The end of the road

Or, courtesy of Beamer, epi-blog

Stew:

Well, we've handed back the motorhome and fly out of New Zealand tomorrow morning. We still think of it as 'our' motorhome, but hope it will now offer others some of the wonderful adventures we've enjoyed.

We don't fly directly home, but as we leave New Zealand it's time to close the blog - though like the motorhome, it's hard to imagine daily life without it. Special thanks again to Alan Bannister for setting up the blog, and to everyone who's shared our journey through it. Hope we've brought a little entertainment to you. Apologies for everything there's been too much, or too little, of for your taste.

I was going to apologise to those who are turned off by football references or atrocious humour, but I guess they probably left us some time ago. At least they were spared the lawn moa.

What makes New Zealand so special for this kind of journey? Perhaps it's the unique combination of ingredients: scenery, climate, facilities, people. If one incident sums it up for me, it's the town where I returned to the motorhome after we'd exceeded our parking meter time. The traffic warden was there, surveying our illegal vehicle. I explained that yes, we'd exceeded our time and would actually like a few more minutes. He smiled, said it was fine ("good as gold") and wished us a happy rest of our holiday. What a great country.

Barb:

Yes, it has been quite a journey. To think up such a trip is one thing, to actually do it another! My thanks go to all of you who took our journey with us. This blog was a big postcard to you. To those who had already been to New Zealand, I hope you re-lived it; to those who have not been here, I hope you had fun vicariously with us as we went along. And to our new U3A friends here in New Zealand, thanks for your welcome and cameraderie.

So from Aotearoa and in fine New Zealand fashion, Pokarekare Ana - Now is the Hour When We Must Say Goodbye. This adventure will be forever with us.

Full Circle

This time we went straight rather than left, and back to Christchurch - our last campsite before returning the motorhome tomorrow. Tonight's task is packing, with two things hard to grasp: (i) how the seven weeks have disappeared and (ii) how many souvenirs we've accumulated. Even the extra piece of luggage, bought along the way 'just in case', isn't enough.

Today's weather has been miserable - mist, low clouds and rain, as if New Zealand were as sad at our impending departure as we are. We're ready to be heading home, and our football team clearly needs us, but this has been a journey which exceeded every expectation. We'll try to summarise things in our final blog tomorrow, but it won't be easy.

One thing's for sure: writing the blog, and knowing one or two of our friends out there were reading it, has been a big part of the fun.

Meanwhle back to eating up our foodstuffs, accompanied by one of the world's great white wines in a couple of plastic cups. Barb and Stew's camping style exemplified...

New South Whales

OK, that's the last Wales/whales pun...maybe.

The second whale trip was great. That's partly because each whale watch is different - a bit like football matches, but with less chance of disappointment. And also because this was an action-packed trip: seven whales (the average is one-two), including the rare sight of two sperm whales together and a tail-slapping demonstration. The whales are less frisky than the dolphins, but a sight easier to photograph.

Which left Barb a peaceful afternoon to read in the sun, so we both had a good time.

Starting to think about our return home, though it's still a little way away. We hand back the motorhome on Saturday, fly to Singapore on Sunday, then have a few days at an island resort before flying to London overnight 28 Feb-1 Mar.

Steve is planning his lecture tour...

Kaikoura revisited

The hard part of today was done early: getting to the ferry terminal for our check-in. Another smooth crossing - we've been lucky with that, as with much else - saw us in Picton, South Island by lunchtime.

So we pressed on down the coast, back to one of our favourite haunts, Kaikoura. It's the base for the whale and dolphin excursions, and a seafood centre (though the signs are pretty subtle, as above). It'll be a test of our will-power, to resist the restaurants and eat up the food stocks in the motorhome as we should.

We're here tomrrow, so a dilemma: if we do another whale/dolphin trip, will it another thrill or an anti-climax? We've decided to go separate ways: I can't resist another look at the whales, while Barb argues with impeccable logic that when you've seen one whale, you've sort of seen them all, so she'll stay and catch up on some reading.

We're getting ever nearer Christchurch and the time on Saturday when - hard as it is to believe - we'll be handing back the keys to the motorhome.

