Sunday 27 February

This will be a very quick posting today really to let you all know we are now safe and sound with Suzanne and Rod in Melbourne.  It was a really early start for us - we had to be up at 3.15am so we are feeling pretty shattered now!

We can do a double update tomorrow but the only thing I will say is so much for "sunny Melbourne"!  It was raining cats and dogs from the time we arrived to early afternoon and Steve said he thought we had gone to Manchester by mistake!!

Final Blog from NZ

Saturday 26 February

Today we have driven along the famous State Highway 73 from Greymouth to ChCh passing through the Otira Gorge and Arthur's Pass. For most of the middle part of the journey the train line runs parallel with the road so we were able to see some of the scenery that we would have seen from the train. In fact the train disappears into a tunnel before Arthur's Pass so it's possible to see more from the road (some compensation for missing our trip on the Trans-Alpine Express). We stopped at a view point in the Otira Gourge and saw three Kea Birds (A type of parrot) apparently they only live in this part of NZ and there are only about 5000 of them left, so seeing them was a treat!

Many roads in NZ have single track bridges and this is rarely a problem as the traffic is so light, however today we came across a single track bridge that also carries a railway line, which we thought was perhaps stretching things a little far! Apart from the scenery State Highway 73 also seems to be famous for the quality of it's pie shops. We had very nice pies at Arthur's Pass and could have also stopped for pies in Sheffield and several other places!

We weren't in a hurry to get to ChCh as you can imagine, so we also stopped and walked around some rather interesting large boulders, or limestone outcrops, as they are officially called. Basically they look like handfuls of enormous pebbles scattered down a hillside.

The mountains in this last part of the journey across the Southern Alps looked like no others we have seen. The rock face looked like cement had been poured on it from the top, very strange! Everywhere we have been in NZ we have seen something new and completely unspoilt and today was no exception.

We are now in a rather nice small hotel near ChCh airport. Steve has filled the car with petrol (not without difficulty as petrol is being rationed) and we are packing and getting ready for an early night because we have a very early start in the morning for our 6.15am flight to Melbourne. Can't wait to be there now and see Rod and Suzanne again. It was always going to feel good to see them again after two years but given the situation here in NZ, it has unfortunately put a black shadow over the last few days here and we are ready to leave.

It's been a wonderful experience – definitely a holiday of a lifetime for both of us!

See you in Oz!

Catch Up 23 to 25 Feb

Sorry if this post is long and muddled.  We have been adding to it as we went along without the opportunity to make any new postings for a couple of days.

Wednesday 23 February

We are now in Franz Joseph staying at Westwood Lodge. The owner has told us that their Internet service is provided from ChCh and with comms in ChCh serverely disrupted by the earthquake the service is very poor. Accessing the Internet is via a subscription service and as the service is so poor we have been advised against subscribing. So we are going to update the blog on our PC and upload it if and when we find a local cafe that provides internet access. Also, we have no mobile signal at the Lodge so we can't use that either! 

We were called this morning while we were still in Queenstown by our local tour operator and advised that our hotel in ChCh is closed for at least a week, that the airport would be open on Sunday to international flights (in fact it opened this afternoon) and that the Trans Alpine railway was unlikely to be open on Friday when we are due to travel to ChCh. So we have extended our car hire and our agent has booked us into the Kingsgate Hotel in Greymouth (Tel +64 3 768 5085) for Friday night and the Huntley Lodge (Tel +64 3 348 8435), close to ChCh airport for Saturday night. So we should be leaving NZ early on Sunday morning as planned.

Blog Update

Before updating today's news, there are a couple of little bits that we forgot to mention in yesterday's blog.

When we were having a coffee in Arrowtown we got talking to a Scottish man and he was telling us that he was on a touring holiday in with farmers from all over the UK. The main object of their holiday was to visit farms throughout NZ – talk about a busman's holiday!. He explained one thing which had been puzzling us and that is why there weren't as many sheep as we expected. Dairy farming has become a lot more profitable than sheep farming mostly because milk is being made into powdered milk for the Chinese market and so sheep farmers are moving into dairy farming.

Also we forgot to mention The Remarkables! These are a very remarkable range of mountains across the lake from our hotel and Queenstown. What was most remarkable about The Remarkables while we were there was that they were remarkably difficult to see as it rained a lot and the cloud was low! Hopefully though Steve will have a photo of them to show you.

