Turbo Snail parked in the orchard ------>
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| We spent our
Christmas with Lora and her family. It was fantastic to see Diana again
and meet all her brothers, all of whom had visited us in Brighton. Josh
the eldest of the brothers was there with his partner Alikey and
together they have a lovely boy named Gabriel or Gabe for short. Lora
lives on a large farm with other shareholders and they run sheep and
cattle on the surrounding land. Out Turbo Snail got parked in the
orchard for the time we were there. We were able to plug into their
mains electricity supply and therefore had all the creature comforts we
required.
Turbo Snail parked in the orchard ------> |
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We met a man called Nathan here on Christmas day and he takes tourists riding in the near surroundings. That sounded very interesting. I asked him if I, as a complete beginner, could do this and he assured me that I could. All I had to do was tell the organisers that I had never sat on a horse before and they would take care of the rest. We went and booked ourselves in and hoped that it would not rain on the 27th at 2pm. The sun shone on the appointed time and Fergus and I walked to the paddock to be given a helmet and be introduced to our horses. Then up we went and I got a white horse called "Mas" short for Mazda. I made sure I made good friends’ with my horse and talked constantly to him. I explained my situation and the horse was brilliant, he understood everything I said. We took off and my horse followed all the others in a row. He walked gently and only once got into a little trot and only because we had fallen behind the group. It was a lovely experience and I would most defiantly go riding again. Our trip took 90 minutes and was just the right amount time. My knees ached as we got off the horse but it was good for my back and I had no aches and pains the next day. You never know I might have found a new hobby. |
| The way of
live on this farm is very different from anything I have ever lived
with. So I do not want to criticise it, just point out that for me it
would be difficult to live in such a situation. Everyone is doing what
they are doing and sometimes if as by a miracle everyone ends up
together sharing wonderful food and wine at the same place and time.
Lora has a fantastic vegetable garden and all the vegetables we ate came fresh out of the garden just before they were cooked. When we left Lora gave us fresh green beans, which have been fantastically expensive in the shops and Swiss chard (Silver Beet in NZ language). We took it away gratefully and enjoyed it all very much. Esther on Maz -----> |
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