Picton and Environs

Well, we arrived in one piece in Picton. The initial part of the ferry ride was very choppy (understatement), we had at one point a Captain's announcement stating that everyone had to remain seated! Once in the Marlborough Sound,though, the sea calmed and we were treated to a spectacular journey up the Sound. Wooded hills fell steeply into the sea, and there were few signs of life other than some small pleasure craft. Incidentally we learned later that this forest is mainly less than 40 years old. When the Europeans landed they cleared the native forest, partly for the exotic hardwoods and partly to establish pastureland for sheep. Unfortunately (according to a water taxi captain) the local land is “crap” for agriculture and so the NZ government has encouraged the re-establishment of native forest mainly for ecological and tourism reasons. Whatever the motivation the results are spectacular.

As we arrived at lunchtime and couldn't check in to the motel until later we decided to go for a ride to......Renwick. This small town is about 20 miles from Picton and is right in the heart of Marlborough wine country. We had to have some cheesy photos taken beside the town sign and, of course, a visit to a local vineyard to buy some (expensive) Renwick wine. One feature that we have noticed is that there are few cheap wines in NZ, even in wine producing areas. Some of the cheapest are Aussie imports (Banrock, Hardys etc) but local wines are seldom below $12 (£6) a bottle, with most being $15+. The ones from Renwick were $20 and $28 and they were by no means the most expensive.

We had seen reference to a museum in Renwick so we sought it out. Outside it looked like a small shop but inside was a really nice local museum. It was closed, but... As we arrived a volunteer was unloading some books (it is also the local library) and she showed us around and gave us lots of information about the founder of Renwick, Dr Thomas Renwick (no relation). We looked a bit at the genealogy and discovered he came from Dumfrieshire and was childless. Both of these make it unlikely there is a family connection.

Parts of Renwick were a bit quaint, the signs for “Renwick Nik-Naks” didn't appeals, nor did the imprecation to to have a Woody at the Renwick Tavern (it's a form of pre mixed spirit drink). We did like the 3 Bears Cafe, which had 4 bears outside and a sign that said:

Opening Hours

7 Days: 08.00 to 16.00

Thursday: 08.00 to 20.00

Clearly they operate an 8 day calendar in this part of the world!

We wanted to walk part of the Queen Charlotte Track, a long distance walking path through remote areas, but the first day in Picton was overcast and dull so we thought it unlikely. The next day dawned clear,bright and sunny so we went down to the harbour to make enquiries. One of the local operators organised a water taxi for us to Mistletoe Bay and we went from there to Anakiwe which marks the beginning of the track (yes, we did it back to front). We covered about 13 km and it nearly killed me. We had not realised quite how much of a climb it was from the bay to the ridge above where we joined the track. Suffice it to say 4WD cars were struggling. Manfully I gasped my way up, being encouraged by Sue who did not even seem to break sweat! Once the walk levelled out a bit it was great, spectacular views over Marlborough Sound and very few people at all. A water taxi back to Picton included an unscheduled visit by a pod of dolphins, Sue was enraptured. Inevitably to toast my achievement a visit to a local hostelry was arranged and so, eventually, to bed.

Today (Sunday) we have driven to Nelson, some way west along the coast. The journey over was absolutely spectacular, the densely wooded hills (mostly different kinds of pines) rose very steeply from the inlet. If we had stopped every time we came to a vantage point it would have taken several days to get here. On the way we stopped at Havelock, the self-styled green mussel capital of the world. One of the cafes had models of them on its roof and round its perimeter fence, very amusing. Havelock was also home to Ernest Rutherford. A local information plaque informed us that if a fellow student had not crashed out in his English exam, “Ern” would not have got the one and only secondary school scholarship. Just think we may never have found out how to split the atom. More importantly, Havelock is also home to Heidi's cafe, where “ritual coffee” is served and all of their cheese is “freshly cut”. Any suggestions on what ritual coffee might involve would be most welcome. We have had a 15 minute fugue on the matter, but it could bear some more flights of fancy.

