Rocky Pancakes!

Our week at Pohara soon came to an end and it was off down the rugged west coast of the South Island..destination Punakaiki and the famous Pancake rocks. The weather was gorgeous but I don't think the tide was particularly high so we didn't see the rocks in their full glory. It was still impressive though. The limestone rocks have been sculpted by the sea and unusual erosion. There are also fun little blow holes and rocks that look like animals (can you spot the lion??!).
We stayed at this crazy hostel in Punakaiki (poo on a car key!). It was in the middle of the "bush" and had a record player with a sumptuous collection of classic records. I don't think Rich, Kath and Rosie appreciated this quite as much as me! The shack was just a small walk from the coast and we managed to get down to the sea just before the sunset..great pictures to be had!! The other bonus with this wood shack/hostel was the fresh muffin breakfast that Rich went to buy in the morning. Great fun!

Golden Bay

This is going to be a whistle stop tour of the South Island. I promised to myself that I would at least complete the NZ experience. I think I would like to continue it beyond NZ (is there life after NZ I am wondering?!?) but let's wait and see.
From Nelson we headed North to Golden Bay and the Sand fly capital of New Zealand! We were glad to be joined by Rich, Kath and Amelie in Pohara. The Johnsons found this great 4 bed bach with enough room for all of us to enjoy. We had a great time together. The highlight of this part of the excursion had to be the taxi boat ride around the Abel Tasman National Park from Kaiteriteri to Tonga Bay. Not only was the scenery incredible but we were joined by about 200 dolphins for the trip. This is where Rosie managed to win the "photo of the Amess NZ year" competition!
The only down side to the time in Pohara was that it rained a fair amount. Totaranui was our favourite beach. Rosie and I made full use of staying with the Johnsons by going out to a great local restaurant called "The Penguin". It was a great time together as families in the same house.

Nelson and surrounding area

It's been a while since I last entered into blogdom. I am writing this in my parents' sitting room now back in the UK. I am missing New Zealand and so writing this helps me to remember what a wonderful time we had in such a brilliant country. Nelson was one of our favourite places to stay. We loved Rabbit Island (unusually named because we didn't actually see any rabbits!) and spent time messing around on the beach aswell as surfing in the sea.
Other fun stuff in Nelson included the Saturday market where we bought some gifts to take home (we found Harry a toy plane made out of old Coke cans and Matilda a lovely princess mirror). We also loved going to Seifried vineyard and a fun dairy (Neudorf) where they sold delicious sheep cheese.

Wellington to Picton Ferry Crossing

The Journey from Wellington to Nelson

New Zealand never fails to amaze me. I think of the Dover- Calais ferry crossing, especially the white cliffs of Dover, and remember really enjoying the whole experience when I first went with my family as a child. You then get to New Zealand and "ferry crossing" moves into a whole new dimension!! We got on the "InterIslander" at 10:30am from Wellington and proceeded to be amazed as we entered the Marlborough Sounds for the final hour towards Picton. Stunning was the only word to describe it. I took some video and pictures but it does not really do it justice. At the end of the day you'll just have to come over and experience it for yourselves!
The amazing journey didn't end at Picton though. We took the "Queen Charlotte scenic drive" from Picton to Nelson. It was a little bit windy in parts but the coast line views were spectacular. This is one journey I will never forget and for all the right reasons!

Wet and Windy Wellington!

We arrived in Wellington in the rain... obviously the the old welly boots gag was banded around a bit! We have enjoyed the capital of NZ although the weather certainly has not been at its best! The museum, botanical gardens and cable car have been the highlights for us. We have also been enjoying some great meals out (the "1 red dog" was especially good).
Not sure when I will be blogging again but thought a quickie on Wellington was better than nothing!!

The Journey down to Wellington

This is the big one! You cannot spend a year in NZ and not visit the South Island! We have talked about this holiday ever since touching down in Auckland and now it has come. Obviously it has been fairly manic up until this point. I have worked my final clinical week at Papakura and will miss the staff, patients and community a tremendous amount. I feel that I have been stretched in many ways but also really thrived so thank you to all at Rosehill.
We packed and left Auckland Friday 1st Feb 8:45pm. Our first stop was at Turangi (about 4 hours south of Auckland) where we enjoyed a small family room at "extreme backpackers"! It was perfect and Harry and Matilda thought it was brilliant fun to all be sleeping in the same room!
The next morning we jetted down to Waikanae which is about 1 hour North of Wellington. We stayed with Andrew, Helen and their 2 daughters Philippa and Katy (?second cousins on Rosie's side of the family). The company, food and place were all lovely. We especially enjoyed a trip out to Otaki gorge(which was the setting for some of the scenes around hobbiton in the "Lord of the Rings"). We all enjoyed swimming in the river and the "wobbly bridge".

