New Zealand – The2Johns

Day 20 – First sea day out from Australia.

Overcast day, but still warm. The sea is a little rough with 12 foot swells and one of us was a little unwell (sea sick) last night. We thought the pool had a wave machine but it was just the rocking of the ship. We are in the Tasman sea with nothing in between us and the Antarctic until we reach New Zealand in a few days time. Sea is a beautiful deep blue colour. Spent the day exploring the boat eating, drinking and going to shows and quizzes (saw a magician last night).

Day 21 – Sea Day

Saw a colourful show in the theatre last night. This morning started a little cooler (18C) but it went up later into the twenties. The captain informed us that the sea swell was rated moderate to strong, but sea sickness was not a problem to anyone who might have felt poorly. Did a few laps of the running/walking track before lunch. Lunch was accompanied by a singer singing “banks and braes of Loch Lomond” and “Caledonia”. Went to an afternoon concert with a Mexican pianist reinterpreting classical music with a Latin American swing. Another quiz before tea and then another (Aretha Franklin tribute) show. Each of the last two nights we had to advance watches by an hour so we are now on New Zealand time. This morning was our last chance for a lie in as early starts from now on!

Day 22 – Sea Day – The Sounds

Up at 6 for an early breakfast as our day was to start at 7. Today is a sea day but with a difference, as we are passing through the fiordland national park. At 7 two local pilots came on board to guide us through the first of the fjords we were visiting, the Millford Sound. The temperature first thing in the morning was 16C with low clouds and light rain, so the tops of mountains were obscured. We had very dramatic views, the wet weather meaning there were lots of extra waterfalls to see. As the day wore on the skies cleared and the temperature rose to 25C. So it was a very different scene after lunch when we sailed into the Doubtful Sound (so named by Captain Cook because he thought it would be un-navigable). Along the way we saw some dolphins. The final visit was to pass along the Dusky Sound where we saw some seals basking on a rock. Another stage show after dinner and a visit to the Martini Bar. Another early start in the morning when we disembark for the first time and visit New Zealand’s version of Edinburgh (Dunedin).

Day 23 – Dunedin

Up at 6 for an early breakfast as we sailed into Port Chalmers, with its view of Portobello (to make us feel back in Edinburgh). Our day is divided into a scenic train ride through theTaieri River Gorge and a tour of Dunedin. A short bus ride took us into Dunedin (name derived from the Gaelic name for Edinburgh) and to the Victorian railway station (the most photographed place in New Zealand). Just over an hour on the railway each way, passing through the flat agricultural plain and then steadily climbing through the Gorge. The railway started at the time gold was discovered here and then grew as the demand for agricultural products increased. There was a lunch time stop for a light meal (strictly vegetarian for all for a change) and the hour return journey. Then it was onto a city tour by bus with two main stops. Along the way we were taken with the number of street names borrowed from Edinburgh. We stopped at a museum where we saw exhibits of representative art from various Polynesian Islands and some natural history exhibits including skeletons of some of the extinct New Zealand flightless birds (Moa). Then we went on to see the Botanical Gardens highlights were the Herbaceous Border and the Rose Garden (which had a big feature of David Austin roses). Along the way we saw the Burns House and A statue of Robbie Burns. Then it was back to the ship for tea, a show and a couple of cocktails before an early night ready for another early start tomorrow.

Day 24 – Christchurch

The ship docked at 8am at Lyttelton just outside Christchurch and by 8.30 we were on a coach taking us on today’s tour. An overcast but warm start to the day with bright blue skies by the afternoon. We dove a short distance into Christchurch and toured the city for a short time. We saw some of the effects of the series of drastic earthquakes in 2010/11. We saw the memorial garden to the people who died, the temporary Cathedral and the currently restored Cathedral. We heard of the ways in which the old buildings were restored and strengthened after the quake and the new regulations and solutions employed in designing new buildings. In some areas houses had to be removed and the land can no longer be used for residential developments. We continued our journey to take us across the Canterbury Plain, this is the largest flat area in the country and is the main agricultural area. Our ultimate destination was a 2500 acre station (farm) in the foothills of the Southern Alps. We transferred to another vehicle for an off-road drive taking us up to a viewpoint for views of the mountains above and the river below. We had lunch and then moved down to the river in a jet boat for a fast trip up and down the river. The river was a beautiful shade of blue due to the minerals brought down from the glaciers in the high mountains. The river is also very shallow and at times there was only a few centimetres of water beneath us. We were taken at high speeds between the rocks and did a series of 360 degree spins. A very exciting afternoon. Eventually time for the return trip to the ship in time for tea.

