Christmas 2019

 David cooked turkey pizzas for Christmas dinner. The dough didn’t work and he had to do a hurried Plan B, but nobody was bothered, it was lovely to be with them and enjoy the grandsons with their presents.

Dean and Nodoka arrived on Boxing Day. They enjoyed playing games with the boys.

And on to Hawke’s Bay

Our next stop was Anzac Park, just north of Norsewood. It is such a lovely spot, and only $2 a night. It was warm and sunny, a rare opportunity for a BBQ brunch.

From there we travelled on to Clifton Road, another favourite spot close to David and Emma’s. We tucked ourselves away from the wind, but still with a view of the sea and Cape Kidnappers.

A quick trip through the Wairarapa

We had planned to stay at Eketahuna, but the car park by the club was not terribly inviting. So we walked up one side of the main street and down the other, and then we were back on the road again. It did seem like a nice little town though, with not as many empty buildings as most.

We ended up staying by Gate 3 at the Tui Brewery. It was off the main road and a firm surface after the rain. And of course, we had to go and have a drink at the brewery. We met an interesting couple, a singer and an actor who were happy to chat and share the heater we had sat under.

The next day we travelled a huge 12km. It was plenty far enough in the strong cross winds. We hunkered down for a couple of nights behind the town sports complex while we waited for the wind to ease.

Back on the road

The forecast was still for wind, so after leaving Plimmerton we drove only as far as a cafe and function centre at the bottom of the Remutakas. We had lunch in Kaitoke Park on the way, and then a very nice $10 brunch after a night in the cafe’s car park. We figured the eggs were free range when we were joined by a chicken.

Our trip over the big hill and on to Masterton was uneventful, as after what seemed like weeks, the wind had finally gone - at least for a while. The Showgrounds now have a custodian, and the facilities have been upgraded. We made the most of the opportunity to have a nice long shower and get our laundry done.

And to cook our dinner outside on the Q.

Out and about

This is only a fraction of the tickets we collected riding the trains and occasionally a bus. Daily we said thank you to the government and especially Winston for free public transport for old people. We travelled to Waikanae to do our laundry because the laundromat there was close to the train station, and there are some lovely views of the coast along the way.

We travelled up to Kelburn on the Cable Car, just because we could.

And all the way over to Masterton too. We did our grocery shopping and bought shoes in Paraparaumu, and took the bus out to the beach for lunch. Although the weather wasn’t great most of the 3 weeks we were based in Plimmerton, we made the most of our time, and had several opportunities to catch up with Dean and Nodoka.

Thunder and lightning

Not my photo, but taken at the time

Saturday night brought the most amazing thunderstorm. We sat and watched the lightning show and felt the vibrations as the thunder followed immediately afterwards. There was an equally dramatic one in the wee hours of the morning.

We had intended to meet Jane and Keith in town on Sunday, but decided to cancel. The road to the train station was under water.

The path to the NZMCA park had disappeared 

Here it is a day later

From Upper Hutt to Gallipoli

On Saturday we travelled to Upper Hutt on the train. We weren’t sure which way to go when we left the station till Graham spotted this. He said, “Follow those people”. We did, and found our way to town. We had a good look around, ate our sandwich on a park bench and then found a club for a cheap drink to wash it down. We thought Upper Hutt was quite a nice place, unlike some of the suburbs we passed on the way there.

 When we arrived back in town, Dean and Nodoka picked us up from the station. We went to see the Gallipoli exhibition at Te Papa.

 These images are two and a half times real size. Their impact is every bit as large. 

The exhibition literally walks you through the months from the troops landing on the beach to their final retreat. There are many interactive exhibits along the way. Very moving.

Birthday

 It was lovely to have Dean and Nodoka come for dinner on my birthday, especially as they brought cake! And flowers and a card, nice.

We discovered a wee brewery just around the corner from the Plimmerton park. The salted caramel and Jaffa brews were yummy, but Graham preferred the more mainstream IPA and APA beers.

More weather

Saturday was a warm day without much wind, which made it perfect for the Beers in the Basin. Good catching up with Finn as well as Dean and Nodoka.

The weather has been pretty mixed, but that has led to some good sunsets.

This view is looking across to Frieda from Wanda, parked on the other side of the park. We met Terrie here another time when she was just putting the name on her wee caravan.

Windy Wellington

Our first night in Plimmerton was a rocky one, parked side on to the wind. We moved the next morning, and then again the next day when someone else moved on, to get protection from the wind with buildings on our north and west.

Dean and Nodoka invited us around for dinner. It was really windy down on the waterfront, but quite sheltered up at their place in Mount Vic. We walked there from the railway station. It was great to see them. Dean’s skills in the kitchen have definitely improved from when he was a teenager.

By the time we got home, we’d done 19731 steps!

Not the prettiest spot, but definitely the most sheltered