Christmas at Laidback Lodge

We had a lovely sunny Christmas day here in Golden Bay yesterday and very different from any other Christmas I've had before. I asked Matthew while we were walking back over the sand dunes from the beach if he preferred a hot Christmas or a cold one and he said 'To be honest, this would be my best Christmas ever if I could have all my friends here too' I love the heat here and it's really nice to paddle in the warm sea on Christmas day but there's something nice about running back to the fire after a cold walk and gorging on chocolates and Irish coffees on Christmas day at home. We woke, or rather were woken by matthew, at 6.30 to discover that Santa Claus had been able to deliver presents without the aid of a chimney which was very clever of him.



After a present opening frenzy we went along to a small Anglican church in Takaka where matt and emma were encouraged to play with a fellow parishoners musical christmas tie. We then went back to Laidback Lodge where we had smoked salmon, scrambled egg,Bucks Fizz and 'bubbles' to celebrate the safe arrival of a baby girl called Kate for Jude and Derek and Tom. Yippee! We then had some more present opening with Catherine, Ceri and Nina. It was about 25 degrees at this time so we headed off for a walk to a very picturesque beach near Farewell Spit. There we had a walk across dunes to a warm if rough sea and explored some caves which surprisingly had seals trying to escape from the afternoon sun. They weren't so happy to have us tramping about in their spot and growled if we got to close. I had never realised how very smelly seals are.


Because it was too rough to swim at that beach we dropped in to one nearer to our bach and swam there instead. It's hard to keep track of the date or day here let alone the time and when we finally looked at our watches we discovered it was almost 7pm. we headed back to the house and light the bbq to cook our steaks. Mick and Ceri enjoyed the most enormous t-bones the like of which haven't been seen since before cows went mad. The bullock that lives in the field beside the house kept a distainful distance from our party. All was washed down with copious amounts of local wine from Nelson which made skyping family a bit more difficult later on.

We then took it in turns to make use of the bush bath which is in the trees beside the house. A bush bath is, well..a bath in the bush which is heated by a fire underneath it. Once heated you then sit like a cartoon character about to be eaten by cannibals in complete darkness, looking at the stars and hoping that whatever is plopping into the water beside you is bits off the trees above and not night-time insects. This morning we set about trying some more sober skyping which was much more sucessful and we all got to see Kate. A big Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to everyone at home! We miss you all.


photos are of...Ceri and Nina drinking Bucks Fizz, Catherine, emma and matt with their toys, our pet bullock christened 'Christmas' Matt, Emma and Catherine in the sea, Matt and Emma swimming at Pohara beach, matt, emma and me at the entrance to one of the caves, Matt in a cave with a seal behind him.

Golden Bay

We're now in Golden Bay where we'll spend Christmas and staying in a Bach called Laidback lodge. Golden Bay is near Nelson and not too far from where we'll be spending our 6 weeks from the beggining of Feb until when we leave. We left
Wellington early this morning and got the inter Islander ferry to Picton in the South Island. We drove from there through Nelson which looks really lovely, on over Takaka 'hill' to Takaka and on to Onekaka where we'll be for the next few days. Takaka 'hill' is more like a small mountain range with curves in the road that would make the hardiest traveller retch but the view, if I wasn't so desperately trying to hang onto my lunch and was able to look out the window to admire it, was apparently spectacular. We decided to look in on the house we were going to be renting in feb and it is veeeery remote but in a good way. Lots and lots of countryside around it with cows grazing just outside the front veranda and a fantastic view all the way to the bay. I would describe the house itself as 'shabby chic' or maybe just shabby. We met a woman outside who is renting it at the moment and asked her what it was like inside. She said 'very basic' but assured us that there was running water.

Laidback Lodge is a group of three buildings with a garden and a deck and we are staying here with Catherine and her two friends. Matt and Emma have done a good scout around and decided that the best way for Santa Claus to get in is to leave one of the sliding glass doors unlocked. We went out for a walk this evening after dark to see thousands of glow worms that are one a wall up a grassy lane near here. They were amazing to look at and Emma said they looked like Christmas decorations. Sunny Nelson is living up to it's name and we had lovely weather here today and more good weather forecast. no photos yet but will update when I do.

Wellington again

Matthew's lost another tooth. The tooth fairy is now bankrolling his christmas shopping. The weather's lovely again so at the moment Matt and Emma are just finishing 'school' and then we'll walk in to the city. Matthew's is determined to see every exhibit in Te Papa.

