Thursday, March 17, 2016
Wednesday, March 16, 2016
Monday, March 14, 2016
Sunday, March 13, 2016
Saturday, March 12, 2016
Day 8 - Wellington, Weta + Mt Victoria
When we rose to the blustery day the hotel was still standing - despite the night winds threatening to blow the whole place away. We ran across the road to a popular café for breakfast before heading to the nearby Miramar peninsula to first Weta Workshops the site of the props design and digital effects in The Lord of the Rings, and The Hobbit.
Mum hit the gift shop while we waited for our tour to start, and soon we were going through the worship, learning how the props are designed and made, before looking at original props, armour and prosthetics from LOTR and The Hobbit, as well as other films such as District 9, The Chronicles of Narnia, and the upcoming Thunderbirds. As we left the peninsula we stopped off at an Art Deco cinema in Miramar with a statue of Gandalf outside. We went inside for a coffee, and discovered that the interior of the cinema and it's upper salon was amazing, being in a high Art Deco style with a sci-fi theme of androids and robots that were reminiscent of the film Metropolis.
After taking some photos, and nearly being blow into the harbour by the tremendous winds, we were back in the car and heading up to the summit (or Carpark nearby) of Mt Victoria, in the heart of Wellington. Amazingly there are houses almost all the way up to the top, with residences as close as 100 metres to the summit. It wasn't as windy up here as we anticipated, so we took in the 360 degree views of the city before heading back down the narrow dog leg roads that twist their way down the mountainside.
Once we were back in the city we visited the national gallery, known as 'Te Papa'. The gallery has a large collection of exhibits on Maori culture, which was very interesting. There was also an ANZAC exhibit about Gallipoli as seen through the eyes of a number of people (colonels, infantry, nurses etc) each of which was sculpted in super human size (courtesy of Weta Workshops). It was a very detailed and sobering experience, after which we were all too tired to do anymore sight seeing.
We rested before heading to dinner nearby at an Asian hawker market, with steaks of all kinds of food - from Vietnamese to Armenian. Mick and I ended the day with a late night stroll along Cuba Street, where we discovered a whole new range of eateries that we had totally missed. We resolved to come back to Wellington in future as we really liked its quirky charm and every, despite the windy weather.
Friday, March 11, 2016
Thursday, March 10, 2016
Day 7 - Napier to Wellington
Best presented breakfast so far goes to St Germain in Napier, where each plate was spectacularly put together. A bowl of bircher muesli was decorated with slices of fruit, fanned out Art Deco style and accompanied by yoghurt, berries and some pretty but inedible flowers. Likewise the hotcakes were symmetrically stacked, topped with ice cream and flowers.
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We checked out of our hotel just as the jack-hammers started in the building next door (apparently it needs to be properly underpinned since new measures were introduced by the government in the wake of the Christchurch quake). Leaving downtown Napier behind we headed out of town to Silk Oaks chocolate factory to see the workers lining chocolate molds by hand, and sample some of their delicious chocolates and sweets. We bought a few things 'for the road' knowing full well they probably wouldn't even make it out of the car park. We had a hot chocolate to give our purchases a fighting chance, and then we were off, heading south to Wellington.
Driving through dry pasture land we stopped off for lunch at a tiny little town called Shannon. We should have continued driving. We ate at The Horsemans Cafe, and the meal was the most dismal yet. Each serving would only be suitable for one of the many sparrows that frequented the courtyard, the pies being so small they could be mistaken for a friand. The sausage roll Mum had was terrible - tough and dry, like a dead dingo's donger wrapped in puff pastry. The ladies who ran the place were lovely though. We opened a packet of lollies that Mum had bought at the chocolate shop, to cleanse the palette. They were reported to be 'Pear Drops', so Mick was not interested at all, but I thought I'd give then a try. To describe them as 'rugged' would be giving them a compliment. If I had to make a comparison I'd say they tasted the way a toilet block smelt, although with a slight banana flavour.
Putting the wondrous gastronomic experience of Shannon behind us, we drove on to Wellington - arriving in the city in the late afternoon. We repaired to our hotel (once we found it) and got ready for dinner. Walking down to a Chinese restaurant in the city we did a good amount of people watching, and noticed a peculiar phenomenon of guys wearing shorts with long socks. Presumably if it's because of the inclement Wellington weather. Anyway the weather was quite mild, so we went and ate dinner and thought nothing more of it.
When we left dinner the wind had picked up, and was presumably blowing from Antarctica, as it was now so cold that not a nipple was left un-stiffened. We hurried back to the safety of our hotel, and settled in for a night of rough winds that battered the town. Wellington had certainly lived up to its windy reputation, with more to come in the following days.
