SUNDAY.
I kept waking up through the night thinking about what they would be doing at Kathryn's wedding, it was really strange.
We managed to get ourselves on the road by 9.50 after taking Totty for a walk we took her up to the kennels where the girls there told me she was very well behaved and happy while she was with them so that is nice to know.
We set off on our six hour trek and stopped in Matamata for a coffee. The journey as far as Auckland was pretty boring as we have done it so many times. However, once we reached the Harbour Bridge, which we had to go over, it was more interesting. We stopped for lunch at a service area where we also had to buy the ticket for the new toll road. You can buy as many trips as you want so we got a return to save stopping on the way back. It was only $2 each way but it is not a very long stretch of road but worth paying.
We finally arrived in Pahia around 4.00 and checked into our hotel which was very nice. We then walked into the town and had a really good cup of tea and a piece of carrot cake overlooking the bay. We then had a little walk around the town and then went back for a shower and got ready for dinner.
It was a lovely evening but a bit windy. We went to a place called the Swiss Chalet for a drink and the food looked really good so we stayed for dinner which was really nice. We started with calamari and then we had a Fijian fish called Miah miah. It was a very chunky fish and no bones. A friendly cat finished mine as it was so much. Pudding was a lovely fruity, boozy dessert and it was no wonder I couldn't walk a straight line back to the hotel. I haven't felt like that for a very long time. The waitress was very nice, too. she was from Liverpool and came over here in August and loves it and wants to stay and travel but she keeps spending all her wages so she hasn't gone anywhere yet!
MONDAY
Well I didn't sleep very well as I am not used to drinking now and I didn't feel as good as I could have. We went off for breakfast and I felt a bit better. I just can't take it anymore!
We went to visit the Waitangi Treaty House which is at the far end of the bay and set in lovely grounds. On the way in one of the staff at the door asks you where you are from and whether you want to see the cultural show and/or have a guided tour. We told her we were Brits but living in NZ and so because we are residents here we did not have to pay. The Treaty House is a very important part of NZ's history for it is here in 1840 that a treaty was signed between the British and the Maori chiefs that finally brought some stability. The treaty was signed by 45 chiefs on the day and then copies were sent out all over NZ and more than 500 chiefs signed. The treaty is still part of NZ law today and 6 February, Waitangi Day is a public holiday. The house itself is very old (by NZ standards) and is very interesting. After a stop in the cafe for coffee we went to see some small waterfalls just outside Pahia called Haruru Falls then back to the hotel where we were being picked up for the cruise.
A bus took us down to the Maritime office in Pahia and we checked in and then we were told to go and get some lunch and another bus would pick us up at 1.00. We managed to get a sandwich but Pahia was very busy as a big cruise ship was moored in the bay and there were a lot of 'cruise shaped' people about eating large quantities of fish and chips. I don't think I would like big ship cruising.
We got on our bus and headed along the coast to a little town called Opua where we boarded our ship. There were only 28 passengers and the ship can take 60 so it was nice and quiet. The ship was lovely, new and clean and very plush. The cabins were much bigger than we thought they would be and we had three big windows. After a brief safety talk we unpacked and set sail. We went up on the top deck and sat in the sun and had a cup of tea and a muffin while we watched the world go by. It was very calm and we sailed for a couple of hours with the captain telling us about the islands as we passed by. There are 140 islands in the bay. Some of them have one or two houses on them but in the main they are all nature reserves. We moored in a lovely little bay and some passengers went kayaking some went snorkeling and we were taken across to the beach in a little boat.
The beach was lovely and the water a beautiful blue. Jon and I climbed to the top of a very, very steep hill and the views across the bay, in both directions, were stunning. Back down on the beach we were very grateful for the water the staff had brought across for us. There was a Kiwi couple on the beach and they were in big kayaks and had started from the Coromandel and were intending to sail right around the North Island. Good luck to them I say, you end up with a wet bottom in kayaks!
Back on the ship we set sail again to the bay we would moor in for the night we had a shower and dressed for dinner. We sat with a very nice young Irish couple who were on their honeymoon having got married on 6 November. They had been down to the South and were then going on to Fiji and USA before returning to Dublin in time for Christmas.
Dinner was OK but not brilliant and once they start charging full price for the trip they will have to do better. There was plenty to choose from but as we were only 28 the chef would have been better offering less choice and better quality but it wasn't really awful and I managed to get something I enjoyed Jon was not so happy.
After a very long and busy day we were not late to bed!
TUESDAY
After a good night's sleep we were up at 7.00 and I was feeling very rocky. It was like I was on a really rough sea but after some Sea Legs that eased. We sat out at the back of the ship for breakfast which was full English and fine with plenty of tea and coffee. Some dolphins came into the bay while we were having breakfast but they didn't come very close to the boat. We set sail and the captain said he was going to try and find the dolphins for us and we did just around in the next bay. There were so many of them with babies too. They seemed to be having a wonderful time jumping out of the water but it was hard to catch them on photos. When the boat went faster to leave they were racing alongside and I managed to get some photos of them. It was really magical and everyone enjoyed seeing them.
After another couple of hours sailing it was time to head back to port. A lovely trip over too soon. We docked again in Opua and a bus took us back to Pahia. We went to the hotel and checked in again to a different room. After unpacking we were off out again down to the jetty where we had a coffee at the little bar overlooking the water and we saw a huge stingray swimming about at the edge.
We then went to get the ferry across the bay to a lovely little town called Russell, once known as the 'hellhole of the Pacific' because of all the seamen who used to work on the whaling ships. We had a walk around and visited the museum which was fascinating. We then went to visit the oldest church in NZ 1832 I think it was so not really that old.
We sat in a bar at the waters edge and had a lovely cold beer and a sandwich. After lunch we walked up to Flagstaff Hill - another steep climb. This is the hill where a Maori chopped down the flagpole in protest of the British not once but four times! The British gave up after the fourth time and moved further up the coast but won it back again at a later date and the pole has been there ever since.
We were by this time really tired so went back on the ferry to Pahia and walked to the hotel. Jon had a sleep and I went for a swim in the hotel pool which I had all to myself and it was very peaceful. The weather has been really warm and was now very hot.
After a shower we were off out for dinner to a restaurant overlooking the bay and we had some lovely calamaris cooked with lime and ginger then I had fish and Jon had steak. I had a lovely almond and orange cake for pudding. I think I will need to go on a diet when we get home!
WEDNESDAY
I slept better last night as I didn't drink too much. We had a much better breakfast at the hotel today with lots of fresh fruit. When we stayed here on Sunday night there was a big coach party in and it was a bit chaotic.
We set off just after 9.00 and it was really hot. What would we do without air conditioning. We stopped in Kawkawa to have a look at the most photographed toilets in NZ. Designed by and Austrian, Hundertwasser who lived near there for 25 years. They are a work of art with lots of glass bottles and tiles in the design.
We then went on to Whangarei where we stopped to have a look around the Town Basin which is an area of sweet little shops and cafes around the harbour and of course we stopped for our coffee and a very good berry muffin.
Now it was the longest part of the journey and it seemed to take forever. We stopped at a nice spot for lunch high in a forest overlooking the valley, very pretty. The rest of the journey was a drag and the traffic going through Auckland was stop start but we did manage to get back in time to pick Totty up before the kennels closed.
Jon popped out to the supermarket to get some lamb chops and I sorted the washing out. I don't know how we create so much washing when we have only been away four days!
It was a very hot and sticky night.
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