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Time is racing by. There are lots of things to get ready, meetings, completing work tasks, finishing work on the house and gardens - and visiting family. So we haven't had much time to pack. We are still learning how to work the blog software and have just sent out the web address so people can log in. [View Full Entry]

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We've hit the highway again for our last spin around NZ. We went through Rotorua and saw a thermal park that we missed the first time 'round. We then headed South to Gisborne. This is the first city in the world to see the sunrise. Our first day there, Easter Sunday was a bit dreary so we headed to a hot springs. This was awesome, very natural. There were some pools that were a 5 minute walk through the rainforest. Duane had a contest with a nine year old boy to see who could stay in the cold pool the longest. [View Full Entry]

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Finally reached Gisborne our next port of call Spent the day checking out the usual Captain Cook points of interest. Having done all that, we decided to have some fish and chips by the sea. (A really cheap meal in NZ). We'd just done eating when Skim spotted an old lady who'd fallen and was bleeding quite badly. Rushed over to see what could be done...... Her name was Margaret aged 87, she'd tripped over a stone. An ambulance was called for, but it didn't arrive until an hour and a half later. (Shame on you! Leaving an old lady [View Full Entry]

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Hello Well I've been in NZ now for one month. So far so good. We did head off and leave for Rotorua. We only stayed there for one night. I think a big reason for that is because it was really commercial. (You weren't kidding Auntie Wendy) We could have stayed there and probably spent a crap load. We went to the Wai-o-tapu Thermal Wonderland and it was pretty cool but we paid just under $30 for it and I don't really feel justified in paying that much for it. I just felt like I was getting ripped off, not to [View Full Entry]

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Et voila! Jái rajoute quelques photos a tous les posts qui nén avaient pas... pas de jaloux! Pleins de bisous a tous! [View Full Entry]

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Blue sky. Sun. Deep shadows and brilliant colour. Being home is everything I hoped for. London is a silvery grey memory, and I have been visiting family and friends in Gisborne and Auckland. It was a relatively quick visit to the East Coast, and I was pretty jet-lagged for most of it, but still got time to see aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents. And of course, the traditional eating of yummy FOOD! Before I report back on everything I've been up to since being home, I wanted to post the pics of some of my favourite spots so far. I've made [View Full Entry]

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We had many a debate as to where to park the Tron for our new year's celebration! We had to get to Wellington on the 1st for an early morning ferry to the South Island on the 2nd, so we were left with many options all around the North Island. We finally decided to Go For IT and head to the first place IN THE WORLD where the New Year's Sun rises, Gisborne! We rolled into town in the rain, but had high hopes for a new years party since the first campsite we tried was sold out! We ended up [View Full Entry]

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New Zealand is certainly living up to its name; The Land of the Long White Cloud. It was raining when I went to bed, it rained all night and it rained most of today. So much so, that my schedule was shortened and I opted to assume that the weather would be better over the mountains in Gisborne rather than stop en route as originally planned. It was a long night, the warmth made worse with me being kept awake by the rain hammering on the metal roof of my bed. There was also quite a wind blowing which caused the [View Full Entry]

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To be honest, the happy traveller in me was quite glad Craig had to hire a people carrier as trying to fit all five of us and bags into the old fathfull would have been a night mare. And there was a place along the way we really didn't want to have broken down in, consequences could have been fatal. So as we left Murray the carpenter building the new veranda outside the new french doors of the house, sun shining and wind having finaly blown itself out, I said Ka kite anō (See you again) to Wanganui. The plan to [View Full Entry]

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