Whangarei

---

2nd - 6th December 2008 Whangarei

We were so lucky in Whangarei - we stayed with a friend of Rob's, called Adam, and his wife Helen. We had only given them short notice that we were coming, but they were so welcoming and lovely and offered for us to stay at their house. It was such a welcome offer as we ended up staying for four nights and really had a chance to catch up on things like washing, the bliss of staying in a real bed, and of course, saving a bit of money. We were really central to everything in Whangarei and visited the very beautiful falls and some fantastic beaches. We hadn't expected to think a great deal of Whangarei, but actually it fa exceeded our expectations - the countryside around was lovely, the beaches on Whangarei Heads amazing, and the town was great for shopping.

The most lovely beach was at the end of Whangarei Heads, about a 20 minute walk from the road, called Smugglers Bay - it was truely lovely - white, white sand and not a soul to be seen! The water was an amazing blue and it was like being somewhere tropical.

Adam took us out into the countryside near Whangarei, where he has bought a piece of land to build a house on. The views were lovely and we could see what was possible out here - we would never be able to afford this kind of thing in the UK, but here we could.

We also visited a bird rescue centre, where we were lucky enough to meet the owner coming back with an injured kiwi (not so lucky for the kiwi) . We were able to get a really close look at this kiwi,and another one at the centre. The kiwi had been hit by a car, but the guy said she would recover. It was a fascinating place. We would love to do some voluntary work at some point over here.

---

Photos

Whangarei Heads
Rob sitting on one of the beaches we walked to at the tip of Whanarei Heads

Whangarei Heads
A view of one of the bays

Smugglers Bay
This was the most amazing, deserted beach on Whangarei Heads

Smugglers Bay
Rob and I walking back from the beach, the bay in the background behind us.

Steak!
Rob's massive steak at Adam's house - and he ate every bit!