The Annual Grandparents Visit

For the last couple of weeks my parents have been over on their annual visit – the ninth year in a row they’ve managed to take a month out of the UK to come and see us (thanks Mum and Dad!). 

Unfortunately they brought a bit of English weather with them so we had a cool, wet patch to break our summer up – it didn’t spoil things too much though, and we had a very relaxed time mostly just playing along with the kids: riding bikes, playing in the stream, going to the outdoor pool, lots of cafes, the playpark, Te Papa and the Zoo.

We also managed a grown-up dinner out one night at the lovely Cuba St Bistro, followed by cocktails at one of our favourite little spots, Duke Carvells, to belatedly celebrate my dad's recent big birthday (60 again ha ha!).

I lost count of the number of days we spent down on the waterfront while they were here, just wandering up and down people-watching, watching buskers, letting the kids play at Frank Kitts Park, watching this year's “Birdman” competition and other various people jumping in off the steps into the harbour, etc. 

I also lost count of the number of times we went down to the local park to search for creatures and bugs in the stream – thanks for humouring us on that one Mum and Dad! 

PS And the day they left, the good weather got switched back on again (sorry Mum and Dad!).

Himatangi Beach Again

Today is the first day back to work after the Christmas break for many Kiwis, although many more are still at the beach enjoying an extended break. January's usually a quiet month in New Zealand's cities and work places.

We came home yesterday, after rounding off our trip with a few days at our old favourite, Himatangi Beach. I love Himatangi – it’s a small place with such a laid back feel and it never really changes, yet every time we go we have a different experience. And going there is always a guaranteed rest.

We arrived at Himatangi just a few days after a 27 year old man drowned there - he got caught in one of the strong rips that this area is notorious for. I can certainly vouch for the fact that the ocean is pretty wild in these parts and I have a healthy respect for, fear of and awe for it.

I’ve got to give a lot of respect and thanks to all the surf life savers who patrol our beaches every summer. These amazing people (many of whom are volunteers) dedicate huge amounts of their time and rescue thousands of people every year.

On reflection, despite the number of times we’ve been here, I don’t think I have actually ever swum at Himatangi Beach. We’ve paddled, we’ve built driftwood teepees, we’ve collected thousands of shells, we’ve played rugby in the sand, I’ve been for walks and even runs by the sea....but I’ve never actually swum here. 

After spending several days swimming, boogie boarding and surfing in hot weather in Taranaki, I think we all assumed we'd continue with similar activities at Himatangi. 

However on this latest visit, we chose not to swim due to the large number of blue bottles (known back in England as Portuguese Man O’War) which had washed up in great big swarms everywhere. Although they’re not deadly, they deliver a nasty sting and none of us really wanted to risk it (although Alfie did take a little persuasion due to his current addiction to his cat-scratched boogie board).

But Himatangi Beach is an amazing place and we didn't mind not swimming. Instead, we did all our other favourite things – we built sand castles and teepees, played rugby, tennis and mini golf, spent countless hours at the playpark, drank coffee, bought ice creams at the dairy, had dinner at the Cossie Club, read books, fed Victa the reindeer, had water fights, collected shells, etc – and just really appreciated having a few more days of holiday together before we had to go home. 

See you next time Himatangi....

A Road Trip to Taranaki

We’ve just spent the last couple of weeks or so on a road trip from Wellington to Taranaki (via the Kapiti Coast, Horowhenua, the Manawatu and Whanganui). Some of these areas we were already fairly familiar with, but Taranaki was a completely new region for us – and wow, did we have a great time!

Taranaki is a pretty isolated and wild part of New Zealand, and truly stunning in its own way – with black sand beaches, lots of driftwood and big surf, and the looming presence of a huge snow-capped volcano (Mt Taranaki).

For part of the trip we were joined by Mark and Sam, and we all spent three happy, lazy days exploring, drinking lots of coffee, watching surfers, having a bit of a bush-walk half way up the volcano, swimming in the river, and plenty of G&Ts, barbeques and laughter in the evenings.

We also managed to go to the amazing “Festival of Lights” in New Plymouth several times. This free event in one of the local parks features live bands and entertainment most nights and a stunning lighting up of the park every evening. The kids were up dancing at the front of the stage more than once, and their highlight of the holiday was when we took a little row boat out on the lake one evening (to quote Alfie: “I CAN’T believe we’re really doing this!!!”)

New Plymouth also has a great coastal walkway, an 11km path from one end of town to the other. It was just perfect for the kids on their scooters, and featured a couple of playparks along the route as well as an awesome little outdoor cafe with bean bags and surfboard tables facing out towards the ocean - and it also served what were possibly the best iced chocolate drinks in the universe.

Meanwhile, Jake’s been surfing most days, and we’ve all been swimming in the ocean and splashing around in the surf a lot.

Alfie’s favourite Christmas present this year was a boogie board from his sister, and he’s had so much use from it on this holiday. It’s been so lovely to watch his pride each time he gets his wetsuit on and carries the board (all by himself) from the car to the water each day, and so lovely to watch the look on his face every time he catches a fast wave into the shore.

Unfortunately, towards the end of the trip we had an unfortunate accident with the boogie board when a cat got hold of it and ripped it to shreds. The look of devastation on Alfie’s face and the sound of his wailing (“it was my favourite ever present, I want that cat to go away for EVER!”) was quite heart-breaking.

He was quickly calmed down with the promise of pizza, which we took down to the beach and ate it while we watched the sunset, the perfect way to spend our last night in Taranaki.