Wednesday, 23 February

After the call from Pan Pacific and the decision made for the revised itinerary, we had to go to Budget car hire at Queenstown airport to extend our car hire. In the meantime I was concerned for a couple of friends in NZ and had emailed them both. I got instant replies and good news but the most surprising thing was that one of them Maree (who I first met when we lived in London and is my all time favourite hairdresser and now a musician with the Ting Tings!) was in Queenstown. Because of the earthquake Maree's flight home to have a holiday with her family in Dunedin after touring with the band was diverted to Queenstown and believe it or not we were both at the airport at the same time. Neither of us had time to do more than have a 5 minute chat but it has to be one of the most amazing coincidences!

After leaving Queenstown airport we headed for Franz Joseph. Steve decided to take a short cut over Crown Terrace that saved us about 40km. Of slight concern was that the entrance to the road was ringed with warnings about it not being suitable for vehicles pulling trailers and this turned out to be because the first 10km consisted of a series of very tight hairpin bends as the road climbed steeply to reveal wonderful views of Queenstown in the distance below, that is until the road climbed so high that we were in the clouds! On the way down on the far side we passed a large group of tandem riders desperately trying to reach the top, many of whom had given up cycling and were pushing their bikes.

Further on the road took us past Lake Hawea on our right, quickly followed by Lake Wanaka on our left, both huge lakes. The scenery here was absolutely stunning, some of the best we have seen in NZ and that's saying something. We stopped at a view point above Lake Wanaka and were able to see Harwich Island in the distance!

Near Haast we stopped to look at the 28m (~93 ft) Thunder Creek falls that tumble into the Haast River, quite a dramatic sight. There were a lot of one lane bridges on today's route, something we rarely see in the UK, and some of the bridges (notably the one over the Haast River) were quite long. 

We are now on the West coast in Glacier Country and have had our first views of the Tasman sea. We should also be able to see the Franz Joseph Glacier and Mount Cook but unfortunately they have both been covered by cloud since we arrived. We are hoping for better luck tomorrow.

Thursday 24 February

When we woke this morning most of yesterday's cloud had cleared and we were able to see the tops of the mountains and take some pictures of their snow covered peaks. However, the forecast for the day wasn't good with low cloud and rain forecast for the afternoon. Since arriving in FJ we have learned that it has an annual rainfall of 7 to 8 metres and that on average it rains on 4 days every week, so we will be lucky to get away with out any rain today!

While we sat having a morning coffee, which we'd like to think was the same cafe where Stephanie spotted Russell Crowe when she was here a few years ago, we saw about 10 Morgans being driven through the town which was rather an unexpected treat. We didn't realise there would be that many Morgans in NZ! Steve preferred the Morgans to a world famous filmstar - I couldn't possibly comment!

We decided to book ourselves on a “Glacier Experience” tour. So this afternoon we have been up climbing on the FJ Glacier. Steve loved it and wants to go back again, but it was a first … and last for Jane. I think she must have completely forgotten that she doesn't even like ice in al shapes and forms!

We were provided with boots (wet inside), socks, waterproofs and crampons and taken by a guide onto the glacier. This was an incredible experience and not one that we will forget in a hurry (for different reasons!). The top of the glacier receives 40 meters of snow every year, it snows all year apart from January and February, and the sheer weight of the snow is causing the glacier to move at a rate of 3 to 4 meters each year, which is very quick for a glacier. The snow has a blue tinge because it absorbs all other colours. The glacier was not really like we expected because the part we walked on was not flat and smooth but had long, high spiky ridges and lots of crevices. Fortunately we had only a few spots of rain while we were out which given the local climate was pretty lucky! The whole trip took 5 hours.

On our way to the glacier we spoke to a man with a trolley full of equipment. Turns out he is a seismologist and had been taking measurements to try to better plot the line of a major fault that lies under FJ. Apparently, its one of the biggest faults under NZ and he said he wouldn't want to live in FJ so we're glad not to be staying to long!

Sorry this is a long update but as we mentioned earlier in the little blog we sent from the internet cafe this morning comms here in Frans Josef are not very good as the internet service providers are in ChCh and so obviously the service is far from normal under the circumstances. 

Friday 25 February

Not surprisingly we woke with very stiff legs!

Still no Internet access at our Hotel in FJ so we hope to publish the latest updates to the blog from our hotel in Greymouth this evening.

At breakfast we spoke to a couple who had actually been in the centre of ChCh when the earthquake happened. They were in a liquor store within sight of the cathedral and given the scale of what happened, they feel very lucky to have survived unscathed.

This morning we went back in the direction of Fox Glacier to visit Lake Matheson that has one of the most famous panoramas in NZ. Its an hour and a half's walk round the lake and at the far end, on a clear day, are unforgettable views of Mt Tasman and Mt Cook reflected in the water. It was cloudy, so we bought a postcard, enjoyed the walk though!