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Tuesday, March 8, 2016
Day 6 - Huka Falls and Napier
Giving ourselves a little sleep-in we rose at 8am, and had breakfast at the hotel before doing some sight seeing around Taupo. We visited the nearby Huka Falls, apparently the most photographed natural wonder in NZ.
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The Falls are a stretch of the Waikato River that empties out of Lake Taupo. The river is funneled through roughly 100 metres of rapids, formed by narrow rock walls where the waters is whipped into a turbulent aqua foam - then falling 9 metres into the lower river where you can see more hues of blue and turquoise as the water disperses all of the air bubbles that it picked up in the rapids. The whole sight is an awesome spectacle as 200,00 litres of water falls over the falls every second.
After this we drove through the valley, taking in the beautiful surroundings before heading back to Taupo. We wanted to watch a '6D' movie that would simulate various extreme sport activities, such as sky diving, white water rafting and so on - thinking that this would be the closest Mum could get to doing the real thing (although, she did seem keen when looking at the rapid jet boat that was doing spins at the bottom of the Huka Falls, so who knows...).
Unfortunately the cinema was installing a new film which meant that the hydraulics all needed to be adjusted and the show would not be available till the next week. Bearing a sigh of relief we instead had a coffee and did some shopping instead, deciding we could leave earlier and get to Napier earlier than anticipated.
We left Taupo behind and took off for Napier and Hawkes Bay through the Waipunga Valley. It was a very scenic drive, through dense pine forests, winding mountain roads and the ever present toe-toe grass, traditionally used by the Maori for weaving. There were many wonderful mountain views and vistas on the drive. Mick said "wait for the South Island" indicating that the views still ahead of us would be even better.
Within 2 hrs we arrived in Napier known as the Art Deco town. The town suffered an earthquake in 1931, and was rebuilt in high Art Deco style which survives to this day. A beachside tourist town we noticed that it was very quiet, and also very hot! A nice slightly windy Taupo had made way for a sweltering Napier, without even a sea breeze to combat the heat.
After lunch we made a quick tour of the city centre, including the largest $2 store we have even been in, and looking at all the art deco facades, which have been cleverly integrated into the modern businesses that now use the buildings. Mick and I had a quick beer at a beachside pub, before heading down to the very pebbly beach (very uncomfortable on the feet... think those Swedish massage sandals) to dip our feet in.
We made our way back to the hotel for a quick shower before heading out to a nice dinner at the heritage Masonic Emporium.
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Monday, March 7, 2016
Day 5 - Rotorua
After arriving at the Holiday Inn, Rotorua we settled in, Mick went for a spa, while Mum had a na. Then we went out for an Italian meal in down town Rotorua. The portions were huge, and we were all stuffed when we returned to the hotel.
The next morning we were off to a slow start, deciding to go in to town for breakfast and to find a masseure, as Mick had a stiff neck since waking up in Auckland, and Mum's back was also sore. We then went to a shopping centre to get supplies for the rest of our drive.
Finally we made our way to Te Puia, a geothermal park which was not far from our hotel, which explained the peculiar fragrance in and around the hotel. Basically if smelt like a mixture of dog food, rotten eggs and bacon, depending on which way the wind was blowing.
Te Puia is one of the largest geysers in the Rotorua area as well as a Maori cultural centre. We took a guided tour that encompassed the Pohutu geyser, which shoots sulphurous water 30 meters into the air, as well as the stinky mud pools, kiwi enclosure (kiwi was asleep) and Maori wood carving school (Maori not asleep). It was quite a hot day so we had a few breaks before hitting the gift shop and heading out for lake Taupo.
A short but scenic drive through pine forests and farmland brought us to the wide flat city that is Taupo. The huge expanse of the lake and the mountains behind dominates the landscape of this touristy town. After unpacking in our hotel we relaxed with a beer and wine before walking into town for dinner at a wine bar with great food and terrible service.
We were all quite tired, and Mick was more than a little drunk when we got back, so we fell into our beds for a well earned sleep (and sleep in).
Day 4 - Waitomo Glow Worm Caves.
Another 8am start, checking out of our Hamilton hotel to hit the road and head south to the Waitomo Valley. Our goal was to see the glow worm caves. Our sat-nav took us off the highways into winding countryside through green hills, pine forests and dairy farms. We passed very few other cars on our way and had no trouble doing the journey in record time.
Unfortunately no cameras are allowed in the caves so we can't show you what we experienced - however some photos from the internet might help to give you an idea.
