Three Weekends Away

This post is following VERY shortly after the previous one so if you haven't read the engagement post be sure to read that one first!

We have been trying to save money and we have done a lot of the easy to reach weekend spots now that we have been here almost four years.  Wow, how the time flies when you are having fun! I can hardly believe it has been so long because each day is new but you notice it in the events you miss.

Wellington

We visited Wellington as Chris's Christmas present from the previous Christmas.  Santa was good to him that year, Santa even bought Chelsea a ticket too! Nice Santa! We went a few weekends after Easter so we could have more short work weeks in a row.  Santa understands.

Now before you read any further I have some disclaimers to make. Chris was having one of the worst weeks of his life and I wasn't sure if he would even want to go to Wellington or get on a plane and fly back to Canada.  He didn't want to fly home, I think he wanted life to move on.  He spent most of the week in a quite state of remembrance and hardly anything could wake him from it.  It turns out two things can help.  This is the first:

This is Maria (named in honour of his beloved Nonna who died two days before she arrived)

Maria is a Lotus 7.  And Chris has been diligently taking care of her and fixing her up all winter and even now as I write this he is out in the garage with Maria.  I have decided that I do not mind this other woman although it is annoying when you hear things like "be careful when you go in the spare room closet, I put the windshield in there" or "I think we need a bigger place because I can't store everything for the car."

The second thing that could help Chris (and the least I could do) was make our trip to Wellington be the only thing on his mind and prevent him from thinking about anything else.  Now, if there is one thing I have mastered in my life it is the art of not letting people around me relax and get in their head.  I accomplished that for Chris that weekend.  We did the Craft Beer Trail around Wellington.  Most people would do it at a leisurely pace.  Not me, I was on a mission to distract Chris and a leisurely pace would have meant that he might stop and have time to think.

If you are curious, here is a link to the trail:

http://craftbeercapital.com/trail/how-it-works

The trail consists of 20 pubs which specialise in craft beer.  They are arranged like so:

You can choose to do half the trail if you like but they have arranged it so that they are all across the city on both trails so that you can't easily accomplish one at a time.  The goal is to finish all 20.  When you have done that you get to mail in your card and they will send you a free T-shirt.  However, if you only finish one of the trails then you have to include $20 to get your T-shirt.  It is not cheap as you need to buy at least a beverage (alcoholic or non-alcoholic) or a food item at each place.  This was shaping up to be an expensive weekend but it was perfect to help Chris focus on something else.  Just what the Doctor ordered!

Disclaimer #2: DRINK RESPONSIBLY. 

So it started at the airport in Auckland.  Chris had a pint.  I wasn't sure if it was a good idea to start before Wellington but who was I to stop him.  He is a 30 year old man who needed a medicinal beer.  Our room was right across the street from one of the pubs so we didn't hit that one up because we thought we could get it easily later.  We tackled that map like it was the last thing we were going to do.

That night we made it to 3 pubs! I managed to drink half of my drink at each one, good for me! I don't like beer but hopped cider is really quite special.  Never had it before but love it already.  After this I thought it would be great to take Chris to a little bar that Hayley and I had already been to called CGR (http://www.cgrmerchant.co.nz/).  It was recommended by a friend and I knew Chris would like it.  It is easy to miss because it has only a wee little sign above a door to some stairs.  However, at the top of the stairs is a small bar which infuses their own rums and gins.  It is something special.  The drinks are certainly one of a kind.  One last think to note, if you are trying to tackle 20 pubs in a weekend, don't switch to hard liquor.  This was the last place we went that night before walking back to our room.


The next morning we walked to the Wellington Cable Car and took the ride up.  We visited the astronomy place a the top and watched a cool video in the dome theatre.  I can't remember what it was about because I might have closed my eyes for a few seconds but it was about stars and really cool.  I also forgot my raincoat belt there and they mailed it back for free!!! Nice place!!!

Also something to note, Hayley and I walked the entire way to Zealandia, it took an hour.  You can take a cable car up the hill (save a massive climb) then take a shuttle straight to the doors of the park.  At least we accomplished something!

Before the first drink, stone cold sober but after our little nap in the star dome.

The first pub of the day was up there.  Thankfully we checked the map right as we were about to go back down the cable car, that was lucky! I also discovered that they serve half pints.  They are more expensive than the cost of half of a pint but I don't waste as much!  Chris decided that half pints are for sissies.  He was drinking full pints.

We did a lot of walking that day.  I think we did take a bus though, three times.  We went out to Weta Workshop in the morning and got a tour.  They made  costumes and sets for the Lord of the Rings and Hobbit movies.  They have done many more but I stopped listening past that point.  We also got to see the miniature sets for the Thunderbirds remake they are doing.  Chris has seen the original show but I never had.  At least I thought the sets were cool!

I think we polished off 10 pubs on the Saturday.  We met up with some friends from work and Chris drank an Irishman under the table.  Perfect for getting his mind away from thoughts of home.  We ate our second night in a row at a night market (good job Wellington). and called it early because we were done.  I would like to thank the bars that stamped my sheet with me only drinking tap water.  Very kind of them.

We spent our last morning at the Farmers Market outside Te Papa before we checked out the museum.  We really enjoyed the Gallipoli exhibit the Scale of the War because we had learned about how Weta made the giant people.  It as a very moving exhibit about the Gallipoli campaign in WWI and the ANZAC contribution to it.  It also mentioned the brave men of Newfoundland and Labrador who found there as well.

We only did three bars on the Sunday (I was worried about Chris's physical health on top of him mental health now).  And do you know what that bugger did? We called it quits (never got to the one right beside our room) and he went and ordered a pint of beer with his dinner.  We could have done another place!!

This is our card now:

We finished Trail 2 and just have 4 more to do on Trail 1

So it looks like we will have to go back to Wellington together and finish those last four, after the weekend we had it should be easy!

Raglan

We decided to head down to Raglan for a weekend away from Auckland.  We wanted to try leaving Jesse in the kennel over night and thought that we should use the excuse to get away for a wee while while the boy was being taken care of.

Raglan is a small surfing town west of Hamilton and about 2 hours south of Auckland.  Perfect for a weekend away! Chris is a pro at Book a Bach now and always manages to find us nifty little places.  This one was Bali theme and even had our own private hot tub, perfect for a winter get away.

 That evening we drove south a bit and did a short hike before the sun set.  As per usual in NZ the hike was narrow and steep so we didn't go too far because we didn't want to be stuck out there after it got dark.  The view from the base of the hike went straight to Mount Taranaki.  I had never seen it before so it was a real treat to add that to the list of places I have 'seen.'

Chris pointing out Mount Taranaki in the distance

Sunset on the West Coast.  I couldn't look through the view finder because of the sun so you have to tilt you head a bit.

The mountain is a little clearer with more zoom after the sun had set.

The next morning we headed to a nearby waterfall.  If you didn't know it was there you would never find it as it is surrounded by farm fields.  The locals told us about it and the signage was poor, it would be easily missed.  But it was stunning.  The view from the top was fabulous but when did anyone ever stop at that without asking 'wouldn't it be better if I hiked down this stupid long flight of steps to see the bottom?'

View from the top of the falls

View from the halfway point!

View from the bottom.  The rock face has some weird features due to the erosion.

I guess the view from the base made it worth the climb up.  What do you think?

 We went on a lovely hike through some pine forests and cow fields.  I think all hikes in NZ have to have the following items to make them legitimate:

1) Hills, steep and lots of them
2) Cow fields where you have to bravely walk past the pretty ladies while convincing them you are harmless

There were some unusual shelters in the forest, my guess is local kids having fun but it made for neat settings.

That night we went for a walk along the 'beach.' There was no real trail and it was more of a scramble over rocks but it was beautiful in the sunset.