Harry's 3rd Birthday

I don't think I have mentioned in the blog the fact that we are leaving NZ in March. It is with great sadness but with eager anticipation that we return to the UK for the next chapter of our lives! It was no mean feat, therefore, to celebrate Harry's birthday properly in the midst of packing up our lives, staying at friends (thank you Mike and Jennifer!) and then house sitting at Paul and Laura's house! We managed it...just!
The main requests from Harry for his birthday were: 1. Opening presents in Mummy and Daddy's bed, 2. Having "Froissants" (croissants) and 3. Mummy's Chocolate cake!
We succeeded on all 3 counts which equated to very happy Harry on his birthday. We also had a little party for him organised mainly by a friend called Nadine (it was a joint birthday party with her daughter Molly). A great time was had by all including a sporting game of "Duck, duck, goose" (unique to NZ I think) which involved running fast round a circle. Harry didn't quite get the rules but it didn't seem to matter! Harry's favourite presents were items of clothing (I wonder where he gets that trait from?!?!) including a pirate's costume and some brilliant tops from various family members. Thank you all who gave gifts.

Tractor time with Dizz and James!

This will surely go down as one of Harry's highlights of our time in NZ. On Saturday 19th Jan we ventured over to the West of Auckland to our friends Dizz and James. They own a beautiful house with amazing grounds in Oratia and we last went to visit them during winter. It was at that moment Harry was introduced to James' mini tractor which he uses to mow the lawns, and ever since Harry has been wanting to have a go on it!
James and Dizz kindly invited us over for a BBQ and official tractor driving time! Harry was in awe and I thought it was rather fun aswell! A classic "father son" bonding moment and I even got to mow the next door neighbour's lawn. (Note to self..I must buy a house with a big garden so I can justify buying a mini tractor!)
Thanks Dizz and James!

Farewell Auntie Buggy and Auntie Pee!

It's been another busy month so yet again I have fallen a behind in my blogging! Sorry to all the regular subscribers (all 2 of you!) but I will endeavour to catch up with this sitting!
We have genuinely loved having Rosie's sisters to stay. It's been a fun time for all. The final week included Birthday celebrations for Amy, aswell as a Sky Tower trip for Harry and Matilda without the parents! It was a mildly tearful event when it came to the actual departure and parting of the siblings (although quite reserved by Kingsley-Smith standards!!)
Thanks Amy and Julia for coming and "mucking in"..great fun.

Dolphin encounter in the Bay of Islands

We really did get to see dolphins "up close and personal". A great experience.

Matilda and Harry in the park

The little park at Pacific Rendezvous provided great entertainment for the children!

Tutukaka

The day after Boxing day we went up to a place called Tutukaka and a holiday resort called "Pacific Rendezvous". You may well think we spend all our time on holiday (which is partially true!) but I actually wasn't allowed to work in between Christmas and New Year because all the other staff from the surgery went on holiday. New Zealand practically shuts down from Christmas until February...Auckland is a ghost City and most Kiwis seem to be at the family bach for the Summer. (A lesson to be learnt?)
We tracked "Up North" with Paul, Laura, Gracie, Amy and Julia and spent a fantastic 5 days at this holiday resort with amazing views. Highlights of the holiday were body boarding at Sandy Bay, fun evenings playing Settlers and enjoying the facilities at the resort (including tennis court, great children's park, table tennis and private beach).
We also spent one day taking a boat trip to the Bay of Islands. The magical experience for us all was seeing dolphins on the trip (see video). Quite spectacular.

Christmas Day

We decided to go for the stereotype NZ Christmas...Picnic on the beach after church, presents and then BBQ! It was a great day although the weather wasn't exactly brilliant sunshine... in fact it rained! We woke up to Matilda and Harry excitedly opening their stocking presents. Harry did wake at 5am but fortunately didn't notice the presents at the end of his cot and it was only when Matilda woke and said "Father Christmas had visited" that Harry realised it was a special day.
We spent the day as a family unit with Paul, Laura, Gracie, Amy and Julia. The extended family in the form of Rich, Kath and Amelie arrived for the evening and the big Christmas day BBQ. Harry and Matilda loved all the presents and the day went really well (apart from the poor weather!).