Happy New Year!

Here's to a happy 2011 .... in no break to tradition we fell asleep before the clock struck midnight (peaked too soon on the sauvignon blanc!) ... so we decided to celebrate the UK's entry into 2011, but then go so carried away having fun sunbathing on the beach we forgot that too, so celebrated anyway ... well, somewhere would have just entered a new year!

still not able to upload pics due to poor internet access so watch this space! .... I've managed a few!

Happy New Year, wherever you are!
The winery near Whatuwhiwhi - Karikari wine is produced here .... we drank a little more than we should, hence slept through new year celebrations!
We're headed south tomorrow, toward Auckland but might just end up stopping at Whangerai! x

Whatuwhiwhi!

I loved the name of this place - (actually pronounced Fot-a-fifi) but it's right out in the middle of nowhere! - internet access patchy - I can't upload pics, its, as the kiwis say, right out in the whop-whops!

Weather very changeable - rain until midday most days then barmy hot sunny afternoons at the beach!.

We're off out for a meal tonight at the local winery to see the new year in! and taste lots of wine!! yum!

The vineyards and the wonderful scenery ... wine tastes much better here ... I think I may just have to stay here forever!

The winery - Karikari.

The Hundertwasser toilets in Kawakawa!

I'm not usually in the habit of taking a camera into a toilet (well not since the embarrassing incident with the disposable camera at Gemma's wedding! ... funny story eh Gemma!), but in this case I made an exception ... the weather was being unkind and it had just started to rain so the lighting is poor - sorry!....

...proof that although free to use and photograph they ask for a donation to the local school, we spent a penny and donated a dollar or two!

Sorry, I should have moved the sani bin eh!

....so THATS what to do with all my empty wine bottles!... hmm, I can feel a project coming on!

I saw three ships come sailing in (the day after) Christmas day....

We set sail on Boxing day on the good ship R. Tucker Thompson, for a days sailing round the bay of islands. You can read more about her here : http://http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R._Tucker_Thompson

A short stop on dry land before lunch.

...and to think they let him take the helm!

... with some direction he did quite well......

(those are swimming trunks he's wearing ... he's into tight leather look shorts! .... well, not in public anyway! LOL!)

.... but not as well as me! (obviously!).

... what no power steering!?! - it was bloomin' hard work!

To say I don't usually like boats, the distraction of taking the helm helped! - I wonder if the Cathay Pacific pilot will think the same!?!....

She's in full sail!

Merry Christmas New Zealand style!

After a long day on a trip to the tip if the north island (Cape Reinga) we relaxed in the pool, it had to be done on Christmas day ... just because we could!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Parnell village

We took a bus tour of the Auckland area and surrounding places of interest, this is Parnell village, totally charming with its colonial buildings and very pretty little church!

....but I still can't find a good cup of tea anywhere! - it must be the water!?! ... so I'm now back onto the earl grey, at least that has flavour!!!

Walking along, I asked Nige if he wanted to go to 'the bog', he hadn't noticed the local pubs name! ... we didn't stop long, they were playing some dreadful irish music mixed with some drum beat or other that made it sound bloomin' awful!

It's good to catch up!

(left to right) Ronen (Tracy's new hubby), me, Tracy, Nige, Joan (Tracy's Mum), Les (Tracy's Dad)
We had a lovely day out with Tracy at her bach on the Coromandel (despite the rain!), we decided to meet up for a good old catch up!, Wayne (Tracy's Brother) and Alison and their kids joined us too, but left before we got chance of a picture!

, Here's Jack with Tracy and Nige, Jack's grown up lots! - now nearly 16, and Adam (camera shy) is 12.

We enjoyed fish and chips, we we're the only ones to have a good feed .... my ankles were bitten to pieces by mozzies! - I now have no ankle definition at all! and am considering wearing scratch mits as I end up scratching like mad in my sleep!

Sky walk 360!

FOLLOW TOMORROW - NIGE IS MOANING ITS LATE AND I'M KEEPING HIM AWAKE, THOUGH I CAN'T HEAR MYSELF THINK FOR HIS SNORING!

FOR NOW ENJOY THE PICS - AND HOPE AND PRAY WE DON'T BORE YOU WITH THE VIDEO TOO! lol! X


new text now added.....

The official (expensive) photo ... hmm, pretty sure that's one for the album! , SMILE! - it's hard to look cool when dressed head to foot in bright orange and wearing a harness that's cutting off the circulation not to mention making Nigel speak in a rather high pitched tone!!

Show off! - I could hardly manage this - my knees were too shaky! - the background looks unreal, but believe me - it was very real, my knocking knees were testament to that!

yeah yeah, smile for the camera ... or in my case grimace and hang on for dear life! - I had white knuckles!! , but then so would you this far up with no hand rail!

ok, so I brave it and look up - not sure which is more scary.... as when I turned my head to look down I went rather wobbly to say the least - but considering the whole think was being filmed I managed not to swear!

He makes it look SO easy eh! ... meanwhile I have a go but my hands aren't far from the rope!

A group photo, just the 5 of us, made for a nice walk, the other 3 were from a cruise boat, not sure which would be worse for me, my two fears, heights and boats! .... so one beaten, the other is due for Boxing day, when we set sail on the bay of islands ..... eeekkkk!

This is us before the circulation to our legs was cut off with uncomfortable harnessing! (not that I wasn't thankful of being safe, but trussed up like a turkey and with pants in an uncomfortable position I was waddling like a duck!). Wearing a boiler suit on top of shorts and a t-shirt, then with a coat on (it was cold up there!), and the harness must have added a fair weight! - at least that's my excuse!!....

It's a LOOOONNNG way up ... or down - depending where you're stood!!

Auckland day two!

We're up early (obviously still jet lagged as I wouldn't usually be up and out before 8am given the option on holiday!) Better weather greets us and we spend the entire day walking round Auckland, I'd like to say we walked for miles, but I suspect it wasn't that far!, it's so humid and around 26 degrees today so I have to keep dragging Nige into shops to cool off .... mmm more shoes! (the car boot is already full to bursting with all our luggage so I'm quickly reminded not to buy more! ... spoil sport!).

A cruise ship has just docked, the passengers have just 8 hours to explore! - blimey - it took us that long to find the darn quay side .... because 'someone' said he didn't need a map!... ahem!
Finally I find a fountain in Albert park and can't help but dangle my feet in the cool water! (Sorry someone forgot to tell me about my posture in this photo! - I seem to resemble a hippo!) (but at least I didn't get get told off for dangling my feet in the water!), the views into Auckland from here are great, the sky tower looks rather tall .... After hours of persuasion Nigel manages to wear me down enough that I agree to do the sky walk 360 .... a walk high up round the perimeter of the sky tower! .... eeek! (hope the overalls are brown!).
Nope - they are a fetching shade of bright orange! - I look like an over sized satsuma! - and Nige looks like an escapee from Guantanamo bay!. Nigel keeps reminding me I managed the bridge climb in Sydney, but as you'll see from the photos, there is no hand rail at all, just a 1 metre wide walk way 192 metres above Auckland. The clearer weather gives us a great view, we can see the streets we wandered this morning, and see more places we need to visit!

We've completed the tourist experience by buying the extortionately expensive photos and video (hardly an Oscar winning performance from me I can tell you!)