New Zealand

17th February is our 45th Wedding Anniversary, so I booked a boat trip around the cove of islands and Hole in the Rock.  Excellent trip with a stopover at Otehei Bay for a swim and to ensure the beer was up to scratch at the bar. And we went through the Hole in the Rock! Through the hole We stayed the night in a camperstop beside The Tipsy Oyster. We had a meal and a bottle of wine to finish the day off.

Kawakawa is an old coal mining town, and looks a bit like something from the wild west, the train track runs down the middle of the road. There is a world famous Hunderwasser public toilet named after the designer. There are a number of bit of street art and a museum in the same style. We stopped the night in the free site around the back of the library.  Having a little bit of a thirst we headed to the Klondike Bar for our first taste of New Zealand beer. Beautiful. 

Freedom camp site on the beach a few vans and motorhomes scattered around. Another surfer's beach with more gentle waves than we've seen. The pensive beach bum. Actually I was reading the warning label for the sliding door. We didn't stop overnight.

We need our cool box freezer pack freezing and a shower so stopped here for the night. Basic site, with some fine views over the bay.

On the way back from Cape Reinga we visited the Giant Sand Dunes, quite spectacular although neither of us were tempted to climb them. We hand lunch and had an interesting conversation with man originally from Malaysia, who has settle in New Zealand. He also was not into climbing the dunes.

Cape Rienga is the most northerly point on the North Island and is were the Tasman Sea meets the Pacific Ocean. Is is also the place where, according to Maori culture the spirits of the dead leave the Earth. Beautiful views. Or would have been if these two didn't get in the way.

Before heading for Cape Reinga, we stopped overnight at Kaitaia, on a field, $10 payment at the local Mobil petrol station. We met a NZ couple at the Kauri Museum and had a bit of a banter with them, they were also there and we spent a very pleasant evening swapping jokes and life shorties. That is what life's about!