Monday – 10-14-13 Wellington North Island
Sunday morning we caught our train from Christcurch to Picton. It was a really beautiful ride with scenery everywhere. I have decided that if an infant could point a camera and click, the picture would be perfect scenery. We chatted for quite a while with a couple whose daughter is doing an internship in Disneyworld. The gentleman was actually working and riding the train for observations on any issues or needed repairs. He provided us with lots of information regarding the mechanics of the train, the maintenance and the history. I particularly enjoyed the scenery of snowcapped mountains framed behind coves on the seaside. We arrived in Picton and then jumped on the ferry which was the size of a cruise ship. I felt right at home with my steamship trunk with me. It was about a two hour trip up to Wellington. We had a smooth passage until about the last half hour when the skies got gray and the wind and waves started to pick up.
We arrived about 4:00 PM and caught a taxi to our hotel. No surprises when we arrived, just a luxurious room, fully equipped including a balcony with waterview – now we are talking ! Remember I mentioned the wind was picking up, well, it still was picking up, but we headed out for an early dinner at Joe’s garage. Ordered steak burgers looking forward to a hamburger, but it actually was a steak sandwich with of course, chips. We sunk into our comfy bed and a sound sleep until the middle of the night when the howling wind woke me up. It seemed a bit strong and loud to me, but I eventually fell back to sleep, but was up early this morning because of the wind and rain. We decided to turn the weather on and discovered that a storm had blown in, and not any ol’ storm but a storm with 90 km winds with gusts up to 150 km in US measurement terms that is winds at 55.9 mph to 93.2 mph AKA – a category one hurricane ! They were advising everyone to stay in. Well, no hurricane was going to ruin our vacation so out we went ! It was eerie to be in the capitol city of a country on a Monday morning with no one around, and very little traffic. We spent the morning walking around dodging debris and we picked up our rental car. Next we found a restaurant, The Speights Brewery open on the water where we were the only patrons so enjoyed a private lunch. The national museum was also actually open so we spent the afternoon there with about 50 other people. We were not able to do the things we had planned to do because of the weather but had the unique opportunity to have Wellington pretty much to ourselves. Tonight we indulged and walked next door to McDonalds – it actually tasted delicious, it must be because a hamburger was $8.00, small fries $4.50, and a bottle of water $4.00 !! Tomorrow on the road again – we are driving to Napier the Art Deco Mecca.
Sunday morning we caught our train from Christcurch to Picton. It was a really beautiful ride with scenery everywhere. I have decided that if an infant could point a camera and click, the picture would be perfect scenery. We chatted for quite a while with a couple whose daughter is doing an internship in Disneyworld. The gentleman was actually working and riding the train for observations on any issues or needed repairs. He provided us with lots of information regarding the mechanics of the train, the maintenance and the history. I particularly enjoyed the scenery of snowcapped mountains framed behind coves on the seaside. We arrived in Picton and then jumped on the ferry which was the size of a cruise ship. I felt right at home with my steamship trunk with me. It was about a two hour trip up to Wellington. We had a smooth passage until about the last half hour when the skies got gray and the wind and waves started to pick up.
We arrived about 4:00 PM and caught a taxi to our hotel. No surprises when we arrived, just a luxurious room, fully equipped including a balcony with waterview – now we are talking ! Remember I mentioned the wind was picking up, well, it still was picking up, but we headed out for an early dinner at Joe’s garage. Ordered steak burgers looking forward to a hamburger, but it actually was a steak sandwich with of course, chips. We sunk into our comfy bed and a sound sleep until the middle of the night when the howling wind woke me up. It seemed a bit strong and loud to me, but I eventually fell back to sleep, but was up early this morning because of the wind and rain. We decided to turn the weather on and discovered that a storm had blown in, and not any ol’ storm but a storm with 90 km winds with gusts up to 150 km in US measurement terms that is winds at 55.9 mph to 93.2 mph AKA – a category one hurricane ! They were advising everyone to stay in. Well, no hurricane was going to ruin our vacation so out we went ! It was eerie to be in the capitol city of a country on a Monday morning with no one around, and very little traffic. We spent the morning walking around dodging debris and we picked up our rental car. Next we found a restaurant, The Speights Brewery open on the water where we were the only patrons so enjoyed a private lunch. The national museum was also actually open so we spent the afternoon there with about 50 other people. We were not able to do the things we had planned to do because of the weather but had the unique opportunity to have Wellington pretty much to ourselves. Tonight we indulged and walked next door to McDonalds – it actually tasted delicious, it must be because a hamburger was $8.00, small fries $4.50, and a bottle of water $4.00 !! Tomorrow on the road again – we are driving to Napier the Art Deco Mecca.