We've now driven to Greymouth and are settling in to our accommodation for the night. Catching up on the TV news we have just seen one of my old BT bosses being interviewed about the telecom service problems in ChCh following the earthquake! He is now the CEO of Telecom the BT equivalent in NZ. Interestingly as well as making all calls from payphone boxes free, Telecom are also asking the public to hand in any unwanted corded phones for distribution in areas without power, because the newer cordless phones need charging and the old ones don't. 

Thurs 24 Feb Frans Josef

Very poor comms here in Frans Josef as internet provided via Christchurch!

We have changed our plans for last few days in NZ and will now stay one night in Greymouth.  Our train trip has been cancelled so we drive back to ChCh on Saturday where we stay overnight in a rescheduled hotel near the airpor tand hopefully well out of harms way.  Our flight as of today is unchanged so we will fly early Sunday morning to Melbourne.

More info later when we can have more time.

Monday, 21 February and Tuesday, 22 February

We had got behind with our blog because we were either travelling or out and about most of yesterday.

Obviously the terrible news of the earthquake in Christchurch has very much overshadowed our afternoon and evening. We have heard that Georgia and Alex are safe although they were in the centre of Chch and had to shelter in a doorway. We can't believe what we are seeing on the TV and hearing. We were there only 3 days ago and our hotel, now damaged, was at the side of Hagley Park and only a few streets from the city centre. From it we could see the marquees being set up for a forthcoming flower show which are now being used for people to sleep in overnight.

We had commented on what a lovely, vibrant city it was and on Saturday there were so many people, especially young people, out and about having fun and being happy. There were some buildings which we could see had been secured following the September earthquake and also one or two spire tops on the ground ready to be replaced.

So because of all this, I will just give a short update on what we did yesterday and today.

Yesterday we drove from Twyzel to Queenstown. Yet again another lovely scenic drive, this time with some much appreciated straight roads though! Unfortunately it started to rain when we had stopped at a waterfall called Roaring Meg (don't ask!) and continued well into the afternoon.

Our hotel in Queenstown is definitely not going on our favourites list. It is very large and impersonal, a bit of a concrete jungle and quite a long way out of the town. On the plus side we do have another beautiful view, this time of the lake (perhaps we are getting blasé about great views!). We thought the long walk into town would do us good so we set off and made a beeline for Fergburger.  Jo and Sean were here a few years ago and recommended this burger bar for the best burger ever … and it was!

Today, Tuesday 22 February was wet again in the morning so we went to a small former mining town called Arrowtown.  It was really quaint, a bit like an old colonial/cowboy type town. Now most of the buildings are shops and cafes but it had a real charm to it and we quite enjoyed a little bit of retail therapy. We bumped into another couple we had first met at one of our B&B lodges – we always knew we would cross paths sooner or later with someone we had met along the way!

From the main street, it was only a short walk to a little settlement where in the 19^th century a handful of Chinese miners made their homes. They were invited to come and mine for gold after the main gold rush was over and most of them stayed for the rest of their lives in these little huts and shacks eventually turning their hands to market gardening when the gold finally ran out.

Then … thanks to a text from Gwyneth we heard the terrible news about the earthquake. It was still raining so we headed back to our hotel and spent the afternoon watching the news unfold on the TV and doing some emails. We have to wait until our travel agent gets back to us either tonight or tomorrow morning to see if there is an alternative to the end of our time in NZ when we should be back in ChCh. Rod and Suzanne, our friends in Melbourne, have been in touch to say we can always go to them earlier than planned. As soon as we know exactly what we will do, we will let you know.

More news tomorrow when we get to our next destination at Franz Josef.

TUESDAY 22 FEBRUARY - IMPORTANT NEWS

STOP PRESS

A VERY QUICK UPDATE TO LET YOU KNOW WE ARE NOT IN CHRISTCHURCH SO WE ARE BOTH OK. WE ARE ABOUT 200 MILES SOUTH WEST'ISH IN QUEENSTOWN. WE WERE IN CHRISTCHURCH 3 DAYS AGO AND IT IS SO AWFUL TO THINK ABOUT TODAY'S EARTHQUAKE DEVASTATION WHEN ON SATURDAY IT FELT SO PEACEFUL AND WAS FULL OF SO MANY HAPPY PEOPLE AND BEAUTIFUL PLACES .

