum on the waterfront overlooking...the port.
The building itself was imaginatively designed, the layout inviting exploration of the brilliant exhibits.
I now know huge amounts of information about the geology, flora, fauna, indigenous history and culture and more recent details of immigration and development of this amazing country than I can hope to remember.
A trip up to the viewing platform gave wonderful views over the harbour: our next destination.
A coffee, watching businessmen and families, runners and cyclists, and we were ready to catch the ferry to Matiu/Somes island.
A former prisoner of war camp and animal quarantine centre, the island has this name because authorities could not agree on which name name to choose-so they used both. This little island in Wellington harbour is a wildlife sanctuary, with a strict quarantine procedure. When we landed, we were taken into a hut where a ranger explained the history and wildlife of the island. We had to empty our bags, remove every vestige of plant or animal material and prove that we were not smuggling any rodents onto the island.
It was good to know that I didn't have any mice living in my handbag.
A quick stroll revealed many sightings of the kakariki, a parakeet with bright green body and red head.
Beautiful. short ferry ride took us back to the harbour - and the Wellington City and Sea Museum. Wandering through 150 years of history filled us with admiration for these resilient people who, leaving family behind - in most cases for ever - created new lives. The sense of lives intimately bound up with and dependent on the sea, struggle to survive, close community and hardship was strong.
A trip in the quirky cable car up to the Botanic Gardens gave us another unique New Zealand Bird: the tui. Known as the parson bird because of a white tuft of feathers beneath the chin, it has an exquisite song.
Back down in the cable car and a weary walk home. More than enough sightseeing....
A Guernsey connection
A night in a Wellington hotel saw us ready to hit the sights.
However, I'd been nursing a chesty cough so the first thing we did on our explorations was to go to a pharmacy. I'd been looking at vitamins for just a few seconds when a young woman, wearing a puffa jacket, with a bag slung across her body, strode into the store. Without hesitation, she approached me and asked if she could help.
I must have looked as astonished as I felt, because she quickly explained that she did, in fact, work there.
A couple of minutes, several searching questions and a check with the duty pharmacist later, I was given a glass of water and the first dose of decongestant.
As we paid, she asked us where we were from.
'Guernsey? Oh yes I know it well. I did a couple of seasons working on the Condor ferry. And isn't that where that potato peel pie book is set? I just love that book...'
And so our conversation - really too brief, for who could have thought that there could be such common ground - continued...
However, I'd been nursing a chesty cough so the first thing we did on our explorations was to go to a pharmacy. I'd been looking at vitamins for just a few seconds when a young woman, wearing a puffa jacket, with a bag slung across her body, strode into the store. Without hesitation, she approached me and asked if she could help.
I must have looked as astonished as I felt, because she quickly explained that she did, in fact, work there.
A couple of minutes, several searching questions and a check with the duty pharmacist later, I was given a glass of water and the first dose of decongestant.
As we paid, she asked us where we were from.
'Guernsey? Oh yes I know it well. I did a couple of seasons working on the Condor ferry. And isn't that where that potato peel pie book is set? I just love that book...'
And so our conversation - really too brief, for who could have thought that there could be such common ground - continued...
Monday, 19 August 2013
KiwiRail: Northern Explorer
Early starts are, fortunately, never too much of a hardship: by 6.45 we were boarding a commuter train at Sylvia to take us to Auckland's main train station, Britomart. I guess if I had more curiosity I could be interested in finding out the origins of these names - history is always interesting.
The train runs all the way to Wellington. A more expensive and longer (10 hours and 35 minutes) alternative to a short flight, it is well set up for tourists. Comfortable seats, a frequent commentary on places of interest and a cafe.
After the first hour I had heard, misunderstood and forgotten more Maori names than I could ever remember. Enough to last several visits.
Of more personal interest were the birds.
We saw countless Swamp Harriers, usually in pairs. The pale rump was obvious as they lazily quartered the ground, often flying up from the ground or bushes right next to the speeding train.
More intriguing were very frequent sightings of predominantly white birds with black wing tips and tail markings. Pigeons? The feral rock pigeon? They certainly flew like them.
The train dipped and swung its way south, past black wattle trees in full yellow blossom, forest giving way to farmland. Climbing slowly up through forest, parts devastated by logging, the country appeared ever bleaker, the settlements increasingly smaller and poorer: evidence of a once thriving economy fallen on hard times. The commentary was full of detail of the building of the railway and various engineering feats of bridges, aqueducts and the famous Raurimu Spiral, up which the train whirled from the Wanganui River Valley to. the Volcanic Plateau.
From there, Mount Ruapehu and Mount Tongariro reared their massive snow-covered heads. Sandstone gorges dropped away on our left. Then, as we began to descend, the grass-covered hillsides began to fill with livestock. Sheep in lambing season, twin lambs often skipping after an unconcerned mother; beef and dairy cattle; horses cantering alongside the train; even, on occasion, deer and llamas.
The train runs all the way to Wellington. A more expensive and longer (10 hours and 35 minutes) alternative to a short flight, it is well set up for tourists. Comfortable seats, a frequent commentary on places of interest and a cafe.
After the first hour I had heard, misunderstood and forgotten more Maori names than I could ever remember. Enough to last several visits.
Of more personal interest were the birds.
We saw countless Swamp Harriers, usually in pairs. The pale rump was obvious as they lazily quartered the ground, often flying up from the ground or bushes right next to the speeding train.
More intriguing were very frequent sightings of predominantly white birds with black wing tips and tail markings. Pigeons? The feral rock pigeon? They certainly flew like them.
The train dipped and swung its way south, past black wattle trees in full yellow blossom, forest giving way to farmland. Climbing slowly up through forest, parts devastated by logging, the country appeared ever bleaker, the settlements increasingly smaller and poorer: evidence of a once thriving economy fallen on hard times. The commentary was full of detail of the building of the railway and various engineering feats of bridges, aqueducts and the famous Raurimu Spiral, up which the train whirled from the Wanganui River Valley to. the Volcanic Plateau.
From there, Mount Ruapehu and Mount Tongariro reared their massive snow-covered heads. Sandstone gorges dropped away on our left. Then, as we began to descend, the grass-covered hillsides began to fill with livestock. Sheep in lambing season, twin lambs often skipping after an unconcerned mother; beef and dairy cattle; horses cantering alongside the train; even, on occasion, deer and llamas.
Sunday, 18 August 2013
More nature, more birds, more beauty: more Scandrett
Scrandrett Bay gleamed in the bright sun, the air washed fresh and clear. We could see the islands today, emerged from the mist and rain. We watched the sun rise over the water as the waders emerged to feed along the shore.
After Cat's friends - Amy, Lisa and Sarah - had left, we wandered along the shore,astounded by the different rock formations before returning to read on the bach's sunny verandah.
The drive to Auckland was punctuated by a dip in the hot springs of Waiwera Thermal Baths. Relaxing.
Returning to Cat's house for quick unpacking, we soon left again to visit Life church. The focus was on prayer: how amazing to see so many young people so engaged and enthusiastic.
New Zealand.
After Cat's friends - Amy, Lisa and Sarah - had left, we wandered along the shore,astounded by the different rock formations before returning to read on the bach's sunny verandah.
The drive to Auckland was punctuated by a dip in the hot springs of Waiwera Thermal Baths. Relaxing.
Returning to Cat's house for quick unpacking, we soon left again to visit Life church. The focus was on prayer: how amazing to see so many young people so engaged and enthusiastic.
New Zealand.
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