Me AM picture taking on the train to Picton
It was a beautiful morning for a train ride to Picton
En route to Picton
Jon and breakfast time
En route Picton
Kiwi train
Jon
Train window view
We passed by vineyards
A deer farm
A horse farm
a sheep farm
Green rolling hills
Rolling waves
Windy roads
Beautiful shore lines with the mountains dropping into the ocean
Golden fields with rivers
More perfect scenery
farm
In the observation train car
Passing train on another track
Just beautiful
Arriving at the Picton Harbor to catch our ferry to the north Island - Wellington
Picton Harbor
Our ferry route
We started outside in the sunshine, but
Ended up inside when the weather turned and skies turned gray
It was getting pretty rough on the ferry - glad to arrive at Wellington Harbor
Jon at Joe's
Great spot - Joe's garage
Love the decor at Joe's garage restaurant
View of harbor from our balcony
Wellington
Our little efficiency - Wellington
Love the lamp shades in this bar
The harbor in Wellington with the water crashing over the break wall
Jon was standing on our balcony and the wind was literally blowing him backward
Wed. 10-16-13 Rotorua
We left Wellington Tues. AM in the pouring rain. The winds had passed but we still got to experience first hand what thrill Wellington traffic was like on a rush hour workday morning – yahoo ! I can not tell you how many times Jon has turned on the turn signal instead of the windshield wipers and visa versa – he did remember to keep on the left side though. We arrived in Napier after a beautiful ride through the country side in time to explore Napier late afternoon. It was raining when we arrived but the skies cleared and we were able to do a good deal of walking. The downtown area was a real show place of art deco architecture. At 5:00 PM, the entire town buttoned up tight except for a few restaurants and bars – it was kind of eerie. We had some drinks on our waterfront balcony then walked back to town for dinner. Wed. morning on to Rotorua following the thermal springs highway. We made two stops, one at Tapu falls, and one at the Wai-O-Tapu thermal springs. The falls were beautiful, and the thermal springs were interesting. The springs were underwhelming compared to Yellowstone, the scenery surrounding the springs was outstanding. We arrived in Rotorua to another beautiful hotel complete with a hot tub on the balcony. We walked around town again until like Napier, it buttoned up at 5:00 PM.
This morning we had an excellent adventure where we rode on railroad tracks in individual railcars that looked like smart cars. It is the only venue in the world that has this type of ride. It was about a two hour journey. We left and noted Hobbiton on the map which was in the opposite direction of returning to Rotorua, but it did not look that far on the map so off we went to Matamata. It took us about 45 minutes to get there, but we learned that we would not have enough time to do the tour, and get back to our hotel in time for our 5:00 pre booked Maori culture experience. So, we ate lunch in Matamata and returned to get ready to go to the Maori cultural center. We were picked up in a bus for the Maori evening which was a four hour event. “The Māori (Māori pronunciation: [ˈmaːɔɾi], /ˈmɑːʊəri/)[6] are the indigenous Polynesian people of New Zealand. The Māori originated with settlers from eastern Polynesia, who arrived in New Zealand in several waves of canoe voyages at some time between 1250 and 1300 CE.[7][8] Over several centuries in isolation, the Polynesian settlers developed a unique culture that became known as the "Māori", with their own language, a rich mythology, distinctive crafts and performing arts. Early Māori formed tribal groups, based on eastern Polynesian social customs and organisation. Horticulture flourished using plants they introduced, and later a prominent warrior culture emerged.
The arrival of Europeans to New Zealand starting from the 17th century brought enormous change to the Māori way of life. Māori people gradually adopted many aspects of Western society and culture. Initial relations between Māori and Europeans were largely amicable, and with the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840 the two cultures coexisted as part of a new British colony. Rising tensions over disputed land sales led to conflict in the 1860s. Social upheaval, decades of conflict and epidemics of introduced disease took a devastating toll on the Māori population, which went into a dramatic decline. But by the start of the 20th century the Māori population had begun to recover, and efforts were made to increase their standing in wider New Zealand society. Traditional Māori culture has enjoyed a revival, and a protest movement emerged in the 1960s advocating Māori issues.” I included the previous just to appear knowledgeable. We first sat in the dining area/tent where we were served a cracker with hummus on it, at that point we decided time for cocktails. Others wandered in until the tent was full with about 125 of our closets friends. Next they unveiled the hangi dinner, a traditional Maori meal, that had been cooking covered in a pit all day. It consisted of white and sweet potatoes, and chicken and lamb. Next we were off to watch the Maori warriors arrive by canoe, then onto to a show that explained some of the Maori culture and dancing include the traditional Haka – a war type dance with lets of yelling and wiggling of a stuck out tongue. After the show we finally feasted on the hangi dinner which unbelievably was one of the best meals of our trip. We got the bus back, and are now getting ready to head out tomorrow to drive to Whitianga in the Coromandel region.
