New Plans for Retirement

The plan has changed. No longer do Dad and I plan to retire and move to Alaska. We’re going to move to Picton, New Zealand! A town of about 4,500 Kiwis, nestled between some ‘mountains ‘and the sea. Just about the loveliest little town we’ve ever seen.

The Volendam was the first cruise ship of the season to dock there—and she’s 60 feet longer than the dock so it makes us wonder just how big the other ships will be. Ladies met us at the gangway with homemade corsages of wildflowers for each of us. ‘Town” was just a short ride away in the free shuttle. (Still not sure if it was provided by the port or by Holland America.)

We wandered around town and did some souvenir shopping. Grandma went into the local quilt store (I didn’t see it until too late) but didn’t buy anything because it was all too expensive. Then Grandma and Dada and Uncle Mike hired a taxi and went to Omaka to see Peter Jackson’s (the “Lord of the Rings” guru) collection of rare airplanes while Dad and Aunt Brigitte and I went to Captain Cook’s Ship Cove. I finally got to walk where Captain Cook walked! It was sooooooooooooo beautiful. I can totally understand why Captain Cook made five stops here in this very cove.

Kiwis put up a monument to Cook in the early 1900s that is white and is a beacon to ships passing by who need a safe harbour (Kiwi spelling again). It can be seen quite some distance out to sea, can’t it? (Kiwis seem to end every statement as a rhetorical question. It’s a very funny speech pattern, and I love it.)

We also saw many sea birds, dolphins (bottlenose and dusky), and seals. At Ship Cove (where I walked where Captain Cook walked, did I mention that?), we saw some ‘cheeky wekas,’ another kind of New Zealand’s flightless birds. (There were no land mammals here before the Maori came, bringing with them dogs and rats, so many of New Zealand’s birds had evolved into flightlessness.)

The weather was quite nasty on our little cruise to Ship Cove, wasn’t it? Misty and COLD. Still, it was incredible to actually see it and WALK WHERE CAPTAIN COOK WALKED!

Jeff here. Now you get to suffer through my photo commentary. I’m not as witty as Robin, but I’ll do my best to blunder my way through.



This is a photo of the channel on the way into Picton. It was very beautiful. This photo captures the light on the way and is stark in its simplicity. A sight like this was a good way to start our day.



A rainbow off the deck of the ship. Don’t rainbows signify good fortune? (Or is that imminent flooding? I don’t remember.) In our case it must have been good fortune. We ended up spending a very lovely day in Picton.



A look at Cook Cove from the sea. Can you see the white marker? It was erected in the early 1900s to commemorate the location of Cook’s FIVE visits to this cove. Yes, you read that correctly. Five visits. One on his initial discovery and then he returned four times more. You can tell why. It is very lovely with two entrances from the sea, a shallow beach (he beached the ship here to make repairs) and a lovely stream running right down to the water. Fresh water, fish galore (300 pounds in one cast of the nets), beautiful scenery, and more. More on Cook’s cove later.



A first look at Picton. A lovely little town nestled in the mountains with a harbor, ferry (car and train) landings, railroad connections, and access to the sound. Very nice place.



A look back at the harbor from when we came. Did I mention how lovely it was?



Bottlenose dolphin come to play. This dolphin is named Woody and is known to hang around to show off for the tourists (her calf is named ‘Chip’). We saw her on our shore excursion.



A very cheeky Weka. I’ve dubbed it the funky chicken. This was on Cook’s cove where Robin was very excited to walk where Captain Cook walked (did she mention that?). Very interesting and humbling. And we got here a whole lot easier than he did.



Cook’s cove again. Notice the shallow sloping beach? Ideal for Cook to beach the ship, let the tide go out, and make repairs. Can you imagine a wooden ship that needs re-caulking and repairs constantly? Very brave men who traveled that way.



Cook’s cove looking out to sea. Jeff framed this shot with the interesting log in the foreground. The log probably wasn’t there in Cook’s day, but otherwise this is as he would have seen it. New Zealand has kept this area relatively free of changes (the addition of a dock, picnic tables, and restrooms are appreciated) so you can see it mostly as Cook saw it.



