First off, we have excellent specimens:

Awkward Sea Kayaking Self-Photos Featuring Sunburned and Peeling Arm

 Even More Awkward

Bookworm’s Delight

A Mountain of Boxes (at Wellington’s annual book sale)

Today’s rose:

Getting happy with the zoom ring.

Pay where?

Early January – trip to Matiu/Somes Island, out in the middle of Wellington Harbor.

My mother and Sonia.

Then…Wellington was behind us…for a while.

Eilidh, me, mom, and dad took a road trip north.

Stonehenge Aotearoa – near Carterton. We visited this modern-day stonehenge (not a replica of the famous one in England). It’s been built specifically for its location in the Southern Hemisphere. 

Like the original one, it’s an astronomical observatory (to use modern big words). The alignment of the stones indicates certain important times and seasons. I was quite impressed.

(photo borrowed from Stonehenge Aotearoa website)

Stood in heavy surf at the beach in Napier, felt the weight of the water pulling and pushing on the pebbly beach, resisted its greedy grasp. Sorted through some tangled feelings and pushed away the night’s chill with a warming walk with Eilidh up Bluff Hill.

Stayed at Wally’s Backpackers which had the novel “petri-dish” style of decor in the shared kitchen. I had nearly succumbed to the fearsome ranks of sluggish well-fed houseflies when the site manager boldly entered the scene of battle and fearlessly dispensed his can of bug killer…directly above my meal preparations. Not sure if he killed any flies, but he certainly killed the possibility of any future visits from me!

Big push the next day, driving all the way to Auckland. Broken by a pleasant afternoon tea at Zealong near Hamilton. A tea plantation – in New Zealand? Yes.

Sat outdoors overlooking the fields, resting our car-weary backsides, and chatting. I believe all four would agree – the experience was worth the bill of $8 per cup of oolong tea.

For successful green or oolong tea, brew for 1 minute max. Use whole leaves (not tea bags). It makes a huge difference. And the tea leaves can be re-used many times.

Overnight with our Aucklandish friends, then an emotional farewell from my parents (as such things do tend to be). A parting of says - them squeezing into a metal tube and catapulting over the Pacific to home, us skimming over the water to an exotic location.

Great Barrier Island.

One week on a rugged island with uncrowded beaches (but then again, are NZ beaches ever crowded?), stunning clear water, racous kakas, a waterfront tent site, long hours of rest, and time with friends. A place of restoration – in more than one way. 

The cafe in Okiwi (I forget the name, but hey, it’s not like you could miss it) earns a high recommendation.

Stunning.

It was another hot day so the dense shady forests spreading over the Lewis Pass road were welcome. We stopped frequently for short walks, visiting the Sluice Box (what color is the water? like the milky blue glass surface behind our kitchen stove!), the Alpine Fault (it wasn’t moving at the time), a waterfall (cold shower for a hot day), Lewis Pass Lookout (yes it is a track – just bushwhack between orange markers).

Stopped at Hanmer Springs, a small town known for its hot springs and now full of gaudy shops of flashy trinkets catering to mobs of tourists! But perhaps I should temper that by saying we were there on a Saturday, on New Year’s Day, at the height of the summer holidays, so my opinion may be biased.

Driving Leader Road between Waiau and the coast, we saw lots of wild apple trees thriving in the road verge. And plum trees. I wonder what the story is behind all those trees.

Then to Kaikoura.

Thanks to Raewyn‘s recommendation we visited Hislops Organic Cafe, and had several hours there with good food and coffee, conversation and book reading. 

Fyffe Cottage – an old whaler’s home.

On the wild pebbly Kaikoura beach.

A Kiwi tradition – ice cream, even on a cool windy day…

On the Kaikoura Peninsula Walk.

My parents got tired so sat down in this little enclosure to rest and read the sign.

(I thought the shading and curves in this photo looked interesting when viewed sideways.)

At Punakaiki we walked the Punakaiki River – Pororari River loop track, and came across this spot on the track with stunning natural light.

To me these photos of Eilidh are deeply meaningful. They reflect the confidence and inner freedom that has been growing in her, as she is coming to know herself outside of the expectations of herself and others. They show the beauty and maturity that I see developing in her character. It is inspiring to watch these changes.

Walking back along the Punakaiki River (last year‘s trip saw us down this way on a horse trek):

Truman Beach sea cave:

Taking flight.

And…sunset over the Tasman Sea.

Next day, back at the motor camp – West Coast NZ Wind Technology:

On the walkway to the Cape Foulwind seal colony: Obey the sign!