Beautiful Aitutaki

We had a 45 minute flight to Aitutaki and were at our resort before lunch.  It is a very lovely setting.  The main island is surrounded by a huge lagoon.  We are on the west side of the island where the lagoon is narrower and there isn’t any motorized boat activity the way there is on the other side.  It is very peaceful and relaxing.  All units are separate, the way they were in Fiji and you can walk out of our unit straight into the water.  There is wonderful snorkeling in the lagoon so I have done that several times.  I bought a reef shirt in Fiji so have been able to make good use of it.

Yesterday we had our first full day of rain.  It rained harder during the night and had cleared by late afternoon.  We have a large covered deck which was very comfortable to sit and read while listening to the rain.  Last night was Island Night here which was a buffet that included some traditional Cook Island dishes followed by a show.  The show was really excellent – the dancers were outstanding.  Lois had talked to a Fijian staff member and she said the dancers from Aitutaki always win the competitions amongst the South Sea Islands because of their technique.  She told Lois some of the thing to watch for so that made it even more interesting.

Island Show

Today we went on a 6 hour lagoon cruise.  We both really enjoyed it.  It had 2 snorkeling stops, one of which Lois could see a lot of fish without going in the water.

Lagoon Cruise Beach Stop

Lagoon Cruise Dishwasher

Making the Serving Dishes for the Next Day's Cruise

On To the Cook Islands

Note:  I don't plan to add in more pictures until we are back in North America.  The ones I added for Christchurch took forever and then I found it used up most of my allocated time.

We flew from Christchurch to Auckland and then on to Rarotonga.  We crossed back over the International Date Line arrived after dark.  As a result we had no sense of where we were once we arrived at the resort we were staying at for 2 nights.  In the morning when we woke we found we were on the beachfront with a very nice tropical setting.

It was Sunday and basically the Cook Islands close down on Sunday.  Raratonga is the largest of 15 islands in the group that are spread over 2 million sq. km. in the South Pacific. We went on the “clockwise” bus that makes a 50 minute trip around the island. Rarotonga, and the rest of the Cook Islands are not the least bit commercialized – only little family owned shops.  It was all very interesting to see although it would have been more interesting if the shops had been open and we had been able to see what they were really like. The most unusual sight was all of the graves in the front yards of people’s homes!

At suppertime, we walked down a short distance from where we were staying to a very nice beachfront restaurant where the tables were right on the sand.  One of the staff had gone to WLU and was from Mississauga. 

Farewell to New Zealand

How do you say good bye to this wonderful country?  We have had such an amazing experience and met so many wonderful New Zealanders.  Here is a tally of some of the experiences/ highlights:

• ·         Kilometers Driven – 4735
• ·         Beds Slept In – 14
•       Pictures Taken - 1301
• ·         Lois’ Three Favorite Meals

                     - The Grange - Russell, Bay of Islands                   
                     - Mission Winery - Napier
                     - The Boat Shed - Nelson

• ·         Calories Consumed – We don’t want to know
• ·         Favorite B and B – The Lighthouse in Napier
• ·         Best B and B Hosts – a tie between Paul and Matt at The Dairy in Queenstown and Penny  at The Lighthouse in Napier
• ·         Lois’ Most Unusual Mode of Transportation – Sitting on feedbucket in a trailer to see the animals at the B and B in Rotorua
• ·         Most Emotional Experience – Seeing the devastation of the Christchurch earthquake
• ·         Most Exhilarating Experience – See how the core of Christchurch is coming back to life
• ·         Most Memorable Experience for Lois – Driving Unknown Roads to Find Mount Cook at Dusk
• ·         Most Memorable Experience for Vern – Tramping for 40 Minutes in the Dark to See Mount Cook at Dawn
• ·         Weather Experienced – 31 days of almost perfect weather
• ·         Most Daring Experience for Lois – The Zodiac Ride to Cathedral Cove at Hahei
• ·         Most “Why Did I Bother” Experience for Vern - Going up the Gondola in Queenstown
• ·         Not Worth Doing Again Experience – Trying to dig a hole by myself at Hot Water Beach
• ·         Number of Times Vern Ate Oysters – 10; Number of Kinds  – 6
• ·         Number of Times Lois Ate Oysters – 1: Number Eaten – ½
• ·         Best Wildlife Experience – Watching the Royal Albatross soar
• ·         The Total Time in New Zealand - PRICELESS

