Back on the Road
03 February 2008 | Nelson, New Zealand
anne
We are back on the road, and are now in New Zealand's South Island.
We set off from Tauranga, this time heading south towards Wellington, New Zealand's capital. On our first night out we camped in the Kaimanawa National Park, which is south of Lake Taupo. In our search for good campsites we had gathered a list provided by the Department of Conservation truly a fantastic information source. These are usually basic campgrounds and are generally well secluded within the quiet surroundings of National Parks and their environs away from the general masses. You tend to run into the more spirited personalities in these campsites, Grizzly Adams meets Willie Nelson types which always keeps life interesting. Leaving the serenity behind us, we drove to Wellington, where we were warmly welcomed into the beautiful home of Jonathan and Nicola and their 3 lovely children, in a most special area called Whitby, located a little north of the city.
From there, we spent 3 days exploring the city of Wellington. First impressions, which can be so quickly formed and not easily diminished, are all it takes to create an immediate sense and feel of a place, and can be determined by many changeable factors. As we entered Wellington, we had a perfect blue skyline, with a clear view of the city and we felt immediately impressed. It felt young and vibrant, artistically and culturally diversified, we felt a similarity to our home city of San Francisco. A visit to Wellington simply must take in a day or even more at the resplendent Te Papa Museum. It contains five levels of art and entertainment with something for everyone on each level, entertwining old and new with ancient Maori and Pacific Island cultures, to modern day art and living. We could have easily spent another day touring this museum, which is a sure symbol of how this good country gives back to its citizens, to our amazement, visits are at no cost.
Kara had a fantastic time hanging out with the 3 kids, Lara, Lily and Rafe, we barely saw her when we were at the house, such was the constant entertainment available. We have been astounded at the hospitality that New Zealanders are capable of displaying without effort or acquaintance, it just seems like it's the natural way.
Unfortunately, goodbye's are an necessary part of travel, so we bade farewell and hopped on the ferry which brought us across the Tasman strait to Picton on the South Island. It seems that the farther south we go, the better it gets. The landscape here is truly postcard perfect. Even little Picton has its charm. We took the Scenic route to Nelson, stopping off at a country type campground just outside Havelock. The property contained a trail up to a little waterfall, with some brazen cattle along the way who seemed quite interested in Uwe's bright red pants. Kara and I left him to do battle with the beasts and ran ahead along the trail. He survived the keen interest portrayed by them. And on we arrived at yet another beautiful place: Nelson.
This is probably the first place where we both thought, yep, we could live here.
Its quite a unique place, relatively small although it is classified as a city. The first thing that struck us was how well maintained it is. In the centre of town, each business is adorned with a colourful pot of flowers hanging from the entrance frame. There are many caf�'s with great food and it seems to ring true to its reputation of being a place that attracts those interested in a more alternative lifestyle, it feels casually bohemian, relaxed and slow moving. It's a wonderful place for sailing with many areas to explore in the nearby Marlborough sounds, and the Abel Tasman also closeby, old colonial houses scattered in the wooded hills behind the city overlook the water and remind us a little of Sausalito.
While in Nelson we had the good fortune to look up friends Pat and Clare who we met many years ago while we were cruising in Palau, they with their 3 children, and Uwe and I in our old wooden clonker. We met again in San Francisco as they sailed through half a year later in 1999, and over the years lost touch. But we managed to track them down and we spent a fantastic few days staying in their lovely house, nestled in the hills over Nelson. Kara was delighted with the 2 cats and a dog to play with and I'm sure the cats were relived at her departure as she hunted them daily and carted them around in her arms. Uwe and I did a vigorous hike up to the Mai Tai cave a little ways outside of the town as Pat took Kara off for a few hours. We were also lucky enough to arrive in time for the street busking festival, as each day street performers entertained crowds in Trafalgar Square. We even had a dinner date, as young Michael babysat Kara, the four of us dined in what was probably the best Asian restaurant ever. Yes, again we were spoilt for a few days. Oh I almost forgot to mention that Uwe was about to trade me in there for a while, as some mixed up karma seemed to be following me about. When we arrived at the ferry in Wellington, we watched it leave the harbor without us, (I had booked the tickets in reverse, from Picton to Wellington instead of the other way), so we had to go with another ferry at a much higher rate of course. Then in down town Nelson, a nice policeman managed to catch me before I put my seatbelt on. He was very kind and explained in detail the many options open to me for paying it, despite my guarantees that I ALWAYS wear a seatbelt, I really do. But I seem to have shed the run of silliness for now. And on we go, south to the next place, and leave lovely Nelson behind as we look forward to the next adventure.