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Published: November 27th 2013
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It is drizzling when we check into a nice motel. She has already booked the smaller units, but said we could have the front unit for the same price if we closed off one of the bedrooms. Huge living room, and kitchen. It means we can have toast and peanut butter for breakfast and Ken will have his Weetbix. (Sorry Maria, I just can’t take a liking to it!) We walked to the nearby Pub for supper. It was one of those nights again where we shared a pasta dish and Ken had a bowl of Pumpkin soup. It was an old hotel with the old wooden tables and chairs and obviously a popular place to eat. I think all tables were occupied when we left. When we were leaving, the motel lady told us to drive as far as the construction and we would likely see seals. The Albatross birds were also here. They weren’t quite as big as the Hawaiian ones but still an awesome sight when they flew off. And there was one seal that we could see very clearly. He looked like he was just enjoying the sun and just having a lazy day. It is a
lovely drive along the coast. It is wine country. We stopped in Blenheim at the Information Centre. The gal there advised us to call the Ferry Company as one of the ferries had some propeller problem and was taken out of service. We had to find out if our ferry was affected. Our trip to Picton proved to be an investigative one. We had to find the terminal, check out the motels and find out about our ferry. Then it was on to the Queen Charlotte scenic drive from Picton to Havelock. This drive is a must for anyone that wants to see the outstanding views of the islands. Of course the road has the usual twists and turns. As you are getting closer to Havelock, there are some residences with unusual mailboxes. Some are little cars, others are birds and a bumblebee. They were all very cute, but Ken could not stop because the road is narrow and we did not want to be rear-ended. Arriving in Havelock, there was a
LamborghiniAll grandsons would have been very impressed. The guy was obviously waiting for someone. The bakery closed early – it wasn’t even 3 PM. We had lunch in
another café and got to sample a sliver of her fudge. She sold many things! Then we headed out towards Nelson. It was up mountains and down mountains. It turns out that Nelson, New Zealand reminds me of Nelson, BC. Both places have very steep hills to climb. The difference is that New Zealand Nelson has a sandy beach on the ocean. I think that people have to grow up in these steep hilly places to really enjoy going for walks. The next day we drove to Takaka. I thought we had driven up mountains and had seen all the magnificent views and there could be no more! I should have counted the hairpin turns. One minute you were looking at green valleys and farmlands. Then you could see the forested area and the green fields and the ocean. There might have been little white dots for the sheep in there too. Finally you come down to the plains and get to drive on a flat road and arrive in Takaka where lunch was long overdue. The first place we checked out had huge prices and could have been a scene for the 1970’s. There was the long hair and
beards and the long dresses and just didn’t appear to be our scene. So we headed down the street and found a normal restaurant. It was sad, however, because there was a sign in the “toilets” (that is what the restrooms are all called in both Australia and New Zealand.) that invited everyone to come and help with the close out. Everything, including fixtures had to be cleared out! It sounded like there was good community spirit, but sad to see a nice little restaurant closing. It is a good thing I am not afraid of the edges of the road and the drop, because it would be game over if you ever went over. And there were times when you met one of the big trucks on these narrow roads, on a hairpin turn, you almost jumped out of your skin.
We did make it back to Nelson safely and I am sure God had saved us a place and knew he had to get us to the church for Saturday evening Mass. Again, we found the priest very shy. This seems to be common in New Zealand. We went to downtown Nelson and found it
very busy and found an Italian restaurant where we shared a pasta dish and had a side of vegetables. The next morning we had our usual pancakes at McDonalds and then drove to the beach. It was about 10:30 on a Sunday morning and there were lots of families at the beach. One group of 6 – 12 year old looked like they were learning surfing skills. Another group looked like they were going to throw a ball around on a huge field on the other side to the parking lot. And it turned out that the temperature hit the high 20’s that day. Again we stopped in Havelock, but did not find many cafes open. We just stopped for an ice cream cone and the women apologized for the slow service. She made a comment about she didn’t know why the bakery wasn’t open. But I think we knew why – a fellow driving a
Lamborghini!
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