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TAURANGA
Tues. Mar. 7/17
Down Cameron Road and heading towards Te Puke, known as the kiwi capital. But instead we see rows upon rows of corn, and strangely enough, circle bales covered in 'lavender' plastic. Off to the warmest and sunniest NZ city we stop in Whakatane to walk the downtown core. Leaving takes us through mangroves surrounded by tall flowing ferns which are emblematic of New Zealand. Entering the grove, the road is shaded by overhanging trees creating a canopy. There are campsites galore called holiday parks. A local lady recently enquired if we were travelling by camper van. When my response was no, she continued to tell me it was a good thing as there had been many accidents and deaths this summer with camper vans driven by tourists. With many huge trucks, and vans on the road, and no road shoulders, there is zero room for error.
Chris loves the 10 metre plus high hedges, but is relieved he does not have to trim the walls created by the greenery. The local golf courses are plentiful and immaculately maintained.
There is a strong focus on education, and driving by a community college, the sign states;
'Connected learners, confident
citizens.'
Landed in Gisborne for the evening. Since this city is by the ocean, we are off to find fish and chips. Gisborne is one of the first for the sunrise to start a new day in the world. We wake up to rain and start out for Napier to view the many art-deco buildings. Clumps of grasses line the highway, and the hills change from vibrant green, to rust, and then gold.
In 1839 the town was a whalers trading base. The Hawke's Bay Area is a famous wine region known for their Chardonnay. At the local art gallery, Chris buys me a carved rock (no, not for my finger). Downtown is plum full of vintage stores.
All the hotels turn out to be booked. Apparently there is a horse show, the largest in the Southern Hemisphere. Luckily, there is a room at a B & B, but it is a long journey out of town to North Havelock.
Autumn has arrived, and so on go the long pants and jackets. A great coffee shop named Wiggly Pig entices us to enter, as does an antique fabric shop in Woodville. Back on the highway, once again we drive through
a gorgeous gorge which ejects us onto a flat plain where the road sign says open. Wondering why the road could possibly say closed, our thinking is this is a floodplain.
Wellington is a huge city, and the hotels are jam full. So onwards to Lower Hutt. There are a lot of us 'grey hairs' travelling at this time of the year.
Off to Fidel's Cafe on Cuba St for breakfast. Walking around this area is like going back in time to the 60's. In the afternoon, we drive on to the ferry and head to the South Island. We watch porpoises playing in the waters. Arriving, the south side even smells different, and the roads are even curvier. But Nelson is N.Z.'s most 'liveable' city. It is a perfect size with three parks, loads of cafe's and plenty of art.
You know about nine pipers piping, well Nelson presently has 3,000 pipers piping in a huge competition. What a lovely way to awake; the sounds of bagpipes and drums. Mom would have loved this.
Visiting WOW (World of Wearable Art) and the classic car museum is a perfect mix. The designs are from previous winners of an annual fashion
show. 48km out of town brings us to Mount Richmond Cabins. Out in the middle of no where it is blissfully peaceful. Finally, a chance to rest, regroup, type the blog, do laundry, and plan for the next chunk of road travel.
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Carlos
non-member comment
Un saludo a mis grandes amigos
Hola Socio, parece que estas disfrutando mucho, me alegro, recuerda que Cathy es la jefa NO TU. Lindas fotos tienes que sacar mas selfie. Un abrazo para ambos.