Sunset on the West Coast

Chris on the stony beach

It was the perfect two night getaway.  Also, when we picked Jesse up he was the only dog who stopped wagging his tail when he saw his parents.  Talk about a dagger to the heart.  Thanks Sir Stinky-Bum!

Tekapo

Now that planning was in full swing we thought we should take a trip to Tekapo and check it out for the first time. It was also a great way to see if Jesse still loved as after four nights in the kennel!

So we left Auckland at 6am on a rainy Friday morning.  We arrived into rainy Christchurch and by the time we had made it three hours down the surprisingly straight highway to Tekapo the skies had cleared and we had a gorgeous weekend.  Really couldn't have asked for better weather!

We stopped at the Church of the Good Shepherd on our way into town to check it out, pop inside.  It really is a gorgeous church that looks like it has been there for centuries.  I can't wait to go there again in March.  We walked all over and it should be perfect.  I hope we can get just as lucky with the weather.

'Our' church, the Church of the Good Shepherd

We went straight to Peppers to check it out and have a tasting.  They treated us like royalty.  The chefs prepared us a three course meal with three options for each course so we could pick our favourite two.  It was amazing they let us sample the wine and beer too.  They made it really special with our own menus and fine linens, which I naturally made not so white! We were even upgraded from the cheapest room they have (the one I booked) to their nicest Lake View room.  It was spectacular!! 

That evening we went to the Tekapo Springs with a pass that we were given by Peppers, they treated us like royalty they really did.  We spend two hours soaking in the pools over looping the lake before we headed back to our room.  We couldn't be late because we had a tour booked at the Mount John Observatory that night.  We booked the first tour of the night (which included a tour of the research facility) because the others started too late and we had been up since 3am.

We took the bus up to the Mount John Observatory.  Now this is special.  Mount John is a little mountain in the middle of the middle of the Mackenzie Basin.  The entire basin is a dark sky reserve.  You could see the headlights from the cares are brighter then the entire town of Tekapo.  So up we went to check out the MOA telescope.  This scope has been designed to measure light changes of planets revolve around distant starts.  They work with another telescope in Chile so that if one sees something interesting they can get the other to look before the next night.  Good team work I guess.  It was really cool.  They have a few telescopes there, all are optical.  One is just for the public on the tours.  The highlight for Chris and I was seeing the Tarantula Nebula.  It looked just like the postcard we picked up cheap at the gas station.  It was gorgeous!!!

The next morning we hiked back up Mount John with 30minutes of switch backs, yay.  But the view was even better than the night before.  Sure, at night the star light was reflecting off the snow capped mountains in the distance but during the day you could see across the plains and it was beautiful.  It was worth the climb.

Lake Tekapo is on the right

You can see the town in the foreground

I was very tired after the climb

We returned the same was we came because we had to make it south of Timaru for a cake tasting.  Local cake made with local ingredients.  If you want berries, she grows them.  Perfect to high light why we are getting married in this region.  We stopped by to meet the minister who will be marrying us.  He was wonderful and we had a lovely chat about our families and New Zealand.  I can't wait for March!

That evening we went back to the church for some more photos.  I wanted some without tourists.

Using Chris's hand to hide the tourists!

So blue!

That night we tried out the room service to really get a sense of the local food.  I think they had an astrix next to our room number because they went all out on it.  We bought beer/cider at the 'nicest' Four Square in NZ.  It was across the street with stunning views of the lake.  So stunning that the grocery store had panorama windows all along the back and side wall!

The Sunday we left we decided to head south to Twizel before leaving the area.  There was a fresh water Salmon farm that we really wanted to check out after having enjoyed their fish in our tasting on Friday.  We drove past Mount Cook (the tallest mountain in NZ to get there).

Me trying to show that the salmon are swimming counter-clockwide instead

Counter-clockwise

We fed the salmon and sampled the salmon. They were delicious! Apparently fresh water salmon is 'lighter' than regular but we didn't notice any difference.  They taste the same to me.  Oh so yummy!

Eating salmon in front of the salmon swimming in the pool behind him, cruel!

On the way back to Tekapo we took a side trip up to the wee little town of Mount Cook.  You get a better view of the mountain from the main highway though as there is another mountain between the town and Mount Cook.  However, we were there so we went for a short 45min hike.  It was a lively trip until we passed a little building on the way back to the car.  When we were about 10m away it let out an air raid siren for 10 minutes straight. I thought we had triggered it somehow but as we found out later it serves the same purpose as the one in Arva, to call the volunteer fire department.  Someone had managed to roll their SUV in a single car accident with no clouds int he sky or wind on a straight road.  At least it looked like everyone was okay.

That is not Mount Cook in the background.

Siren is in that little building in front of Chris

We made the way back to Tekapo and on wards to Christchurch.  There wasn't a great place to eat downtown with parking (even though half the city seams to still be parking lot) so we ended up eating a terrible meal at the airport before flying back to Auckland.

I can honestly say that I think we made the right choice, they will make our big day very special!!

Just so you all know, Jesse did keep wagging his tail when he saw us this time.  He must love us after all!

Love, 

Chelsea

xoxoxo

And then he asked me to marry him...

This post is long over due but I thought I would share it now.  I will try to catch up with a few things in this post, almost a year of travelling (well not much travelling, we have a wedding to save for!)

It all started before Easter.  I was in Australia for work.  Someone who had never seen a map of Australia planned my trip and I crossed the country three times pretty much.  But I ended in Adelaide in South Australia and was to be flying out to NZ in the evening so I could arrive at midnight on Good Friday.  This would give me the entire weekend with Chris and Jesse.  Chris had even booked us a nice bach near Pouto.  However, Air NZ had another plan for me.  At this time a massive storm was heading towards NZ and the forecast was the worst it had been in ages.  Air NZ cancelled all flights to the country and I was stranded for Good Friday in Melbourne.  Melbourne is a lovely city, one of the best in Australia but it is frustrating knowing you are there and a lovely bach is waiting for you at home.  Plus Good Friday is one of the holidays that NZ and Australia respect.  Nothing like being in a wonderful new city and having absolutely everything closed.  Fortunately a friend from Matthews Hall is living there so we met up for a meal on VERY short notice and her and her fiance showed me around a bit on their day off work.  It was very kind of them and it was great to catch up.

I arrive in NZ 24 hours late and we headed straight north! Chris was happy to see me and Jesse seamed to enjoy the car trip.  We arrived after dark due to the delays of my flight.  Oh, and that massive storm, it missed the North Island but better to be safe than sorry.  The lady who met us to unlock the door was nice, she even gave us homemade Guava Jelly.  It was really nice to find a hound friendly fully fenced place and we knew that Jesse would love to explore in day time.  However, he is a dog who like his routine and he clearly was not in it that night.  He spent most of the night pacing back and forth between the living room and our bedroom whining the entire time like we were going to leave him.

The next day we were able to see the view and it was gorgeous!!! We were on a massive cattle/sheep farm with stunning views of the harbour and across to the mainland.  The owner of the bach came out to greet us and meet our 'very skinny dog' as the lady had reported to him the previous night.  I must say he was pretty relieved that it was a Greyhound and we don't just starve our dog.  He invited us over to the main house and told us everywhere we could walk on his property.  It was a pretty easy rule to follow: You can go everywhere except the paddocks with the Angus bulls in them.  That seemed like sound advice as those things were HUGE.

These cows don't know how luck they are.

We went for a lovely walk through the paddocks and to a wonderful look out.  Jesse really enjoyed the smells and especially liked the sheep paddocks.  He seemed unfussed by the cows but didn't really enjoy some of the steep hills.  We imaged him complaining that he is not a mountain goat and prefers the flat ground.  Jesse also enjoyed exploring the massive fenced in area around the bach.  You could tell he was still slightly worried about the new environment because he kept disappearing and when we found him he was always lying beside the car door so we couldn't leave him behind.  Little stinker!

