Fiji: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Six (23 February)

We had a leisurely start to the day as our flight didn’t leave until early afternoon. We were lucky with our weather in New Zealand – only four wet days in the whole six weeks – but today was very windy and rainy.

Fortunately it was only a short drive to the car hire place. We said goodbye to Dora (our trusty steed since Amberley) and were taken to the airport. The kind people stamped my passport with an exit stamp (to go with the lovely entry one I had showing Christchurch cathedral) but I was sad to be leaving.

It is only a three hour flight from New Zealand to Fiji but they fed us dinner on the plane because we were not going to arrive until night-time (local time).

After we’d landed at Nandi airport, a minibus took us to a jetty as we were staying on an island resort off the main island of Viti Levu. From there we caught a little boat to Sonaisali, checked in and travelled by buggy to our bure ready for an early night.

Barnaby

Auckland: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Five (22 February)

We had to drive back to Auckland today as we fly onto Fiji tomorrow. Our time in New Zealand has gone so fast but it’s been wonderful.

On the way we stopped in Thames, the main town in Coromandel. The Europeans originally called the whole area Thames – after the river in London – but fortunately were persuaded to return to the beautiful Maori name for the peninsula itself.

We took the scenic coastal road back to the city, breaking for lunch at Kaiaua and stopping for a cup of tea at Bach’n in Maraetai.

Roger and Anne had kindly said we could stay with them again and we went out for a Mongolian BBQ with our other friend, Graeme.

Barnaby

Coromandel: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Four - Evening (21 February)

The view from the “Eyefull Tower” at Driving Creek Railway is fabulous.

Afterwards we drove to a local peninsula to admire more lovely scenery - New Zealand is so gorgeous it’s easy to become blasé – and then had a delicious dinner at the Pepper Tree restaurant.

Barnaby

Coromandel: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Four - Afternoon (21 February)

Miss Robb’s sister had recommended we visit the Driving Creek Railway so after lunch on our motel verandah we headed there. What a fascinating place. The owner originally built the railway to access the clay he needed for his pottery business so we had a look round that first before joining the train.

We were in the last carriage which turned out to be the first carriage on the way back so we couldn’t have had a better seat. The switchback bridge was particularly fun. The whole site is environmentally friendly with the intention of preserving New Zealand's unique ecology.

Barnaby

Coromandel: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Four - Morning (21 February)

Coromandel isn’t only the name of the peninsula; it’s also the name of the town where we were spending our second to last night in New Zealand.

We had a lovely drive there along the coastal highway from Whitianga.

Barnaby

Whitianga: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Three (20 February)

This morning we explored the town of Whitianga itself before catching a ferry the short distance to the imaginatively named Ferry Landing. Having explored Front Beach (another beautiful beach with an ordinary name) we decided to walk to Flaxmill Bay.

We originally planned to walk up to the Shakespeare Cliff lookout but decided it was too steep so walked to Cooks Beach instead. That was a lovely undulating walk and not too strenuous despite the fact the day warmed up later on.

We managed to walk straight onto a ferry on the way back too and had an ice cream at the motel before heading into town for dinner.

Barnaby

Cathedral Cove: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Two - Afternoon (19 February)

From Hot Water Beach we drove to Whitianga, checked into our motel and had lunch.

Then we drove to Hahei to walk the trail to Cathedral Cove. It is a 45 minute walk each way along a track with lots of steps but it is well worth it. The views all the way are gorgeous and Cathedral Cove itself is stunning.

Once we got back to the car, we drove to Cook’s Beach and got a take away for dinner.

Barnaby

Hot Water Beach: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Two - Morning (19 February)

From Tairua we drove a few miles up the road to the famous Hot Water Beach, where natural hot springs rise just below the surface.

You don’t have to dig very deep before the hole is filled with water and the trick to making your own spa pool is to dig it close enough to the ocean for the tide to bring in cool seawater. Too close and the “bath” will be cold and too far away and it will be too hot to sit in. Digging a large enough hole in the wet sand is quite hard work!

We’d gone at the time we were told the tide would be ideal (which might explain why there were so many other people there) but didn’t manage to find our own hot spot.

It was interesting to see though.

Barnaby

Tairua: Day One Hundred and Twenty-One - Afternoon (18 February)

We stopped at Karangahake Gorge for a walk and a cup of tea before driving on to the Pacific Harbour Lodge in Tairua where we spent the night.

Barnaby

Tairua: Day One Hundred and Twenty-One - Morning (18 February)

Alison had to leave for work by 7.30am! We had a more leisurely start before leaving Auckland.

First stop was Ngatea where we looked around the beautiful and inventive water gardens. Unlike King Arthur I couldn't pull the sword out of the stone :-).

Barnaby

Auckland: Day One Hundred and Twenty (17 February)

This morning we moved to our other friends in Howick. Alison is a primary school teacher who went travelling several years ago and decided to stay in New Zealand.

We took the dogs – Yogi and Bruno – for a rather muddy walk along the beach before lunch and then visited Villa Maria winery. It is run by one of Alison’s friends so we were treated very well.

We had a lovely relaxed evening together and an early night ready for our long drive to the Coromandel peninsula tomorrow.

Barnaby

Auckland: Day One Hundred and Nineteen (16 February)

We had such a lovely time at Maraetai with Graeme last weekend, we went back there for lunch today. There weren’t many people on the beach because it was overcast but the view was still lovely.

