Waitangi

 My favourite days of this trip were the train trip and our visit to the site of the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. The Treaty was signed in 1840 between the British and the Maori leaders.

The Treaty was signed on top of a hill just north of Paihia overlooking the Bay of Islands.

Please take the time to watch the videos in this link. It will help you to understand the importance and the respect shown to the Maori descendents in New Zealand.

Entrance to the complex. The fee for foreigners is $75, but I thought that it was worthwhile.

We first visited a museum where I watched the videos. It also contains replicas of the treaty which was badly damaged over time.

Our guide led us along a lovely path to the treaty area.

As you can see by the blue reflection, it was a superb day.

The shed houses two Maori canoes.

The largest is 123 feet long and can hold 80 paddlers and 55 passengers. More about the vessel here.

Our guide.

Inside the boat. Three people can sit across with the outside two paddling and the person in the middle ready to take over.

The stump of the Kauri Pine from which the canoe was carved.

Looking out at the Bay of Islands.

The Treaty was signed close to the flag pole.

At the end of the path is James Busby's house. James Busby was the 'British Resident' from 1833 to 1840 and was involved in the drafting and signing of the treaty.

In Australia, he is known as the 'Father of the Wine Industry' since he brought the first grape cuttings from France and Spain to Australia.

I sat on a bench at the front of Busby's house and enjoyed this wonderful view. The Treaty was signed just to the left of the flagpole.

Inside Busby's house. Over time, it fell into disrepair but has now been restored.

Part of the tour also included a carved Maori Meeting House where we were welcomed. Several dancers performed traditional dances which were similar to other Polynesian dances.

It was a wonderful tour. The Maories are a very strong and fierce people, and the New Zealand rugby team always performs a warlike Haka before each match. Here is a good example.

We were so glad that we went on the tour.

Lamb chops for dinner. The food in New Zealand was excellent. Like Australia, New Zealand is ultra strict about allowing food products into the country. Consequently, virtually everything you eat is grown or produced locally. 

We were really pleased with our trip, even despite the hills and curves. I reckon it's easier driving in the South Island because except for the Alps, most of the South Island is relatively flat so if you make the trip to NZ, prioritize the South Island.

Gisborne to Tairua

 Another day of mountains, hills and curves beckoned.

Believe it or not, this was breakfast! Food in NZ was uniformly imaginative and excellent. When went out for dinner, we would usually each buy a glass of wine and the quality was very good. One evening, I had the best Sauvignon Blanc I had ever had.

Before leaving Gisborne, we walked down to the beach. 

These benches were interesting with the shape and carving. The Maori influence is very strong in New Zealand.

The day was spent driving and Marianne did not take too many photos since it was rainy. It's still very scenic, but much the same as the day before. In many ways, I was very much reminded of England, but NZ is England on steroids.

There were many stoppages along the way for roadworks.  You may find the following interesting about the effects of a cyclone that hit New Zealand the week before we arrived.

Cyclone Gabrielle.

Napier to Gisborne

 The following day after brekkie, we headed north to Gisborne.

We thought Wellington to Napier was hilly with lots of curves. This journey to Gisborne was even worse and my shoulders were tired when we arrived at the motel. We had no trouble going to sleep right after dinner and then sleeping until dawn.

New Zealand has a human population of 5.3 million along with 23.6 million sheep. That's 4.5 sheep for every person. You see them everywhere, even on the steepest hillsides.

Marianne was thrilled to see Autumn leaves. 

As you might expect with all the green grass, there are plenty of cows.

Hills galore.

Rivers are mostly small and shallow.

The lush vegetation.

Our motel in Gisborne was a block away from the ocean. It was windy and cold and not too inviting. We did not linger.

We went to a brewery for dinner that also served pizzas. I ordered the Blue Moon pizza which was really tasty with the blue cheese. I will try making something similar in the near future. The beer was excellent. 

Wellington to Napier

 We are home now and it's easier to do the blogging on my laptop, sitting on my sofa. These days, we travel with just carry-on limited to 7 kg so I don't take my laptop, just the phone. Marianne has transferred her photos to me since I obviously can't take photos while driving.

Wellington is down left and Napier is upper right. The route looks straight forward, but there are an extraordinary number of steep hills and sharp curves.

Here you can see the typical curvy road through the hills. Fortunately, there was not too much traffic.

The countryside is incredibly green.

More curves ahead.

A rather high railway viaduct. The road surfaces were usually good, but the road crews are usually fixing hillslides or washouts.

There are so many hills and mountains. 

We saw well over 100 logging trucks. Logging must be a huge industry here.

Back in 1931, much of Napier was destroyed in a massive earthquake. The city centre was rebuilt in Art Deco style, and our hotel was named the Art Deco Masonic Hotel.

On the front verandah.

View across to the ocean.

Another impressive building.

It was Mother's Day in New Zealand (and Australia), so we ate dinner in the hotel's restaurant. For dessert, we each ordered one of these. The shells were formed of white chocolate and the concoction was quite delicious. The couple at the next table inquired if they were as good as they looked and I told the wife to order a plate. She was to get two of the blobs and her husband was to get only one. They both laughed.