February 16 - 19

Paraparaumu, Auckland and Wellington

February 16

Paraparaumu to Wellington

A very quick start to the morning. Once again, it was bright, sunny and calm. Towards 11.00, Valerie drove me to the station, from where I caught a train into Wellington and then a bus to Newtown. By now, the "breeze" had risen considerably and it was obvious that I was in the Windy City. I arrived safely at Jane & Robert's and we had lunch. I took advantage of their wi fi to book flights, hotels, rental cars etc. A very productive hour.

Good acting	Strange light

At 15.30, we set off on the one point seven kilometre walk to the drama school for a performance of Midsummer Night's Dream. These performances used to be in the open air but the weather was so foul last year that they had to cancel several performance so they decided to play it safe this year.

The performance was "innovative", with lots of gender bending, very loud music and weird lighting effects. Some of the acting was very good and the rest competent at the very least. It was an enjoyable show.

We walked another one point seven kilometres into the city, passing through the cricket ground, for a reasonable (at best) curry in a small restaurant. We then walked the full three and a half kilometres home again. It was humid but the wind blew and there were some interesting cloud effects.

We returned through the cricket ground	Interesting evening light

February 17

Wellington to Auckland

I woke to find drizzle outside, so removed my waterproof from my suitcase and transferred it to the small bag I was taking to Auckland.

The taxi arrived on time and took me smoothly to the airport - not cheaply. I passed through security, with the usual problem caused by my hip, and sat in the lounge hoping that my electronic boarding pass would work when required.

In spite of my electronic pass, we departed 20 minutes late and arrived 20 minutes late into Auckland. I had two empty seats next to me but, on a 45 minute flight, there was no way to take advantage of them.

At Auckland, I waited at the bus stop and watched lots of buses go past. Mine was meant to run every fifteen minutes but I had to wait 25 minutes for one to arrive.

Lots of buses went past	I finally caught a train

We arrived at Papatoetoe in good time but I must just have missed a train there so didn't arrive at Glen Innes until noon, about 90 minutes after landing. John collected me and drove me home. I should have said that it was warm, dry and cloudy. After a rest and a chat, we drove to Orakei Village, perhaps seven or eight kilometres away, for lunch in a converted gin factory. The food was good and the architecture interesting. We returned home for another rest.
Good lunch	Interesting architecture

Peter arrived in the evening and drove us a few kilometres across town to an Indian restaurant that I had visited before. The food was surprisingly good and we returned home feeling full.

February 18

Auckland

We got up late, had breakfast on the deck and chatted about nothing in particular until lunchtime. We then drove down the hill to St Helier, an up market beach village/suburb, and found lunch in The Bistro, a large restaurant in a concrete megalith.

The food was excellent and the service even better. The maitre 'd was a black girl in her '20s, with amazing eyes. We established that she was from Senegal, brought up in Paris and now living in New Zealand. She and the rest of the staff were very good.

John then drove home, leaving me to have a wander on the beach, enjoying the still and sunny weather. The forecast temperature was 27 and it was beautifully warm. I did a little shopping then started the slow, uphill, climb to the house. It was only about one and a half kilometres but reasonably hard work.

An interesting new church	A very posh house

En route, I passed an interesting new church, lots of trees and some posh houses. This is not an area for poor people.

I reached the house, had a much needed cold drink and sat down to write my diary and some cards. I had a successful afternoon doing this until we set off to visit the assorted members of John's family, who live not too far away.

Dinner was at Peter & Mandy's, where the star of the show, as ever, was Edward. He was delighted to see me - he is delighted to see everyone - and I got lots of cuddles. As he is black, he is a nightmare to photograph, particularly in evening light. I did my best.   Right: Edward deserves a better photo

February 19

Auckland to Wellington

My bag seemed much heavier than when I arrived, although there was no more in it. I must be aging. John dropped me off at the bottom of Parnell Rise on his way to work and I slowly walked towards the waterfront. There was chaos everywhere, much of it relating to the construction of a major rail tunnel beneath the CBD.

The old station is grand but every time I have approached it in recent years, the sun has been immediately behind it, rendering decent photography impossible. The gardens in front were in good form.

The Station gardens looked good	Don't drive here

When I reached the new station, both it and the surrounding area were full of builders, plant and orange cones. Driving here is not to be recommended.

I wandered reasonably aimlessly, found a post box into which I could deposit my cards, and then a café for a coffee. Many of the ones on Vulcan Lane, a pleasant but trendy place, were full but I found space in one round the corner, from where I could watch the passers by.

Watching the world go by	Queen Street was busy

Coffee finished, I visited a few shops on the busy Queen Street and eventually found a couple of post cards. I took these down to the waterfront, alongside a large cruise ship - too large to photograph properly.

I sat on a concrete bench and looked at the bridge, the boats and at the new cranes on the wharf. I even had company. It was becoming increasingly warm and sunny. In spite of being in the centre of the city, it was very restful.
	Too big to photograph
Modern observers of the scene	A more traditional one

I left the waterfront, negotiated the construction work which affected pedestrians as well as motorists, and found a small café for a coffee and a sandwich.

From there, I perused a few more shops, looked at the few buildings of architectural interest on Lower Queen Street and then made my way to the airport bus. I waited there for about 15 minutes and then boarded.

The bus wasn't fast. It took about an hour to reach the airport, with lots of detours round the city. At one stage, there was a lot of hooting from behind the bus. We stopped and a lady leapt aboard. She had been in a car that was chasing the bus. Quite exciting.

We arrived safely and I headed to the Koru Lounge, which was heaving. I grabbed some sandwiches, a banana and a tomato juice and found a seat in which to consume them. A seat with a power socket from which to charge my phone was out of the question.

The plane took off on time, landed on time and I left the terminal to embark on my walk to Jane & Robert's. The breeze instantly forced me to don a light jacket although this soon proved to be too hot.

I made my way out of the airport, past the new hotel and another, brightly coloured, building which may or may not be the new car park.

I got slightly lost then discovered the entrance to the tunnel which passes under the runway, a distance of about 100 metres.

Once out of the other side, I found a footpath which took me towards the Kilbirnie shops, after which I followed the road past the old tram depot, now used for buses.

The road winds uphill from there, offering good views over the houses to the sea beyond. Finally, I reached the summit and descended three or four hundred metres to Jane & Robert's. The distance was just over three and a half kilometres and it took me around 50 minutes. Robert prepared a good Thai curry for dinner.
	Busy in the rush hour
Fine views over the harbour	Down the hill to journey's end