Jesse exploring his surroundings

One happy dog!

Our tradition is that when I go to Australia for work I bring Chris back a nice rum from duty free.

Don't you wish this was your backyard?

You can see our batch across the valley in the very back of this shot.

I could walk here everyday

This is such a beautiful area.  It is the same distance from Auckland as the Coromandel but there are way less people (and less to do but hey, great for a weekend away!).  You drive north to Dargaville and head down the penninsula. A bridge would easily shave an hour or more off the trip but then it would be far to assessable to the JAFAs (J-ust A-other F-ing A-ucklander like us!).

This is actually alarmingly steep

We took a drive southward (down the peninsula) to some famous sand dune beaches.  They were gorgeous and although we would have loved to just let Jesse run his recall is atrocious and the last thing we wanted was to lose him somewhere in the dunes because none of us knew the area and we might never find him again.  So safely on leash he stayed!  It was a great Easter Sunday.

He is Batman!

That beautiful time just before the sun sets.

 The next morning we did another loop of the massive walk through the fields and down the valley.  It was a beautiful sunny day and Jesse loved it as much as we did.  He was much more settled the second night but his attempts to access the car were stepped up.  Once we started opening doors to lead the car he jumped and nothing would budge him.  When the owner came by to say good bye and let the dogs play we had to drag Jesse out of the car, drag him.  He was floppy and didn't realise we weren't laving for another few hours so he had to get out of the car anyway. 

This country is so beautiful

I tried to help Chris load the car but he kept telling me that he was fine and to go inside.  So I started playing with Jesse outside and was told to play with him inside.  No idea why he was being so weird. Who doesn't want help packing a car?

So I signed the guest book thanking them for a wonderful weekend and was giving Jesse some pets (inside the house) when Chris came running in telling me there was a cool bird outside.  What can I say, the man knows me! So naturally I went sprinting out of the house at top speed, I didn't even get my runners on right because I didn't want to miss the bird.  I following him (at high speed while hobbling in the shoes because I didn't want to crush the back of them) around the house and two thoughts occurred to me:

1) That is not a real bird, it is not going to fly away (immediately bent to fix shoes)
2) Why did he get me to run around here to look at a fake bird? (Is there something in the bird?)

There was something in the bird.

Do you see the ring in the fantail?

Chris asked me to marry him in typical engineering style...with a painted 3D printed ring. He knew that I would want to have say over the ring I was to wear for the rest of my life and he wanted to design something too so we made a start with his design and together we would finish it.  His design was simple and meaningful.  He used a one twist Pikorua to make a ring.  This symbol is very common in Maori culture and symbolises two lived joining together for eternity.  The perfect meaning for an engagement ring! I never knew that Chris was secretly super romantic.

So I said yes...and we were both super happy.  I immediately wanted to Skype our families but Chris asked that we wait until we had the real ring.  That didn't seem like too much to ask so I happily agreed.  Then it would be really official and until then it would be our happy little secret.

Chris signed the Guest book after me and wouldn't let me see it. To this day I still don't know what it says.  I can't wait to go back and read it.

So that is it.  How we became engaged and why we kept it a secret for a bit.  If we had known how long it would actually get to have the ring made we would have told everyone right away but that is water under the bridge.

Over the next three weeks we designed the most beautiful ring in the world that combined Chris's folded pikorua design, my requirement for no sticky-up bits because how do those women do that?  Then after being told it would take 5-6 weeks to make (and many false starts on Skype) it was ready for pick up 12 weeks minus one day!!! And it really is the most beautiful ring ever!!!! I still look at it too much.  But there are things I have discovered about wearing an engagement ring:

1) Yes when it is a wide ring like mine taking it off can sometimes feel like you are dislocating your finger (especially when it is hot outside or when you are first engaged and EVERYONE wants to see it)
2) You have to get used to it on your hand when you wash your face as it can hurt.
3) You will get a sore finger from continually holding it straight to stare at it.
4) Chris will get annoyed if you go "do you want to see something beautiful...BLING!" and shove the ring in his face more than 3 times a day since August. Under three times a day you are fine.  Oh, and don't wake him up in the middle of the night to say "look how it shines in the moonlight" he won't like that either.

Okay, that is really it.  The full story. I should have posted it months ago.

Since then we have been saving money but we have managed a few weekends away.  We have visited Wellington, Raglan and Tekapo! I will write about those in a separate post.  I want to keep this one just for our engagement.

New Zealand didn't know what was coming...

For those of you who haven't heard (maybe you have been living under a rock) MY PARENTS CAME FOR A VISIT!!!!  They were here for 5.5 weeks of fantastic times (and crazy weather).

Our First Weekend

It all started when I picked them up from the airport before work.  I always get there way too early and have to wait up to 45min before anyone even gets through the gates.  This time I stayed home and extra 20min and then I missed them coming out!!! Beeks texted to say they were waiting as I was pulling into the parking lot.  Figures, I just can't win.  Anyway, I took them home to where Chris and Jesse were and showed them around out new place.  Chris and I were really looking forward to their visit.  We (read just me) had spent hours online trying to figure out how to be the absolute best hosts imaginable!!! If you treat them like royalty they will always want to come back ;-) That is correct, treating guests wonderfully not only makes you feel great but then you see them more because they will want to come back.  I am becoming so wise...

Jesse loved the attention given by the two new people in the house.  We only found out later how much their presence in 'his' house was messing with him.  We have had him over three months now and his personality is all there.  We have discovered that we have a little diva on our hands.  He decided that my parents were new and therefore below him in pack order.  That lead to some fun times but more on that later.

Meeting their Granddog!

I went to work and let them settle in, shower and have a nap without me bugging them.  I left Jesse to show them the ropes.  I told them I would be back at 12:30 but I got there at 12:15 and they were both sleeping (Jesse had shown them how) so I couldn't wake them.  I finally had to flush the toilet at 1pm (couldn't wait any longer) and they woke up.  We headed into work for a tour.  Chris was willing to take some time out his day and really show Beeks around the model shops.  Mum and Dad got to see the product I have been working on for the last three years.  I can't wait for it to be released in Canada so I can tell you guys all about it!!!

After that we went on a nice drive and had some Sangria on tap in Howick.  Brilliant invention. It was so nice to catch up but I could tell they were exhausted and trying so hard to keep awake just to please me.  We went home, met up with Chris and took Jesse for a walk to Eastern Beach.  Chris made us a delicious BBQ and everyone called it an early night.  Well some of us way earlier than others.  Chris, Jesse and I were party animals by comparison!

The next morning Mum and Chris took Jesse for a walk.  Jesse found a cooked chicken bone beside the rubbish.  He was proud, bugger, we will have to watch for that now.  Mum had done so much research into NZ before she arrived that we knew we had to make every minute matter, especially every minute we had with Chris.  Mum and Dad would have two weekends with him before they headed to the South Island.  By they time they would return Chris would be in Vietnam with his father. Family all around!!!

So just after lunch Chris and I dropped Jesse off at a lovely family's house on the North Shore who had agreed to watch him for one night while we went away.  I was nervous about leaving him.  Would he think we had abandoned him? My fears were unfounded.  Within 5 minutes Jesse and Rose (their wonderful elderly Greyhound) had swapped beds.  Rosie had even stolen Jesse's only toy, his duck.  The family took such good care of Jesse, they sent me photo updates and kept us fulling informed about how he was doing.  He enjoyed finishing all of Rosie's meals and when he tried to sleep on his bed Rosie stood beside him until he moved.  She was the dominant one, that was for sure!!!

