Bula! It's Fiji time!

Our time had come to leave New Zealand. It was just short of a 7 month stay. In some ways it felt like yesterday that we had arrived. But when we thought about how much we had done and the people that we had met, it really did feel like a chunk of time had passed. We also missed our family and friends and animals, our own bed and books, and boats. We had a chore list waiting for us and Simon wanted to get started on something....a summer job, a course. Gillian had managed being abandoned long enough and our good family had 'held the fort' and their good intentions were wearing down. It was time.

Cary was given a nice send off at his clinic. Warren, the office manager spoke for awhile in Maori.The people in the room were nodding and smiling so we hoped he was saying nice things. We had a yummy lunch, presents were given, and that was it. Their 20th doctor in seven years had finished his term. We wished them all good luck. I went to see the kids in the daycare for the last time. The few who weren't too busy in their play, came over to hug my legs. Their sweet smiles will always stay with me. Simon's friends sent texts saying goodbye, youth style. Simon's boss, Andrew, and girlfriend, Kirstie and her son Callum came over for our last evening. We always had laughs and good chats with them.They had often dropped in and stayed for numerous cups of tea.They had us over on Christmas day.They had done their best to make us feel welcome. We hope we tickled their curiosity to see Canada but I'm not sure if they will make it here. It's a long way and it might prove to be a hard thing to pull off with their busy farming lives..

We packed up our suitcases and loaded up the red van for the last time. We said goodbye to our 'over the fence neighbor'. We turned the key on our New Zealand lives.

We picked up George in Mania, drove around Mt. Taranaki, north to Auckland.

George entertained us with history lessons of his ancestors.We popped into a Marae north of Hamilton. This is where the king of all Iwi lives.The buildings were intricately carved and there were huge wakas (canoes) down on the river. One could feel a presence of history.

George left us at the hotel, as we had given ourselves sometime to walk around Auckland and to go through our bags one last time to make sure everything was packed well for the trip to Fiji the next day.

                                    The Sky Tower -Auckland

We arrived at the airport at 10:30am on March 22.We checked our bags and spent the last of our NZ money and were waiting to board Air Pacific at 2pm. Delay notice. More delays. Here have a voucher for some lunch. Delays. The plane in Fiji needs mechanical work. Take your time! More vouchers for supper.

The best thing that happened was we got to say a final goodbye to Harry Monga, Peter's Kiwi brother. He came to the airport with his wife Janet to meet his son Simon and wife, Jenine, arriving from Australia.We had a coffee and a long chat.Harry admitted never having been on a plane, and he doesn't wish for the experience at all. He said, why does he need to go anywhere when NZ has it all - mountains, clean air, oceans, farmland, his family.

After they left we got more vouchers. It ended up being a 10 hour delay and $145 NZ in vouchers. We bought Whittaker's chocolate bars and went to the bar for Red Lion on Tap. It wasn't all that bad. We arrived in Fiji at 2am. Our transport was waiting for us and we plowed around potholes and through the dark streets towards our resort, 'The First Landing'. It is so named because supposedly the first Fijians arrived at this very spot 3500 years ago.

We were led to our Garden Bure by Koso, and fell off to sleep with the whir of the fan in our ears.
We had a hot cooked breakfast every morning but found lunch and supper at either the nearby marina, or at the towns (Lautoka or Nadi) or at the resort.
 We took two half day trips into Lautoka and Nadi. One by taxi and the other by local bus. Both were interesting with the business of island life and the colorful markets.

A Padi certified dive shop was just outside the car park so it was easy to arrange dive trips.We took one with Simon to Beachcomber Island, and then Simon went on his own for a second day. The water was 30C and one only needed a 'shorty'.Simon's deepest dive was 27m. We had befriended a Scottish couple who were doing 21 dives in 7 days, and they took Simon under their wings.We saw beautiful coral and colorful fish. Simon saw some pinnacles, a sea turtle and a shark.