The Cook monument. Robin standing next to it for scale. You can see it miles out to sea, which was the intent. On our way out of the harbor we could see it for miles and miles.



On the way back in we saw some dusky dolphins. Very cute. They like to play and to surf the pressure wave on the front of the boat.


A bird hanging around the dock. Wildlife was everywhere.All in all, we loved our day in Picton. Mom, Dad, and Mike hired a taxi to go see the WWI airplane museum. They enjoyed it a lot and had great things to say about it too. We have decided that maybe Picton is better than Sitka for our retirement!

Crossings

We’ve had perfect seas. We crossed Cook Strait, one of the world’s most notorious passages of ocean, and it was lake-like. The Captain says our crossing from Dunedin to Fjordland tomorrow night might be rough. I’m not going to believe him! He’s like the Utah weathermen—tells us it’s gonna be terrible weather and then it’s fine. Let us hope.

It was really weird, as we sailed away from Picton, we sailed out from under stormy, black rain clouds and into beautiful clear skies. It seemed that the clouds were just hovering over the land. I guess that’s why New Zealand is called Aotearoa, The Land of the Long White Cloud.

Addendum: In today’s sea-state ‘forecast’, the Captain said it’s going to be really bad overnight and to take our seasickness pills now. Then he said that according to Housekeeping that means it’s going to be a good crossing over to the Sounds because whenever he says it’s going to be bad, it’s usually nice. (That has been our experience so far. We had a GORGEOUS day today, and the crossing last night, while a bit pitchy, was not very bad at all.)

Addendum to the Addendum: I suppose it’s not a good thing when you go out on the back deck, and the benches are lashed to the railings.



Addendum to the Addendum’s Addendum: Interesting development. The Volendam lost power, and we were absolutely dead in the water for five minutes or more. We drifted sideways to the swells and got some really good rolling going. I’m pleased to report that the engines are back online now, and we’ve got forward motion again. I’m not so pleased to report that Dad and Aunt Brigitte decided to GO OUT on the ‘back porch’ to see the swells. Hmmmmmmmmmm. They survived, but I might kill them now. The captain said we ‘dropped an engine’. As if one just fell off or something! Something overloaded the other engine, and it went offline before they could do anything about it. It’s very weird to be in a blackout on a ship. Good thing I always pack a flashlight.

I’m off to take some Meclizine.

Addendum to the addendum to the . . . etc. (by Dad)

The captain just announced that some passengers are smelling smoke in their cabins, but not to worry. Call the front office if you smell smoke!

Oh, really? Wow, and here I thought you were supposed to ignore signs of fire or electrical overload. Silly me!

ps The sea state is now rough (7.5 to 15ft swells) and expected to go higher. No seasickness in our cabin yet. Keep your fingers crossed!

Adventures in Eating

We’ve had some chances to try foods unfamiliar to us on this trip.

At the Hilton in Auckland, I tried Marmite and Vegemite, the yeast spreads Kiwis and Aussies use on their toast. They were an AWFUL, TERRIBLE, HORRID black salty paste. Dad said they tasted like dried up soy sauce-- which is actually a nicer description than the taste. Don’t worry, kids, I’ve got some for you to try!

Fast food choices in New Zealand are many and varied and all of them familiar. KFC, McDonalds, Burger King, Subway, Pizza Hut, etc. We tried a McDonalds on the way to Hamilton. She asked me if I wanted a Coke then what kind. So sodas are ‘Cokes’. (Most places do not give you ice!) She also asked me if I wanted it for here or takeaway. There seem to be no real New Zealand fast foods but the country is dotted with ‘Takeaways’—Thai Takeaways, Chinese Takeaways, etc.We ate in many little cafes. My favorite one was called “A Cuppa ‘n a Cake”. We discovered panninis. VERY YUMMY grilled sandwiches.

