Warm Rain Ship's Log

Plush Potty

On the way home from our North Island road trip last week we stopped for lunch in Kawakawa, just 15 minutes away from our home at the marina here in Opua. Kawakawa is famous for their Hundertwasser toilets (really!). These public restrooms were designed by internationally renowned artist, ecologist and architect, Friedensreich Hundertwasser. This is the only structure that Mr. H. built in the southern hemisphere. The toilets are made from the community's recycled old glass bottles and reclaimed bricks. There are tufts of native grass on the roof and a tree is incorporated into the structure. Mosaic tiling, copper handwork, sculptures, vivid pottery columns and cobblestone flooring are prevalent inside and out. I promise, this will be the last blog entry about toilets!

Rugby!

We went to our first ever rugby game on Friday night with our good friend Sally and her friend and rugby expert, Lucy. Sally had told us that Lucy knew her rugby and she wasn't kidding. Lucy sat between Tom and me during the game (the New Zealand Blues vs. the Australian Waritahs) and very patiently explained what was happening on the field.  Rugby is a tough game - the players have minimal padding and most guys play without helmets. It makes American football players look like a bunch of wussies. We had a great time even though New Zealand lost the game.

If you're interested in learning more about rugby, this YouTube video, Rugby 101, is a good introduction to the game.

North Island Road Trip - Day 5 & 6

After a great breakfast at the Blah Blah Blah Cafe (I just love that name!) in Dargaville, we headed for The Kauri Museum in Matakohe. We were told that this museum is world class and it really is. Take a look at their website if you have a minute to spare.

Our plan was to spend the final night of our road trip at the Lavender Dell B&B in Matakohe. Well, we liked it so much there that we spent two nights! Our hosts Trish & Jim are a delight and their property is fabulous. Their home and separate B&B cottage sits on 11 acres on top of a hill with glorious views of rolling hills and Kaipara Harbour on both sides. They have quite a menagerie - chickens, several sheep, three alpacas (Mitch, Prince and Blackjack), two female Scottish Highlands cattle (Bonnie Belle and Misty), a miniature pony (Wee Hamish), cats and two dogs (Maggie & Tammi). We roamed the property at will and had fun helping Jim feed the alpacas and cattle in the evening. We did a little bit of sightseeing on our final day there but spent a good amount of time just hanging out. It was a wonderful way to end our road trip and we'll definitely go back for another visit next year. For more information on Lavender Dell Cottage, check out their website.

Click here to see pictures from our stay at Lavender Dell.

North Island Road Trip - Day 4

Omapere Lookout, the Waipoua Kauri Forest, Dargaville Museum & Baylys Beach

On Wednesday morning I reluctantly left the bubble bath behind as we continued on our journey south. We walked the beautiful trail to Omapere Lookout taking in the stunning views of Hokianga Harbour, the sand dunes and the Tasman Sea.

We then drove into the Waipoua Forest for an up close and personal look at some very big Kauri trees. Tane Mahuta is the largest living Kauri tree in New Zealand. When it came into view on the trail it actually took my breath away. The tree is 168 feet tall, the trunk girth is over 45 feet and it's believed to be over 2,000 years old.

We then continued on to see the stand of Kauri trees called The Four Sisters. While individually they are not as big as Tane Mahuta, they are set together in a beautiful grouping in the middle of the forest. Another 20 minutes further down the trail brought us to Te Matua Ngahere, The Father of the Forest. This Kauri tree was struck by lightning a few years back and the top of the tree is now gone, however it still stands 98 feet tall and the girth of its trunk is 54 feet around!

We stopped at the Dargaville Museum where the masts of the Rainbow Warrior are standing on the hillside (see Day 1 of our road trip for more info on the Rainbow Warrior). We opted not to go into the museum and instead drove to Baylys Beach where we stayed in a tiny tourist flat in the holiday park. After a nap for Tom and a walk down to the beach for me, we had a scrumptous dinner at the Funky Fish Restaurant before retiring to our cozy flat for the night. Click here for more pictures of our day in the Kauri forest.

North Island Road Trip - Day 3

90 Mile Beach, Rawene & Omapere

Day three of our road trip began with a trip to a store called The Ancient Kauri Kingdom. We had heard from friends that even though it's a souvenir shop it's a must see. In addition to all of the beautiful Kauri wood bowls, gifts and furniture they have a huge Kauri tree trunk in the middle of the store and the inside of it has been carved into a spiral staircase to their upper floor. It was as impressive as our friends told us it would be and we had fun gawking at the very beautiful and expensive furniture.

We made a short stop at the south end of 90-Mile Beach, probably the most famous beach on the North Island. Further north, up near Cape Reinga, the big tour buses actually drive down the beach for several miles and you can access the beach by car at several points along the way south. It looked like cars got stuck in the sand there frequently, as there were tractors sitting on the beach. We guessed that they were there to pull cars out of the sand. Since our little Honda is so low to the ground we decided not to chance getting stuck in the sand and walked out onto the beach where I stuck my toes into the chilly water of the Tasman Sea.

