S is for St. Gerards: a monastery floating above Oriental Bay, Wellington

St Gerard's Church and Monastery, on the cliff above Oriental Bay in Wellington

We had a glimpse of the unique lifestyle of the monastery and the church that looms from it's cliffside over Oriental Bay - St Gerard's built in 1908 for the Redemptorists, who first arrived in New Zealand in 1883 and required a base from which they could travel and inspire Catholics to find a deeper faith.

I rang the bell and one of the priests, who hails from India, came to the door and was happy to show us around the historic building. We went into the church with its fine stained glass windows, into the residential side of the building which houses about 20 people, missionaries, priests and monks, sat quietly in their private chapel and popped into the library.
Its an old building, careworn and sparse but dignified, fiercely cold in winter, with a library that must have one of the best settings in town with its bay window and the views across Wellington.

A visit to St. Gerard's, a Wellington landmark.

M is for Mt Victoria: tramping the Southern Walkway in Wellington

A perfect day with crystal clear skies.

Wellington sparkles on a perfect summer day, there is a clarity of light which is wondrous and the scenery is breathtakingly beautiful.

We had such a day.

We walked the harbour; watching boats, swimmers, paddle boarders, sunbathers, runners and people taking in the joy of a good day; past Oriental Bay and then up onto the start of the Southern Walkway. Immediately the gradient tightens, with many switchbacks, steep wooden steps and inclines that got me gasping for air. The vistas across the bay and the city are worth each steep rise.

Eventually we were up and out of the houses, into the forest and eventually onto Mt Vic and the 360 degree views of greater Wellington. Too marvellous, a great walk.

Southern Walkway to the Mt Vic Lookout, sea, city, forests and interesting homes.

V is for Vouchers: my Entertainment gift

Clipping vouchers in Wellington

My Christmas gift from Shawni and Craig was a wonderful parcel full of special treats.

I have been having loads of fun with one of the gifts, a book of vouchers called the  Entertainment Guide for Wellington and Manawatu.  These vouchers are redeemable against all sorts of outings and entertainment  - movies, cable car ride, swimming pools, retail, sport, cafes, restaurants etc.

Yesterday I spent time at the Freyberg Swimming Pool doing some lane swimming, thanks to my voucher. When its time for lunch we look at options from the book, so today we headed off to the charming little Cafe du Parc in Khandallah that was built as a tearoom in the 1920's and we rather like the 25% off our  bills too.

And of course I am listing where I have used the vouchers and the savings too. This gift appeals to the lister and planner in me. There are hundreds, so I am going to be kept busy these 2 months!

Postscript: So I tracked all the vouchers, nature reserves, ferries, cable cars, tourist tickets for caves and glow worms, movies, museums, swimming pools, coffees, breakies, lunches, dinners, take-aways, coffee roasters, bakeries, chocolatiers, pies, photo printing, cosmetics,... was an amazing part of the visit. 
And.... 
The savings ended up over $860. Fun gift, all Fred wants to is what we spent  - who cares!

W is for Weather: 'it's geographical suddenness'

Coming down the state highway 1 yesterday the weather report looked very ominous - Severe Weather Warning! Northwest gales expected with gusts of 140km/h in exposed places.

Goodness me. But we were sheltered here in Ngaio, it was windy but not to the extent that I expected having read the forecast.

Then today. The clouds were blown away, we had a glorious big blue sky, windy but not that it stopped Shawni and I spending the late afternoon doing a 2 hour walk.

We promenaded along the Wellington Harbour, past Te Papa Museum, then along and past Oriental Bay, both the beaches were packed with sunbathers and even swimmers, before turning around and heading for ice creams at Kaffee Eis, another favourite Wellington memory of mine from 2011.

Late afternoon promenade along the Wellington foreshore.

On a return visit today for fish and chips and ginger beer at Mac's Brewbar, along the Wellington Harbour, I saw this extract from the writing of a renowned Wellington resident and I was struck by her words on the weather here in this beautiful city:

"in the presence of its geographical suddenness, the brilliance of its light, the ambiguities - and sometimes the trials - of its weather"

I am learning the geographical suddenness, the weather changes can feel instant and rather surprising too.

J is for Jerseys: The Wool Company

Excited with our special purchases.

Four years ago Fred and I landed in Auckland to spend 2 months in New Zealand following the RWC 2011.

We collected our camper van and started to make our way to Wellington to watch the Springbok's opening game.

After the first day we realised that we were ill equipped for the cold, even though it was spring. So our first shopping spree was at The Wool Company, in Utiku along the State Highway 1, and they stock gorgeous wool clothing.

I have loved my black mohair and possum jersey coat purchase ever since.

So today I returned and had one of those 'who would have thought moments', here I was again, this time with Shawni, both of us shopping for the same jersey, this time I bought one in navy and she in black.

Even in the New Zealand summer, the jerseys will come in handy.

C is for Cave Weta: another strange New Zealand endemic

Seeing our first Cave Weta

Wow, such super long antennae!.
As we entered Aranui Cave in a chamber called the Butcher Shop, because the formations look like carcasses hanging from the ceiling, our guide showed us the Cave Wetas, suspended among the stalactites on their thin spindly legs.
Another weirdly wonderful New Zealand endemic.

A is for Aranui Cave: stalactite and stalagmite wonderland

En route from the Coromandel Peninsula back home to Wellington, we stopped over at Waitomo, which means water that flows through a hole in the ground, a key tourism spot on the North Island.

There is a wonderful expression here in New Zealand - "World Famous in New Zealand" - and as Craig says, he had not heard of either the Glowworm caves or the limestone wonders of Aranui Cave before researching the road trip.