A Sobering Experience

We drove pretty much straight through from Dunedin to Christchurch as we wanted a bit of time in Christchurch before leaving New Zealand.  We did stop at the Moeraki  Boulders, a unique geological phenomenon.  We also stopped at Oamaru with all kinds of white limestone buildings.  Both stops were very interesting.

Moeraki Boulders

Opera House and Main Street in Oamaru

We arrived at our hotel in Christchurch at 3:30 PM.  Our hotel was 3 blocks from the Red Zone in downtown Christchurch.  It was a beautiful day so we walked over to see the devastation.  It was a very sobering experience to see the amount of damage.  It is one thing to see it on the news but another to see it in person.  Of course it is somewhat cleaned up from what it would have been a year ago February but to see building after building with a spray painted “C” (for condemned) and then a date from the week after the earthquake.   No work can begin on reconstruction because of continuing aftershocks.  They need 3 straight months without an aftershock before they will start any reconstruction.

A Small Part of the Devastation

Marked Condemed Building

 After passing several blocks of this devastation, you come upon a vibrant area a few blocks of shops – many upscale – that are in shipping containers painted bright colours.  The Christchurch people are very proud of this rebirth of the city center.

The Container Shopping Area

Salvaged Church Bells

We could only get within a couple of blocks of the cathedral.  What to do with it is very controversial.  The Anglican Bishop has said they will tear it down but the people of Christchurch see it is something which identifies their city so want it restored.  The bishop says it will cost $100 million to restore it, others say it can be done for $20 million.  There was an interesting article in the paper about this that I kept if anyone is interested in reading it.

As Close as We Could Get to the Cathedral - 2 Blocks Away - TakenTthrough Chainlink Fence

We had dinner at our hotel as there are no restaurants in the downtown area and we would have had to drive out to the suburbs

A Busy Time in Dunedin

Dunedin is considered to be the Edinburgh of New Zealand.  It does have a Scottish Heritage and a lot of the older buildings are stone so I guess that is the reason for the comparison.

Yesterday we went to the Botanical Gardens and although it is fall, the gardens were quite lovely and we saw some nice roses.We also went to see the steepest street int the world.

At the Dunedin Botanical Gardens

We then drove out to the Otago Peninsula.  There is a colony of Royal Albatross and another of Yellow Eyed Penguins I wanted to see.  When we got out there it was socked in with fog and we wouldn’t have been able to see the albatross flying, so we made bookings to go back this afternoon.

Today we went to the Art Gallery in the morning and then drove out to the Otago Peninsula and stopped at Larnach Castle, the only castle in New Zealand.  We had lunch there and then went on a tour of it.  It reminded us a bit of Casa Loma but is in a spectacular setting.

Larnach Castle

 We went onto the Royal Albatross Center.  It was quite a walk up to the viewing area but they had a scooter Lois could use.  This colony is the only one in the world that is on mainland so people are able to observe the birds – other colonies are on isolated islands.  The Royal Albatross has a wing span of 3 meters.  After that we went to see the Yellow Eyed Penguins.  This was at a small operation run by a family and they have a penguin hospital.  It was a fair hike to see them so Lois wasn’t able to do that part so she waited at the center while I did it.  There are only 4000 Yellow Eyed Penguins in the world – 1000 in New Zealand and the rest on Stewart Island and other island between there the Antarctic.

Royal Albatross

Yellow Eyed Penguin

Magnificent Milford!