The human family hit the road.  We stopped by the Karangahake Gorge Windows Walk.  It was roughly halfway to our destination so it was a great place to stop for a break.  This is a lovely walk through a scenic gorge that goes through old gold mining tunnels.  We remembered to take flashlights so that we could explore a bit.  Dad saw his first glowworms.  They are such wonderful creatures.  Mum loves them, fireflies too but they don't have those here.  I decided she likes light up bugs.  I still couldn't believe my parents were here with me.  It seemed surreal.  Magical.

In true 'shit kid' fashion, I forgot closed shoes and was wearing sandals.  This usually wouldn't have been in issue, the one hour hike was fun but I can handle that.  What made it really good is that we were taking a leap of faith and going to White Island.  The boat there leaves from Whakatane (just over 3 hours from Auckland) and leaves at 7am. You only find out at 8pm the night before if you are going or not due to the weather.  But we had to start our drive before then so we were taking a leap of faith and hoping it worked out.  Either way, I booked a motel for us and we were off to Whakatane, stopping at the Window Walk on the way.  Now, they tell you to bring a hat, sun protection and closed toed shoes.  That is it, they provide you with the rest.  So there I am, with only sandals.  Shit kid.  Now if you have been to NZ before you will know that 5pm on a Saturday is closing time.  In the small towns it might be even earlier.  So now we were trying to find an open shoes store.  We did find one in Tauranga (city on the way, very lucky location) and i got a nice new bright red pair.

We arrived in Whakatane and went to Babinkas for dinner (recommended by the cashier at the liquor store, we had stopped there for chips of course).  We thought we were in for a Hungarian meal but instead we had amazing Sri Lankan food.  I have never had Sri Lankan before but I had an absolutely delicious Black Curry.  So if you are ever in Whakatane, or Sri Lanka, eat the food.  Advice from my heart (stomach) to yours.

The next morning we were off! On the way out we passed a large pod of Dusky Dolphins who kept up for a while.  They were beautiful and elegant but we had to keep moving, we had a large marine volcano to visit.

Dusky Dolphin

We arrived and were given our 'safety gear.'  Now I am a firm believer in health and safety but I am not sure a small yellow hard hat would really help us if that volcano erupted.  We were walking along the crater.  The gas mask was helpful.  The fumes coming out of some of the vents stung your eyes so badly that you could image breathing would be painful.  The guides had to talk through it so it obviously wasn't poisonous but pain is not really my thing.

The colour of the sulphur is so unique, it really becomes beautiful.

White Island is privately owned and has quite the sulphur mining history.  It would have been hell to live there, but humans will do a lot when they need money and working on a 'Pacific Island' had some allure.  Unfortunately it was also a very deadly place to live with the eruptions and gas.

Old mining factory, naturally it was destroyed in an eruption

Someone missed the memo that you could take your mask off, someone is special but we love her!

On the way back we were approached by a pod of Right Whales.  Mum saw them first.  I told one of the crew members there were Pilot Whales out there and you could tell he didn't really believe me but when he saw them they turned the boat around.  The captain was excited to see them so it gave us an extra long viewing.  The whales were travelling with a pod of Bottlenose Dolphins.  It was great.  The whales were so curious that they were bobbing in the water checking us out.  I have never seen anything like it.

Pilot Whales

We stopped in Rotorua on the way back to Auckland.  Mum and Dad had agreed to not repeat anything from previous visits but the public garden in Rotorua was a nice halfway point to stretch your legs.  Chris picked Jesse up when we got home.  He was a trouper doing all the driving.  We had Hell's pizza waiting for him when he got home.  Jesse was happy to be back, but you could tell he missed Rosie.  Monday morning Mum and Dad were off up north.  I couldn't wait for the next Friday.

Rotorua steam

The sheep in Tirau

Our Second Weekend

They were back Friday evening for our second weekend together.  I wish I could see them every Friday evening, it is such a nice feeling knowing your family is here. 

Saturday morning was relaxing, as relaxing as it can be with an excited bouncing me running around.  It was windy.  This only mattered because we were going sailing that afternoon on Lightfoot.  There was a race and Neil had invited my parents to join me as crew.  He is very generous and loves to share sailing.  We had another girl on board with us as well. It was her second time on a sailboat.  It was windy, very windy.  I spent the sail in my usual location riding the rail, switching sides when necessary.  Beeks joined me.  MK was below riding the high side as well.  Three boats raced that day; Lightfoot, Perfect Alibi and Pretty Boy Floyd.  Pretty Boy Floyd took off and we partically lost sight of them.  Perfect Alibi and Lightfoot sailed together all the way to Rangitoto.  Then their mask started to bend and they called the race and started heading back.  I have never seen Neil not finish a race, even when Chris and I were wishing he had.  He pulled out of this one and followed Perfect Alibi home.  I think he would have finished if it has just been Adrian and I with him but with three extra people he was being cautious.  I was thankful for that.  I am a fair weather sailor, and I don't mind saying it.  We treated Neil to beer after and thanked him for letting us sail.

We went to the night market that night.  Mum knew what was coming and she was ready.  Beeks has been to markets all over Asia and he knew it would be good.  It lived up to the expectations, it really is a wonderful even to have every Saturday evening less than 5km away.  We snacked while there and brought the main meal home to share.  Although I can't remember exactly what we had I can assure it included noodles, rice, bulgogi, dumpling and lots more!!!!

At this point Jesse had realised that these new humans were not leaving.  They had the nerve to sleep behind the baby gate.  That is where only the alphas get to go, he had never been past and those Charlies just walked past there.  AND to make matters worse, they were allowed to sit on the couch!!!! I woke up in the middle of the night to the crashing of the gate.  Jesse had charged through with determination.  Now he didn't come see Chris and I.  Instead, he went straight to investigate where the Charlies were sleeping.  From his point of view this is how things in our house stand:

Alphas = Chris and Chelsea
Bravo = Jesse
Charlies = Beeks and MK

From my point of view it was:

Alphas = Beeks and MK (how could your parents be below you?)
Bravos = Chris and Chelsea
Charlie = Jesse

As you can see there was a discrepancy that resulted in a midnight monster crashing into my parent's room.  By the time I made it in he was checking out Mum.  I punted him back out to the living room, he was pissed.  I found out later that Beeks had been his first stop.  Dad woke to the sound of the gate and it was quickly followed by a cold very wet nose (seriously that dog has a wet, wet nose).  Jesse then went to Mum who 'ratted' him out but greating him loudly.  She hadn't heard the gate open (no idea how she missed that crash) but she heard him padding around.  She decided he must have been outside.  We would learn later just how bad her sleep logic is at poor Dad's expense.  She decided to check and when she rolled over there was Jesse staring right at her face.  Oh golly, my beautiful boy was a rebel.

He didn't pull another stunt that night but the next day in front of Chris and I he got right up on the couch.  He has done this before (hence the couch having dining chairs on it) but he always stops if he tell him no.  This time he looked us dead in the eye and ignored us.  Such a little diva.  But if the Charlies could sit on it he thought he should too.

Sunday morning we went downtown to catch the ferry to Tiritiri Matangi, an island bird sanctuary.  But the ferry was cancelled due to extreme wind.  This really should not have been surprising due to the windy sail we had yesterday.  We made a plan b to go to Bethells Beach on the west coast.  Now this is where you should make the connection that we failed to. I will lay out the pieces for you:

1) The ferry was cancelled due to strong winds
2) The prevailing winds blow from west to east
3) We were going to a west coast beach

We arrived just in time to be absolutely sand blasted by the black sand.  We had sand in every crack and crease that night.  My ears were full of black sand.  We didn't get any great pictures.  We didn't want to ruin our camera equipment and that was a certainty.

I promise you it was windy

We needed a plan c and quickly so we went to Fairy Falls.  This is where I took Chris for his brithday picnic a few years ago.  450m elevation change with a massive backpack containing a bottle of wine, homemade tiramisu and way too much cheese and pate.  At least this time I was carrying way less stuff and it was practically enjoyable!!