 

We will be in Nelson for 3 days. The motel is perfectly adequate but a little step down from most of the rooms so far. One reason for being here is so that Sue can see some of the Soroptimists from the club that KL is twinned with. After a difficult time this has now been arranged and we have been invited for dinner by one of the club members (who coincidentally lived in Grimston just outside King's Lynn). More on this to follow.

Apologies for the lack of photos in this post, the motel does not have wifi and we're trying to find somewhere local that does not have tight upload limits.

Leaving North Island

Leaving North Island

I'm writing this on the Interisland Ferry between North and South Islands, experiencing North Sea like weather conditions. Driving from Napier to Wellington was a straightforward experience except for some very picturesque but winding roads over forested hills. Hairpins following articulated timber lorries were a bit hair-raising (especially after seeing one of them on its side earlier in the holiday!). We found the Rydges Hotel quite easily and took the car back and explored a bit of Wellington's redeveloped seafront on a delightful calm afternoon with the sun shining and the sea flat calm, and then......

Yesterday showed us why Wellington is nicknamed the “Windy City”, although the sun was still out and it was quite warm it blew a gale all day. At times the wind was so strong that it was difficult to walk upright. We had decided, wisely as it turned out, to spend the morning in the Te Papa museum, New Zealand's national museum. This is a very innovative and well thought out museum, with a lot of areas for children to carry out activities. Although in some ways unusual to European eyes it is one of the best museums I can recall. Most of the artefacts (especially European ones) date from the last 150 years with a considerable number from our lifetime. The Maori artefacts are sometimes older but many are marked as age unknown or unknown provenance. The number of artefacts is very low by the standards of, say, the British Museum but they are displayed in such a way as to tell the story of New Zealand very effectively

After about 4 hours we were museumed out, and decided to go to the Botanical Gardens for a walk. Wellington Botanical Gardens are very large and built on the side of a steep hill. Unusually we decided to start at the top and work down (sounds an easy concept but Sue is noted for doing it the other way round), so we got the cable car to the top. Thankfully in the light of the wind, the cable car is a funicular and provided an easy way to the top.

By the time we had walked down through masses of flowering hydrangeas, begonias and bizzy lizzies (strange in January) we were shattered. The rest of the day we put our feet up and just went out for a pizza last night. Anyone for “sheepshank” pizza (topped with shredded lamb shank)? Sue, for a start!! This must be what is meant by fusion food.

We will be arriving in South Island shortly, and look forward to some stunning scenery. North Island has set the bar high but we're hopeful South Island will more than match it.

Napier Nurdlings

Napier was a small, not very important town until 1931. It was then hit by a major earthquake which destroyed most of the existing buildings and lifted the land up by 2 metres to convert a lagoon into prime swamp land. This was duly drained to form the town as it is today. Rebuilding was started in 1932 and much of the centre of the town dates from 1932-1936 and was rebuilt in the fashionable Art Deco style. Although some of the building were demolished for “modernisation” purposes the town decided that it should preserve the Art Deco details as far as possible and this has led to Napier becoming (the self styled) Art Deco Capital. In fact the concentration of buildings is very impressive and I spent a happy couple of hours taking lots of photos to bore people with.

While I was doing this (and I admit finding a bar along the way) Sue went on a worthy and informative town tour organised by the Art Deco Trust – this included some interiors as well as exteriors. I would have liked to see the leaping nude panels in the theatre but decided against! During the tour Sue was informed that Napier averages 500 earthquakes each year (more of this later).

We also went to Hastings nearby which has almost as many Art Deco buildings and is much less well known.

In the last post I said I would say more about Gerard the proprietor of Mon Logis. Originally from the Languedoc Gerard had been in NZ for about 20 years. He resembles Gerard Depardieu, or Obelix from the Asterix books. His use of English is erratic, and his accent strongly resembles Hercules Poirot. He seems to run the B&B by himself having little time for the Kiwis who he thinks do not want to work but expect him to be concerned about their problems. Over breakfast there was a discussion about earthquakes, and he was saying that the absence of quakes was a major concern rather than their presence as it could mean a big one was on the way. “Actually” he said “we are more concerned about Tsunamis as we are on the seafront. Last time there was an earthquake in Samoa the government did not even bother to give us a warning.” I was getting a bit concerned by this, but he said the resultant fuss had meant they get warnings of even quite small ones (50cm or so). When this 'appens the seafront is clogged with sightseers looking to see whether they can see it coming to land. Personally I'd head for the hills.