HOWEVER WE ARE DUE TO BE BACK IN CHRISTCHURCH ON FRIDAY FOR 2 NIGHTS SO WE WILL BE REVIEWING OUR PLANS AND VERY LIKELY MAKING CHANGES.  WE WILL KEEP YOU ALL UP TO DATE AS BEST WE CAN.

IF ANYONE HAS NEWS OF GEORGIA ANDERSON WHO IS IN CHRISTCHURCH, PLEASE LET US KNOW AS WE ARE WORRYING ABOUT HER. 

Saturday 19 February

No time to update the blog yesterday because we were out late Saturday night in Christchurch so we are writing this on Sunday.

Saturday morning was spent on the road travelling from Kaikoura to Christchurch.

We spent the afternoon looking round Christchurch and deciding where we will go when we return next Friday and Saturday. The art gallery looks good, as does the arts centre and the Botanical gardens, so they are definitely on our list. We'd also like to take the tram although it is more for tourists than an everyday means of transport.

Christchurch seems to be the in place to go for stag and hen (batchelorette in NZ parlance) parties and we saw several during the afternoon and evening. Jo recommended a show called “Scared Scriptless” (improvised comedy) at the Court Theatre which she had been to when she was in Christchurch so we bought tickets for that evening's performance, good job we did because it was full. The show didn't start until 10pm so we had dinner first at a nearby eatery called Dux de Lux (where we were “entertained” by a groom to be on his stag night dressed all in pink!). The show was very good so Jo thanks for the tip but by the time we got back to our hotel it was too late to write the blog. Needless to say one of the hen party groups was also at the show in the front row and the bride to be, Jinny (probably Jenny in English!), who looked about 16, was sung to by the cast!

Sunday, 20 February

Today we are heading further south to Queenstown with a one night stopover at Twizel (pronouned “twyzel” not “twizzle”).  Twizel is apparently named after a place in Northumberland and a sign in the town centre points to Twizel UK and says it is 18600 km, so we've got a long walk home! Has anyone heard of Twizel UK?  On the way Steve was very pleased to hear by text from Paul that Everton had beaten Chelsea in an FA cup match!

On the way we drove through Ealing although we must have blinked and missed the Hangar Lane Gyratory system! Also a road to Holbrook! The further we went the more remote it became but fortunately the roads weren't too windy as mostly the drive was through a wide plain flanked by mountains and lakes.

Our stopover is another lodge about a mile outside Twizel. It is in a wonderful setting by a little lake or big pond, whichever way you want to look at it, full of trout jumping out from time to time to catch flies, and with a mountain range in the distance.

View from the deck outside Matuka Lodge

This is another lodge which has an early evening get together over a glass of wine. We had already spent about an hour sitting and chatting to another couple staying here who come from Melbourne. By coincidence one of their sons went to Edinburgh University where he met his wife!

It has been really nice to receive some comments and to realise that so many friends and family are following our blog.  See you all in Queenstown!

Friday, 18 February

We're on the road again but today only for 1.5 hrs for the relatively short drive from Blenheim to Kaikoura. This was a very scenic drive with the road hugging the coast at sea level for most of the journey.

Lots of things in NZ are back to front from the UK, we've seen sunflowers in bloom, people here want a North facing garden and the North wind is the one that brings warmer weather. At this time of year when back home in England the snowdrops and crocuses will be flowering, here there are agapanthus everywhere growing wild and also planted naturally like we would plant daffodils. We're heading South which in the UK would normally mean warmer weather but inevitably in the Southern hemisphere means colder weather, having said that daytime temperatures are still in the low twenties and this evening it was bright, sunny and pleasantly warm.

It was our intention to go whale watching for which Kaikoura is famous but due to lack of time we've had to give it a miss. This is one of the downsides of this kind of holiday.

Our accommodation in Kaikoura is an apartment that is a little out of the town close to the beach with views of the bay. This afternoon we went to Point Kean on the peninsula only a mile or so from where we are staying to see a seal colony. One seal was sleeping on the boardwalk oblivious to all the people around! It was surprising how close they were. As well as being able to see the seals there were some stunning views of the “Seaward Kaikoura Range of mountains” in the distance and the very rugged coastline around here.

Kaikoura is very popular with backpackers and there are a lot of young people around which is making us wonder how Julia's Georgia and Alex are getting on and, if Julia is reading this, where they are?

Right next door there is a really old fashioned cinema using 1940s projection equipment. We would have loved to have gone to but the film on tonight is a sort of runaway train thriller which isn't our type of film! Instead we have borrowed a copy of The Whale Rider DVD which is a story about New Zealand and Maori traditions and will be staying in! From our bedroom which is at the back we can hear the film though!!