We are like ants

South Island - Milford Sound

I arrived in Queenstown on a very wet and rainy Thursday evening and found my parents waiting for me at the gate.  I could hardly contain myself, I was about to have two weeks alone with them.  Really alone, no siblings or work.  Just the three of us.  I left sunny warm Auckland and replaced it for miserable wet cold Queenstown.

Breakfast in Queenstown

I didn't know how much worse the weather could get.  Wasn't it summer after all? But being with family can overcome even the worst weather.

Mirror Lakes on the way to Milford Sound, even in the rain it is beautiful.

The struggle is real, you try to take a nice photo of bird watchers, they watch you!

That night we slept well and were ready to go in the morning.  I drove us to Te Anau Downs which would be our hub for the next three nights.  We bought some survival meals (dehydrated curries and rice) from the local grocery store and shared a fantastic dinner.  I had the Bangers & Mash and Mum and I followed it up with a fabulous dessert. 

A gorgeous view from a lookout on the road, I would hesitate to call it a highway

A mischievous Kea in a rest stop

That very same rest stop

Poor Beeks, the Robin wouldn't move far enough away for him to take a photo, do you see the robin?

The next day we explored the multiple sights to see between Te Anau Downs and Milford Sound.  We spotted Kea in near Homer Tunnel and saw an absolutely river at the Chasms.  We missed seeing any Kakariki but the Kea made up for everything.  This was the last sunny day we had for a while.  The next morning it was pissing rain.  I don't mean warm rain, really cold miserable rain and this was the day we were going for a boat tour of the sound (actually a Fjord since it was carved my glaciers).

Humbolt Falls

Where are walk from hell ended up.  We look tired, we were.

However, as we drove towards Milford Sound we realised why everyone says that it comes to life in the rain.  As there is very little vegetation in the high mountains they rain flows off the mountains in thousands of temporary waterfalls.  These waterfalls will all dry up 30 minutes after the rain ends.

We started the tour completely drenched after the walk from the car park to the boat terminal.  But it was lovely.  The rain cleared up halfway through the trip and we got to see the waterfalls in the rain and after the rain before they cleared up.  These pictures just can not do it justice.  Chris and I need to come back here.

A waterfall to nowhere

This waterfall runs down a fault line

Count the number of waterfalls

The highlight of the trip, getting a glacial facial!

Mum's turn

My cold is coming on, I don't look good

The underwater observatory was pretty cool.  Aparently see sometimes see sharks!

The endangered black coral, the inside is black, outside is white

Fish with no swim bladder so it sinks if is isn't swimming.

We went kayaking after this and the sun was lovely.  Our guide was Canadian so we could understand her flawlessly :-) They had an elevator system that lowered the floor with the kayaks on it into the water and you could just paddle off.  We saw where you can often see Fjordland Crested Penguins (wrong season) and the lovely tanin coloured waters.  That night I had Bangers & Mash again, it was lovely.

South Island - Stewart Island

We were off to Stewart Island the next day.  We stayed at the Lettuce Inn.  A lovely little place hosted by one of the ladies who works for the ferry company.  That day was sunny and we stopped by a gift store to check it out shortly after arriving.  The kind lady there told us to get over to Ulva Island immediately as yesterday had been too crazy with wind to allow the boats to go over there.  Poor Beeks.  We had told him we were going to go to the dock to take pictures of the birds.  He brought all his camera gear because it was just a short walk from our place.  Well, then before I knew it we had booked a water taxi that left in 20 minutes from across the hill and we were hiking up the hill to catch it.  Beeks with his heavy backpack.

We arrived in Ulva Island to a chorus of Bellbirds.  I haven't heard them singing like that since Chris;s and my first trip to Tawharanui.  Mum and Beeks heard it for the first time.  I recorded it for my phone.  Don't know when it will come in handy but I am sure it will sometime.  Doesn't happy bird song always lift the spirits?

Stewart Island Robin checking us out.  We almost had to be careful not to step on them because they were just so curious.

A beautiful wee Tomtit posing for the camera.

We did our own thing, walked slowly and waited for the birds to find us, and find us they did.  We saw Bellbirds, Rifleman, Tomtits and Stewart Island Robins.  We saw Weka and Red-Crowned Kakariki and South Island Kakas out of our ears.  The Kaka almost proved to be Beeks's downfall, or more correctly fall down.  Birds know when you are trying to take their picture.  They like to show you their bums and fly away as soon as you get them into focus.  Now I mentioned that Dad was carrying a much heavier backpack then preferred.  And when he turned to see the kaka the backpack pulled him around and he fell off the path.  This point of the patch had a metre drop on the side and poor Beeks went down.  My first thoughts were that he was okay.  DO they even have rescue helicopters this far south? Then I realised he was okay because his camera had taken the fall.  His camera.  Camera.  Well, bless Beeks he had a mount for a tripod on the camera and that is what took the hit, the camera was fine.  That could have put such a damper on the holiday but my Beeks and his camera were okay.  Mum found us a great Kakariki sighting shortly after and made everyone feel better.

My best shot of a male Bellbird, so proud of this one!

Everyone needs a tubby now and then, even Kakarikis!

That night we were off on a Kiwi Adventure with Maya our guide.  We saw Blue Penguins from the dock while we were waiting for the boat.  And on the way, we saw Yellow-Eyed Penguins! How fabulous!!! I have realised that everywhere we go my family is always the kindest and lets other people go first.  These are the people who scare all the birds away.  This time we were right behind the guide and that was the place to be.  Shortly after we started we saw a male kiwi up close.  He came right by us and our family go the best view.  Later on there was a female but we never got to see her.  She is much bigger than the makes so I can curious how big she was considering his size was remarkable.  We did hear her though.  We walked along the beach and saw another kiwi hurtling itself back to the forest.  It was a fast sighting of a grey ball sprinting away.  We were lucky with our sighting and I have seen my first wild kiwi!!!

We arrived back at 1:30am to an apology note on the door.  It was from our host apologising for having to go into our room.  You see she had been frantically trying to reach us all night.  SOmeone had honked at a large male deer on the road near her house and the poor thing ran right into the massive glass door to our room.  She had spent the evening cleaning the glass (it went 5m into the room) and blood before we got back.  She wanted to apologise for having the enter without our permission.  There must have been a lot of glass.  Mum found a massive shard in her suitcase and it was at least 4m from the door.  We noticed the blood later.  The deer ripped the velvet on his antlers quite badly.  Not everyday that happens now is it.  Unique luck was following and leading us along our trip.

Little Blue Penguin off the wharf, you could just watch them come to shore right off the pier. 

We went on a Pelagic Bird Tour with Seppy, short for Raymond of course.  The weather was questionable but that meant that we got to go, some other people had changed their minds.  We went with another Canadian lady (Calgary represent!) and two British chaps.  We called one Bostick to ourselves because he was bird crazy.  We saw Buller's Mollymawks, Seven's Mollymawks and White-capped Mollymawks.  We saw a Great Southern Albatross, two Skua and a small Cape Petrel.  I loved it, we had a blast.  I shared my sea sickness pills with everyone, it was the nice thing to do.  Seppy had the heater on and it was quite comfortable.  He did well.

Seppy's boat

Buller's Mollymawk too lazy to fly anymore

White Capped Mollymawk

Sevin's Mollymawk

Buller's Mollymawk, I loved the yellow beeks

Southern Royal Albaross

Southern Royal Albatross with a wingspan of 3m, massive birds, they dwarfed the Mollymawk Albarosses

Cape Pigeon, or Cape Petrel coming in for a landing

That night we had an interesting fish and chip meal outside in a shelter beside the rain.  There were ducks around, this didn't bother us at first.  But then they started biting us.  They were biting our legs hoping for food.  Haven't they ever heard not to bite the hands that feed you? Well we weren't going to feed them but even if we were, biting would have stopped us.