Farewell North Island

We're now camped just outside Wellington, in the fine city of Lower Hutt (the one with the Esplanade). Tomorrow at 7am we check in for the ferry, taking us back to Picton in South Isalnd and another step towards returning the motorhome in Christchurch.

Today was in many ways a typical travel day. After a light breakfast in the RV, we put some miles behind us then looked for a good spot for mid-morning coffee and muffins. This time we found an outstanding one (couldn't resist the sign, above), run by an exile from the East End of London.

For better or worse, she recommneded the clothes stores in the next-but-one town; we duly stopped and gave them some business.

Hope you've enjoyed the photos on our blog. We have some good ones, but there are other pictures we'd have loved to add if we could have stopped - sudden vistas from twists in the mountain roads, distinctive signs by the roadside, and yesterday's golf course full of sheep.

Speaking of which, Steve is not in best grace here. Not only has he upset poor Lamb Chop, it now seems he's lavished so much on Agnes that he's hit the limit on his Baaclaycard. Oh dear.

Making tracks

Travel update

These few days are about covering the ground, as we head for Wellington and the return ferry to South Island on Wednesday morning. So we're motoring south, this time keeping to the western part of the island (having come up the eastern side).

Waitomo and its caves are about halfway up North Island. Today's journey has taken us south-west, almost to New Plymouth before turning south and finishing in Wanganui.

A rainy day was no problem for the driving, but meant we again missed seeing a major mountain. In South Island we were thwarted by the weather from seeing the glaciers and Mount Cook; this time it's Mount Taranaki that was lost in the clouds. Oh, well..

By the way, an interesting part of yesterday's trip was seeing some skeletons of animals that died in the caves - including a moa. A large flightless bird, the moa became extinct around 500 years ago; in its day, though, there were several different types. I'm sure there was a grass-eating one, which we could call ... the lawn moa.

On that note I should probably finish.

Secrets of caves, glow-worms and sheep

Planning this week's itinerary, it looked as if we'd have to miss out on one recommended thing: the glow-worm caves of Waitomo. Sure, one or two people had strongly advised us to see them - but they're just worms, right?

Well, no. Because of our good progress yesterday we DID manage to fit in a visit, and thank goodness we did. We're not the most intrepid cave explorers - but these are stunningly beautiful, as you glide in a boat through a profound darkness illuminated only by the thousands of light specks created by the glow-worms. A different world, and a memorable one.

Again, we chose rightly to join a specialist tour that took us to slightly more remote caves and gave our small group a more personal touch. These are the caves chosen for David Attenborough's 'Life on Earth' series.

Now, Lamb Chop. Look, I'm very sorry but you only have yourself to blame. You had Steve captivated by your messages, but where was the follow-up? No promises to meet, no contact details - in short, no commitment. Meanwhile Agnes is here in the flesh, Steve says she made sheep's eyes at him, and - well, you know how it is.

You still have a chance, but you need to think carefully about this relationship. Some reading may help - you might try "Rams are from Mars, ewes are from Venus". Don't give up.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

My sister Holly has a bumper sticker on her car that says 'God Bless Everyone, No Exceptions'. I quite like that thought and so here are all the animals in this camper van (and as you can see there are a few more that have been gathered along the way - another sheep, Agnes, and finally a kiwi) wishing all of you that have followed this blog a HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY.

Mostly we write this blog at our campsite and hope there is a strong enough signal to upload a photo - you cannot imagine how we have coaxed and cajoled and waited patiently for the connection to comply. So far, so good.

This time I am sitting in the RV at a motorway service station. It is raining out, but the signal seems strong, so we thought we better blog from here. Our campsite tonight is a little out of the way - Port Waikato ( look that one up on your maps! ) and may not have much of a signal. First time in a motorway service station on this journey. They are pretty much the same wherever you are.

However, the big news is we are heading south. We've made the big turn. So get out your John Denver as you read this and let those country roads take us home.

Down to the sea again

Having survived my dinner, we took to the water again today - this time in a catamaran for an all-day sail around the Bay of Islands. The alternative is a powerboat ("The Excitor") that straps you in and whisks you around the bay; regular readers will know I'm not averse to jetboats, but the more sedate approach seemed right for today.