From there we drove to Omara Regional Park and Beachlands via Shelly Bay and Pohutukawa Bay.

In the evening we had a BBQ with our hosts Roger and Anne, their daughter-in-law and grandchildren.

Barnaby

Auckland: Day One Hundred and Eighteen (15 February)

We took a different route down to Auckland from the one we’d followed driving up, although we did pass through Paihia and Whangarei again. The sun was shining on the waterfalls this time.

We drove through some very pretty countryside to Dargaville where we had lunch and stopped for a cup of tea in Wellsford on our way South.

Unfortunately we arrived in Auckland in time for its rush hour: a phenomenon unheard of in most other parts of New Zealand. That meant it took us an hour to get to Howick where we were staying with other friends of Miss Robb’s auntie, who emigrated to New Zealand many years ago. They made us very welcome and helped us to save all our photos to disc so we could clear the camera card ready to take more.

Barnaby

Paihia: Day One Hundred and Seventeen (14 February)

The weather forecast was right that yesterday would be the best day of the week because it poured with rain today :-(. We had a leisurely start after our long day yesterday and didn't drive to the nearby town of Paihia until after lunch.

Paihia overlooks the Bay of Islands from which the region takes its name and you can take boat rides from there to the Hole in the Rock and the settlement of Russell. When the weather is sunny it's a lovely trip because the scenery is stunning but we looked at the bedraggled people getting off the boats and decided to have a Rush Monroe icecream in Paihia instead.

Then we returned to Keri Keri for a last dinner with Margaret and also had drinks with Beverley and Rex. That made it a lovely day even though the weather was more suitable for ducks, like these ornamental ones on Margaret's patio.

Barnaby

Northland: Day One Hundred and Sixteen - Evening (13 February)

After a late BBQ lunch at the Houhora Fishing Club we headed back to Keri Keri, stopping again in the Kauri forest.

Not only are these trees really tall, they are also wide enough for people to fit inside. Here I am on a staircase carved inside one of these trees!

Barnaby

Cape Reinga: Day One Hundred and Sixteen - Afternoon (13 February)

This is Cape Reinga, a further 19 kilometres on from Ninety Mile Beach. The Maoris call this place Te Reinga or Te Rerenga Wairua and it is one of their most sacred locations because they believe it is where the souls of their departed leave New Zealand to return to their Polynesian homeland.

The last time Miss Robb’s Mummy was here it was too foggy to see where the Pacific Ocean and the Tasman Sea meet – you can tell because of the way the tide changes – but this time the weather was perfect and we had a wonderful view.

Barnaby

Northland: Day One Hundred and Sixteen - Morning (13 February)

We went on a tour today to the very top of the North Island, Cape Reinga, where the Pacific Ocean meets the Tasman Sea.

But first we visited the Ancient Kauri Kingdom. Kauri are amazingly old trees (some 45,000 years old!), which are native to New Zealand. Because they are so tall and straight, they were very popular for making ship's masts and became endangered. The remaining forests are now protected.

You cannot visit Northland without driving through the surf at Ninety Mile Beach (which is still called that even though New Zealanders use metric measurements), although you have to be on an authorised tour to do it. I was lucky because I got to sit right at the front of the coach with a fabulous view :-).


Then we went sand-surfing on the dunes at the beach's end. Very exciting!


Barnaby

Keri Keri: Day One Hundred and Fifteen (12 February)

We had breakfast with Margaret and then explored Keri Keri.

When Miss Robb's Mummy was here in 1991 she met Rex and Beverley Robb, who ran Robb's Fruit Winery. Rex and Beverley are now retired but their daughter Lindell runs Coco's cafe so we popped into see her.

Then we took a sandwich down to the waterfront where New Zealand's oldest European building (the Mission House) is located next to the Stone Store, which housed the mission's provisions.

From there we drove to Waitangi and found the Treaty Grounds. If we had been here six days ago, we would have seen various ceremonies commemorating the signing of the treaty between the British and the Maori on this site. However we had a good look round the beautiful grounds, including the Naval flag pole marking the point where the treaty was actually signed.

The site also includes Te Whare Runanga, a fully carved Maori Meeting House representing all Iwi (regional tribes) in New Zealand. I'm stood by the entrance to the shelter for a Maori ceremonial war canoe called Ngatokimatawhaorua. The canoe is so big it's impossible to fit it all in one photo.

We had dinner with Margaret at the Cafe Cinema Restaurant and then watched a lovely film called "Evening".

Barnaby

Keri Keri: Day One Hundred and Fourteen - Afternoon (11 February)

Here's Morris and me at Whangarei Falls, which are about 6 kilometres outside town.

From here it was another hour's drive to Keri Keri. Our friend Margaret (whose cousins we met in Perth) had hoped we could stay with her but her building works weren't finished in time. Instead she booked us into the nearby motel and very kindly paid for our first night.

Her house is only across the road so once we'd checked in we went over and had a lovely dinner together.

Barnaby

Keri Keri: Day One Hundred and Fourteen - Morning (11 February)

We found our way from the South side of Auckland to the North and onto the road for the long narrow strip at the top of the North Island known as Northland.

At Whangarei we stopped for a picnic lunch overlooking the harbour. Afterwards we meandered around the town and came across Claphams Clock Museum, which houses over 1,400 clocks of all types, sizes and ages.

It was fascinating.

Barnaby