North Island Road Trip 4

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14/10/22 Packed up the Arapohue BnB promptly and were on the road to Paihia in steady, at times, heavy rain. First stop Whangarei and the Hundertwasser Gallery, which was spectacular. We were wrapped up in the beauty and quirkiness of his imagination. It's a magnificent facility for the city.

We've spent many happy times on holiday in Tutukaka so we had to make a side trip out to the coast and remember the great times we shared with Heather and the late Gavin. The wind was howling so we didn't linger after standing on the deck of the house with such happy memories. It's a beautiful spot.

Took the Hikurangi road north and then we were in Paihia. The weather still not great - rain and wind.

Our accommodation at Club Paihia turned out to be very good. Modern, clean, nice view, close to the water front. It ticked all our boxes. We were tired; had a quick look around the wharf and town area in the rain before relaxing back at the apartment for the evening.

15/10/22 We both slept OK and woke to a better weather day. Sun shining and a bit warmer Today we went to the Waitangi Treaty grounds. We arrived late in the morning and signed up for everything - the guided tour, the cultural group, the museums. There were about 30 on this tour. Our guide, Hemi, a young man, was fluent and erudite. He explained everything clearly (we had headphones on) and took his time in doing so making it easy to ask questions. He covered the history in detail - the waka, Busby's house, the Treaty, the forest, the Museum of the Price of Citizenship, the gift shop, Te Whare Runanga.

We had the cultural performance in the meeting house. Four performers, three men and a woman. It was great. They were very polished and entertaining. At the end they invited anyone who wanted to, to have their photo taken with them outside. I thought I heard one of them call out, "Don't you want your photo taken Mrs House?" I asked Lyn but she hadn't heard anything and then it came again and she looked at this chap, a huge man, rather over weight to be honest, he smiled, so did she and then she made the connection - he had been in her class at Hutt Valley High School in 2006. Tane Bell. They had a brief chat and the woman in the group chipped in to tell us that she was from Naenae College. Small world alright. We really enjoyed the whole experience at the Treaty grounds.

16/10/22 Awoke to a sunny morning. Got the ferry to Russell, had a coffee at a cafe then walked, slowly, up Flagstaff Hill to see the monument at the top. It was a s l o w walk, steep but with wide views across the region once we puffed our way up. There were informative plaques with the history of the area covered and stuff about the early Maori/British contact we didn't know or had forgotten. Lots of people up there.

Walked down (sore knees) to the old cemetery in the church yard where we saw the earliest death recorded there in 1841 and the burial site of the first recorded Pakeha woman born in NZ - 1813. Sad headstones of many babies dying young and quite a few dead through drowning.

There were numbers of tourists around as we wandered through the streets including a largish number of overseas people going by the accents we heard. Had a quick look at Pompallier House, it was closed through lack of staff, and its beautiful grounds and gardens. We wanted to have a drink at the Duke of Marlborough Hotel looking out across the bay so we did before getting the ferry back to Paihia.

17/10/22 Had a look around Kerikeri. It's a bustling place now compared to when we were here in January 1995. It was raining so we took ourselves off to the Stone Store and the Kemp Mission House down at the Kerikeri inlet. The Mission House being New Zealand's oldest European building. Interesting stuff. Also walked up the river on a trail to the Wharepoke Falls through regenerated bush full of bird life. Enjoyed it all very much. Then the rain really set in and we retired to the apartment.

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Photos

Treaty grounds 2
Busby's house

Treaty grounds 3
Whare Runanga

Russell
Duke of Marlborough Hotel

Kerikeri
Stone Store

Comments

[Dianne Cooper]

Love your blog
Really love getting your detailed account of your trip. Good to hear your opinion of the Treaty House tour. Probably not something I’d do without the recommendations.