And it was. For a description of the water, coves, beaches etc, I refer you to our earlier blogs - this was more of the same, but not something you ever tire of. Barbecue lunch was cooked on board as we swam at one of the beaches; sometimes sausages are just perfect.

And dolphins. Now the things just won't leave us alone - this time a group of bottlenose (the largest) jumping, flapping and generally frolicking around us. Not quite as acrobatic as their dusky counterparts at Kaikoura, but a close second.

One thing about jumping dolphins is that you'll have to take our word for it. Their jumps are frequent and spectacular, but also fast and unpredictable - in other words, easy to see but difficult (and I mean VERY difficult) to photograph. Lots of near misses.

Not that we should complain about our dolphins. Bill Gates was recently here, hired the biggest boat for a day to watch the dolphins - and saw none. I sometimes wonder if those dolphins know more than they're letting on...

Bay of Islands was the furthest point north in our journey. Tomorrow we start to head south, though I supect we'll enjoy a few more diversions along the way.

An historic birthday

Whatever we do for future birthdays, there probably won't be one quite like this. As planned, we took the ferry across Bay of Islands to a special place in New Zealand's history, the Waitangi Treaty Grounds.

Our first good decision was signing up for a guided tour; our small group (an Australian couple, a Scotsman and ourselves) was guided by a young Maori, keen to fill in the context of the treaty and give a balanced account of its consequences.

Out of that context emerges another good guy. The British bigwig who arrived in to sign the treaty and get things named after him was Captain William Hobson, but much of the groundwork was laid by James Busby, the 'British Resident' sent in 1833 to restore order and create harmonious relations with the local Maori. Despite his integrity and talents - or perhaps because of them - he enjoyed pitiful support from his masters. Nonetheless he gained the respect of the Maori chiefs, achieved his goals and established a level of trust which made the eventual treaty possible. So James Busby is added to our list of 'should be more appreciated'.

By the way, if any of our new Kiwi friends is reading this and wants to improve my (undoubtedly superficial) account, please feel free to.

Over the past few days we've splashed out on some great gourmet dinners: steak, vension and seafood, enjoyed with fine wines, first-class service and wonderful views. Not tonight. Barb's reward for having a birthday, whether she likes it or not, is another of Stew's spaghetti dinners in the motorhome. To be fair, let's give proper credit to my cooking. It's only one basic dish, but of course each version has subtle variations - some of them intentional. Barb here - Stew's spaghetti is great any day, but on my birthday, the best!

An all-day sailing tour tomorrow, visiting some the Bay's famous secluded islands and maybe some more dolphins. Report on dinner, dolphins and other 'd's tomorrow.

PS. It is also the bicentennial anniversary of Lincoln's birth - a great article in Time this week about him and how current his views on the economy are today. Well worth the read.

A room with a view

'Russell' probably has a different connotation for everyone, depending on the individual(s) of that name who've been significant to us.

Now we have another set to add. We've arrived at 'Romantic Russell' in the Bay of Islands, and our campsite certainly helps it live up to its billing. Perched above the town, we have a panoramic view out across the bay - and a quiet beach ten minutes the other way. Not a bad spot for Barb's birthday tomorrow.

In the New Zealand context, Russell has two distinctive connotations: history and scenery. It was the cradle of colonial New Zealand, and still has the oldest church (from 1836). Later in that century it became lawless and was christened - if that's the word - 'the Hell-hole of the Pacific'. For better or worse it's calmed down a bit since then, and now caters to the gentler end of the tourist market (ie us). Across the bay also lies the place we'll visit tomorrow - Waitangi, the scene of the 1840 treaty between the Maori and settlers. Whatever one's view of its motivations and consequences, it is hugely significant to the development of New Zealand and has repercussions to the present day.

We drove pretty determinedly to get here, stopping only for breakfast at the New Zealand Honey Centre. Otherwise we ignored distractions, even portentious signs such as LAST CHEESE FOR MILES (it was true).

Bay of Islands is also known for its eating and beautiful scenery. We'll try to do justice to both over the next couple of days.