We paid for our tickets and had a brief rest before heading down with our tour group. We walked through some low caves with stalactites hanging down at head height, before walking down a number of stairs to see the 'cathedral', which apparently all caves have - a large upper dry cavern with columns, stalactites and stalacmites. We then went through to a chamber to see the feeding threads of the glow worms which hang down like sticky spiders webs to catch prey - insects flying into the caves think the glow worms are the night sky and fly upwards getting caught in these feeding lines.
After this we walked down a short flight of stairs before hopping onto a boat to continue through the main glow worm sanctuary in silence. Amazingly the boat is maneuvered by the guides as they hang onto ropes that are strung through the cavern. In near silence we looked up to the ceiling above to see the little blueish lights against the pitch black. All to quickly it was over and we had to head back to the main reception area, and the obligatory gift shopping.
Unfortunately no cameras are allowed in the caves so we can't show you what we experienced - however some photos from the internet might help to give you an idea.
We drove into the town of Waitomo (which means'stars over water' and refers to the glow worms over their subterranean lake) for side lunch before heading to Rotorua for the needy stage of our journey.
Day 3 - Hobbiton
Packing up and getting out early we had a quick breakfast in Auckland before heading off into the Waikato countryside on our way to the town off Matamata the site of the Hobbiton film set.
We drove for over 2hrs through rolling green hills and farmland with mountain ranges in the distance, passing small towns and villages on the way. When we passed through Matamata, we knew we were close.
Pulling up at The Shire's Rest Café and gift shop we checked in for our midday tour. Along with 20 or so others, we hopped on the bus with our tour guide William and drove for a few kilometres to get to the movie set, passing sheep and farmland on the way.
We jumped out of the bus and assembled before heading through Gandalf's Cutting, the spot where Frodo and Gandalf meet for the first time in The Lord of the Rings. It was a lot smaller and narrower than it seemed in the films. As we passed through the cutting, Hobbiton appeared before us.
The set is in a natural dell, with a large tree in a clearing, and a pond to one side. This made the dell perfect as it had the features of Hobbiton. Our guide then told us that there were roughly 40 hobbit holes on the site and they they were all built at different scales to be used for various shots where people either needed to appear small or large, with the different proportions helping the visual illusion. We walked through the lower dell and vege patches before heading upwards to the different levels, passing various hobbit holes. Eventually we came upon Bag End, the door under the tree. There was much photo taking along the way, even more so than before. It was very hot on the set, even though the temperature was apparently 23° - it definitely felt more like 33°!
Thankfully we now started to descend down to the lake, where we saw the old floor mill, as The Green Dragon pub, where we all enjoyed a complimentary and well earned beverage. We had 20 minutes to walk around and take pictures before cutting through the dell again to go back to the bus. After the obligatory gift shop walk through we had a drink before jumping in the car to back track to our next hotel in Hamilton.
Saturday, March 5, 2016
Friday, March 4, 2016
Day 2 - Waiheke Island
Rising early we made our way out into downtown Auckland to have a hearty breakfast, and decide what were after going to do. Some options were discussed and we decided to catch the ferry to nearby Waiheke Island.
We wandered down to the terminal and were soon aboard. After a scenic 40 minute cruise we arrived at the ferry terminal, and caught a bus to the main village of Oneroa - a tiny town on the north side of the island. We made our way down to the beach and stayed there looking out at the beautiful view, before heading back up the hill to town for lunch followed by gelato.
We then caught the bus to nearby Palm Island, which gave us the chance to view the surrounding landscape. When we arrived at the beach we discovered there was not much there, luckily a bus would come by in only a few minutes to take us back.
We hopped back on the ferry and made our way back to Auckland. After a power nap we headed out for a lovely French meal of duck, beef and rabbit. We turned in early to get a good night's rest for tomorrow's Hobbiton adventure.
New Zealand - Day 1
We left early to avoid the traffic and get to the airport early, as we wanted to make the most of the Business Lounge before our flight. We arrived with around 3.5 hours to spare, so enjoyed breakfast and some champagne and gin and tonics in the lounge before window shopping at the duty free stores. Mum was looking for a handbag but was not to impressed by the selection at the airport, the cheapest we saw was $400, and they went up to over $1,000. The $21,000 pearls she looked at didn't take her fancy either!
Our plane was delayed by 30 minutes, but soon we were boarding and on our way. We all enjoyed the Business class flight, and landed in Auckland at around 6pm local time. After an interesting taxi ride, we checked in to our hotel and had a quick refresh before heading out to the Auckland waterfront, about a 20 minute stroll from the hotel.
We had a snack and a drink at a bar which had over 100 lampshades hanging upside down from the ceiling. We all decided to call it a night and caught the city bus back up the hill to our hotel.
Damian
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