Thursday, 17 February

Yet another surprisingly good day and yet again something completely different to do. After our special dinner the night before we got off to a slow start before setting off to the Omaka Aviation Heritage Museum just a few miles away. This is a much acclaimed collection of World War I aeroplanes, mostly replicas but nevertheless very good. What set it apart were the settings for the planes and this is explained by the fact that Peter Jackson, director of Lord of the Rings, has a major financial interest in the museum and so the tableaux are all done by film set makers.

From there we went another couple of miles to the very famous Cloudy Bay winery – only to please Deborah you understand!! Cheers Deborah, we did think about you as we tasted our way through Pelorus, Sauvignon Blanc, Te Koko, Pinot Gris and a Pinot Noir.

Although we have seen some wonderful scenery everywhere we have been in New Zealand this area is absolutely beautiful and we are rapidly running out of superlatives! All the vineyards are quite close together and in a wide plain surrounded by stunning hills and mountains.

Then we drove into Blenheim and amongst other things went to the art gallery where they had an exhibition of art illustrations for children’s books which was fascinating. We thought about which stories and pictures our grandson Ben would like!

In fact over the last couple of days Ben has been in our thoughts quite a lot as our hosts have a 9 week old baby boy called Noah and so they have been happy to share baby talk with us.

Still no comments and we know that some of you have tried to post comments so perhaps we should set a challenge to see who can fathom it out first! In the meantime, emails are much appreciated as it's nice to know it isn't just a one-way flow of information.

Wednesday, 16 February

We are writing our blog early tonight because we are having a meal cooked for us which will be a rather special experience. It's about 6.30pm and we have already had a glass of a very nice local wine from a vineyard called Tinpot Hut and no doubt there will be more wine later … so that's why I think it's best to write the blog sooner rather than later!

We are now on the South Island in the famous Marlborough wine growing area. One wine we know some friends particularly like is Cloudy Bay and that comes from this area.

Our day started with a quick getaway as we had to drop off our hire car at the ferry terminal and catch the InterIslander ferry from Wellington to Picton on the South Island. So it was goodbye to the North Island where we have had a fantastic time and will have some great memories of our time there for many years to come.

The ferry journey took 3 hours and for the first hour the view was of Wellington and surrounding scenery, then we went across the Cook Straight and into a fjiord-like passage to Picton and the scenery for the final hour was pretty spectacular too! The weather was calm and it was a nice sunny day. At Picton the ferry reversed into the smallest of spaces and the manoeuvre was done with the most amazing precision – we didn't even notice a bump!

We had to leave our RAV4 at Wellington and collect another hire car in Picton and it was a Toyota Rav4 again so we can only think that the Picton office gave us the same type of car as we had dropped off in Wellington, unaware of the double upgrade!! We are quite happy about that as we really enjoyed driving around in it.

Our next destination is a spa lodge a few miles outside Blenheim with panoramic views of the surrounding countryside. It has a solar heated pool (= not heated!!) and lovely terrace area with a jacuzzi and steam room. We are the only guests here tonight and the owners live off site, so have the run of the place to ourselves which is rather nice and so we decided to take the opportunity of having a meal cooked specially for us. So since we arrived mid afternoon, we have actually stopped and chilled out for the longest time since we arrived in New Zealand!

Tuesday 15 February

Today we travelled from Millar Road to Wellington at the bottom of the North Island, a distance of some 320 km. We saw some beautiful scenery but with most NZ trunk roads being something like those in the UK before any motorways were built, it took most of the day.

Since we arrived we have done our best to see what we can of Wellington in the very short time we have here. So first we travelled on the cable car to the top of the Botanical Gardens. From here there is a great view over the city and bay. Then we walked back down to the city through the gardens and a rather interesting old cemetery. We took an instant liking to Wellington and from the little we have seen it looks like a very interesting place and certainly worth staying longer than the one night we have available which is a real shame.

The hotel where we are staying in recommended a Thai restaurant for dinner. We got talking to the waitress and discovered that her grandparents live in Harkstead just a few miles from where we live in Suffolk. As they say, it's a small world!

On a domestic level we nearly had a disaster this evening. After a quick swim in the hotel pool we put our “cossies” for a rinse and spin in the washing machine and when we got back 3 hours later they were still tumbling and very hot but fortunately the same size!

Monday 14 February

Its Valentines day and this is a very romantic place to be. This morning we were woken by the beautiful song of a Tui bird singing outside our bedroom window. Then we went outside to discover that the valley below us was wreathed in mist while above us the sky was clear and blue with the early morning sum warming the terrace. Needless to say we decided to take our morning cup of tea outside and watch the mist slowly clear while we listened to the sound of the birds and the cycades and to our new Rumer CD.