Rain stops (some) play

Now here's a familiar experience. If there's one thing I know from growing up in Great Yarmouth, it's the feel of a seaside resort, at the height of the season, in the rain.

That's what we've had most of today. Having decided to spare the motorhome (and its driver) another bout of driving in the city, we stayed today at our campsite in Takapuna Beach, just north of Auckland. So it's been a quiet day, enjoying the cafes (a cut above Yarmouth's) and dodging the showers...

...until about an hour ago (6pm), when the sun broke through. Just in time, though we didn't know it, for an illustration of New Zealand competitive sport. The beach filled with people of all ages, ready to compete in the latest of the North Shore Series: a set of swimming, rowing and running races. Very organised, very competitive, very impressive. No wonder New Zealand punches above its weight in international sport.

A major drive tomorrow, up to the Bay of Islands for 3-4 days of relaxation and beaches. Our swimming will definitely be of the non-competitive kind, though...

Auckland! We made it.

Auckland seemed so far away. Days, weeks, miles, kilometres - however you measured it, Auckland seemed a long way away, but we made it to Howick U3A this morning for their General Meeting at 9.30 - just about the same time as my own SW Herts U3A February's General Meeting, except of course you all are a day behind us.

We walked in as all the preparations for the meeting were taking place at the Nixon Park Community Centre, but we could have been at VUE, as we signed in for our name tags as guests (all the members had their names on a lanyard around their necks). Rod, you will appreciate their sound man was busy getting the audio just right and Alan, one member had a film of a trip that would be part of the programme - next stop Pearl and Dean?

Then there was the speaker: John Cheah, Civil Engineer on "UKU Sustainable Earth-fibre Housing". A terrific talk for anyone interested in sustainable living. You can find out more about his project and others at www.shac.org.nz or email John at: jcne242@@aucklanduni.ac.nz . Another sustainable housing project is at http://www.earthsong.org.nz/

A big thanks to Les Berridge, their newletter editor, who through emails kept us on track to get there.

Then the afternoon was spent with John Stewart of Remuera U3A and Alex Lanning of Ponsonby U3A and the Auckland network Secretary. John was instrumental in getting U3As off the ground in the early days in Auckland. We had a great time discussing the challenges and opportunities for our U3A movement as we go forward. Many thanks, John and Alex. Our discussions will continue; there is never enough time in one sitting.

Photos: the Committee at Howick U3A, and Alex, Barb and John.

Judge a man by his laundry

We're now encamped on the outskirts of Auckland, on - sorry about this - the hottest day of the year. But we have a great shady spot to recover from the shock of Norwich's home defeat to Bristol City (not to mention the cricket).

We loved the Coromandel, even on our short visit. I'd been trying the find the right word to describe the water, and Barb came up with it: iridescent. Definitely.

It's Sunday of Waitangi weekend here, a holiday to commemorate the treaty between the settlers and native Maori (although the treaty itself continues to be controversial). It's the equivalent of our August Bank Holiday in terms of activity, so we tried to beat the main rush back to Auckland.

After the boat trip, yesterday was laundry day. I wonder if the laundry mix reflects our evolving state of mind along this journey. Early on, we were washing smart casual shirts and long trousers. Now it's teeshirts and shorts - a clear relaxation of something.

Contrary to some of your comments, I haven't yet become a trucker, redneck or Maori warrier. But maybe a touch in that direction.

A thought for the day (especially endorsed by Steve): "Democracy has to be something more than two wolves and a sheep deciding what to have for dinner"

Seashores and sunsets

Underlining yesterday's theme, the settings of our last two days could hardly be more different. You wouldn't have wanted to go near the 98-degree C sulphur ponds of Hell's Gate (I liked the management notice that 'Anyone throwing stones into the sulphur ponds will be asked to retrieve them'), while today's water was nigh-on irresistible.

We've tried to make the most of each of our stops, and we probably succeeded again today - taking a boat trip around the Coromandel coast, including the famous Cathedral Cove. Beautiful beaches, unique rock formations and clear water. Plenty of opportunity for photos (taken up by both of us) and snorkelling (taken up by one).

