Blogs from Napier, Hawkes Bay, North Island, New Zealand, Oceania

The days are flying by! We are just leaving Napier, was so nice. The ferry from Picton to Wellington was a rough, overcast and windy with 2-3 mitre waves. Wellington was overcast and really windy, thought it would blow the car off the road. Drove straight to Napier, about 3/4's of the way there the clouds disappeared and the interior of the car started heating up. We found a tent site at Kennedy Holiday Resort. It's a huge but lovely holiday park run by the municipality, very close to CBD (central business district). Nice kitchens, bbq, pools, etc. Day one we wandered around checked out the town and looked at the architecture. There was a big earthquake here in 1931 so all the rebuild is Art Deco. We went and saw the film at the Art ... read more

Hawkes Bay is big on orchards and wineries, so it seemed rude not to visit the later. There was a great one recommended in our guide book and it was the best meal we've had so far. The seating was big wooden tables with sheepskin rug benches and a veranda made from the red leaves of many grape vines. Naturally, we bought one of their reds to sample this evening. ... read more

Hallo ihr Lieben, Mittlerweile sind wir schon über 2 Monate in Neuseeland. Für uns vergeht die Zeit wie im Flug, es ist kaum vorstellbar wieviel wir die letzten Wochen bereits erlebt haben und wie viele tolle Menschen wir bereits kennengelernt haben. Wir sind jetzt seit ca. 5 Wochen in Napier und leben in ,,Wally's Backpacker's''. Seit 3 Wochen arbeiten wir 5 bis 6 Tage die Woche um die 9 Stunden auf verschiedenen Kiwi Orchyards und machen Kiwithinning bzw Kiwiflowerpicking - ziemlich eintönige Arbeit, bei der man Kiwiknospen von den Pflanzen abtrennt. Allerdings haben wir hier die Möglichkeit unsere Reisekasse für die kommenden Sommermonate aufzustocken, damit wir diese eben auch richtig genießen können und uns keine Gedanken ums Geld machen müssen. Obwohl das Hostel an sich nicht wirklich schön und schon gar nicht für um die 60 ... read more

Spent some time in this lovely Art Deco town pretty much rebuilt in the 1930s following a devastating earthquake. The art deco architecture and style is evident throughout this place. ... read more

Sunday 25/1/14Left Whakatane and headed for Napier.Stopped at wai-o-tapu to visit some thermal springs. It was amazing although very hot and smelly, for something so completely natural it looks anything but natural. Arrived at Napier and checked into our Art Deco hotel, very small room and a disappointing view of a roof, but the hotel was full so no chance of a move. The town looks interesting and there are self guided walking tours using a booklet so that's tomorrow sorted. Had a meal and drink in the Rose Irish bar attached to the hotel, normal pub grub but after the spices of the Indian in Whakatane it's all our stomachs would stand!... read more