Then suddenly the romance seemed to fizzle out when first Steve went for a morning dip in the pool and found he wasn't alone – a field mouse was in the pool doing a few laps with him! Then the mother of problems started when we decided to subscribe for 24 hours use of the internet as it's not free here and it just went from bad to worse. Finally after about an hour, a couple of phone calls and finding the owner to disconnect the router, we were all set up but by this time it was about 11am and the day was disappearing fast so we went out.

Our first destinations were a couple of the local wineries which are open to the public within about 5 miles of Millar Road. The first, Craggy Range, looked like a crematorium with huge stone walls on either side of the entrance and was in a pink marble building – we didn't stay long!  The next, Te Mata, was much more likeable and I particularly liked a white wine called Zara made from the Viognier grape, which is quite rare.   Available in Waitrose apparently!

Then we drove into Napier, which is famous for it's Art Deco buildings. There was an earthquake here in the early 1930s that destroyed the town and so afterwards when the town was being rebuilt the style of architecture of the time was Art Deco.   Sadly as in so many other places all over the world there are some modern atrocities but it has more character than many of the places we have been to in NZ.  Jo told us we would like Napier … and we did!

The weather today has been very hot and humid but later in the afternoon the wind got quite strong and it has cooled down this evening.  We did actually feel a bit too hot and then we remembered what it was like in the UK before we left!!!

Someone sent us an email to say they have been having trouble posting comments to the blog, if anyone else has had a similar problem can you send us an email to our chelmesis@btinternet.com account.

Sunday, 13 February

Today we're off to Hawkes Bay, the famous wine growing area and Napier, famous for it's Art Deco buildings. First of all though another of Coleen's famous breakfasts!

Our route to Hawkes Bay took us past more geysers and an interesting geo-thermal power station harnessing the earth's natural energy, then the magnificent Huka Falls and Lake Taipo. Huka Falls are quite amazing for their sheer power with enough water to fill 5 olympic size swimming pools passing over the falls every minute.

Huka falls

The road from Taipo to Napier was 140 km without a petrol station and barely any sign of habitation through forests and mountains. We noticed a constant stream of traffic coming in the opposite direction which we thought must have been evacuating Napier because they had heard we were coming but then we discovered the people were returning from a Sting concert the night before at a vineyard called Mission in Hawkes Bay.

The guide books are fond of telling visitors that there are about 4 million people and 40 million sheep in New Zealand, but after driving around quite a bit of the North Island we have so far seen zillions of cows and a handful of sheep, so we are beginning to wonder where they all are!

Our destination for the next two nights is on a vineyard called Millar Road and here we are staying in a self contained villa. Our expectations were exceeded as it is a wonderful and secluded location, looking over the vines and also Hawkes Bay and Napier in the distance. The accommodation is quite luxurious and stylish with screen printed soft furnishings and local artwork. We share a swimming pool so after a glass of the owner's first wine (The Supernatural 2009) with some Dutch guests, we took a dip as it's been a pretty hot day today. For anyone interested, the villa has two bedrooms and we know already that it's somewhere where we'd like to spend more time (a lot more time) so … any takers to join us on another visit?

Then we nipped out to a local supermarket for something for our supper as after eating out a lot in restaurants lately, all we really wanted was to have a simple cold meal and enjoy our new surroundings with a bottle of Supernatural wine.  Its a hard life!

We've had a great day today. After Coleen's (aka Hyacinth) delicious and huge breakfast of blueberry pancakes with maple syrup (she made Steve's specially with soya milk) we needed to walk it off so headed for some lakes just outside Rotorua. Depending on their depth and the type of rock the water is either blue or green in colour. Also nearby was a Redwood Forest where we did a half hour walk. Steve took some photos of me but you could hardly see me because I was wearing brown rusty colours and was perfectly camouflaged!

In the afternoon we went to Te Puia to see the Pohutu Geyser and mud pools. The earth's crust is only 5km thick at this point and this is what causes all the crazy volcanic activity, wow! Te Puia also has a couple of kiwis so we were able to see them as well. Kiwis are nocturnal and shy so almost impossible to see in the wild and even in captivity they are difficult to spot so their enclosure is kept dark during the day so that they are active.

Two old Geysers together!

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The weather forecast for today was overcast with showers, but fortunately for us the forecasters got it wrong again and it proved to be clear blue skies and very hot. So by the time we had finished at Te Puia we were exhausted. After a brief rest at our B&B (and a piece of Coleen's banana cake) we headed for the Polynesian Spa for some R&R in the thermal pools.

