Aotearoa (North Island)

Aotearoa, (for pronunciation click here) or "the Land of the Long White Cloud" is where we spent most of the month of June.

For months I have been preparing Derrald not for the beautiful nature, the rugged beaches, the friendly people, driving on the wrong side of the road or the many friends and family members we were about to see in New Zealand, but for the culinary delights that were awaiting us. We decided to road trip our way around but it would be more accurately described as "eating our way" around New Zealand.

The North Island.

Our journey begins in Auckland at Nellie and Andrew's house where I had already put in a request for corned beef and it was there awaiting our arrival on day one. Nellie also introduced Derrald to his first "F'n'C's" (fish and chips) and we were off to a great start.

The following photos are taken at Red Beach. This was my "local" beach. 

These rocks were very slippery. I lost count of how many times D fell over on this trip, but these rocks were at least one of those times. I, of course, have the reflexes of a mongoose and am a natural when it comes to clambering across slippery rocks. Showoff.

Another beach, Browns Bay this time. 

Our first stop on our way out of Auckland was the Red Beach Bakery where the first bite of a Sally Lunn (or Boston Bun) changed D's life forever. 

Then it was a stop at Pokeno for ice cream. Tripple scoop. All my favorite flavors; orange chocolate chip, hokey pokey, goody goody gumdrop. It was extremely messy and we got it everywhere (don't worry Dad, we didn't eat in the car!)

 

Waitomo Caves began our sightseeing. This is the place to see glow worms. There are several ways to explore the caves including black water rafting and rappelling but due to time restraints (and the cold) we opted for the most boring option, a simple walk into the cave and then a boat ride. The glow worms were beautiful but the best part was when, despite their best efforts, this poor couple failed to restrain their 2 year old child from bursting into tears with a full-on wail, a performance worthy of the theatre of Dionysus, right in the middle of the caves. We had been briefed that glowworms are very sensitive to noise and light and in order to see them with their best glow we must sit very quietly in the dark. The child was very good for the majority of the ride and those sweet parents did their very best, but sometimes you've just got to test out your lungs. It began with a little whimpering, some cooing, more fussing, a bit of shushing, you could hear the panic and desperation rising on both sides until finally, WAAAAAAAH!

No pictures were allowed inside the caves but the architecture of the building outside was fantastic and we took a few photos of that.

Smelly Rotorua was our next stop and this is where we spent my birthday. Soaking up minerals in the thermal pools at the Polynesian Spa. Right on the lake, it was a pretty spectacular spot and we floated from pool to pool for many more hours than someone without scales should. 

My birthday cake this year was a self chosen lamington cake. I've been trying to teach Derrald how to use the camera and encourage him to USE it. I am completely unreliable when it comes to taking photos, I never take enough... so I need backup. So far, fail. You'll have to imagine my smile as I tucked into the delicious, coconutty goodness. 

Now, for some reason, our trip around New Zealand had us attracting friends of the non-human nature. Cats would turn up to join us for breakfast. This happened on multiple occasions. This first instance was in Rotorua where we opened our bedroom door so we could sit warm on our bed and look out at the lake ... when this ginger walked in and joined us. 

 

Black and White joined us in Queenstown (South Island), again for breakfast, crumpets and golden syrup. 

 

From Rotorua, a quick stop through Taupo and Huka Falls had us pulling up to my grandparents house in Napier, Hawkes Bay, art deco capital of the world.

Thus began the induction of Derrald into my extended family. Here we dined on the likes of delicious venison casserole, cheese and herb scones, bread pudding, fresh mandarins and SO much more. Our favorite pies were probably from Heaven's Bakery - cheese and mince. Top stuff.

The weather treated us very well for the majority of our trip. I love walking the Napier promenade especially with the sun taking the edge off that winter crisp air. We had my cousin Natasha with us for this day down town and she made sure we hit all the hot spots. These included Pania, the statue commemorative of a Maori legend and the Possum shop, where one can find anything in possum apparel; coats, hats, and nipple warmers. No joke. 

Pania of the Reef

The Possum Shop also had a little museum-type section where you could learn about the creatures and play a shooting game where you have to shoot as many possums as possible. Derrald took up the shotgun and showed us why a life in academia was probably more suited to him.

Apparently, these possums demonstrate the behavior of a growing possum joey... highly inappropriate if you ask me.

 

One of our favorite hikes while in New Zealand was here, Te Mata Peak. Incredible scenery and lots of sheep.

 

Speaking of sheep, despite my families "follow the west wind past the hills that look like a sleeping giant and when you've reached Australia, you've gone too far" style directions (seriously guys, not even a street name?), we managed to find this place: The Sheepskin Factory! With a move to HK in my imminent future, I decided sheepskin slippers were perhaps not my most necessary item, but we did get two of the "specials"from the bin behind me. Caramel and cream colored. Oh! Actually, you can see them in the bottom right corner of the photo.

The day of the tea party. We had only intended to stay two nights in Napier. We had a lot of ground to cover (as well as the Cook Straight channel) and not a lot of time to do it in. In fact, any time we ever mentioned our plans to someone living in New Zealand they looked at us as if we were nuts. Our plans, on a map, looked a little like this:

To those of you used to driving in the US, these roads are major roads, but they are NOT freeways. For most of our route we were on winding, single lane roads. Driving in New Zealand = work.

The day of the tea party is the day my camera decided to fail. Actually, it was the batteries. The timing could not have been worse. Still, I managed to get these little gems:

My Aunt Christine and cousin, Tash, had themselves (and me) in fits of giggles when they assigned Derrald the job of taking the drink orders... he took his job very seriously and dutifully made sure all the relatives got hydrated.

Rae, wearing the black dress, gave us a beautiful gift. A square tablecloth that had been made and given to her by my great-grandmother. Beautiful pansies have been embroidered on the corners, which is perfect because pansies have always made me think of my own grandmother.

I think it important to note, that this particular Sunday was also my grandparents wedding anniversary! 

This is Mrs Forward sitting with my grandparents. Mrs Forward sent us two towels made out of Egyptian cotton as a wedding gift. How she knew I would end up having green in my bathroom is beyond me, but they are green and they fit perfectly!

The road out of Napier led us to Wellington where we would begin the second leg of our journey with a ferry ride across the Cook Straight. Details to follow in - Aotearoa (South Island).