Witness the duck biting my leg, I don't look happy about it.

The next day we rented power assisted electric bikes and rode almost all of the 27km of paved road on the island.  Remember how I said it was cold and rainy the entire time? This was no difference.  Riding in the rain is not run but riding power assisted bikes is a blast.  We went up the hills, down the hills and from one side of Oban to the other.

The anchor chain on Stewart Island, this sculpture is on both sides of the straight and represents the Maori creation myth of NZ where the North Island is the fish, the South Island is Maui's canoe and Stewart Island is the anchor.

I tried the speed setting at 5, it was very fast

Beeks enjoyed a more pleasant 2

Mum having fun too!

We went on a Paterson Inlet tour and that ended in a guided tour of Ulva Island.  Maya gave us our tour again and this time we saw a Morepork hiding in a tree and some young Saddlebacks or Tehi birds.  It was fun but I am glad that we got to see it alone the first time.  We saw so many birds the first time but our time was so limited the second time that we hardly saw a thing.

At least we saw some beautiful toadstools!

I would recommend Stewart Island to everyone.  It may be farther to get to but it was fabulous, birds everywhere.  I would recommend you go with my parents, they really make the trip special.  Four nights is the perfect length of time.

South Island - Invercargill and Bluff

We caught the early ferry back to the Bluff and drove on wards to Invercargill in the rain.  We checked out the gardens in the rain and then we saw some Tuatara at the museum.  Why a museum breeds Tuatara is beyond me but it was great to see them.

The boat chain in Bluff

Large umbrella-ella-ella in Invercargil

Henry the Tuatara outside the museum

That night we stayed at a small Boutique Railway Hotel.  The couple who ran it were pleasant.  Their daughter now lives in Squamish B.C. What a coincidence that Hayley lives there too now.  The owner told us that they spent lots of money on their 'beads.'  Those beds were quite uncomfortable to it is a good thing that they spent money on the 'beads!'

At this point my cold that had been coming for a while was in full force and I felt miserable but I tried to keep it together for my parents.  I ended up passing it to Beeks so I felt pretty terrible.

We were up early the next day and drove back to Bluff.  We were going Shark Cage diving!!!!! Everyone thought I dragged my parents to it but in reality it was Mum's idea.  She had convinced Beeks and I agreed to go along.  I felt that if I was to die going with the people you like was a good way to go.

The group was large and we headed back to Stewart Island, well and island off of Stewart Island.  We were in a monohaul boat and the water was rough.  I didn't want to take the sea sickness meds because they made you drowsy.  I made it most of the way before I had to go sit outside.  It was a rough, rough sea.  The crew were worried about me, apparently I was a very pale shade of white and was freaking them out.  We anchored in the lee of the island and it was calm.  By the time we got in the water I was pretty good.  Mum on the other hand, she was not so good.  Turns out I get seasickness from my mother.  She made it most of the trip before taking one of my pills less than 5 minutes before we dropped anchor.

The cage held five people off the end of the boat.  We were swimming in chum water being churned out by the crew.  When the first shark arrived we were all pulled out of the cage and the rest went down.  They tried to make sure we all saw the shark.  Apparently the sharks don't always hang around so they are desperate for everyone to see it.  We saw 4-5 sharks in total.  They were absolutely magnificent animals.  The water was cloudy so you only saw them when they got pretty close.  I have never seen anything like it.  I need to take Chris back here, this is something that everyone needs to see.

Chum making

Shark close to the cage!

Big fishy

Beeks look this still from the GoPro footage

The ride back was worse.  I tried to sleep so that I didn't get sick.  Mum did the same.  If you ever want a horrible thing to do when you feel like death from a cold I would saw going shark cage diving in freezing water. 

South Island - Dunedin

We arrived in Dunedin in the evening and checked into our nifty little hostel Hogartz.  It was the old Bishops Residence for the cathedral across the street.  We were in room 9, right next to room 9 3/4.  Shame we didn't get that one.

Outside the gates at Howgartz

The stairs up!

We walked downtown for dinner that night.  Poor Beeks.  Since Mum was drugged out from the seasickness meds and I felt like death from my cold Beeks had to drive to Dunedin.  He was exhausted and rightly so.  We decided to on Thai food.  It has been a while since we had an Asian meal and all of us were missing it.  We walked for ages and finally gave up and stopped for Cambodian.  It was absolutely fabulous.  We went there two night later for good measure.

The next day we started at the farmers market beside the beautiful old railway building.  This is rumoured to be the most photographed building in NZ and I can see why.  We had a tour booked for the afternoon/evening but we booked three tickets on a train for the next day.  That day was the one free day we had of the 15 days I was think them (and likely their entire holiday).

The Dunedin Railway Station, first sunny day in a week!

 Our first stop of the tour was a boat trip to look for anything we could find at the end of the Otago Peninsula.  I spotted a Sea Lion int he water and the one guy told me that it was a seal, they didn't have sea lions here.  But right after that the guide announced that this was a sea lion.  The Peninsula holds the only mainland colony.  They used to be abundant but the Maori drove them to extinction here.  They survived on off shore islands and have started coming back slowly.  It was exciting to see them and this one was eating something that did not look appetizing to me but he was happy.

Large male sea lion, I would not want to swim with this beast look at those teeth!

Great Northern Petrel, I read the entire paragraph on how to separate this from this species from the Great Southern Petrel. The entire thing was about the shade of grey except the last sentence, the Northern has the red bills and the Southern has the green bill.  Thanks bird book.  That needs to be the first sentence.

White-Fronted Tern

We saw some Great Northern Petrels.  Mum and Dad had seen one while we were shark cage diving but I hardly saw it as it was flying away.  This was a much better sighting.  We saw the Albatross colony from the water, it was pretty cool.  This is the only mainland albatross colony in the world.  Our next tour was to the lookout at the colony.  We could see a few nests from the look out and we even got to see a ranger checking on one of the chicks.  They told us all about the albatrosses and they are pretty amazing.  It takes the parents an entire year to raise a chick.  They only nest every two years because of this.  They next seasons pairs start to nest ebfore the previous years chicks have taken off.  When their chicks take off they don't return until they are 5-7 years old.  It takes them another few years of returning before they decide to nest.

Northern Royal Albatross teenager sitting on a fake nest.  The male albatross chooses the nest site and one pair almost went on this spot this year but  drone scared them away, such a shame.

They observe the birds and take good care of the chicks to give them every chance they have of surviving.  The one nest has a webcam attached that you can all check out 24 hours a day.  My colleagues think I am crazy because I have been watching it.  I have decided that I want to be kicked off the internet for watching a bird sit on a nest.  You can check it out too:

http://www.doc.govt.nz/royalcam

I am smaller than an albatross

We left the albatrosses and started the next phase of our tour at a private reserve the tour company has been crafting of over the last decade or more.  We saw fur seals and then we saw a young male sea lion sleeping on the beach.  Our guide told us every way they can kill you before he told us to walk past it.  We gave him a wide berth. As we were walking I was talking to a Canadian woman (I would have said she as in her 60s) who said she went to Medway.  Small world! When I said my dad I both went there too she interrupted me to ask if my dad was here.  When I pointed to him she walked right over and asked what year he graduated.  He graduated one year before her.  I was finally able to put a face to the name 'Pat Burke' (spelling may be wrong).  And yes, she and her husband wore their seat belts in the minibus.  She was lovely and her and Dad had a nice catch up.  Such a small world it now is.

Yellow-Eyed Penguin waddling ashore, they really waddle!

Well we hid in some hides and watch Yellow-Eyed Penguins come to shore to feed their babies.  They are much bigger than the blue penguins and they were absolutely adorable. We saw some babies as well up close.  They were rather spooked so we moved on quickly.  We also got to see a parent feeding its baby right in front of a sheep.  Only in NZ (shake head).  We got back late that night.