Coromandel peninsula

We left Rotorua without trying any of the thermal pools there mainly because we had already experienced some in Taupo and decided instead to try out the Luge they have there. It was brilliant fun and Matthew and Emma were able to go down on their own. From there we drove to the coromandel peninsula which is a stunningly beautiful place. Long sandy beaches, lush green vegetation and blue green seas. We stayed in a campsite beside Hot Water Beach and got the tide times for when the tide is at it lowest so we could down with our shovels (along with 100's of others) and dig ourselves a little bath out of sand. There is more geothermal activity about 1km under the beach and the sand and water gets so hot as you dig about a foot down steam starts to rise. It's mad to see steam coming out of seawater and not being able to even stand in some parts because the water would burn your feet. It can get up to 60 degrees sometimes.
Later in the day we drove a little up the coast to Cathedral Cove which is a fair walk from the carpark but well worth it. I even chanced a swim when we got there which was my first in the pacific ocean. The following morning Mick rented out snorkel gear and we headed back to Sting Ray Bay where Mick snorkeled (being dive bombed by seagulls) while we looked at enormous sting rays sunbathing in the shallows
We decided then to head back south to Wellington and stayed the night in Tuarangi which was fairly uninteresting but they had a great clinbing wall next door to the backpackers which we all tried this morning. We're back in Wellington now and were greeted by grey skies and the promise of rain and gales over the next few days. It's a bit of a shock to the system after the hot, sunny weather we've had for the past couple of weeks. Ah well, it may help us get into the Christmas spirit.
this last picture is of Mount Ruapehu, NZ's largest ski field.

Taupo

We've had a great couple of days since we left Ohakune. We arrived in Taupo and found a nice campsite where we rented a caravan for 2 nights. Taupo is a lovely lakeside town with nearby thermal springs, bungy jumps and jet boat rides. We passed on the bungy and after watching a couple of people doing it it cemented in my mind that it's not for me! Taupo has the highest water-touch bungy in NZ apparently. The water that comes from Lake Taupo is completely clean and is an almost unbelievable blue-green colour. The water flowing into it runs through pumice which cleans it and stops any mud getting through which is why it is so clear. We watched the Aratiatia dam being opened and flooding the valley below and then went further downstream and got a jet boat ride which was fantastic fun! We roared up and down the river and through rapids for 40 minutes and also went through the set of a Warner Bros Yogi bear film. Later in the day we found a thermal stream which was SO hot and walked down the river to the Huka Falls. The weather has been very good which has made all our activities even more enjoyable. The mornings usually start off coldish and then by lunchtime it's hot and sunny with temperatures in the mid 20's but no humidity. This morning we left Taupo and on the way to Roterua we stopped off in Craters of the Moon which is a 40 min walk through constantly steaming craters and boiling mud pools. The smell of sulphur was sometimes a bit pongy but it was fascinating to see as I desperately tried to remember all my geography on how these things occur. We made it to Roterua this evening and are staying in another Top Ten campsite which is a chain of holiday parks/campsites that run through NZ. We have a lovely spacious cabin here with 2 rooms. The campsite has a pool and playground and all the usual things like laundry/TV room/kitchen/barbeques etc.

The campsites are great because they're quite quiet this time of year. They're all very clean and even though they're not cheap to stay in it's not like hotel prices.The one thing that none of us can really get excited about is Christmas because it just doesn’t feel like Christmas when you’re in t shirts and shorts. There are some Christmas decorations up but it doesn’t get dark till 9 so we don’t usually get to see Christmas lights because we’re often back in the campsite by then. Matthew and Emma are getting on very well together despite having to spend so much time with each other but have both said that they are missing their friends from home. School work is going fine but it’s strange to be talking about the hardships of Ireland in the 1950’s with Emma when the sun is splitting the stones outside and the swimming pool is calling.Tomorrow we will do the Luge here in Roterua and then head up towards Coromandel.
To explain, the 2 photos of the river are at the dam and there are 5 minutes between the first and second. The house one is the cabin where we stayed in Roterua and the car we bought. the one of the jet boat is actually us. We're across the second row. We were the tourist mugs who bought the CD with all the photos.

