I know, I know.
I've fallen pathetically behind in my blog posts. Ethan, the girls and I have been trekking all over this beautiful land and I haven't said a word about it. Indeed, there has been a remarkable internet drought throughout our voyages. But, that's no excuse. The dilly dallying ends here.
Our latest adventure took us to top of the north island, to Auckland, the Bay of Islands and the Coromandel Peninsula. And, it was spectacular.
Here are some highlights from Auckland and the Bay of Islands.
After arriving safe and sound in Auckland, Zoe and Téa made some new friends at Kelly Tarlton's Sea Life Aquarium:
The next day we feasted at La Cigale french market, in Erik and Tania's old neighborhood.
We also visited the Auckland War Memorial Museum, and wandered through the Weird and Wonderful exhibit of natural wonders. Zoe spent most of her time here fleeing in terror from a life sized dinosaur named Basil, who roamed the halls freely (
http://www.aucklandmuseum.com/default.asp?t=1600&cid=&View=FullStory&eventsID=875). She did calm down just enough to enjoy a Maori cultural performance, and snap a picture with one of the dancers:
Later we gorged on delicious fresh made pasta in a little Italian hole in the wall called COVO, followed by a spectacular visit to Giapo's Ice Cream & Research Kitchen (
http://giapo.com/) where flavors might include Sauvignon Blanc sorbet, Chocolate and Blue Cheese, or Capsicum (kiwi-speak for bell pepper) and Vanilla Bean. Here Zoe and Téa slurp down Lemon Verbena sorbet and Boysenberry ice cream, both with a cloud of Candy Floss (aka cotton candy) floating on top:
The next morning we relaxed in this Auckland bean-bag park before heading north to the Bay of Islands.
We arrived in Russel, Bay of Islands, that night. Here's the view from our rental house!
The next day we headed out on a beautiful boat called the CARINO for a sail around the Bay of Islands with captain Vanessa.
There were dolphins all around the boat. We even spotted a baby dolphin, about 2 weeks old!
We stopped at Robertson Island for a few hours:
The island is only reachable by boat, and is rimmed by a volcanic lagoon.
Zoe and Téa braved the hike up to a lookout at the top of the island:
See that tree with the lovely red flowers on the right in the photo below? It's a Pohutukawa tree, iconic native Kiwi 'Christmas tree' which produces stunning red blooms at that time of the year. Maori legend tells of Tawhaki, a young warrior who tried to reach heaven seeking help in avenging the death of his father. He fell to earth and the crimson Pohutukawa flowers are said to represent his blood...
Anyway, moving on, back down we went to explore the volcanic lagoon:
woohoo! we all had a terrific day!
Skipper of the boat points out our route around the Bay of Islands on our way back home:
The next day we visited the Waitangi Meeting House, where the Treaty of Waitangi (commonly but somewhat controversially considered to be the founding document of New Zealand as a nation) was signed between Maori cheifs and British settlers in 1840.
We attended a cultural performance at the meeting house. Here we were greeted at the entrance of the meeting house with a traditional dance by Maori performers:
Next the Maori chief greeted us in haka-esque traditional (bone chilling) style.
As GRINGO visitors, we were required to designate a
representative (our own chief) to receive the Maori chief's welcome. Here's our chief performing a hongi, traditional Maori nose and forehead rub with their chief. After the hongi and exchange of ha (breath of life) we were welcomed as tangata whenua, people of the land.
Inside the meeting house we were treated to a fascinating array of traditional music, song, dance and demonstration of weaponry.
Zoe and Téa were captivated. After the performance they found one of the dancers and weaseled their way into a private Poi (tethered weights on a string which are swung during traditional dance) lesson.
Here they are with their new-found friends:
From the meeting house we headed over to the Coromandel Peninsula to meet up with our Kiwi friends (see next post). On the way, we stopped at the much talked about, essential Kiwi destination: the Hundertwasser toilets in Kawakawa. Apparently the Viennese artist, Friedensreich Hundertwasser, was taken with New Zealand and made it his second home in the 1970s. When the town toilets in Kawakawa, near his home, needed renovation in the 19990s, he designed and built these toilets with help from local students and community members. See
http://www.bay-of-islands-nz.com/hundertwasser.shtml for the quirky Kiwi story
And on that note, I leave you to contemplate.
Ps. A tidbit of trivia. Hundertwasser's middle name was Dunkelbundt. That one's for you patient spider!
Stay tuned for Top of the North: Part II, Coromandel Peninsula.