We have just returned from an unbelievable day at Milford Sound.  I could have worn shorts and a tee shirt.  Our hosts told us Milford Sound had the high temperature, for the day, for New Zealand! Anyone we know who had been here said to dress warmly for this day.  Today was mid 20’s, clear blue sky and no wind.

We did not drive out, although the road was very good.  Instead we went on a tour from Te Anua and they picked us up and dropped us off right at the B and B.  This way I could enjoy the wonderful scenery during the drive.

The 2 ¼ hour boat trip was beautiful with the sheer cliffs, cascading waterfalls, and vegetation right to the waterline.  One Aussie said to Lois you must be bored by this given what the Rockies are like.  We felt quite the opposite because this is a landscape created by the rising Pacific Plate and the mountains are always growing - quite different from the Rockies which are wearing away. 

At Beginning of Cruise on Milford Sound

Entance to Miford Sound from the Tasman Sea

Ferry Waterfall - Milford Sound

Water Over Moss and Lichen - Milford Sound

To Prove I Was There!

 We then went out for a great dinner that Lois says rates with the top three on the trip.

Te Anua is a lovely, clean little town.  You can tell it thrives on the tourist industry because it is really starting to get very quiet now that fall s here.

View From Our Room in Te Anau

Queenstown and Extreme Sports

The drive from Wanaka to Queenstown was relatively short through more beautiful countryside.  We stopped in Arrowtown, a short distance from Queenstown, and had lunch.  Arrowtown is an old gold mining town and has been restored much like St. Jacobs.  There are lots of shops and restaurants.

Queenstown is the extreme sports capital of New Zealand and I think maybe of the world.  There are many extreme sports (paragliding, downhill mountain biking, bungee jumping, luge , an ice bar (the temp. is -5C)etc.) in a relatively small area.  The result is there are all kinds of young people around.  We were there for St. Patrick’s Day and the town was really hopping.  Our B and B was very close to the center of town but it was like an oasis in all the hubbub.  It is owned by 2 young fellows and they were the most amazing hosts.  They even drove us to dinner and picked us up each night because the hilly terrain was difficult for Lois.

We did go down the lake on a 100 year old steam boat, the Earnslaw, to a lunchtime barbeque at a farm.  It was very enjoyable and relaxing. 

The Earnslaw

 In the afternoon Lois wanted to have a sleep so I went up the gondola to overlook the city.  That’s when I realized the extent of the extreme sports as many of them are accessed via the gondola.  Heights aren’t my favorite so when I got up there I wondered why I had done so but I did go out any take one picture from the viewing gallery.  Geoff and Craig, I felt much like I did the time we went to the CN Tower!

From the Observation Deck (taken from close to the wall!!)

Oysters and Other Edibles

One of my sisters once told me that when I write about a trip, I talk a lot about what I ate!  I decided to try to avoid doing so on this blog.  Having said that I decided I needed to make an entry about food!

I have had 6 different varieties of oysters since arriving in NZ.  They have all been delicious – very mild.  People were telling me that when we got to the South Island, I’d be able to get Bluff oysters as they would be in season.  I have now had them a couple of times and they are terrific.  They are very different than anything I have had before as they are quite meaty.  They come from Bluff which is on the straight between the South Island and Stewart Island at the bottom of NZ.

We have had some wonderful meals since arriving in NZ.  Lots of fish and seafood and the lamb, beef and venison are outstanding.  To some extent it is a lot like eating in Britain in that there is lots of meat but they are light on the vegetables.  If you want vegetables you need to order a separate portion.  Lois was even told jokingly that she shouldn’t have to worry about eating vegetables when she was on vacation!  When we have an urge for vegetables we go to a Thai restaurant and have a stir fry.

Deer are farmed here for their meat and you see fields full of them, the same way you see cattle and sheep.   In fact New Zealand has 50% of the world’s farmed deer.

A Herd of Deer

A Stag (Sign said "Stay Back Rutting Season")

 One B and B had a set of scales but neither of us stood on them.  We will worry about that when we get home!