At the small town of Kohukohu we took the short 10-minute ride across Hokianga Harbour to the small town of Rawene. We had a terrific lunch sitting on the deck of the Boat Shed Cafe before continuing on to our hotel - the Copthorne Hotel & Resort. The hotel sits right on the water in Omapere and was very modern and beautiful. This was the most upscale/expensive place that we stayed during our road trip ($119/night NZ which is approx. $75 US). From our room we looked out at Hokianga Harbour and across to the sand dunes on the other side. In addition, the room had a bathtub so I got my bubble bath fix. Life doesn't get much better than that! More pictures from day 3 can be found here.

North Island Road Trip - Day 2

Cape Reinga, Te Paki Sand Dunes & Gumdiggers Park

Day two of our road trip finds us on the long road to Cape Reinga, the northern-most tip of the North Island. The 75 mile trip is very rural and the last 15 miles the road is unpaved. The parklike setting at the Cape is stunning, with interesting signs posted along the 20 minute walkway from the car park to the lighthouse.

Cape Reinga is "the meeting place" - where the Tasman Sea and the Pacific Ocean meet. It's actually very obvious where they meet - the water changes color at the "line". Today was not as windy as yesterday, but it will still very blustery and we tramped all over the park taking in the views.

On the way south from the Cape we stopped at Te Paki Sand Dunes for a picnic lunch. The sand dunes are huge - it looks like what I think the sand looks like on the Sahara Desert. You can rent boards to surf down the dunes. We watched several people hike up to the top of the dunes - they looked like ants at the top of the hill - then slide down and disappear behind the huge wall of sand. It looked like fun but we both decided to be spectators - we didn't want sand in every orifice of our bodies.

We also passed a pen stocked full of sheep. We see sheep all over the hillsides of New Zealand, but this was the first place that we've seen them packed into a pen like sardines. We're not sure why they were penned up like that - it was sad to see them so cramped even though they didn't seem to mind.

Next stop was the Gumdiggers Park. Gumdiggers were men that dug "gum" (actually amber crystals) out of the Kauri swamps back in the 1800's. The most noted use for the gum was to make varnish and jewelry. To find out more about the gumdiggers check out The Gumdiggers Park webpage.

Click here to see pictures from today's road trip.

North Island Road Trip - Day 1

Matauri Bay, Whangaroa Harbour, Mangonui & Whatuwhiwhi

Today was the first day of our road trip to explore the north end of New Zealand's North Island. We drove up the east side of the island and our first stop was Matauri Bay. We parked the car at the holiday park -(more on holiday parks in another post) - and hiked up a hill to the Rainbow Warrior Memorial. The Rainbow Warrior was a Greenpeace ship that was sunk over 20 years ago. The shipwreck is now a popular dive site in the Cavelli Islands and the memorial is shaped like a rainbow and has the boat's propeller in the middle. The views from the hilltop were stunning on this very windy day.

We stopped at the Samuel Marsden Anglican Church and walked the perimeter of the graveyard. It seems that this was a native Maori graveyard and some of the headstones were very ornate, shaped like fish hooks and dolphins.

We drove around Whangaroa Harbour for a look see before heading to Mangonui for lunch of their world famous fish & chips. The F&C's lived up to their reputation in this quaint little fishing town. We stayed the night in a cabin at the Whatuwhiwhi (wa-2-wee-wee) Holiday Park and watched the sun set over the sand dunes while enjoying a five star dinner at the Carrington Golf Club Restaurant. Pictures from our day can be found at the following link: North Island Road Trip - Day 1

A Doggone Good Time

Today we attended the Opua Regatta - a local event staged to raise money for the Opua School. There were booths set up on the wharf selling everything from bakery goodies to fishing gear, several raffles and fun & games for the kids. One of the kids' events was a raft race. The entrants (average age 6-8 years old) had homemade rafts that they paddled around the bay. Our 6-year old friend Holly and her schoolmates had a raft called "Girl Power". While they didn't win the race, they looked great out on the water with the raft brightly decorated with balloons, a pink boa and lots of glitter.

We had the most fun watching the dog swimming races. First race set of races was for small dogs, next was large dogs, then third set was the dog and owner races. Each race was started out on a barge in the bay and the dogs (and owners) swam to the beach. It was a hoot to watch with most (but not all) dogs willingly going into the water and heading in the right direction. The winning dog in each category got a nice prize pack full of doggie goodies.

Card Carrying Members of AA

If we were back in the States we wouldn't admit this - but we're now card carrying members of AA. No, we're not talking about Alcoholics Anonymous, we're talking about the Automobile Association. At home (the U.S.) it's called the Automobile Club of America, but since we're not in America anymore Toto, it's just called the Automobile Association, or AA. Anyway, they've been a great help in planning our road trips and we even have pretty new cards to carry in our wallets.

Morris and James Pottery

Last week my friend Jan introduced me to Morris and James pottery. She had seen their pottery for sale in several shops in New Zealand and was excited to find out that Morris and James is located in Matakana, just down the road from our friend Sally's house. As soon as we walked into the showroom I was hooked. Their designs and color combinations are spectacular.

Jan and I wandered around for well over an hour as she picked out several pieces to purchase. I, on the other hand, restrained myself and only purchased a tiny fridge magnet. I would have loved to buy out the entire store, but I kept reminding myself that I have no room on the boat for fragile pottery or wall tiles. Oh well, it was fun to look. I was so enjoying the artwork that I only took one picture of some fun looking pottery in the courtyard. For a real treat, check out the Morris and James website.