On our way to Paihia with Ian, we stopped at a fast food place that had several choices. I had a meat pie. It was YUMMY. When I told Ian I had tried the traditional Kiwi fast food, he said, “Good on ya!” (I suppose that means ‘way to go’.) Dad had fish and chips with the fish battered and fried right before his eyes. It was a kind of fish called Hoki, and he really liked it.

At our Paihia hotel the next morning, I tried something called ‘black pudding’. They looked liked little black brownies so they couldn’t be bad, right? WRONG. Ick, nasty, terrible stuff. Turns out it is sausage. Don’t worry, kids, I DON’T have any of it to bring home!

Wellington, New Zealand

28/10

Today is Day 9 by Dad’s reckoning. Day 9! Almost halfway done. It’s going so quickly! We walked 17,800 steps today. No wonder I’m exhausted tonight!

We cruised into Wellington Harbour early this morning, through an opening so small I’m amazed the cruise ship fit! It is a commercial port. You can take a shuttle for $5 each to downtown or walk. The fellow on the dock said, "It's quite far." But we decided to walk anyway.

Our 'nextdoor neighbor':

After docking, we decided to walk to Te Papa, New Zealand’s premiere museum. It was a loooooooooooong walk. And windy! I almost thought we were in Highland it was so windy. And COLD. I loved it.

Te Papa is HUGE. Three football fields big. We spent most of the time in the Maori area.

After about three hours (including walking time), we taxied back to the ship. (Heh.)

We ate lunch and then worked on trying to upload to the blog and caught a little nap before our ship-sponsored excursion to the Seal Coast. ('Seal Coast Safari')

It was AMAZING. Scary too. We went in a Toyota Land Cruiser. Somehow I was lucky and got to sit in front with a seat belt. Everyone else (Dad, Uncle Mike, Aunt Brigitte and two other passengers) had to rattle around in the back on side-facing bench seats. We drove through the city and then started 4-Wheeling straight up a mountain. Hanging on a tiny, windy (bendy, Kiwis say) dirt road, so far up I couldn’t bear to look down! Especially since my side was on the downward side. EEEEK.

We saw ostriches, wild horses, wild goats, tame horses, cows, dogs (pets), sea birds, seals, and other stuff I probably forgot. The other vehicle got stuck in the sand and had to all get out while they freed it. We got to stay inside.

And it was WARM. After I zipped the liners back into our jackets, dug out gloves and the warm hats, and we wore hoodies. But ten miles away and back at the ship it was FREEZING again. Go figure.

The guide asked us if we wanted coffee or tea for our tea break. He didn’t know how to handle those of us who drank neither. Brigitte suggested he tote along hot chocolate in the future too. We had our break while taking photos of the surrounds and of the seals. There were three there. These are young males who didn’t want to go to, or came back from the mating grounds on the south island. I guess if you can’t get the girls you came hang out at the bach pad! ('Bachs' are what Kiwis call their 'cabins'.)

So off to bed now. We’re getting up at 6am to watch us sail across Cook Straight (one of the roughest bodies of water in the world) and into Captain Cook’s Ship Cove. Then another boat tour. Isn’t vacation wonderful????

Garion's Tree

Imagine our surprise when we hiked to the top of a hill on Urupukupuku Island, turned down the path, and came upon the Vale and Garion’s Tree!!! Isn’t this just the tree you’ve always imagined in your mind when reading about the Vale? I could have sat upon that bench for the rest of my life. (Or maybe only until my next meal anyway….)

If you haven’t read a series of books called “The Belgariad” by David Eddings, you should do so immediately. They are my favorite books ever, follwed closely by his second series “The Mallorean” which chronicles the lives of the same characters

Half-Day Around Auckland and North to Paihia

22/10


After spending the morning having breakfast, returning the car, doing email, and working on the blog, we met our tour guide at noon--Ian Shirley of New Zealand Personal Tours--and took off for our half-day of touring Auckland.

We started by going to Mt. Eden. Auckland has 27 extinct volcanoes dotted throughout the city. Mt. Eden offers gorgeous views of the City of Sails.