On our last evening in Fiji, on our screened porch, Koso did the Kava ceremony for us, This is a ceremonial drink that one takes part in when being welcomed into a village.Kava is a root, and when it is ground up it looks like ash.It is a narcotic so we were warned to just have a taste and have the Fijian experience.
There are rules.
Sit cross-legged.
Do not point your feet towards the bowl.
Take off your hat and sunglasses.
Clap before taking hold of the bowl.
Drink the cold, muddy liquid in one go.
Hand back the bowl and clap 3 times to show your appreciation. 

Cary wanted a second bowl. I thought I would too. Simon followed suit. My tongue went numb.I was hungry.
We gave Koso some taxi money as he stayed well past his shift and it was a long walk to the bus.
My favorite memory of Fiji will be when we sat at the bar drinking Fifi Bitter Beer watching rugby on the only tele at the resort. Fiji vs Malaysia. Every time Fiji scored a Try (a touchdown) everyone cheered and the bar- tender hit a gold bell with a bottle opener.Fiji blasted Malaysia out of the water.It was a good time.

Baboo, our taxi driver, loaded our 6 suitcases and 3 backpacks, into his cab. While going to the airport he asked, "How long were you in Fiji?" We answered, "5 days." He said quietly, "You'll have to pack lighter next time."

On our flight home, Manitoba had never looked so flat. It was grey and black in a patchwork pattern. But it was predictable and stable. It was home. The south pacific was on the move.It was quaking and spewing. What with two earthquakes in Christchurch in 6 months and Japan's earthquake , tsunami and radiation leaks, it was time to head back to the prairies.

It was a trip of a lifetime. Thank you friends and family for looking after everything here and for keeping in touch with us while in NZ. It was a blast!

Thanks for reading!
Here ends my travel blog on 'Prairiedogs in New Zealand'. This was a pleasurable experience as well as a  therapeutic one. It was difficult at times to pick out the best pictures as we had taken about 3000 of them. It was challenging to write in such a way as to inform yet to also keep the reader's interest.There are stories not yet told. So to those of you who stuck with me to the end, I thank you. Kia Ora!

Hawera to the East Cape Round trip-1450km

Kia Ora! Welcome!

The East Cape (aka- The Hitchhiker's Thumb) has always been out of our reach to visit because it is exactly on the opposite side of the North Island from Hawera, and there is not a direct route across. It is a 7 hour drive to reach Gisborne, and that is without making any stops. Our chance arrived when we had a long weekend created by Taranaki Day on the Monday, March 14. As a bonus, our friends Myska and Piddy wanted to come along, and beautiful weather was predicted to boot!

We headed off on the Saturday morning, through Rotorua, then onto Whakatane (Faka-tanee), in the Bay of Plenty. It is aptly named because, Whakatane had plenty of sunshine in 2010, in fact, the most in all of New Zealand. We arrived in town during a festival celebrating this event.

Whakatane has a lovely harbour inlet and this is the view from the information centre (i-site).

This is a mural that was along a street.

This tunnel was between two streets. There are interesting high cliffs and caves here.

                          Watch out!

This is Muriwai's Cave. It is one of the most sacred and historically significant sites in the Whakatane Region. The cave mouth was once at the oceans edge and the cave could seat 60 people and it extended 122m into the hillside.
Muriwai, daughter of Irakwea, came to live here. She was a Priestress whose advice was often sought. Muriwai is from the Mataatua tribes, and it is said that her mana (power) has endured centuries.

We then headed along the Pacific Coast Highway #35 otherwise known as 'the coast'. From Opotiki to Gisborne it is 334 Km.

We needed to find a camping spot though, as the day had already been quite long. The whole East Cape is known for it's Freedom Camping. This is what you come to New Zealand for. To pick a spot on a beach and set up. No fees, no rangers, no rules. The only thing one must do is take out all rubbish, and leave the beach as you found it......pristine. We settled on Waiotahi Beach just outside Opotiki Beach.