Whanganui river trip

We had the most fantastic 4 days canoeing along the river in lovely sunshine. We left Ohakune (the carrot capital) early Tuesday morning and were driven to the river where we loaded up our barrels, tents and valuables onto the canoes. Our group had 7 canoes with 2 people in each. Almost all were kiwis apart from us and a guy from South Africa. Our main guide Grant knew the Whanganui river like the back of his handand every so often we would pull in and walk up the steep banks to visit a Maori Pa (lookout point) or a Morai (maori meeting house). The mud at the banks was often so deep that at some parts we were almost thigh deep in it but it was never really a problem as we had the river to wash in. The weather was blazing hot for the most part and at lunch on the second day it was 33 degrees. A water fight as we rowed along was the only solution to getting over heated. We rowed at a very leisurely pace and travelled about 30km per day. Our campsites consisted of a tap and basin, primitive but servicable toilets and an area for preparing food. We were lucky in that our guides prepared all the food so all we had to do was pitch our tents and start opening beers. The section of the Whanganui river that we travelled is not serviced by any roads or electricity and it was nice for Matt and Emma to see that it's not impossible to live without tvs, nintendos et al. They both really enjoyed the trip too especially a mudfight today in a riverside cave. In the comment sheet Emma wrote 'Best river trip ever' and Matt wrote 'A great experience. Really cool' Matt kept to his barefoot promise and was barefoot for almost all the trip. With no nettles or brambles round here there isn't really much that you have to watch out for so barefoot isn't so hard. Matt lost his other front tooth on the second day and thankfully the tooth fairy was able to get in past the mosquito netting to leave him $2. We're back in Ohakune luxuriating in soft mattresses and hot showers and now trying to figure out the next stage of our trip. I think we will head to Taupo and then to Roterua and decide from there if we will head all the way up to Coramandal before Christmas.

Wanganui

We left Wellington after a very comfortable few days. Thank you Catherine for taking us to all the interesting places in the city and also for sharing your house, even giving up your bed! We left just after lunch and drove up the coast to Wanganui where we spent our first night in a backpackers hostel. On the way we passed through a place called Bulls where all the businesses were imagintivly named like the police station called Const-a-bull and the pharmacy Indispens-a-bull. In Wanganui we had a family room with its own shower and there was a garden with a trampoline which was good fun for Matt and Emma. In the morning it was a beautiful day so we had school outside and then went up the tower which over looks the town. there is a lift that runs up the centre of the hill to get to the tower which was great fun.
Ohakune
We set out after lunch and headed towards Ohakune where we are staying tonight and leaving early tomorrow for our river trip. We'll be heading down the Whanganui river in kayaks and camping at the riverside for the next 4 days. We have all our stuff packed in waterproof barrels ready to go. It was a lovely hot day today and we're hoping for more of the same for the river trip. Matt and Emma have decided to go native and try not to wear shoes for the entire summer. Ohakune is a lovely town but it feels strange to be here while it's so hot because it seems to be mainly geared to skiers and snowboarders. There's a mountain nearby that still has snow on it.
The scenery on the drive up was so beautiful! the hills round here are amazing and seemingly impossible the way they are so steep and pointy but all totally grassy. It's hard to describe but you'll know what I mean if you've been to NZ.
Next post will be in 4 days time but feel free to comment so that I don't feel like I'm posting to nothingness.

Scorching Bay, Wellington

Today, because the weather really got hot we went to a place on the other side of Wellington called Scorching Bay which was really beautiful. The weather really can change a lot from one day to the next around here and it was t shirt and shorts temperature at last! There were lots of rock pools for Matt and Emma to explore at the sides of the bay and soft sand on the beach. They even caught a little fish in a Coke bottle. Beside us a Sunday School was having their Christmas party and it seemed so strange to see helpers sweating while wearing reindeer antler headbands. Although it was really warm the sea is freezing and so Matt and Emma paddled but didn't swim. Apparently Peter Jackson lives not too far from Scorching bay and the crew were sometimes seen having lunch at the cafe with the green roof during the filming of Lord of the Rings. One of the opening scenes was filmed in the woods behind Catherine's apt and Matt is dead keen to go up and reenact it.
After the beach we went to friends of Catherine's and their two children for dinner where we got the skinny on the best places to visit while Matt did backflips off Bryns bed. All in all a great day. We head off tomorrow for the start of our trip in the North island and also into unknown internet territory. I will update when I can.I'm off now to rub aloe vera into my sunburn. The sun can really get you quickly here with the ozone hole over NZ!