We left Wellington Tues. AM in the pouring rain. The winds had passed but we still got to experience first hand what thrill Wellington traffic was like on a rush hour workday morning – yahoo ! I can not tell you how many times Jon has turned on the turn signal instead of the windshield wipers and visa versa – he did remember to keep on the left side though. We arrived in Napier after a beautiful ride through the country side in time to explore Napier late afternoon. It was raining when we arrived but the skies cleared and we were able to do a good deal of walking. The downtown area was a real show place of art deco architecture. At 5:00 PM, the entire town buttoned up tight except for a few restaurants and bars – it was kind of eerie. We had some drinks on our waterfront balcony then walked back to town for dinner. Wed. morning on to Rotorua following the thermal springs highway. We made two stops, one at Tapu falls, and one at the Wai-O-Tapu thermal springs. The falls were beautiful, and the thermal springs were interesting. The springs were underwhelming compared to Yellowstone, the scenery surrounding the springs was outstanding. We arrived in Rotorua to another beautiful hotel complete with a hot tub on the balcony. We walked around town again until like Napier, it buttoned up at 5:00 PM.
This morning we had an excellent adventure where we rode on railroad tracks in individual railcars that looked like smart cars. It is the only venue in the world that has this type of ride. It was about a two hour journey. We left and noted Hobbiton on the map which was in the opposite direction of returning to Rotorua, but it did not look that far on the map so off we went to Matamata. It took us about 45 minutes to get there, but we learned that we would not have enough time to do the tour, and get back to our hotel in time for our 5:00 pre booked Maori culture experience. So, we ate lunch in Matamata and returned to get ready to go to the Maori cultural center. We were picked up in a bus for the Maori evening which was a four hour event. “The Māori (Māori pronunciation: [ˈmaːɔɾi], /ˈmɑːʊəri/)[6] are the indigenous Polynesian people of New Zealand. The Māori originated with settlers from eastern Polynesia, who arrived in New Zealand in several waves of canoe voyages at some time between 1250 and 1300 CE.[7][8] Over several centuries in isolation, the Polynesian settlers developed a unique culture that became known as the "Māori", with their own language, a rich mythology, distinctive crafts and performing arts. Early Māori formed tribal groups, based on eastern Polynesian social customs and organisation. Horticulture flourished using plants they introduced, and later a prominent warrior culture emerged.
The arrival of Europeans to New Zealand starting from the 17th century brought enormous change to the Māori way of life. Māori people gradually adopted many aspects of Western society and culture. Initial relations between Māori and Europeans were largely amicable, and with the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840 the two cultures coexisted as part of a new British colony. Rising tensions over disputed land sales led to conflict in the 1860s. Social upheaval, decades of conflict and epidemics of introduced disease took a devastating toll on the Māori population, which went into a dramatic decline. But by the start of the 20th century the Māori population had begun to recover, and efforts were made to increase their standing in wider New Zealand society. Traditional Māori culture has enjoyed a revival, and a protest movement emerged in the 1960s advocating Māori issues.” I included the previous just to appear knowledgeable. We first sat in the dining area/tent where we were served a cracker with hummus on it, at that point we decided time for cocktails. Others wandered in until the tent was full with about 125 of our closets friends. Next they unveiled the hangi dinner, a traditional Maori meal, that had been cooking covered in a pit all day. It consisted of white and sweet potatoes, and chicken and lamb. Next we were off to watch the Maori warriors arrive by canoe, then onto to a show that explained some of the Maori culture and dancing include the traditional Haka – a war type dance with lets of yelling and wiggling of a stuck out tongue. After the show we finally feasted on the hangi dinner which unbelievably was one of the best meals of our trip. We got the bus back, and are now getting ready to head out tomorrow to drive to Whitianga in the Coromandel region.
En route with a rainy start from Wellington to Napier
Pulling over so I can take some pics
Enroute to Napier - clearly a rain line !
Napier
Napier is know for it's art deco architecture
Napier
More Napier Art Deco
I like the "Please remove work boots" sign
Napier Art Deco
More Art Deco
Jon had enough of the Art Deco…..
My new Napier friends
At the park across the street from our hotel
Waterfront at our hotel
Daylight moon
the sun and clouds - just pretty…...
Jon planning out next days route…..
Napier to Rotorua
Oranges - Napier to Rotorua
Vineyards - Napier to Rotorua
Guess they have a Possum problem….
Napier to Rotorua
Lake Tapu
Tapu Falls
Tapu Falls
Tapu falls - the blue color of the water was spectacular !
Bank of river at Tapu Falls
Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Jon at Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Walking trail at Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Jon on walkway through boiling water - notice not like in America - no guard rails ! Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Falls at Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Boiling spring at Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Wai - O - Tapu thermal park
Downtown Rotorua
Trying out our Balcony jacuzi
Rotorua
Our ride to the Maori cultural center
Our lively pre show entertainment
The maori warriors arrive
Maori cultural center
This water was 20 feet deep, but so clear it looked like 8 inches !
Maori cultural center
Maori cultural center
Maori cultural center
Maori cultural center
Maori cultural center
Maori cultural center - the traditional Haka - warrior dance
Everyone waiting for the big real of our dinner that has been steamed cooked all day in a stone pit
Dinner - and it was delish !
Our excellent adventure of railway cruising in our electric private rail car - this was an absolute blast !
On our way - clickity clack on the railroad track !
En route - bee houses !
Our train was awaiting for us
Entrance to rail cruising depot
En route
Some of the beautiful scenery