We had a great view of the eerie White (Whakaari) Island, New Zealand's most frequently active volcano.

  Our friends slept on a tarp because they couldn't find their tent (found the next day though.)
Piddy had snails crawling in his hair in the morning.

We set up here but in the wee hours of the morning a truck cut off the road and breezed by our tent to drive along the beach. That was close!

                          Sunset on Waiotahi Beach

We met a couple, he was from Belgium and she was from New Caledonia (an island between and north of Australia and NZ). They had been hitchhiking and were on their way up to the Coromandel Peninsula. He had been travelling since 2005!

On Sunday morning we drove from Opotiki to Waihau Bay where the movie, 'Boy' was filmed. This stretch of Hwy #35 is one of the most scenic coastal drives that we have done that includes Pohutukawas trees, carved Marae, churches, little coastal settlements, nooks, coves and crannies. It was very hard to stay in the car. Though, we just had to stop for a coffee and an ice cream at a Macademia Nut Farm.

Then we had to stop for a swim and snorkel at Waihau Bay!

We stopped at Tolago Bay for the night where there was another Freedom camping spot. We walked the Tolago Bay Wharf which is famous for being the longest wharf in New Zealand at 660m. It is dwarfed by massive cliffs and a white sand beach that stretches out along the bay. We met a couple from Austria who cycled from Gisborne(55km) away.

We had the most beautiful sunrise! The folks along the East Cape are the first in the world to see the sunrise. Blue sky, glistening waters, playful seals. 

We then packed up and drove into Gisborne. It is a beautiful area, though the port is busy with logs being stored and loaded onto ships. We walked to the point where Captain Cook landed in 1769. C.C's ship Boy first spotted the cliffs and Bay. C.C named the point Young Nick's Head. After the ship anchored, his men spotted Maoris on the beach. They rowed ashore, had a scuffle , killed a few then scuttled back to their ship. They sailed away without having stocked up, thus C.C named the Bay, Poverty Bay.

Captain Cook

A Marae, with intricate carvings, was on the other side of the hill where C.C came ashore.

After a hearty breakfast, at 12 noon, we carried on the road trip. We had seven hours to go to return home. We drove on and on and only stopped in Bulls for a Ke-bab. We had great company, beautiful weather , stunning sunrises and sunsets, and safe travel. What more could anyone ask for?

This was our last big road trip before leaving this beautiful country.

Thanks for reading!

The Golden Shears in Masterton and Castlepoint Beach

The Golden Shears is a sheep shearing competition that happens every March in Masterton, 4 hours from Hawera. The best shearers and wool handlers in the country compete for the top prize and the chance to represent New Zealand in the Worlds event. There are 2 heats of 6 shearers, and each shearer has to shear 10 sheep as fast and as cleanly as possible. The top 6 shearers advance to the finals that perform during the supper event. The top man sheared 20 sheep in 15minutes and 50.823 seconds. His name was John Kirkpatrick from Napier. He had placed in the finals, 14 times out of the last 15 years. He was more than 1 sheep ahead of 16 time champion, David Fagan from Te Kuiti. David did not go home empty handed though, he won the award for the best quality points for the evening.

This is the wool handling competition, where the shearers are just supplying the wool for the handlers and the handlers are judged on how they separate the good wool from the bad, how they throw out the fleece on the special tables and how they roll it up and squish it down into the bags (pressing). They have to work very fast and this is serious business.

The shearers are dressed in black and the judges are in blue. The handlers are in pink. Before the competition starts the shearers meet and greet their sheep behind the gates and can size them up and put them in order as to how they would like to see them. On the signal the shearer opens the gate, drags out their first sheep on the sheep's bottom , turns on their clippers and proceeds to clip. The stomach hair is done first, then down the back legs, then the top of the head, then down one side then the other. The shorn and well handled sheep is then stuffed down a ramp. The fleece is pulled out of the way by the handlers and it is is one piece. I couldn't help but hum the (Australian tune), ( 'Clip goes the shears boys, clip,clip,clip). Who knew that  song would pop into my head 37 years after it was taught? The judges have a remote scoring pad in their hands and as they observe the work being done then they match it up to a criteria and the shearers are given a running score.