Auckland is built on and around 48 volcanoes. One Tree Hill,the largest of Auckland's extinct volcanoes, was the site of an early Maori settlement.

Mt. Eden is the highest volcano on the Auckland isthmus. Rangitoto Island has an even better vista. This volcano emerged from the sea just 600 years ago, no doubt much to the wonder of the Maori people living next door on Motutapu Island. It is thought that Maori settled on the volcanoes beginning in the 14th century, taking advantage of the fertile soils. There's evidence that in the 16th century, the Maori used the cones as defensive pa (fortified villages). Evidence of complex earthworks can be seen on Mt. Eden and One Tree Hill where Maori cleared volcanic stone to develop garden plots and form the terraces that are features of pa.

The Parnell Rose Garden was quite beautiful. Because it’s so early in the spring here, not many roses were already blooming but we did see some. The grass in between the rows of bushes was the most glorious green, and there were NO SPRINKLERS that we could see.. Mom spent a fair amount of time sniffing the flowers that were there. This was the most beautiful rose. Notice a friend crawling on the flower?

We then crossed the Harbour Bridge and went up to Mt. Victoria. Mt. Victoria is also an extinct volcano and was once the site of a 'disappearing gun', a large piece of artillery placed there because Kiwis were worried about Russian invasion in 1899.

After a quick lunch of croissant sandwiches in Devenport, we had a driving tour of Auckland’s mansions overlooking the harbour on our way to the lookout above Piha Beach. Piha Beach is on the Tasman Sea, so we got our first glimpse of that mighty body of water.

Ian then wound the van up and up and up a windy, narrow road (which seems to be the only kind here in New Zealand) to the Takeri Rainforest Visitor’s Center. We saw a statue of a Moa! Moa’s were hunted to extinction by the Maoris. They were HUGE, flightless birds. Kind of like Ostriches.

This is a photo frame they have hanging there to frame the view. Quite clever.

Then it was off to the airport to pick up the rest of the Heuers and our drive to Paihia. We arrived in Paihia about 10pm with a carload of zombies. We were soooooooooooo tired!

Our room at the Paihia Scenic Circle Hotel was lovely. It had an enormous pointed ceiling of some kind of timber planks. Very tropical. Mom was so exhausted, she didn’t care that she couldn’t find her PJs or figure out how to plug in her CPAP. We just crashed as soon as we could.

Day (I can’t remember)

Have you ever been physically desperate to go to sleep? That’s how I’ve been the last few days. I could barely stay awake long enough to get ready for bed, let alone write anything! Jet lag is TERRIBLE.

Our tour was AMAZING. There are not enough words in the English language (or Maori either) to describe the countryside and the things we saw. I think we took about a thousand photos. Every corner (no exaggeration) we turned was another incredible sight.

We arrived at the ship yesterday (Friday our time, Thursday in Utah) about 5:30pm. We were on the ship by 6pm. Very smooth check in. Our luggage made it to our stateroom before we did! (A first.)

Today has been a sea day. We’re going so slowly, the ship can’t use the stabilizers so it’s been a rockin’ and a rollin’. Thankfully, going so slowly means I’m not seasick (which is more than I can say about what happened on our cruise around the Bay of Islands on Wednesday).

We spent hours circling a volcano. Seriously. This is the first time Holland America has done a sea day today instead of just heading right to our first port (Tauranga). They decided to give us a day to ‘adjust’ to the time change instead of having the day in port. So it’s not too far from Auckland which is why we’re going so slowly. And why we spent four hours circling the White Islands. (Google them.)

The ship is listing quite far to port so the shower has become a bathtub because the drain is uphill. Hmmmmmmmmmmmm.

At the show tonight, Aunt Brigitte and I were the only ones awake! Can’t take those other Heuers anywhere.

Now it’s off to bed. I think I’ve turned the corner on jet lag so hopefully I’ll be able to post more tomorrow night. Another full day of touring tomorrow.