Yummy, yummy diner!

The next day we took the train from that beautiful station up into the Taieri Gorge.  Although we all loved the old train Beeks was the happiest of us all.  That man loves his trains and I really can understand why.  They are a lovely way to travel.  Nice washrooms, dining cars and wonderful views.  We stopped up on the plains.  I have never seen anything like it, I wish we could go back there and ride it for longer but it was not meant to be.  The time we had was precious.

Waiting to board the train!

Enjoying the old train

The purple silo has a chocolate waterfall, because it can.

Our hot chocolates after our tour of the Cadbury factory in Dunedin.  Shame they are closing it down.  Beeks and I have Jaffa flavour!

 South Island - Omaru

We stopped at the Morekai Boulders.

Kept my feet dry in the rain! Of course it was raining.

We stopped in Omaru (the Steampunk Capital of NZ) on the drive north for one night.  This was a lovely little town on the coast where we enjoyed a fabulous Whiskey tasting.  We tried four different NZ whiskeys and I must say I loved it but would not have been able to drive after.  And if you are curious, 10am is a totally appropriate time to start drinking while on holiday.

Steampunk accessories

Steampunk Headquarters

Mum enjoying the museum

Mum practicing her bike riding

Enjoying a rest at the park

Drunk as a skunk at this point :-)

10am drinking

Our B&B (hold the second B because nowhere ever serves breakfast) that night was fabulous and we had a private infinity hot tub that had a volcano on one side and the ocean on the other. 

The ocean in the back

The volcano behind us

South Island - Akaroa

Our next stop was a farm bush stay outside Akaroa.  Mum had done such wonderful research for this trip and she had us staying at absolutely fabulous places the entire time.  This place was uniquely wonderful and I am glad we went.  I am proud to say that I love camping and the great outdoors.  Up until this point I had used almost every toilet imaginable, or so I thought.

Biggie the dairy cow

Holding up Biggie's milk with Beeks and Biggie in the background

 We stayed with Chris and his family up in the hills which a breath taking view of the harbour.  They had a beautiful dairy cow names Biggie (she had lovely big eyes) who gave us fresh milk every day.  They even made homemade yogurt out of her milk and their apricots.  I would love to be that self-sustaining in the future.  Their farm was a little piece of paradise, until you had to pee.  The guests had a 'waterless' toilet.  Now to me that term means long drop of thunder box.  I prefer thunder boxes because you move them more often.  But I can survive a long drop if necessary.  This toilet was a fancy new thing.  You had to sit on it so that the flaps would open.  Liquid drained forward and with the sitting a flap opened behind to allow any solids through.  I know too much information but I am considering this to be a Public Service Announcement.  Solids also means toilet paper ladies.  Well the poo flap kept getting stuck open and the smell that came out was beyond compare. It sounded like it was electric and was blowing air back from below.  How you would ever shower let alone brush your teeth in there is beyond me.  Now to really paint the picture at this point I was over my cold but poor Beeks was in the middle of his.  I couldn't go to the toilet because I couldn't stop gagging so poor Beeks had to 'fix' the flap twice.  The first time he used a stick to poke it shut (someone removed his stick) and the second time he had to use an old toilet roll.  What men will do for their families.  Gentlemen reading this, this is the bar I now hold you to.  My dad is superman, beat that! As unique as these facilities were there aren't enough times in life where you can laugh until you cry with your family.  This one happened for three nights straight.

No ducks biting at this fish and chips stop!

 Akaroa is a lovely little town that is getting run over by cruise ships.  We were there two full days and there there three cruise ships in total.  I took MK and Beeks to where Hayley and I ate and Skyped them.  They recognised it! or so they said.  We booked 'Swimming with the Dolphins' for the following day and enjoyed a nice dinner.

The light house in Akaroa that they moved from the head to the town for better viewing

A view of the harbour

Do you think her feet got wet for this photo?

So remember how I said the worst thing to do when you have a nasty cold is go shark cage diving? Beeks will probably tell you it is swimming with uninterested wild dolphins.  They have a really well organised thing going on but the one thing you can't plan for is wild Hector's Dolphins wanting to swim with you.  We tried a few pods (I think it was the same one three times) before they desperately told us to jump in and try.  Beeks and I were the first in and we got the closest of anyone.  They swam through us and were gone.  By the time the entire group was in they came back once more and swam right past MK before diving under me.  It was great but you can't make a wild animal do what you want it to.  They offered a partial refund even with the swim my family had.  We definitely were the luckiest out of anyone there.

Three Hector's dolphins

If you look cafefully just above between Beeks and I you can see a dark shape, that is a dolphin

They are wee little things

Enjoying lunch on the water

And a wine tasting at French Mountain

She is a piece of art!

Loved the bench dragon legs

 We enjoyed a penguin tour as well.  They took us to a private sheep farm where the owners realised that the little blue penguins in their fields were a subspecies.  They are much brighter in colour due to the brighter colour of the water on the Banks Peninsula.  Over the years they have helped protect the penguins and have doubled the breeding number for the area.  Their hard work is paying off but it a labour of love I tell you.  Their farm is covered in man made hides for them that they try to monitor.  They manage to monitor about 100 of them (300 in total).  They also use predator traps and have to check them frequently.  For a mainland breeding colony, these penguins are lucky to nest here.  We saw a few come to shore but certain people were impatient (not us, birders will take hours for the bird to come to them) and we didn't get to see any up close but we did see them a way out which was cool.

Feeding the black sheep before we see penguins!

An adult penguin molting in a nesting box

At this point I got quite depressed because I realised how little time with my family I had left.  When I first arrived on the South Island 15 days seemed like so much but now I only have three night left with them.  But there was no point dwelling on the sadness and we focused on living in the moment.

As we left the Banks Peninsula we stopped at a wee pond and spotted some Great Crested Grebes.  They were beautiful but the highlight was watching the chick get a piggyback ride

South Island - Kaikoura

We worked our way up to Waipara to our best B&B yet! Mum saved the best for last.  We were staying in the converted stables of an old vicarage.  This place was absolutely fabulous and was full of charm and character.  Beeks and I both observed that we could spend a long time here doing absolutely nothing, just relaxing.  There was furniture from around the world but the best part was two Asian doorways that looked magical.  One lead to the washroom (flush toilets!) and the other to an indoor hot tub.  We enjoyed that three times.  When in Rome you know.  We walked the vineyard and went for a wine tasting nearby.

So lovely!

The next day we drove the coastal road to Kaikoura to see the whales.  This road was now open 6am-8pm and you could really see the damage as you got closer to the town.  The train will not be moving through for a long time.  The tracks are torn and twisted and often buried under rock slides.  The tide line is way different than when Chris and I were there three Christmases ago.  The land rose a few mentres in the quake.  The town itself is doing well.  There are still lots of condemned buildings (lots of ones Chris and I visited) and there were lots of wooden support to the remaining buildings but it is coming back.

We waited a few hours for our whale tour only to have it cancelled due to rough seas.  It is hard to hear that when it looks perfect and there are Hectors dolphins enjoying the surf in front of you.  We ended up waiting for the next tour (also cancelled) before running out of luck.  We waited all day and now we were on the waiting list with 60 other people for a tour the next morning that was already full.  We had one last option, helicopter.  But their only one that would take more than 2 people was out for maintenance that day.  We would have to have two trips on the smaller more expensive chopper.  That wasn't really an option but if we waited a day the bigger one would be back in service.  We had come all this way for nothing and we felt like we should just do it so we booked it.

