Wild flowers at Gisborne beach ------>
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25 |
| We woke up early
on Thursday morning 2nd March. The sky was dangerously grey and
I decided to go and have a shower before the rain came down. I made it
back just in time and then as though someone turned on a switch, the wind was
on full blast and the clouds downed their water on us. Bemused we had our
breakfast and wondered if we would get away today. Just as it started, it
finished one hour later. We tided up, washed up and I cleaned the fridge
and our little bathroom cupboard. Fergus dealt with the wastewater and
refreshed the cassette toilette. The rain changed to slight drizzle and
the sky started to open up again. We will be off today and I always get
excited when we move on again.
Wild flowers at Gisborne beach ------> |
|
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We said our
good-byes to Selwyn and Gunilla and then on our way out we stopped off to
give Turbo Snail a good clean. Boy did she need it. Fergus climbed right
up onto the roof and cleaned the skylights and they were indeed very
dirty. There was nothing I could do to help so I enjoyed reading my book.
It is great that I have time to read and I am getting much better at it.
It used to take me months to read a book and now I can read a book in 18
days. This last book is called "A good house", by Bonnie Burnard,
and is a family story, about life and death, covering a period of 50
years. It is a very moving book, a brilliant read and I found it hard to
put it down. I found the book in one of the Holiday Park kitchens. It
seems to be a custom in New Zealand Holiday Parks to leave what you do not
need anymore in the kitchen for someone else to enjoy. I will leave this
book here in the Mahia Beach kitchen and hope the next person will enjoy
it too.
<------ The storm brewing at Mahia Beach |
| We did not come
far this time and we are staying here in Mahia Beach for two days. It is a
grotty day today and the wind is furious about something. This gives us
time to sort out letters and emails as well as accounts, which still have
to be kept.
After we had settled in yesterday we strolled along the beach. It is quite nice here and again the beach is very different. Maybe it is the weather but it is not spectacularly beautiful and we will move on to Napier tomorrow. I am really looking foreword to seeing Napier and Wellington. It holds a certain promise for me and I do not know why. And now a storm has started, the radio says that the inter-island ferries are cancelled because of the 12 metre swell! |
|
 After the storm, note the trees on the beach |
I had to wait to
move on. The storm did not let up and for 48 hours we were rocked about
and this was interspersed by very have rain and hail. The temperature also
fell very rapidly. We have been living with 30 degree Celsius for the last
three weeks and now it is only 12 degrees out and 14 in. It was simply too
cold and Fergus decided to work out how the central heating works. I am
sure glad he did, we sat huddled together getting very cold and the wind
was so strong I feared we would be blown over. Fergus kept telling me not
to worry it would be ok and thank goodness it was. We spent two days being
knocked about by the wind and we needed a change of scenery. The Mahia
Holiday Park also had a bar and a basic restaurant, which was open daily
from 5 pm to 8 pm, and so we treated ourselves to steak and chips. We
brought our own bottle of wine and the food was surpassingly good. After
dinner we settled down to a movie called "August" by Anthony
Hopkins, and we watched it on the lap-top. The film is based on a Tjechow
play and was a bit slow but a nice period drama. Just before we left
Gisborne, we went to "The Warehouse", where we bought a handful
of very cheap DVD’s. They cost on average £2.85. Not bad and it is
cheaper than going to the cinema.
During the night the storm slowly abated and we woke up to a very calm Sunday morning. We heard on the news that another storm is on its way and so we decided to get out of here as fast as possible. |
| Again the drive
through the countryside was lovely and we found a lake called Tutira. It
is a designated nature reserve and so no one lives here at all. It was
very beautiful and the lake had a great number of black swans drifting on
the water. Most beautiful birds and I tried very hard to get close enough
to capture them on my little camera. When they duck down under the water
and stick their backside in the air they look indeed like floating tutus.
The lake was full of ducks and swans and looked very inviting until I got
out and got inundated by the sand flies which really adore me. We decided
to deprive the sand flies of a feast and instead we moved on to Napier.
There's a black swan in there somewhere ------> |
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|
|
We had a simple
sandwich and a cup of coffee on the way and I feel al bloated again. The
wheat really does not agree with me and I will keep off it in future.
Luckily the bread here is not very good and so it is no great sacrifice.
<------ Sunset at Westshore |
 |
|
 |
| After we booked into the
Westshore Holiday Park, we drove into Napier to have a look around. What a
beautiful place! The buildings are lovely and there is a brilliant
atmosphere. We parked Turbo near the seafront and then explored on foot.
There was an enormous luncheon party going on which was called "The
Great Long Lunch". What fun, we walked along the esplanade and
watched the Napiers' enjoy a fabulous party. The ladies all wore wonderful
dresses and "Ascot" hats and the men where in elegant straw
boaters. There must have been 200 elegant people sitting down to a several
course lunch and as we came by some were dancing to the live band on the
grass. I was so delighted with the whole thing and what fun it must be to
live here.
The Great Long Lunch ------> |
 |
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For those of you
in England you might not know this, but an earthquake destroyed Napier on
the 3rd February 1931. The city was then rebuilt in the style
of the time, Art Deco. The buildings are wonderful and the city has a very
vibrant feel. I hope we stay here for a while so that we can explore it.
This feels like a great place and I really can imagine living here…
<------ Napier
fountain. |
 |
 Napier buildings |
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