Bus loads of tourists did suggest that  Waitomo is indeed on the tourist circuit!

So we booked both tours.

Last night the glowworms created a wonderful spectacle as we floated silently beneath their green glows, thousands of them, with their fine webs waving in the light breeze waiting to trap an insect carried in by the river.

This morning we returned to the area, all rather bleary eyed after a rough night in a motel that was noisy, trains passing the rooms, and joined the tour through Aranui Cave.

The largest stalactite, 400 000 years old!

The collection of stalactites, stalagmites, flowstones, shawls and decorative formations were very beautiful.

Colours are leached into the formations and add another dimension, from ice white to a deep chocolate brown, however I love them with a clean, waxy, pearly white look.

We all felt that the cave was a magical, mystical place and  we were refreshed and energised after the visit and ready for the journey back to Wellington.

Chocolate fountain?

S is for Silver Fern: endemic and emblematic

A bushwalk up to the Aranui Cave this morning was a treat, our guide pointing out fascinating plants, leaves that were used to send messages and of course the most important of all ferns here in New Zealand, the silver fern.

Extract from the Zealandia website:

"The Silver Fern is the most distinct and easily recognised New Zealand tree fern, especially when viewed from underneath. The underside of the fronds and the stems of the fronds near the trunk are a distinctive silver-white, giving the fern its name. It grows to a height of 10 m or more and has a thick trunk up to 45cm in diameter. The base of the trunk is a mass of old fibrous aerial roots while the upper part of the trunk is covered in the bases and stalks of old fronds.

The fern fronds are a bright green on the upper surface and reach lengths of up to 4m, arching out in a circular, somewhat flattened, crown. Young silver ferns are green on the underside and it can take the plant several years for the silvery-white colour to develop."

The silver underside of the Silver Fern

Shawni approaching the entrance to Aranui Cave

B is for Bach: our spot on the Coromandel

The local museum in Whitianga had an interesting exhibit on what a bach would have looked like in the early 1900's, rustic, haphazard but easy living.

We have rented a bach for our time here on the Coromandel and it looks nothing like its earlier version, we have been part of the growing upmarket baches in New Zealand. We have Kindles, computers, cellphones, TV, microwave and dishwasher, all the comforts of home, I even grumbled about not having a grater.

We have tried to emulate the spirit of a bach, 'relaxed, down-to-earth', sometimes really well with the boys playing backgammon while Shawni cooks a delicious stir-fry and I read and at other times we get caught up in our busyness and the drive to experience this place we find ourselves in.

But the flat whites in cafe's with a sweet treat and our love of being on a path have made this a special place to visit.

H is for Hectic: finding hot water at Hot Water Beach, Coromandel

Hot Water Beach selfie

Hectic indeed.

We headed back to Hot Water Beach at low tide this morning to try find the promised hot water.  We gave up the first time, the rain and wind came down and it was just too unpleasant to stay. I nearly lost heart when we got to the car park and saw all the vehicles and people in a steady stream making their way to the beach. But we persevered, layered up, Fred with his GoPro, and we joined the hundreds and hundreds of people, a little bit sceptical but spade in hand.

The hot water comes up from a reservoir in hot rocks about 2km below the surface and filters up through cracks in the crust. There are zones along the beach that as you dig in the sand, the water gets warm and then it gets almost to hot to stand in. And everyone digs, they make shallow depressions to lie in, and barriers to keep the sea away, or at least they try too. Some brave and daft tourists were stripped down to costumes and lying in the pools of warm water with everyone else standing around or twisting in the sand to feel the hotspots.

We loved it, even though we were like sardines in a can, maybe it should be B for bizarre!

Digging, finding hot spots along with a thousand other people.

S is for Sailing in Mercury Bay: sea and just a little bit of sunshine and seasickness too

No one could resist the call of the sea and we went out on a catamaran for a sunset sail around Mercury Bay.

The easterly wind made for some lumpy seas but the cat was tacking as smoothly as it could. Smoked mussels and a drink, all sounds idyllic but my usual queasiness out to sea was a constant companion.

But we laughed. And the scenery is a joy.

R is for Rock Formations: Cathedral Cove, Coromandel, New Zealand

The must-see attraction on the Coromandel Peninsula is Cathedral Cove.

The approach is from a charming little town called Hahei along a 40 minute coastal trail. The rain held back, it was a moody morning but that did not stop us going to experience the huge arched cavern, nor did it stop a steady trail of visitors either.

The arch is remarkable and it joins two lovely, secluded coves, white sands and crystal clear waters. The view through the arch to the imposing rock is quite breathtaking. I will now need to hire the movie, 'The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian' is it was filmed at Cathedral Cove.

Enjoying our time at Cathedral Cove

Beautiful Coromandel coastline along the walk

Meadow at the start of the coastal trail to Cathedral Cove, good spot for our coffee too

F is for Whitianga: pronunciations are an ongoing challenge for me

Bird life along the water's edge

The past two days have been wild and wet, driving us indoors.

Today's weather, however, cleared and warmed up too. Enough for Fred and Craig to get in a round of golf.

Fred and I ventured into the light drizzle early this morning to walk along Buffalo Beach, named after the ship, HMS Buffalo, that was shipwrecked in the harbour after dropping off prisoners in Australia and then came to collect wood from New Zealand.

We are located at a bach on the hill above Whitianga and have 180 degree views across Mercury Bay and it is a treat to watch the ever changing light on the water.

I am no closer to getting my tongue around the Maori place names, and Whiti seems to be Fiti...either way it is very beautiful place.

The evening light is just as special, the beers are out, the gas braai is going, corn and mushrooms prepped, life at the bach on a good evening.

Gorgeous skies from the bach.