Day 25 – Wellington

Last night was a visit to the cocktail bar and another show. This morning we watched our passage from the South Island to the North Island while we had breakfast. Wellington is a windy city and our docking in the harbour and subsequent departure for today’s tour was delayed due to high winds. Our driver/guide was a Māori and he welcomed us in the Māori language. Our first stop was at the National museum – Te Papa. Here we saw some of the Māori exhibits, a little of the natural history section and a history of immigration into New Zealand. We also learnt a little of the Treaty of Waitangi between the British and the Māori and the controversies this still causes (essentially the British and Māori versions of the text differ so the Māori didn’t get what they signed up to, particularly since the British ignored the treaty and did what they wanted anyway – another shameful bit of British history). From here we drove along a coastal road which took us to, believe it or not, Kilbirnie! We ascended Mount Victoria for a panoramic view of the city and the harbour, including our ship in the dock. A windy road took us back down for a brief visit to the Botanic Gardens, where the highlights were the Begonia House and the Rose Garden. Our drive back to the ship took us through the city and we stopped to see the parliament building. Back late for lunch, but for once managed to go to afternoon tea.

Day 26 – Napier

Happy New Year (of the dragon)! Last night an interesting cocktail with burning cinnamon sticks after the night’s show. An early, early start to the morning as we had to meet up at 7.30. A 5 minute drive from the dock took us into the beautiful city of Napier. In 1931 the town was hit by a substantial earthquake, this and the subsequent fire which lasted two days destroyed much of the city and many people died. The quake caused a 2 metre uplift of the ground and drained the inner harbour – much new land was created. They decided to rebuild the town in Art Deco style and the town now boasts that it has the world’s largest collection of Art Deco buildings. They have an annual Art Deco Festival when everyone dresses up in 1930’s clothes and drives around in period cars – unfortunately this happens next week and we leave tonight, but it looks a lot of fun. A member of the local Art Deco society led us in a bus tour around the town showing us some of the remaining original buildings as well as the Art Deco and modern buildings (the latter priced at over 2 million NZ dollars). We drove along the marine parade which was very reminiscent of a British seaside town – this is considered as the Brighton of New Zealand. This part of the tour ended with a visit to the Art Deco society where we were met by people in period costume and taken to see a short film showing life before and in the days immediately following the earthquake. The second half of the tour was a scenic drive into the coastal countryside to the fertile Heretaunga Plains. This is the country’s main apple producing region as well as an important wine area so we passed many orchards and vineyards. We passed through Hastings, stopped for coffee and donuts in Havelock. The really scenic part came when we entered the Tuki Tuki valley with the Tukituki river and views of Te Mata peak.

Day 27 – Tauranga

An easy start to the day as the ship docked at Tauranga at around 11am. We left the ship half an hour later and were taken along the marine parade. There was a long beach here and we could also see the surfers riding the waves. It was an hour’s drive then to our destination at Rotorua. Along the way we passed through the country’s main kiwi fruit producing region and slowly climbed up through a large expanse of forest before gaining our first sight of Rotorua lake. Our first stop was to visit Hell’s Gate. The lake is the centre of a collapsed volcano which is still active. The area is part of a supervolcano, with lava about 4 km beneath the surface. The first thing that struck us when we got off the bus was the strong smell of sulphur. We were taken on a walk round Hell’s Gate and shown mud pools , fumaroles (columns of hot steam coming out of the ground. All around were deposits of sulphur and bubbles of gases emerging from pools (hydrogen sulphide, carbon monoxide, methane etc). The different gases form different types of bubbles. It was a very dramatic landscape and well deserving of its name. We had time for a quick lunch. There is the opportunity at Hell’s Gate to bathe in hot mud and relax in the thermal pools, but we had an alternative planned for us. A short drive took us to the lake where we had another Jet Boat ride with lots of spins and fast turns. We rode out to the island in the centre of the lake where we saw some black terns – these were all females, the male birds were all congregated at the side of the lake. Once a year, for about two weeks the males go over to the island to mate with the females. Any male attempting to go over to the island outside this time is liable to be attacked by the females. The island is a nature reserve and home to a colony of Kiwi birds. The ground temperature on the island is several degrees higher than on the mainland because of geothermal activity beneath the surface. One end of the lake is supplied by streams of cold fresh water, the other by warm sulphurous water emerging from underground and we could smell the sulphur and see it lining the sides of the lake and in areas of the water. Back to the boat in time for our evening meal and then on to see another show. Tonight was “A hot summer night’s dream’ featuring lots of acrobatics and singing and dancing. A very colourful and exciting production.

Day 28 – Sea Day

Slow and relaxing day at sea. Ship moving slowly through a calm sea on a warm Summer’s day. A quick quiz after lunch to keep the brain cells active and then sat for a while by the pool watching an aerobics class while we had a cocktail, then a few laps of the walking circuit. Another show tonight after tea – an Irish singer who’s also very funny (we saw him a few nights ago). If we can stay awake long enough there’s a late night comedian at 11 tonight. Then back to another early start in the morning.

