The top building visible is the deck next to dining room. Juni was not allowed near the fence.

After a breakfast we got a view/tour of the lovely terassed garden which wasn’t really visible in full when we arrived the day before. With lemon and orange trees, chicken and lambs for neighbors it likely puts quite a few parks I’ve seen to shame.

Te Rewa Rewa bridge

This is my stick. There are many like it, but this one is mine.

Janelles mother, Teresa, kindly took upon herself to show us around the area so we drove to the beach for a leisure stroll along the coastal line. Jonte found a special piece of driftwood he liked and all rejoiced.

Black swans and white ducks – it’s an upside down world

After the promenade we headed on further on to Pukekura park with a nice lake in the middle and a fernery to Mona’s delight. We also saw a Black Swan (not the first in New Zealand actually) which I decided needed to get documented.

For once we had left the diaper bag in the car so of course we ended up needing it. I walked to get it, and on my way passed two parking spots before getting to the one with our cars –  where also the whole group was already assembled. It seems I didn’t take the closest route – but who has multiple parking spots for a park? Bah.

We went back for lunch in New Plymouth at the Chaos Café – where yours truly enjoyed their chaos curry but the perhaps biggest surprise was dad having a chocolate milkshake. Happily fed we drove out the local zoo, Brooklands Zoo. Before we entered the zoo there was a playground and after some persuation mothers joined in the fun.

No relatives were harmed – but don’t try this at home kids.

We were initially bit sceptic to the zoo concept (as usual) but it seemed like one of the nicer ones and we had a look at the various animals as they were fed. Juni was very interested in the pigs and we also looked at the meerkats.

Approximately 30 minutes old and moves way faster than Juni.

Back at the house the animal theme kept on since one of the sheep were giving birth – we  gave the sheep some privacy and later snapped a few shots of the newborn one.

After a quick nap we headed of to Quiz night at the local pub, a long standing tradition in the James household. The team consisted of the Swedish visitors, Janelle with family, and friends through Janelle’s sister Rosie. Janelle’s father Geoff took a dangerous gamble and together with another Geoff switched the agreed choice of bonus topic – which they had to reveal after we got 9 out of 10 in the expected bonus category. Luckily it paid off and we got full points on the misc category, but it was a close call. With the diversity of the team’s knowledge it of course led to a win (out of 10 teams) to our hosts delight.

Poached eggs – apparently non-trivial to make

After the familiar routine of checking out (I think I can pack my usb-chargers blindfolded at this stage), we left the van and instead took a stroll along Cuba street. We found a lovely comic shop called Graphic Comics where dad got Tintin plasters – Mona looked at some Modesty Blaise and yours truly was thumbing a Xcom2 Artbook and considered a Zelda book but in the end left empty-handed.

We walked on until we reached Loretta where we had some breakfast – lovely muesli for me and amazing poached eggs according to Mona and parents were happy with bacon and eggs as well. Wellington and Cuba street had more to offer but we needed to get going if we were to reach New Plymouth tonight and we needed to return the cars at 14:00 as well. On the way back to the apartment I passed a Kathmandu shop which I quickly skimmed, a merino beanie later we got the car and drove off to Wellington Jucy to switch the van to two “Travella” cars which conveniently could fit the stroller in the trunk this time.

We split up since it was a bit of a gamble how Juni would handle five hours in a car and we might need a few more and longer stops then the parents.

Juni however behaved like a charm and we only had one stop at Whanganui where the lunch offers were a bit better than the smallest villages we had passed previously. Unfortunately we had missed the time window for lunch but was still too early for dinner so in the end there weren’t that many open places and the one we ended up going to, Stellar, only had the pub menu so Pizzas it was. Not bad though and after stocking up on baby items in the nearby supermarket we continued the drive.

Salmon on a pizza you say? Well, why not…

We arrived in New Plymouth at Janelle’s parents house almost at the exact same time as my parents and were met and offered pasta done á la minute by Jonte and a lovely glass of red to go with that. Juni got a plush sheep (but of course) as a present from Janelle’s parents in addition to some other assorted toys so it was happiness all around. The house is surrounded by a large garden and secluded by high trees and one almost feels like living in the tree tops looking out from the deck or dining room. The rest of the evening we spent chatting and having a good time with the Janelle’s family who were excellent hosts.

Balcony for outside breakfast, big-ass TV and proper sofa – not bad for a hotel living room.

It was again time to check out, a shame to leave such a nice apartment after so little time but all good things come to an end.

With my father’s and my own love for buffers we ended up with plenty of time to go before the ferry left. We had some lighter breakfast on the ferry but it wasn’t long until I realized I should have brought my iPad when leaving the car deck but I passed the time by snapping some photos and playing with Juni. All in all a rather eventless journey to Wellington.

Bye Bye Southern Island!

We arrived safe in Wellington, which had a bit more intense traffic than previous cities – the capital after all. After some minor detours we reached the apartment that mother had booked, Boulcott Suites, which conveniently had a washing machine. We threw some in together with the washing powder satchel and to make the most out of Wellington we went out on the streets again.

The main highlight of the day was Te Papa Tongarewa (Mueseum of New Zealand), but due to our weak bodies and souls we had to stop at Mac’s Brewery for something to eat and drink on the way. Outside the brewery there was some sort of indigenous (I assumed) drumming/dancing event outside – it struck me as interesting that I saw no Maori people there so perhaps I’m wrong.

Culture appropriation or celebrating New Zealand origins – you decide

Mmmm beer

After enjoying Mac’s we finally got to Te Papa where we aimlessly strolled for a few minutes until we realized this would not be possible to get a decent idea of so we managed to get a late express guided tour. We were the only ones for the tour which suited us great – too much to see in 90 minutes so perhaps come back one day.

After seeing a Kraken wannabe aka the world largest squid carcass and various Maori culture the museum had to close so we walked back home for, drumroll, chilling and reading. And of course we realized that just because a satchel has the label biodegradable it doesn’t mean one should put the whole bag in – lesson learned and another attempt of washing was initiated…