A short aside; Kiwis (the people not the bird) seem to pronounce 'e' as if it was an 'i' this has led us to think twice when certain words are spoken, examples include “wheelie bin” and “thats a nice deck”,work it out for yourselves!

Friday 11 February

You will be pleased to know that we went for our walk along the beach last night and enjoyed it very much although we had left it a bit late and it was dark by the time we got back!

Not such an exciting day as we have been on the road again driving from Kuoatunu to Rotorua. It took an age to drive the tortured switchback roads off the Coromandel peninsula (beautiful scenery though) but then we were able to pick up some speed. On the way we stopped in Waihi to look at an open cast gold mine. The hole in the ground is enormous and there was little sign of activity considering it produces a million dollars of gold every week. The weather had become quite wet and showery and spoilt our next stop, a walk to the top of Mount Maunganui. Mind you, you only have to see the lush countryside here to realise that there must be a fair amount of rain.

We are now at our latest B&B “The Springs” which is run by Murray and Coleen, they remind us of Richard and Hyacinth Bucket in Keeping Up Appearances! It is beautifully kept and very tastefully furnished. Steve was chuffed because Coleen had baked him a special banana bread to have with a cup of tea when we arrived.

Rotorua is a famous tourist attraction because of its geysers and so it has earned it's name of Sulphur City! Tomorrow we will find out more about it.

Wednesday 9 February

It had rained in the night and was much cooler, also still a bit drizzly and damp so breakfast was indoors for the first time. However as we had a long drive the change in the weather wasn't a problem. We headed south again back to Auckland before heading over to the Coromandel Peninsular. Fortunately we were able to not only break the journey but to meet up with Gwyneth and John again and have lunch together at a good restaurant in a lovely spot at Takapuna Beach. It was really special meeting friends from Tattingstone such a long way from home!

The drive along the coast road to Coromandel and our next destination at Kuaotonu Beach took much longer than we thought it would. The scenery was simply breathtaking but the winding roads soon lost their appeal after a long drive. For those of you who have driven up the mountain road from Marbella to Ronda in Spain, it makes that seem like a walk in the park!

The main feature of our accommodation in Kuaotunu are the panoramic views of the beach and bay from our room and we have a little deck with table and chairs which is where we are sitting checking our emails and writing this blog. Even at night with the doors closed we can hear the waves.

Thursday, 10 February

Today we set off to do something different again – a ride on the quirky Driving Creek Railway. This is a narrow gauge railway that climbs 2.6 km up the side of a hill to reach the interestingly named “Eyefull Tower” which has commanding views over Coromandel Town and the surrounding islands. On its way to the summit the railway negotiates 3 tunnels, 2 spirals and 5 reversing points. Our friends who are train enthusiasts (you know who you are!) would love it!

After visiting the railway we looked round Coromandel Town, a small former gold mining town with lots of character and named after HMS Coromandel, before taking the 309 road to Whitianga. This proved to be a switchback unmade gravel road where speeds in excess of about 20mph could only be dreamed of. About two weeks ago the North of NZ suffered a tropical storm when 30cm of rain fell in a very short time. The winding roads on the Coramandel peninsular are cut into the side of hills and we have seen many places where the bank gave way during the storm blocking the road. Most of these blockages have been cleared but we came across one place on the 309 where we had to wait for a digger to move out of the way before we could continue on our way.

Our B&B is really quite isolated, so we bought some goodies from Coromandel and Whitianga to take back and eat on our deck, including some smoked fish a local speciality and a bottle of Cooks Beach wine. Writing this is making our stomachs rumble so today's blog will have to be put to bed so we can eat.

After dinner we are going for a walk along the beach, provided we don't drink too much wine with dinner!

Monday cont'

This afternoon we went for our first swim in the Pacific Ocean. The beach was recommended by our hosts and only a short drive and it was beautifully sandy and the water was clear and warm. Steve went snorkeling and saw some angel fish and a shoal of other fish he didn't recognise.

In the evening we went for a meal at a restaurant that is run by a chef who is on NZ's equivalent of Hells Kitchen, the food was great and so were the views across the bay as the sun went down.

Tuesday 8 February

We took the passenger ferry this morning to Pahia and walked to the Waitangi Treaty Grounds. Waitiangi is famous as it is the place were in 1840 a treaty was signed between the British and Maori peoples and it is considered to be the birthplace of the current New Zealand nation.