Gerard was a treasure, he took our laundry and got it washed and dried whilst we were out enjoying ourselves and would not accept anything for doing so. So I did give him a kiss (this is Sue by the way).

Today we have driven the 200 miles to Wellington and have dropped the car off. We stay here two nights (tomorrow will be the NZ National Museum) before taking the Inter Island ferry to South Island. A less characterful city centre hotel near the waterfront is our base for the next couple of days.

Rotorua and Napier

Rotorua - a really strange place (or at least to us it was). NZ's number one tourist destination with a mile long road lined with motels and hotels, described to us as RotoVegas, closed at 9 o'clock at night and the centre seemed deserted by 9.30! The first night we were there we ate at a Turkish restaurant and were worried that at 8.00 we might not be able to find a table but most good Kiwis seemed already to have eaten and be on their way home.We went for a drink afterwards and we were the only people in the bar!

Rotorua is one of the most active geothermal and volcanic areas in the world, and it certainly smelled that way. All around town it is possible to see clouds of gas rising and the smell of rotten eggs pervades. Geography teachers and graduates amongst you would love it. The town is set on an eponymous lake and the setting is stunning. All around are reminders both of the European and Maori heritage. The old Bath House set in Government Gardens has a distinctly colonial look and feel about it and the bowls matches taking place in front of it (with stereotypical white elderly players) could be taking place in Eastbourne. The Maori statues could not.

The hotel we stayed at is regularly voted No 1 in Rotorua (some accolade considering the high number of hotels in the town), but I couldn't decide whether it was a case of emperor's new clothes. Described as a boutique hotel it was "stylishly" decorated in a black and white motif in both the public rooms and bedrooms, very nice. And yet...... the rooms were all in a refurbished motel block which resembled an old Travelodge, nicely refurbished but.... I have to say I was also rather unsure about the white plaster rhino heads on the wall in the restaurant, even if the horns were decorated with Rhin(o)estones! Sue liked the hotel and the room.

Our major outings in Rotorua were to Wai-O-Tapu thermal wonderland and a Maori Cultural event and Hangi (feast). Wai-O-Tapu is an area of volcanic activity and has the Lady Knox geyser which erupts each morning (in fact it is encouraged to erupt by the introduction of a surfactant which breaks down the water surface tension and creates the eruption). Quite a sight (even if it did require an early start to the day), the various pools and their mineral deposits were really something.

The Maori feast and Hangi featured performers doing traditional songs and dance and, of course, the Haka. The evening struck a nice balance between entertainment and information and we thoroughly enjoyed it. The food was cooked in a pit over white hot volcanic rock and had a lovely smoky taste to the vegetables as well as to the meat.

Today we have driven to Napier, some magnificent scenery (including our first snow capped peak, Mt Tangoriro). Napier is known throughout New Zealand for its Art Deco buildings. These were erected after the city was devastated by an earthquake. Tonight we ate at the GMK - the Grand Masonic Kitchen (I kid you not, and not a joke about strange handshakes) which turns out to be Napier's answer to Wetherspoon's (without people).

More next time about Art Deco and, if you're lucky, about Gerard the owner of Mon Logis where we are staying. A Bientot!

Just a quick post to say that we've been  told some of our loyal followers are having difficulties posting comments. Sian and James have managed but there seems to be an issue for most others. We'd love to hear your comments/news and would suggest you use our emails arenwick10@hotmail.com or suerenwick@hotmail.com if you have had difficulties and would like to contact us.

Catching Up

After a couple of days with no posts, here we are again. We left Paihia as planned and travelled south to Orewa on the coast about 20 miles north of Auckland. We did a few detours to see small coastal towns, most of which were pretty deserted. For anyone used to European beaches and their regimentation and crowds it is really strange to see miles of beautiful sandy beaches, near the main North - South highway with so few people using them.

