New Zealand in October
Nov 3rd, 2006, 12:17 PM
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New Zealand in October
We had all kinds of weather!
Living in the Shetland Islands we are used to having more than one season in one day though ,but when you go on holiday you do expect better.
We arrived in Auckland to blue skies and sunshine. I was so excited as I looked out our window at the Copthorne Harbour City. "We're really here!" I shouted aloud like an idiot ,but my husband was happy I was happy. We had spent 3 days in Tokyo which I hadn't really enjoyed so it was really good to be in NZ at last - with 27 days ahead of us!
Next day we flew with Air New Zealand down to Napier. What a stress-free way to fly! No security issues with these people -just "have a great holiday in our country" and no bag screening! Friendly service all the way.
1 hour later we picked up our hire car. That was when we discovered it was winter! My legs were turning blue with cold as we struggled to get the luggage into our 5 door hatchback. Should've paid the extra, but it cost more!You get what you pay for.
It was snowing as we drove to our friend Andy's house where we were staying for the next few days in Havelock North. He said they were having the coldest springtime in years. His house was freezing! We discovered that the NZ folks don't have a lot to do with central heating. Thankfully there was an electric blanket on our bed . Anyway, in spite of the cold we had a wonderful time there. Our friend took us all round the area in his car and we visited some of the local wineries (hic!)as well as the beautiful beaches.Each time I got out the car to take a photo, it started raining or hailing, then the sun would shine again when I got back in the car!
It was pretty windy on the beach as well. Instead of having a nice hot coffee to warm ourselves up,Andy insisted we were introduced to Hokey Pokey ice cream. The woman who served us thought we were nuts!
This was when I found out that NZ portions are as big - if not bigger - than American portions.We in the UK are unused to this!
I couldnt finish my ice cream, but my husband ( now on a diet) helped me out.
We headed off to Lake Taupo the next day. It was a beautiful day and the snow capped mountains were really standing out.
The scenery on the way was just awesome. I had tears in my eyes as I drank it all in.
Lake Taupo was ok, but a bit commercialised.
We had lunch in a lakeside cafe -2 bowls of chowder and it was like a gloupy white sauce with crabsticks in it. Our worst meal in NZ!
We drove on to Rotorua. Hated the sulphur smell as I knew I would. Nothing would get me in one of those mud baths!!!We walked around the town seeing the steam rise at various points and the hot eater running down the sides of the road. Went into the Maouri church which was nice.Back in the car and we went North to Mount Managua for a look then drove along the coast . Started getting used to the sheer beauty of it all and taking it for granted!
Stopped for the night at Whakatane where we treated ourselves to a nights stay in Tuscany Villas motor inn. Wow! Plush accomodation!I could have stayed more than one night at that place! The nice lady on reception suggested we eat at The Wharf Shed which was a 5 minute walk away. We had a fantastic meal there for a fraction of the price we would have paid at home.
We were sorry to leave the next day but we were due back at Andy's for 5pm as there was a big dinner arranged at a local winery for us to attend!
I'm sorry to say that we didn't have time to explore the east cape,we took the road from Whakatane to Gisborne. It was stunning though. My dear hubby let me drive -just as we came onto the twisty windy roads round all the gorges. It was beautiful! Kept having to stop the car to take photos!
When we arrived in Gisborne, we headed up the hill for views of the town and beach, saw Captain Cook, had coffee in a deserted coffee shop (we had the hugest brunch ever at a roadside diner earlier)and then hit the road again,following the coast till we were back in Hawkes Bay at Havelock North. Andy had the Pinot Gris nicely chilled for us! He was sitting in the garden as it was SO WARM!!!
Living in the Shetland Islands we are used to having more than one season in one day though ,but when you go on holiday you do expect better.
We arrived in Auckland to blue skies and sunshine. I was so excited as I looked out our window at the Copthorne Harbour City. "We're really here!" I shouted aloud like an idiot ,but my husband was happy I was happy. We had spent 3 days in Tokyo which I hadn't really enjoyed so it was really good to be in NZ at last - with 27 days ahead of us!
Next day we flew with Air New Zealand down to Napier. What a stress-free way to fly! No security issues with these people -just "have a great holiday in our country" and no bag screening! Friendly service all the way.
1 hour later we picked up our hire car. That was when we discovered it was winter! My legs were turning blue with cold as we struggled to get the luggage into our 5 door hatchback. Should've paid the extra, but it cost more!You get what you pay for.
It was snowing as we drove to our friend Andy's house where we were staying for the next few days in Havelock North. He said they were having the coldest springtime in years. His house was freezing! We discovered that the NZ folks don't have a lot to do with central heating. Thankfully there was an electric blanket on our bed . Anyway, in spite of the cold we had a wonderful time there. Our friend took us all round the area in his car and we visited some of the local wineries (hic!)as well as the beautiful beaches.Each time I got out the car to take a photo, it started raining or hailing, then the sun would shine again when I got back in the car!
It was pretty windy on the beach as well. Instead of having a nice hot coffee to warm ourselves up,Andy insisted we were introduced to Hokey Pokey ice cream. The woman who served us thought we were nuts!
This was when I found out that NZ portions are as big - if not bigger - than American portions.We in the UK are unused to this!
I couldnt finish my ice cream, but my husband ( now on a diet) helped me out.
We headed off to Lake Taupo the next day. It was a beautiful day and the snow capped mountains were really standing out.
The scenery on the way was just awesome. I had tears in my eyes as I drank it all in.
Lake Taupo was ok, but a bit commercialised.
We had lunch in a lakeside cafe -2 bowls of chowder and it was like a gloupy white sauce with crabsticks in it. Our worst meal in NZ!
We drove on to Rotorua. Hated the sulphur smell as I knew I would. Nothing would get me in one of those mud baths!!!We walked around the town seeing the steam rise at various points and the hot eater running down the sides of the road. Went into the Maouri church which was nice.Back in the car and we went North to Mount Managua for a look then drove along the coast . Started getting used to the sheer beauty of it all and taking it for granted!
Stopped for the night at Whakatane where we treated ourselves to a nights stay in Tuscany Villas motor inn. Wow! Plush accomodation!I could have stayed more than one night at that place! The nice lady on reception suggested we eat at The Wharf Shed which was a 5 minute walk away. We had a fantastic meal there for a fraction of the price we would have paid at home.
We were sorry to leave the next day but we were due back at Andy's for 5pm as there was a big dinner arranged at a local winery for us to attend!
I'm sorry to say that we didn't have time to explore the east cape,we took the road from Whakatane to Gisborne. It was stunning though. My dear hubby let me drive -just as we came onto the twisty windy roads round all the gorges. It was beautiful! Kept having to stop the car to take photos!
When we arrived in Gisborne, we headed up the hill for views of the town and beach, saw Captain Cook, had coffee in a deserted coffee shop (we had the hugest brunch ever at a roadside diner earlier)and then hit the road again,following the coast till we were back in Hawkes Bay at Havelock North. Andy had the Pinot Gris nicely chilled for us! He was sitting in the garden as it was SO WARM!!!
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