Whitianga: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Three (20 February)

This is Barnaby and me at Cook's Beach near Whitianga. Isn't it lovely :-)?

Morris

Cathedral Cove: Day One Hundred and Twenty-Two (19 February)

It is possible to walk through the "Cathedral" to the adjacent Mare's Leg Cove (as long as it's not high tide).

Here I am inside it :-).

Morris

Coromandel: Day One Hundred and Twenty One (18 February)

Here I am trying a spot of gardening at the Ngatea Water Gardens. I found the ground a bit hard :-).

Morris

Rotorua: Day One Hundred and Ten – Afternoon (6 February)

Rotorua has another famous Green Lake (Lake Rotokakahi) alongside a bright Blue one (Lake Tikitapu) so we drove out to see them after our tour of Whakarewarewa.

Morris

Rotorua: Day One Hundred and Ten – Morning (6 February)

We chose the ingredients for our Hangi from chicken or mutton, carrots, cabbage, sweetcorn, kumara (sweet potato) and potato and put them in a box with our name on.

Then the lady put all the boxes in a bigger box in the ground where the food would be cooked by the rising steam. It takes quite a long time but the end result was delicious.

Morris

Rotorua: Day One Hundred and Nine – Afternoon (5 February)

Back at the motel we tried out the plunge pool. Very relaxing :-).

Morris

Rotorua: Day One Hundred and Nine – Morning (5 February)

Here I am beside the Champagne Lake. I was happier to perch here than by the sign saying "Devil's Bath" which refers to the Grandfather of all the lakes at Wai-O-Tapu (Lake Ngakoro).



Isn’t it an amazing green colour? That’s caused by chemicals, which make it acidic and means nothing can live in it because it’s extremely poisonous. Fortunately the bad smell keeps people away.

Morris

Taupo: Day One Hundred and Eight (4 February)

After we'd looked round the Craters of the Moon, we did manage to find the prawn park and went on the organised tour. I thought prawns were pink but they actually have blue pincers.

We saw inside the hatchery and nurseries and fed the baby prawns. Then we went on a nature walk, where we could also feed the trout. The grown ups enjoyed using the thermal foot bath and Barnaby and I got to meet Shawn the Prawn :-).

Morris

Wellington: Day One Hundred and Two (29 January)

This is Barnaby and me in the Cable Car Museum where they have a mock up of what the carriages used to look like.

Morris

Wellington: Day One Hundred and One (28 January)

Here's Barnaby and me onboard the Interislander Ferry. Once it got choppy we moved inside.

Morris

Farewell Spit: Day Ninety-Nine (26 January)

Here I am in the Marlborough Sounds. Isn't it pretty?

Morris

Nelson: Day Ninety-Eight (25 January)

While we were in Nelson we also discovered a street called Barnaby Way. They must have known we were coming :-).

Morris

Christchurch: Day Ninety-Five (22 January)

The change of car meant I lost my special seat I’d been travelling in all round the South Island (between the two front seats) but Miss Robb was pleased because now we had a radio that worked – and a bigger engine for getting up the hills.

Morris

Otago: Day Ninety-One (18 January)

Here's the magnificent view from "the ZigZag". Definitely worth taking the windier road for :-).

Morris

Queenstown: Day Ninety - Afternoon (17 January)

I might not have had a go at steering but I really enjoyed the cruise on TSS Earnslaw too and watching the sheep shearing was fascinating.

Morris

Queenstown: Day Ninety - Morning (17 January)

Here's Barnaby saying hello to another New Zealand local. This is a giant statue of the Kiwi, the nation's national bird and where New Zealanders get their nickname from.

Morris

Doubtful Sound: Day Eighty-Nine (16 January)

I loved our trip to Doubtful Sound too.

The best bit was The Sound of Silence when everyone was asked to be quiet and they cut the boat’s engine. It is like going back to the very beginning of time when all you can hear is birdsong and distant waterfalls. So peaceful.

Morris

Mount Cook: Day Eighty-Two (9 January)

Here's Barnaby and me with Mount Cook in the distance. You can see why the Maori call it Aoraki - 'the cloud piercer'.

Barnaby also had a look through the binoculars at the Sir Edmund Hillary Alpine Centre.

Morris

Akaroa: Day Eighty (7 January)

The tourist route to Akaroa had lots of bends but the views were wonderful, taking us all round the rim of the extinct volcanic crater that now forms the harbour. (Akaroa means 'long harbour' in the local Maori language.)

We checked into a lovely motel called La Rochelle and had the best fish and chips I've ever tasted for supper (excellent value too).

Morris

Christchurch: Day Seventy-Eight (5 January)

Here's Barnaby and me with one of the locals :-).

There are three times as many sheep in New Zealand as there are people.

Morris