Taranaki/New Plymouth

  Farming appears to be alive and well New Zealand. The countryside is divided up into neat parcels divided by hedgerows..... a combination of Great Britian and Switzerland with the mountains in the background. Cows, sheep and goats everywhere. Our third and last week in New Zealand was spent in what is known as `The garden of New Zealand ``. The area is reknown for its parks and gardens and is ranked in the top ten most fertile regions of the world. This is a result of the volcano, Mt Taranaki, which very much reminded us of Mt Baker. The mixture of mud, ash and lava that flowed down the mountain have produced not only interesting land formations but a soil that is rich and fertile. We accepted an invitation to a Magnolia nursery in New Plymouth.....our host had recently won international recognition for a magnolia hybrid he`d developed..... a very knowledgeable nurseryman. While in New Plymouth we hiked the mountain .... incredible views when the clouds allowed it. It had just a trace of snow which was the first snow of the season. We enjoyed black sand beaches (very hot on the feet) and watched the surfers..... it is a destnation for surfers. Got sunburn while working in the nursery. Enjoyed picking and eating fresh fijohas (related to kiwi fruit) and apples. Did some storm watching , strange how some things are so mesmerizing you can just watch for hours..... mud pools are like that too. Enjoyed good conersation and wine. Three weeks in New Zealand have gone by incredibly quickly. We could have easily spent three months in New Zealand there is so much to see and wonderful people to get to know. We've even developed a deeper appreciation and understanding of rugby. We were invited to a sheep ranch on the east coast but realized early on that we couldn't do it all......my only disappointment. Especially if we wanted to do it through HelpX, you really need to be able to commit at least a week.

magnolia blosom

On our way back to Auckland we explored the Waitmo Caves. .... huge caverns full of stalactites , stalagamites and glowworms. But the best part was the hike through the forest through natural tunnels and views into caverns with the river flowing through it. Unfortunately the batteries on the camera died so it is not very well documented with photographs. The whole area is dotted with caves some more accessible than others. We are now on our way to Australia. G'Day from the Happy Wanderers

Egmont lighthouse

mounds created by lahars

entrance to the cave

 Our host family in Rotorua. They were absolutely terrific. Local knowledge just makes the difference. They helped us avoid the tourist traps, gave us the use of their mountain bikes and showed us good bike routes. We really enjoyed trail biking the area.There's something about barreling down a narrow bush trail while accurately navigating the terrain that is very satisfying. They took us to the best thermal swimming holes off the beaten track. We of course did some amazing work in their "forgotten garden"...... I've neer seen so many roses on one property. And we introduced them to chocolate zuchinni loaf.

 My favourite the hot and cold pools.

We visited the Maori cultural centre in Rotorua. It was both entertaining and informative. They do some amazing things with their faces ... it makes one realize how much communication occurs through body language.  Their carvings are very beautiful more detailed and intricate than what we're familiar with on the west coast.

a geyser

 We love the forests especially the tree ferns. We'd like to import these to Cobble Hill. 

We spent a week in a geothermal wonderland which is probably the most visited place in New Zealand. Even before Teawara errupted and buried the pink and white terraces, the eight wonder of the world.

Rotorua

This is my fourth attempt and you're basicly just getting pictures because I haven't the patience to write it all again. Was trying to embedd a link and here it is and has reappeared  Buried village Pink and White Terraces   

Our host family in Rotorua .......good people.

Hot and cold pools our favourite.

Maori warrior

Maori carving mostly based on the human form.

The geyser

We love the forest especially the tree ferns.

We're in New Plymouth now. Hopefully my next blog attempt will be more successful. Love y'all

On the Road Again

Hard to believe we've been here a whole week already. The flight down here wasn't as bad as we thought it might be. The dreaded transfer at LAX from terminal 3 to terminal 4 was a piece of cake. The meals on Quantas were quite good although we weren't sure about eating at 12:30 AM, then trying to sleep through to breakfast served 12 hours later.

Auckland April 1, 2011

We nursed our jet lag in Auckland at Dave's cousins place.....they took care of us so well. Auckland is a beautiful city, in many ways it reminds us of Vancouver only a few less million people, less annual rainfall and a little more laid back..... barefoot people in the city. It is as multi-cultural as Vancouver and then some .... so many Polynesian tribes. In the Otahuhu market we clearly looked like awestruck tourists being the only white folk in the crowd..... we could have been in a marketplace in Malayasia. Our first evening out we went to a food court ...... unlike any food court we've ever been to ....there was every Asian country represented there ........... not a hamburger or hot dog insight.

This could have been us.

We celebrated our ninth anniversary in Aucklands Skytower ..... the tallest building in the sourthern hemisphere. I couldn't convince Dave to jump off it with me so I settled for a sumptious buffet in the Skytower restaurant. 

Skytower from across the harbour

Monday we headed south to Rotorua the geothermal centre of New Zealand. Through Helpx we found a host family here. We're helping them with some gardening and maintenance.... raking leaves and putting gardens to bed, can't cut the roses until they've had a couple more frosts. A little bit strange for us since we were getting ready to plant when we left Vancouver Island. It was a little strange those first few days enjoying the mid-afternoon sun facing north rather than south. On the weekend we switched back to standard time and turned our clocks back one hour. What a mixed up year.

Today we explored the geothermal parks and pools in the area. It makes one very aware of the volatile nature of the earths crust when one sees what comes bubbling up through cracks and pools. The Marois used these warm/hot pools for cooking, washing clothes and enjoyed the health benefits of soaking in the warm pools as well. We also took the opportunity to treat our bodies to a therapeutic soak this afternoon..... this is where you'll have to go for your next spa trip Jenny. The mud is full of exfoliating goodness and comes out of the earth warm and ready to use.Imagine having that at your front doorstep for everyday use. 

Bubbling hot mud.

Steam coming from a hot pool.

So long for now, Hope you're all enoying more warm weather as you're moving into spring and thinking of us where for now at least the temps are cooling off..... frost last night but daytime highs were up to 19 today. The Happy Wanderers ???