This is clearly a holiday area. We took the boat from Whitianga, which has a permanent population of 5,000 and a summer one of 35,000.

Our campsite is by the beach this time, facing west, and we've had two great sunsets. Like dolphins, sunsets are not something we've previous had much luck seeing. A tough choice for tonight's picture between the beaches and sunsets, but the latter just wins out.

On to another different setting tomorrow: the big city Auckland. Some special U3A appointments there on Monday, then we'll push on further north, trying to ignore the reality that our adventure must end before too long.

Another change of scene

Hell to Heaven

Day 36 of the motorhome journey (hard to believe) brings us to the beautiful Coromandel Peninsula, and specifically to our campsite at Shelly Beach, just north of Coromandel town.

Before that, however, a final geo-thermal stop on our way out of Rotorua: Hell's Gate, so named by George Bernard Shaw when he vsitied in 1904. Not surprising that the name stuck - it's a landscape of boiling sulphur ponds, bubbling jet-black craters and mini mud volcanos, like some chemistry experiment gone horribly wrong. Half-expected Mr Hyde to emerge from the steam.

Being considerable braver than me, Barb had a mud facial, which I'm told was excellent.

We haven't mentioned the orchards which have lined our route for the last few days, supplemented today by Kiwi fruit trees. Kiwi fruit is delicious, and unusual among my favourite things in actually being good for you.

As so often, the day's drive has taken us to a completely different set of landscape and activities. This is beach country, a chance to swim, relax, and clear the smell of sulphur out of our lungs. Surely, nowhere else can match New Zealand's range of natural environments in such a small radius.

Beach report tomrrow.

Maori culture and Spa treatments

I had been looking forward to Rotorua. Two things caught my attention in all the tourist information we had - Te Puia (Maori centre) and the Polynesian Spa. We booked Te Puia for their evening programme Te Po - cultural storytelling, entertainment and Maori kai (indigenous food).

It started in Te Heketanga-a Rangi (The Heavenly Origins), a space with twelve monumental carvings, each representing a Maori deity. We then assembled at the waharoa (gateway) of the traditional marae for an authentic Maori welcome. This is a formal ceremony complete with a whaikorero (welcome speech).

After taking off our shoes, we entered the marae for the entertainment. Beautiful waiata (songs), the world-renowned haka (challenge) and the elegant poi dance. Audience participation was hilarious as the men attempted the haka (I think Stew's put on a bit of weight - what do you think?)

A delicious dinner buffet allowed us a chance to taste the time-honoured hangi (earth oven cooked meal) using the geothermals right under our feet!

Finally the evening finished after dessert with a shuttle to the amazing Pohutu geyser in the moonlight. A memorable New Zealand night.

The Polynesian Spa was this morning's treat. Four hot mineral rock pools in the most peaceful setting. And I also indulged in one of the fabulous body massages of coconut oil. WOW, worth waiting for these 2,500 miles.

PS A clarification of my earlier comments about U3A funding. After our first meeting (with the Chairman of Dunedin U3A) I said that New Zealand U3As are funded by their universities. In fact, they have all kinds of funding arrangements, reflecting their autonomy. Dunedin U3A itself is partially funded by the University of Otago from its Continuing Education budget

And now for something completely different

Geysers and moonscapes

Apologies for recent digs about weather differences - enough said on that, I think.

Another fascinating new experience to report today. Between Taupo and Rotorua lies a series of geo-thermal sites; we spent the morning at one of them, Wai-O-Tapu.

If you're in a geo-thermal area - which is a nice way of saying you're standing on a live volcano - things are a bit different from normal. Instead of grey, rocks are lime-green, orange, yellow and purple. You can see, and hear, mud boiling below you. Steam hisses everywhere, geysers erupt. And an interesting mix of smells fills the air.

Altogether it's a strange and beautiful experience.

As is hearing that Norwich scored three goals away...

Finishing now, because we're off to another event we've been looking forward to - a top-rated Maori culture show at Te Puia. Will report tomorrow....

From sea to shining lake

Actually, this a sequel to yesterday's blog. But we thought it could have its own title - unlike Shakespeare, who couldn't come up with anything better than Henry IV Part 2. No imagination, that was his trouble.

