Blogs from New Plymouth, North Island, New Zealand, Oceania

We were woken by the van rockin’ ‘n rollin’ as the wind gathered ferocity and buffeted the van. Outside, the sea was virtually white and had rolled in a further 100m. Jane checked the weather situation on the net while I went to the camp office to ask the situation and to have affirmation on our directions to our next destination, New Plymouth area on the Taranaki Peninsula. Yes, Auckland was code ‘Red’ and that the bridge into Auckland would be closed come 12 noon or there abouts due to the strong wind. That sealed it. We had to be across it and well on our way south. Jane called out the instructions as she navigated and I concentrated on choosing the correct lane and not running into anyone. The police and traffic controllers had reduced ... read more

Onwards to New Plymouth 20th February Forward to New Plymouth, and giving the bird to the Motor Inn as we left Waitomo it was down to Taranaki for the next few days. Having the extra day took the pressure off having to try to pack all we wanted to do into a short period of time. The drive down, again takes you through some spectacular scenery with undulating hills and windy roads. Unfortunately the weather was not the best but we did get some sunshine during the day. As we approached New Plymouth we kept seeing these old American cars and arriving at the Hotel, there were more in the car park. We had arrived at the beginning of the 'Americana' festival, an annual event when American car enthusiasts get together for a jamboree. They spend ... read more

After filling up with water and rinsing down our read window, we hit the road for New Plymouth. We were headed to visit my old Anglican vicar from Alexandria, Rodney. I still have many fond memories of Rodney's sermons in particular one including many balloons on a table being able to support the weight of a table. The fact that I recall both the sermon and it's message over twelve years on just shows how fantastic his sermons are. It was wonderful to see Rodney again, and we were treated to macaroni cheese fur lunch before a tour of the town. Rodney now make s model houses including a butchers and ironmongers, much to the delight of local WIs and church groups. He is a keen gardener with a lovely garden complete with a model windmill ... read more

Waarschuwing: iets langer stuk omdat we hier vijf weken zaten. Samenvatting: Vijf weken gewerkt, (21 uur per week) in ruil voor accomodatie (receptie en schoonmaak), via de Coastal Pathway naar de lokale (biologische) brouwerij gefietst, model geweest, leuke mensen ontmoet, de Pouakai Crossing gelopen met een gids, steen gegraveerd, strand, gezwommen, de lokale art gallery, musea, dierentuin bezocht en nog veel meer. Halverwege het afdalen van de Mount Taranaki, zie vorige blog, kregen we een sms, of we in een hostel wilden werken. Een Schots stel was niet op komen dagen zodat de email van Veerle op een advertentie opeens zin had gehad. Het hostel Het hostel/ hotel heet Ducks and drakes (een Engelse uitdrukking) en is goed gerecenseerd door backpackers (www.ducksanddrakes.co.nz en bbh.co.nz). Het was ook erg leuk. Goed ingericht ( een lange tafel, gratis ... read more

we left Waganui after a miserable breakfat at the Grand Hotel and started our drive North up the coast. we visited several surfing beaches with names that are imp.ossible to remember or even pronounce. The weather has been glorious all day and around 25 oC. We were sitting on a beach somewhere having our picnic lunch of bread and cheese when we felt the land shake...a .5 earthquake but it wasn t scarey as we were out in the open. I did keep my eye on the beach however for an eventual tsunami! We arrived out our lovely B & B, Abode on Rimu in New Plymouth ar arond 4pm and then walked to the seafront and walked and walked and walked! This town has spent a lot of money on the seafront promenade and elsewhere ... read more