Later we went on a sunset cruise on a local yacht called Kingfisher. Because of a mistake with the booking the owner put out a second boat and so we had the yacht to ourselves + the skipper (also called Steve). About 30 minutes into the sail there was a “dinghy drama” and we spent about half an hour desperately trying to retrieve the dinghy which had become detached. Recapturing it very scary because the sea was quite rough and both Steve's were hanging over the side with the boathook! . Steve took the helm which he enjoyed and Jane just watched and enjoyed that too! All in all it was a great experience.

We will be very sorry to leave Russell (Kororareka).

Latest update from NZ 7 Feb 11

6 February

Picked up our car expecting a medium size Toyota and drove out with a double upgrade to a 4x4 Toyota RAV so no worries fitting our luggage in! The drive from Auckland to Russell and The Bay of Islands took 3 hours through scenic countryside. It included going through the only toll in NZ. We had been told to pay electronically at a motorway service centre which we did with quite a lot of other people. Then the toll itself was simply a set of cameras on a gantry over the road. So quite different to the UK but not popular at all in NZ! The final part of our journey was by car ferry

Russell is very quaint, quite small and with lots of history. We are staying in a delightful 4 bedroom guest lodge “boutique style”. Every evening the owners and guests share a glass or two of local wine and canapes so it is very civilised and friendly. It is only a few hundred yards from the centre and the waterfront, where the views across the water are beautiful. Because of this sitting, drinking and chatting we were a bit late going out to eat and couldn't get a table overlooking the waterfront so we settled on getting fish and chips and eating them at the end of the pier!

Note – there was a problem with the internet connection yesterday hence the blog getting a bit behind. We were amused that Bert noticed as we didn't think anyone would be following it. Cheers Bert!!

Monday, 7 February

Breakfast outside and then a walk to the top of Flagstaff Hill to see the famous flagpole where a couple of hundred years ago the Maoris cut the British flagpole down 4 times before the Brits gave up and then a few years later the Maoris put it back themselves! The views across the water and out to some islands were well worth the exertion in the heat and humidity. Steve wanted to take the long way back so we are now updating the blog while we recover. Did we mention that it is very hot here, probably top 20sC but really sticky because The Bay of Islands is sub tropical?

3 February

Checked out of The Georgian and took a walk around town before heading off along the prom to Venice Beach (quite a long walk). Mixed feelings about Venice Beach, some good parts but also quite a few down and outs and scruffy stalls along the boardwalk. Had lunch at a nice restaurant called the 'Fig Tree'.

Now back at the hotel and sitting on the veranda watching yet another splendid sun set. Off to the airport later for a late flight to Auckland.

A short aside: In California the penalty for dog fouling is 1 year in prison. Not surprisingly we have seen no dog mess since we arrived at the airport!

Monday 31 January 2011

Stayed overnight at a Premier Inn near Heathrow. This is the second time we have stayed in a Premier Inn recently and we are very impressed, for value for money they are hard to beat!

Tuesday 1 February

Took the BA flight to LA from Terminal 5. Its a long flight (11 hrs) but not too bad, certainly a much more enjoyable experience than our flight to Florida last year with Virgin Atlantic. The route took us over Iceland, Greenland and Baffin Bay before we dropped down to pass close to Calgary (although we didn't see it) and over the Blue Mountains. There was no cloud so we had a clear view of the ground and all we saw for several hours was snow and ice, even the sea was frozen! After we left Iceland we didn't see any significant signs of habitation until we were over Reno in Idaho.

We have been told that entry to LA can be an unpleasant experience, but we had no problems and we were able to get through Passport control and customs very quickly.

After we checked into our hotel, an Art Deco gem, we went out for a walk, watched the sun set over the Pacific Ocean and had something to eat at a restaurant called the Blue Plate Oysterette. The restaurant was excellent, quirky but great fun!

Wednesday 2 February

We seem to be coping quite well with the jet lag.

After breakfast at the Hotel we decided to take a tour bus to get a better feel for the area. We went round Santa Monica, Brentwood (rather more up market than the one in Essex!), Beverley Hills and Hollywood. We love Santa Monica, it has a really nice atmosphere and we also enjoyed Beverley Hills (amazing shops on Rodeo Drive), but we were less impressed by some of what we saw in Hollywood. We wanted to walk along Hollywood Bv. to see the Walk of Fame but it turned out to be rather a tacky street and we were approached by people trying to sell us tour tickets every couple of yards which was very annoying. Can't image why stars are so keen to have their name there!

Note for Anna and Steve – the tour bus didn't take in Sherman Oaks so the commentary didn't point out where the Stevens family used to live!