Christmas 2012

Season's Greetings and a Happy New Year to all, this is a quick post with some photos of our Christmas (and summer) holidays.

For those in Ireland, the pohutukawa tree is known as New Zealand's Christmas tree, as their festive crimson flowers usually are in full bloom around Christmas time. In Wellington the pohutukawas are quite spectacular this year; there is a good example of one just over the road from our place in Connaught Terrace:

View from our Living Room Window with Pohutukawa Tree

We had better luck with our (non-native) chopped down Christmas tree this year, a healthy green specimen as opposed to the wilting rather pathetic one last year. Marian was rather pleased with her decorating efforts:

View from our living room window at night:

We drove up from Wellington to Hamilton on Saturday 22nd December (around 7 hours). We didn't take many snaps at Hamilton, but had a good time with all of the family over Christmas:

Emily and Jess (hair by Salon Maz)

John G. and Katherine

Christmas Dinner Table for 18

Kath and John hard at work in the kitchen...

...While Mum Supervises

On the 29th December Marian and I hit the road heading east, and drove through the Bay of Plenty around East Cape and down the East Coast of the North Island to Anaura Bay where we camped for four nights.

Anaura Bay

Sunset Anaura Bay

Campground at Anaura Bay

During our stay we visited nearby Tologa Bay which boasts NZ's longest wharf at 660 metres:

Tolaga Bay Warf

After four nights at Anaura Bay we drove south through Gisborne and then inland to Lake Waikaremoana in the Uruwera National Park. This is a remote and very beautiful spot with some of the North Island's best untouched native forest.

Campground at Lake Waikaremoana

Lake Waikaremoana with Panekiri Bluff

There is a very spectacular 4 day walk that you can do around the lake but as we were only there for 2 nights we did a short day walk to Lake Waiakareiti.

Aniwaniwa Falls

Maz on the Track to Lake Waikareiti

There were some good stands of native cabbage trees (cordyline australis) at the camp ground; there are many of these trees in Ireland although many were killed off in the big freeze of 2010. So Dympna if your cabbage tree still hasn't recovered here are some photos to show how they look in their native habitat: 

Cabbage Trees

The sunset over Lake Waikaremoana was quite spectacular:

Samoa 2-9 September 2012

Here's a brief summary of Marian and my trip to Samoa. We arrived early Sunday morning around 1 am and after a few hours' sleep we had a look around Apia. Being a Sunday, everything was closed so we didn't see much apart from doing some snorkelling at the Palolo Deep Marine Reserve and having a cold drink at the famous Aggie Grey's Hotel.

Luckily however the Teuila Festival was starting that evening. This is a week long cultural festival named after Samoa's favourite flower, the teuila or red ginger. The festival opened with a  Gospel/Choir hymnal exhibition so we headed down to see some of the choirs - which were very impressive, some were 200+ strong:

Choir Festival, Apia 2 September 2012

Following the choral exhibition we had dinner at Giordano's Pizzeria - which I recommend (note reddish face tinge - still acclimatising after a winter in Wellington):

Marian and I at Giordano's Pizza Restaurant, Apia

The following day Monday 3 September Marian and I visited Villa Vailima, residence of the famous Scottish author and poet Robert Louis Stevenson for the last four years of his life (1890 - 1894). You will know "RLS" from his most popular books Treasure Island (1883), Kidnapped (1886) and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1886). Stevenson suffered from poor health and moved to Samoa to seek relief from his tuberculosis - however he died at just 44 years of age. Vailima means "water in the hand" in Samoan and is also the name of the national beer.

As we were still acclimatising to the tropical climes (it was hot as) we didn't make the rather steep trek up the mountain next to the villa to visit RLS' tomb with its famous epitaph; however we did enjoy a walk around the lovely gardens and grounds, and our own personal guided tour of the villa.

Marian at Robert Louis Stevenson's Villa "Vailima"

Marian in Colonial Pose, Villa Vailima

View from First Floor of Villa Vailima 

Marian and I in front of RLS' safe & the Man himself, Villa Vailima

After the visit to Villa Vailima we headed across the island to Lalomanu on the south-eastern corner of Upolu. We checked into a very nice fale at Taufua Beach Fales which is right on the beach. Here we stayed for the remainder of our holiday.

We had a great 5 days at Lalomanu, mainly reading, swimming, eating and playing cards, and met some convivial fellow holiday makers too. 

Marian and our Fale, Taufua Beach Fales, Lalomanu

View from our Balcony Towards the Main Dining Area

Marian on the Beach Outside our Fale, View Looking East

View Looking West

Intrepid Snorkler

View of Nu'utele Island off Lalomanu

Pre-Dinner Entertainment, Playing "500"

After Dinner Entertainment Part 1 - Samoan Fire Dance 

After Dinner Entertainment Part 2 - Marian doing Samoan Dance

On Wednesday we took a day trip to To Sua ocean trench, one of two large holes in the ground by the coast in Lotofaga village. Water flows into the holes via tunnels in the rock connecting the holes to the ocean.  The hole is around 15 metres deep and thankfully the old rope ladder has been replaced with a more accessible wooden ladder. Once inside the trench the swimming was amazing.

To Sua Trench

Marian (Arms Raised) Stu and Jo, To Sua Trench

View Looking East from Near To Sua Trench

View Looking West from Near To Sua Trench