As the shearing is going on, there are announcers calling out the action in auctioneer style. Every now and then, if you listen carefully, the announcer will ask, 'And where is the Fagan family?' Then there is a loud whoop from a section in the stands and we will continue to hear how things are going stroke by stroke. It was very exciting.

There is a competition called the Maori-Pakeha division. Here 3 teams of two (one Maori and one Pakeha) compete against each other. They all have to shear 8 sheep each and then the team members scores are combined.

There are cash prizes and they displayed very good sportsmanship. Another competition that took place a day or two before was the 8 hour race. This was also done by two man teams. A new record occurred, 1066 sheep were shorn in 8 hours!

After a farm meal of venison stew we chatted and laughed with our friends until the wee hours. The next morning we headed east to the beach.

On the coast, 68km from Masterton is a beautiful beach called Castlepoint.

It is known for it's lighthouse, caves, walks, and of course the castle rock.

                              Castlepoint  162m high

Castlepoint was named by Captain Cook in 1770. The area has a fossil rich limestone reef. The reserve is also the only known site of a rare shrubbery daisy, Brachyglottis compactus. White fronted terns,
red billed gulls, black slugs, reef herons, black backed gulls all inhabit the area.


The walk to the lighthouse starts with the 'Home of the Lost Soles' Pole. (Jandals)

                This is how the rock has broken up by the wind and over time
  

From Castlepoint beach we then went to see the museum in Masterton. Here they had wonderful artifacts.

A waka

An eel net

When the calendar turned over to March 1, so did the weather turn to Autumn. Other changes, are cooler mornings and evenings and sunsets at 8pm. The leaves are turning colour and are falling gently onto the roads. In one weekend we saw sheep, a beautiful beach, a fascinating museum, a great pub (didn't blog about that), a gorge, fantastic scenery and all topped off by a turkish Ke-bab meal in Wanganui.

It was a typical weekend where we were out and about, visiting friends, and seeing wonderful scenery.

 Thanks for reading!

Our visitors from home and abroad

Gillian and Kevin were our first visitors in December 2010. For 3 weeks we showed them the sights from Auckland to the Coromandel Peninsula, down to Wellington and all the stops in between.

This red van is what we hauled our visitors around in. Hauled 7 (one illegally on the bed), slept 2

At Takapuna Beach, Auckland

Harry Monga came to see us (Peter's kiwi brother) in Takapuna

 Jake Figler (here and there for 54 days)

Willy Jakobson (here and there from Jan.3-March 15). Willy and Jake went down to the South Island for 3 weeks. Good on ya!

Chantelle Hercina and Mark Vendramelli (U of m Medical students, for two weeks Jan.8-22) They are standing on the lookout on the Plateau halfway up Mount Taranaki.

Mark and Chantelle, Cary, Sarah Burling, Jake (Dr. Sarah often came for dinner since she commuted from the Wairarapa region every week)

Dan Goray and Heidi Gingrich came to see us in February for two nights. They spent 2 weeks on the South Island and 1 week on the North Island. Below they are on Denby Beach near our NZ home.

 I taught Heidi how to weave a flower from a Flax leaf. The Maori gals at the daycare had taught me.

Jesse and Tyson Kustiak and Josh Snider from (Jan. 28 - March 16) on Chaddy's Charter Boat.

         Josh and Willy rented a car and drove about the North Island from March 5-15.

   Simon, Jesse and Tyson went to Australia from Feb 23- March 10, 2011

Thank you to all of our visitors for enriching our stay in New Zealand! You have helped us form memories that will last us forever.