Mum and Beeks on the beach in Kaikoura, there were Hectors Dolphins eating off shore all day

We drove all the way back to Kaikoura the next morning and up we went.  We had a fourth person added to our group to keep the costs down.  We saw three male Sperm Whales (or Fish as the pilots called them).  I also saw a massive shark but by the time I was certain and told the pilots they couldn't find it.  I know what I saw though.  I saw it for three loops before I said anything.  I have learned that having great vision is wonderful but people always doubt you.

The whales were absolutely beautiful.  I have never seen anything like it.  If I ever come back here in another life, I want to be a sea bird.  Flying over the ocean like that was one of the most amazing things I have experienced.  You don't get that kind of perspective in a plane but in a chopper the walls are all glass and you can almost look straight down.  Breath taking.

My best whale shot

The one downside to a chopper is they give you a headset to keep you informed.  This also means that you can hear the pilots say "the blades need trimming" "no I think it is okay."  Mum and I both heard that one loud and clear.  We asked Beeks later if he heard it.  I said he was watching the controls pretty closely.  He had missed the conversation.  I was right, he was watching the controls like a hawk.  Mum and I hadn't noticed the alarm that told Beeks the blades weren't spinning fast enough.  He told us later that that alarms means you will drop from the sky like a stone.  That would have put a damper on my "I want to be a seabird" thoughts.  I did learn that if we are ever going down, Dad won't give it away.  He will keep us happy and enjoying the whales.  No point in panicking everyone if it is inevitable.  Maybe I should take that wisdom on wards in life.  Be a duck, calm on the surface but going crazy under the water.

Dad's best fluke shot

Another amazing shot by Beeks

We landed and took the inland route back to Christchurch.  That road is worse than the coast one and it took longer than expected but I made it with planty of time for my flight back to Auckland.  Mum and Dad stayed with me at the airport until it was the last time to spend with them for another week and I savoured every second.

Back in Auckland

I arrived back in Auckland all well and good after a flight with great views of the mountains and the Cook Straight.  Chris had I had 3.5 hours together before I dropped him off at the airport for his trip to Vietnam.  Saying good bye to my parents and then Chris within 5 hours was really hard on me.  At least I had Jesse.

However Friday evening rolled around and there I was waiting to pick up my parents at the Parnell Station.  I got all dress up since we were having a night on the town! Their train arrived only two minutes late (they could teach VIA rail a thing or two that is for sure) and I waived at them as they approached.  I am glad their were in one of the early cars as those were the only ones I could see into easily.  It was so nice to see them again.  The entire week I had been so melancholy without anyone.  I knew their goodbye was coming but besides random break downs and crying fits I was doing well.  I was determined to hide it from them as much as I could.  To be honest I think they were doing the same for me.

We ate dinner that night at the same restaurant (new owner and name but same location) that Beeks had taken me too the summer (winter in NZ) I turned 16.  Chris and I have never been as this was something special for Beeks and I.  It was a privilege to share it with MK this time.  We all had a stone grill meal, just like last time.  For those of you who have never had the pleasure of having this it is a meat dinner that comes out raw on a REALLY hot stone plate.  You cook it yourself just how you like it.  I must say dinner was absolutely fabulous.  I could eat that every day of the week.  We also had Lemon, Lime and Bitters to drink.  I have introduced this to my parents and they (like me) love it.  It is a simple none alcoholic drink that every bartender here knows how to make.  I just can't seem to get enough of them.

Jesse and I having a snuggle before our walk, he loves me!

Saturday morning we set off to Tiritiri Matangi again.  This time the wind was in our favour and we couldn't have asked for a better day.  In fact some might argue it was too hot (what? on my parent's trip to NZ in the summer, too hot?).  The ferry out was lovely, no need for sea sickness medication (winning!). We spoke to a lovely American guide (she sounded like a California girl) and she told us where we were most likely to see Kokako.  These birds were the entire reason we were heading there so they were a must see for us.  Turns out there is a population in the Hanua ranges as well so I will have to keep my eyes out for them next time Chris and I go hiking there.  I would love to see on there.

The Tui one of the little boys pointed out to us.

Well we started our hike surrounded by a church group full of kids.  This must be the best was to ensure you never see any birds.  Twenty kids will scare every bird on the island away.  Once we let them get ahead (a long task when 20 kids need to spot for breaks and snacks) the birds started to come out.  We saw North Island Robins, Tui, Saddlebacks and spotted some Hihi birds at the feeders (is that cheating?).  We bumped into a guided tour and we stopped to let them pass.  This takes time when you are in an aviary because no one wants to scare the birds.  So while they were watching the hihi at the feeder I was looking behind us and there before my eyes of a Kokako!!!! I tried to get Mum and Dad's attention and got the lovely American guides instead.  She didn't see it but you could tell she kind of didn't believe me either.  It didn't help that there was a Tui sitting near where I had seen the Kokako.  She heard my accent and assumed I had just seen a Tui since she had never seen a Kokako on that trail before.  But I knew what I saw.  Mum and Dad believed me too (they rock). At that moment a second group came up and you could tell they were all excited and looking at something.  Their guide was pointing out a Kokako, my Kokako.

What a handsome bird!

 We had a fabulous sighting.  The groups left and Mum, Beeks and I stayed behind to watch him until he was too far from the trail.  We would see four more Kokako that day but no sightings were as good as this one.  It was a real privilege to get to see them.  We read his bands but couldn't figure out who it was.  A guide we saw later told us we read them wrong because all birds have two bands on each leg.  Well, I will let you look at the following picture and count the bands yourself.  How many do you see on each leg?

How many bands do you see?

My best shot of a male hihi/Stichbird

Do you see the giant Weta? It was about the size of my hand, my entire hand, not my palm.

We made a mad dash to the lighthouse shortly before the ferry arrived to try to see Takahe.  We had heard there was some there.  It was REALLY hot but the thought of seeing another species for the life list was worth it.  We saw three adults and one baby.  Two parents, last years chick and this years chick.  It was worth the walk there.

Mumma and baby Takahe!

The ferry back was uneventful and we enjoyed our last dinner at the night market.  The food was amazing and we feasted to our hearts content.   I ended up eating leftovers for three days afterwords.  You can never had too many noodles! Yes, I have been back every Saturday since then as well.  What can I say, I am addicted.

Enjoying the ferry, why does every photo of me have hair going everywhere?

On Sunday we enjoyed a lovely wine tasting at the Turanga Creek Winery in Whitford and and a lovely platter meal with it.  It was a bittersweet meal because I knew I would be alone soon and it was really hard to stay positive and chipper.  Beeks took some lovely pictures of Jesse as well.  I learned another valuable lesson about dogs.  If you want cute photos you need a really high reward treat.  Biscuits just don't cut it.

I dropped them off at the airport and stayed with them until they had to report through security to their gate.  Watching them walk through was hard and I sobbed (looked like a crazy person) all the way home.  I tried to pull myself together for Jesse but it didn't work very well.  Having my parents here was something just so special, I doubt I will ever have such a long time to spend alone with them again.  They really are such wonderful people and I am glad that I get to be so close to them even while being so far.  Not every parent would fly halfway around the world to visit their child.  I am really lucky.  I hope that one day I can at least be half the parent they are.  One day.

Mum and Dad near Mount Taranaki having fun without me

Jesse and I watched all the planes taking off while on our walk that evening.  We would have seen theirs.  They had a good flight home and made it back safe and sound.  I hope they come visit me again.  Chris was home a week later.  I was so jealous that he got to go to Vietnam without me but if you have read all the way to this point you would know that I had a pretty amazing alternative holiday.  I am just glad he enjoyed himself and got to spend time with his father.

In an update for those regarding Jesse's duck, I regret to inform you that while Chris was away the poor duck suffered a terrible disemboweling.  Now Jesse had Lambie.  I think he likes Lambie more than Duck.  He carries it with him so we can't get it.  I think he finally thinks he caught the fluffy white 'bunny' on the track.

I love you all,
Chelsea
xoxo