Day 29 – Bay Of Islands

Watched the sun rise at the Bay of Islands. It’s what it says on the tin – a bay with lots of islands and is very scenic. We moored offshore so had to be tendered off by means of the ships lifeboats to get to shore. Word to the wise if you are on a sinking cruise ship in mid ocean the one thing you should remember to grab before boarding the lifeboat is the anti-seasickness pills. The transfer to shore took about 20 minutes and then we had about 40 minutes in a minibus to get to our destination for today. We were doing a cycle ride along a former railway track – fairly rough ground and lots of up and down. Our Māori guide gave us lots of information along the way about his village and the Māori way of life. The area was pretty rural with passing views of a large lake. We rewarded ourselves with an ice cream before the return journey to the ship. We popped down to grab a slice of pizza and saw they had all the valentine cakes out as dessert. Then it’s an afternoon of packing in preparation for leaving the ship tomorrow. Another show to look forward to tonight.

Day 30 – Ship Disembarkation

Up early for breakfast at 6am but didn’t leave the ship until 10. Passed through immigration, customs and biosecurity. Too early to book into the hotel so left our bags with them and went for a wander back down to the harbour and saw the ship we had just left. Picked up a few ideas for things to do in the next couple of days in Auckland. Took some getting used to being in a big city with skyscrapers ( we are in the 32nd floor of the hotel with some spectacular views -although better view from the gents toilet in the rooftop bar). Decided the next few days are going to be quieter and a chance to relax before the return flight next week.

Day 31 – Auckland 1st Day

Weather looked promising when we woke up this morning, but by the time we were getting ready to go out it was clouded over with heavy rain. The rain stopped and the skies cleared and for the rest of the day it was warm and sunny (25C). We headed back to the harbour and booked a ferry crossing to the island of Waiheke. The crossing took about 45 minutes with us getting good views along the way. Once on the island we transferred to a minibus taking us for a short ride. The island is a very lively place with over 30 different wine producers, some of them on a very small scale. The bus was taking us to do a series of zip wires which gave us some great views of the Forest beneath us as well as looking back to the city of Auckland in the distance. At the end of the zip lining we had a 25 minute walk climbing back through the bush to get back to our starting point. Returning to Auckland we treated ourselves to ice creams (a sour cherry and rich dark chocolate combination). From there we went to the Sky Tower, we were taken up in a lift to the main observation platform at a height of 610 feet, giving us some stunning views of the city and harbour. It is possible to jump off the tower and we had seen someone do this from our vantage point in our room on the 32nd floor of our hotel. We weren’t tempted to do the jump- which is actually a slow controlled descent. A second lift took us higher up the tower to a height of 722 feet, but the view was not much different. By now it was time for a meal so we went to Auckland’s oldest brewery pub. The pub dates back to 1898 and it’s been brewing its own ale for about 50 years – tried the ‘Old Bastard IPA’ and hoped to return to sample other brews. An early night tonight after all this.

Day 32 – Auckland 2nd Day

Today was a chance to see a little more of the city by doing the city bus tour. We learnt a bit more about the city and passed by many places of interest which we would have loved to explore if we had had more time – there is a really good transport museum and aquarium and lots of parks and green spaces. The first stop we made was to visit Mount Eden. This is Aukland’s highest volcano which is no longer active (last eruption was 28,000 years ago. We followed a curving path and a lot of steps to the summit where we got views of the crater and spectacular views of the city and its surrounding. By zooming in with our cameras we could see people jumping off the sky tower. We resumed the bus tour passing by the zoo and made our next stop at the Auckland War Memorial Museum. We had a quick lunch here and then explored the museum for a couple of hours. The ground floor was about Auckland life and Māori and Polynesian history and art which was our principal interest here. Upstairs we had a quick Look at the natural history section with some interesting fossils, more about New Zealand’s flightless bird and a reconstruction of the giant Moa bird.

Day 33 – Auckland last Day

A lazy last day, went down to the harbour for lunch where we had been before and had an easy afternoon walk round the city. Tomorrow we fly out of Auckland at 3.15 pm (New Zealand time) for a 10 hour 40 minute flight to Singapore arriving at 8.55pm (Singapore time). We have just under 3 hours to wait at the airport, leaving at 11.45pm. We then have a 14 hour 10 minute flight to Heathrow arriving at 5.55am (UK time). Expect to be back home around 4pm Tuesday, but as far as our body clocks are concerned this will be 3am Wednesday morning for us (New Zealand Time).

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Bubbling Mud Pit

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