room with a view

This is the great view from Catherine's apartment. It's better than TV watching the endless stream of joggers, rowers and cyclists. As we went around Wellington yesterday stocking up on weatherproof and thermal gear for our river trip the Kiwis we met were all commenting on the 'shiddy' weather we'd been having. Still, I'm reliably informed that it's colder and wetter in Ireland which gives us a little warmth :)
We got a stick for being able to connect to the internet on the road which has its own sim card which I'm also using in the mobile phone. We asked about coverage and were assured that they had 97% coverage in places 'where New Zealanders live and work' but if we were heading to 'the wop wops*' that coverage would be nil.
*boglands :)
Friday
We went to the te papa museum today and learned lots about New Zealand's history. Emma and Matt have each picked a topic that they will write about tomorrow in home school. See the way I have a knack of sucking the joy out of things? :) The museum is great with plenty of hands on things to do. I took lots of photos but then realised that the camera I was using uses a smaller card than my laptop takes can take so I can't upload them.

Wellington

We arrived earlier to a grey and wet Wellington to be met by Catherine who took us back to her lovely apartment overlooking the bay. After our 2 and half days in hot, hot Singapore the cold 12 degrees is taking a bit of getting used to. I'm catching up on the blog while the others have gone to a local playground to wake them up. they slept a bit on the singapore to sydney flight but it was veeerry hard for them to stay awake this afternoon when we arrived. It was Emma's turn to need the puke bag on the last flight but we are all so happy to have finally arrived and looking forward to the next 4 months flight free.
Thursday morning.
We all slept for almost 13 hours last night so I think we're all finally on new zealand time. Here's a picture of Matt working hard at his first day of 'school' with the bay behind him.

Singapore zoo

We have just come to the end of our singapore trip and it has been so fantasic mainly due to Martina and Richard who have shown us what a wonderful city this is. Yesterday we left Raffles after a luxurious night's sleep and when to Richard and Martina's house in the suburbs. It's in a complex with pool, water slides and playground so matt and emma and M and R's children all had a fantastic afternoon.
Later for dinner we walked along the Orchard Road to see the christmas lights and at one of the corners a christmas scene had been set up complete with snow (foam) They all immersed themselves fully and had to then walk with the boys naked from the waist up and soggy shorts and Lucy and emma just had tops from the adults for dinner. It was so hot though that they hardly noticed. This morning we got up early and went to Singapore Zoo for breakfast with the urang-utans. It was absolutely magical. The rest of the zoo was the best I've ever been to and in the children's area there was a waterpark where the children stripped off to their togs and had a great time in the water. It was another scorching day so they were glad of the cool down. Unfortunately I lost my phone in a taxi and have no chance of getting it back. It's such a pain in the neck but I suppose not the worst thing that could have happened. I'd really like anyone that thinks of it to email me their number so I can put it in the new sim card that I'll buy in NZ. We're leaving here in an hour for the next leg of our journey. Just to explain the two other children in the pictures are Martina and Richard's eldest two, Lucy and Michael. Thanks again Martina and look forward to seeing you again in NZ!

Singapore

what a great start to our trip! I am sitting in Raffles hotel in singapore as I type and so far almost everything has gone to plan. We left Dublin in a thick fog and London a few hours later in lashing rain. The flight wasn't nearly as bad as I'd thought with almost no turbulance and plently to entertain us all. I was just settling in to watch my third film when I had to suddenly catch sick as Matthew threw up beside me on landing.
After we landed we discovered that one of the bags was still back in London, mine of course, but I was given an allowance to buy essentials to last until it is delivered tomorrow.
As we stepped out of the airport the heat hit us like a wall. It was 7 in the evening but 30 degrees. Raffles is beautiful and we have a suite over looking a courtyard. Richard and Martina, Mick's cousin, met us here and showed us a nice place to eat and where i could buy temporary clothes.
Singapore is hot, neon and very exciting. I look forward to seeing it in the daytime.
Matt and Emma were dying for a dip in the rooftop pool so we
raced back from the shops before it closed at 11pm and the three of them swam while I conked out asleep in one of the loungers. We're still confused as to what day we should be in or what meal we're eating but I'm hoping for a good sleep tonight.