We've come to the end of the North Island!

So that's nearly that then. The bottom of the North- Wellington - beckons and it's been fun. We've been up volcanos, in hot geothermal pools, cycling around vineyards and on deserted beaches .... on foot and in the motorhome! So what with the 2 return trip s back to Auckland ( one for visa delivery and one for house rent / my - Mike's - job interview) it's beeen eventful. The motorhome style of living has been a great new way to get around and we have had the option to stay in motel rooms too in towns (most camper parks are on the outskirts as you would expect).

Highlights - cycle route wine tasting in the Hawkes bay region - Napier - visited 3 wineries and a walk to the Huka Falls on a perfect day.

We hope to catch the ferry on Wed and head off.... in some direction. Mountains and whale watching are on the agenda and some unexpected stuff too we guess.

Let the touring begin!

So thats the worky bit done (ish) ! Yvonne has a start date of 25/5 and I have a couple of 'irons in the fire'. We had a quiet day today (Good friday) in the Auckland Domain (Central Park) and had a look around the museum and watched a Maori warrior/dance group explain part of their culture. We are packed now and ready to go and plan to head north via sub-tropical forests to the beaches and sights of the Bay of Islands. Dune surfing may be one of the highlights!

Our internet access will be a little more intermittant now ( not been good anyway!) so will post again...... sometime!

Its the weekend and beyond

It's been a sunny week here in paradise! We've done the volcano island(Rangitoto) and ferry trip to the other side of the bay - the views from anywhere are stunning!

Yvonne has had her meeting for work and she is just waiting for a contract to be couriered over! If she signs it, we are then into the real estate market this week before we drive off for 5 weeks in our motorhome (see www.wildernessmotorhomes.co.nz). We hope to make the most of the 'indian summer' and travel north to the Bay of Islands area and visit tropical rainforests on route! We will then be coming back via Auckland ( do any businessy bits) and off to the vineyards (Coromandel) and volcanic activity (Rotorua).

We feel at home already as we sense that NZ is part UK (language, customs etc), part western city and with a mediteranean climate! It's just a great ' vibe'!

We're off to the harbour again to book tickets to another (big) island, Waiheke, whilst the fair weather holds and we might even bask in the sun and have some dinner (1kg of mussels for $10 =£4!!) Must go it's happy hour soon (it's happy hour every hour here!!).

Love n Peace

M & Y
xx