The only slight problem we faced was a timber lorry whose trailer had overturned spilling tree trunks over half the road and pulling down HT wires. For a while it looked like a long detour via the west coast was likely but they soon managed to start a contraflow system  so all was well.

We were staying at the Waves Motel and were greeted by a very enthusiastic English owner who showed us to our room and insisted on demonstrating all the electrical switches and appliances. The room itself was well appointed and had a spa bath. It is probably best not to dwell on the effects of adding bath gel to a spa bath - suffice to say that Sue nearly had hysterics as the bubbles rose around her.

Orewa has a long sandy beach and Sue managed some time on it before we went to look  for somewhere to eat. Both of use thought fish would be a good idea so  we went to the local fish and chip shop (complete with plastic chairs outside).  Although just a local fish shop the speciality was salt and pepper squid, also garlic prawn skewers and whitebait. Sue settled for fish and chips, the fish was gurnard. I had a seafood chowder - it was great! No comparison with the humble chippy at home.

Yesterday was another travel day, this time heading for the Coromandel peninsula south of Auckland. This is now a sleepy area with small towns and villages and little else but agriculture and tourism. In the 19th Century, though, it was the site of a gold rush. Some of the towns were clearly much more prosperous in the past and have buildings which reflect a wealthier past. We stopped at Thames which was a major part of the gold rush (pictures to follow). One feature of these towns is that they resemble cowboy towns of Western USA, a single high street with shops, pubs and banks.

We are staying at Cooks Beach, so called because Capt Cook landed here in 1769. He named the bay Mercury Bay as he observed the transit of Mercury while he are. The beach is about 3km long and is virtually deserted. Strangely for such a small town (village?) the "No 1 Restaurant of the Coromandel" is in town. We ate there last night and had a Kaizen Banquet ( no, we had not heard of it either), this consisted of 6 small plates of food ranging from fillet steak to squid. Very imaginative cooking with Asian, NZ, and Northern European influences - the best meal of the holiday so far!

The B&B is luxurious again, breakfast brought to the room each  morning, the owners (Chris and Paul!!) are really enthusiastic and even supplied us with a shovel (see below).

Today Sue wanted to go to Hot Water Beach, this is fairly local and is a place where hot springs are just below the surface on part of the beach. At low tide people dig holes which fill with hot water and lie in them! Sounds good, but it was chaotic - loads of people. We duly dug our hole, abandoning one which kept flooding, and - nothing!! Those in the know had arrived Early and snaffled the places where the hot springs were and left us with cool feet from the sea water. Sue did wander along the beach and find a place where the hot springs were, strange sensation to have your feet half in cool seawater and half in hot water!

Queen Canute surveys her failure

Tonight we are taking a ferry ride (two minutes) over to Whitianga a larger town over the river. Although only a few yard wide the river is not bridged until quite a way upstream and the car journey takes over half an hour! We hope to have some more seafood tonight!

Tomorrow we head towards Rotorua and its hot springs and geothermal vents - and a Maori Hangi (feast).

Photos for this post when I've taken them off the camera.

Beginning the Journey South

Yesterday Sue and I parted company for the afternoon, she went for a cruise round the bay and I went fishing. We both managed to see pods of dolphins but Sue also saw the famous "Hole In The Rock" which is a rock arch and lots of the outlying islands which give the bay its name.

 I managed, at the very last moment, to catch a 6lb Kawahai (a game fish shaped a bit like a salmon) which is the largest fish I've ever caught (James Davis eat you heart out). Fishing on the boat was slow and the skipper was desperately looking for fish all afternoon.

Paihia has been excellent, the apartment is comfortable and we've managed to relax and get more used to the time zone. Today we set off south, the first overnight is at Orewa just  north of Auckland and then on to the Coromandel peninsula for a couple of nights.

One word of warning to the male readers, I advise against allowing sybaritic lifestyles to  develop, I came across this example of decadence last night and will comment no further!!