Here in NZ people are just starting to go back to work after an extended break for Christmas. Kids are still out of school for summer holiday until the beginning of February.
We spent a few days in Raglan, a town known for great surfing (I mean spectacular…one of two places in the world George has broken a leash in big surf in 30 years!) on the West coast. We have not done any surfing just yet as the rip tides were pretty dangerous in Piha after we arrived.
The surf was so flat in Raglan that there was only one lonely surfer hoping (nay, praying!) for an odd set wave to roll through!
Our view of Piha beach from our accommodations
The surf was so flat in Raglan that there was only one lonely surfer hoping (nay, praying!) for an odd set wave to roll through!
We've never seen Raglan soooo flat!
And yes, that is the real color of the water…blooooo:)
Maia made the most of it this morning before the wind picked up, boogie boarding at the main beach break.
We stayed at a place that "advertised" itself as a B&B on AirBnB…only to find that it really was a family run motel similar to many on the Oregon coast. Not cush or plush by any stretch, but the hospitality made up for it. We went to the Waitomo Caves to have a peek at the reclusive Kiwi Glow Worms…sadly no photos are allowed in the caves but I've got to say it is almost a spiritual experience inside the cave…if I were a Maori or a Pakeha (Maori word for white man) a few hundred years ago and found myself inside here I would surely say something astoundingly spiritual was happening…you just have to see it to see what I mean…BEAUTIFUL!
Maia getting her wave count:)
We stayed at a place that "advertised" itself as a B&B on AirBnB…only to find that it really was a family run motel similar to many on the Oregon coast. Not cush or plush by any stretch, but the hospitality made up for it. We went to the Waitomo Caves to have a peek at the reclusive Kiwi Glow Worms…sadly no photos are allowed in the caves but I've got to say it is almost a spiritual experience inside the cave…if I were a Maori or a Pakeha (Maori word for white man) a few hundred years ago and found myself inside here I would surely say something astoundingly spiritual was happening…you just have to see it to see what I mean…BEAUTIFUL!
Waitomo Caves and its glow worms
From Raglan we took to a 30km gravel road, with the odd stray flock of sheep in the road.
Baaaa-d sheep!
We drove by Ruapuke (a beach Alisa and George visited 9 years ago and had a fabulous day of surfing a great beach break),
through a little harbor of Kawhia (pronounced Kaw-fia, rhyming which Mafia…and yes, that is an "F" sound…"wh" is pronounced as an "F" in Maori!). By the time we hit paved road, we were a little tired of gravel (it never seemed to bother me when we lived in Kodiak and I would drive 55 MILES of unbelievable pot-holed road, each way, to get a good surf in!)
We got to stop by Bridal Veil Falls (how many are named that in the world?!) and have a good look down!
Ruapuke down the slope…just passing by this time:(
We got to stop by Bridal Veil Falls (how many are named that in the world?!) and have a good look down!
The Hideg family taking a break for a photo op
View down from photo op
Actual road sign…really!
We made it to New Plymouth and stayed in a "backpackers" (read: Kiwi for hostel). We were warned by our Dutch host that the beds were on the soft side. HA! I did not realize he actually meant that a marshmallow would be hard in comparison!!! I actually like a soft cushy bed but this was a joke, and it was not the least bit funny:(
We got to go to the Festival of Lights at Pukekura Park. What a fabulous time! The entire park is lit up at night with thousands of lights for the entire holiday season (mid December to the beginning of February).
Festival of Lights
I think they do not worry about the energy usage as New Plymouth is nicknamed "Energy City" due to the oil and natural gas exploration directly off the coast. We got to watch a band called The Nudge…a sort of groovin' voodoo blues funkadelic (in a Kiwi way!). They were really fantastic…and Maia really got her groove on:)
Maia getting her "groove on":)
Maia in the front row enjoying The Nudge
Lit up trees in the park and a starry sky
After spending 4 days in New Plymouth, we headed of to Lake Taupo up in the central mountains of the North Island…the land of the Lord of the Rings.
We checked into our "backpackers" accommodation and found the best hostel in all of New Zealand, the Riverstone Backpackers. Our great hosts, Fritz and Karen (from Germany) were unbelievably kind and very knowledgable about all of the sights and activities around Lake Taupo. The next day we took a sailboat charter on the lake and had great winds and all three of us took a plunge into Lake Taupo's famously chill waters:)
It was really great diving off the bow sprit of the Barbary a cutter rigged sailboat originally christened in the 1920's and built in San Pedro, CA of all places!
We checked into our "backpackers" accommodation and found the best hostel in all of New Zealand, the Riverstone Backpackers. Our great hosts, Fritz and Karen (from Germany) were unbelievably kind and very knowledgable about all of the sights and activities around Lake Taupo. The next day we took a sailboat charter on the lake and had great winds and all three of us took a plunge into Lake Taupo's famously chill waters:)
It's been awhile since Alisa was on a sailboat
…very content:)
Really, do I have to wear this?
I can swim better than most of the adults on this boat!!!
That's better:)
This is fun!
It's not so cold…
everybody else are just a bunch of wimps!
Hey Mommy, the water is great!
The day was a nice, casual day on the lake…lots of smiles, a swim and fair winds.
More tomorrow…Cheers!
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