Unlike the Polynesian dancers...

Where was I? Oh yes, we travelled today from Hastings north-east up to Lake Taupo, the largest inland body of water in Australasia. Our main detour was to Napier, famous for its Art Deco architecture.

Yesterday we had parallel activties; I took a final wine tour while Barb attended the U3A study group she reported last night. With apologies to those uninterested in the subject, let me dust off my bullet-point summary skills for an overvew of our NZ wine experience:

. the standard of the wine is consistently terrific - it deserves a bigger space on our wine shelves

. the wineries are great to visit. Being relatively new, they often have real family stories and characters (such as Steve at Moana Park, pictured)

. the most striking wines were often a surprise. Marlborough is famous for Sauvignon Blanc, but some of the Pinot Gris and Gewurztraminers are superb. Hawke's Bay is producing some stonking reds

The tour was enlivened by an entertaining and knowledgeable guide. I think I'd also like her friend, whose two lambs are called Roast and Freezer.

Speaking of which, we're aware that many of you are suffering - southern England under a foot of snow, travel chaos etc. Let us assure you that we understand. Yesterday the temperature here dropped so much that we thought about putting on LONG-SLEEVED SHIRTS.

Tomorrow, on to the strange geo-thermal landscapes and Maori culture of Rotorua. Stay with us.

Henry IV Part 1

Hi All. With a title like that, it can only mean another U3A encounter! At quite short notice we found that we might be able to meet up with the U3As of the Hawke's Bay area. The best way was to invite them for coffee at our campsite in Hastings - our first entertaining of this journey. We were so pleased that all three U3As (Hastings, Taradale, Havelock North) could be represented. Coffee was duly made in the RV, and chocolate chip cookies completed elevenses as U3A talk commenced at the picnic table! We could have been anywhere in the U3A world discussing similiar challenges of getting study group leaders or starting new U3As or their interest in our Third Age Trust umbrella organisation. I have enjoyed these discussions immensely and will keep in touch with all these new friends.

Margery Adcock had also invited me to a study group that afternoon called 'Wonder of Words'. It was just like going to a study group at home with 18 of us sitting in Molly Sadler's house for the topic of Henry IV Part 1. Never having studied this play, I learned a lot and was sad that I was not going to be there for the next instalment!

While I was at the study group, Stew was on another wine tour. This is the last wine region on our trip; Stew says he'll do an executive summary (old habits die hard) tomorrow.

Margery had also invited us for dinner. It was delicious - such a nice treat for us campers. Molly was also at dinner so the U3A talk continued. Thank you one and all Hawke's Bay U3Aers for a great day.

PS Pictured above, left to right: Peter Newby, Norris Kenwright, Dale Jackson, Margery Adcock, Rita Kenwright, Barb. Special thanks also to Dale for the fruit loaf!

Travellers' plans

This was the day that required precision planning. A hefty drive from Wellington up to Hastings, but also a special detour I was keen to take - to the relatively small but important wine area Martinborough, and specifically the Ata Rangi winery as recommended by my work colleague (and professional Kiwi) Anne.

Wineries open at 10am, and the detour was feasible if we were on its doorstep as it opened. So we were...only to find this one opens at noon. Clearly we needed to form a new plan, ideally over coffee and muffins at one of the town cafes - by which time it was apparent that we should stay around until 12 and visit the winery.

Note to Anne, if you're reading: you were right. A tasting confirmed, and we'll give the Celebre some proper attention with my gourmet spaghetti bolognese tonight. (Yes, it's true I can only cook one thing, but it's good.)

A quick look back and forward over our itinerary. We've now been away from home for five weeks (hope I turned that oven off), and the first part of our holiday in Singapore seems as distant as Abbots Langley. Almost four weeks to go. We're in the Hastings/Napier area (Hawke's Bay) tonight and tomorrow, then headed for Lake Taupo, Rotorua, the Coromandel (Auckland's fun retreat), then Auckland itself. The trip so far has been light on Maori culture, which we'll rectify in Rotorua.

It's hard to be away from home through great events like a change of Norwich manager, but we're coping...