Piha

After exploring the sand dunes of Kare Kare we decided to visit Piha for some lunch and quick walk on the beach.  Tom was desperate to find some starfish.  He was disappointed.  We only found one but we did get to explore the new cafe and the coffee was good!

West Coast visit

Susan and Aine stayed for a week and on Saturday we dropped them off at the airport.  On our way back we decided to visit the West Coast in the Waitkeres as we haven't been for so long.  We started the journey Kare Kare as Fran has never been there.  The boys were so excited to climb the sand dunes they, accept Tom, never reached the beach!  Unfortunately, the following day they were covered in bites, they might not do that again!

Queenstown Pt 5

Our time down here coincided with the opening of the Winterfest which started with fireworks and lots of other festive activities.  The Winterfest registers the opening of the mountain and beginning of the ski season.  The night before we watched a concert of top kiwi bands and in the morning there was a jet boat competition.  Shame Oli wasn't with us, he would have loved it.

Queenstown Pt 4

Minutes from the hotel is a walk around a headland where you can take in all the views.  It was a bit of chilly -2 but once we were wrapped up it was fine.  The weather brought out all the wonderful colours surrounding us and it was truly inspiring. The photos do not do any of it justice. The park was also a frisbee golf park which brought a smile to our faces and there was a great looking ice-rink in the middle.

Queenstown Pt 3

Our final day in Queenstown was a stunner.  We were staying in the Novotel which is right next to the lake, perfect location.  Fran and I had a coffee in a cafe on the beach taking in the beautiful view thinking what a fantastic place it is.  The hotel was a great price considering its amazing location, the only problem was the parking at the hotel charged $20 or you pay by the hour. We were both surprised by how big QT was with all the shops and cafes, there was a mall like area in Frankton by the airport.  We were also pleasantly surprised that it didn't feel too busy, we were worried that it would feel over-crowded but even though it was the opening of the Winterfest and it was busy, it didn't feel overwhelming.

Queenstown Pt 2

On our return to Queenstown the weather turned on us and our trip on the Gondola was a little frustrating as our views were restricted by the weather.  However, you do get a sense of how big and where Queenstown is.  QT really surprised me in that there was many shops and although it was beginning of the Winterfest it didn't feel too busy, I thought it may feel over-crowded but it didn't at all.

Queenstown

Sorry for the massive delay but I have been busy.  Let me explain.  We have been thinking about what to do next lately and bizarrely a job came up in Queenstown.  Its time to move on professionally and this would be a perfect opportunity to move to a totally different part of the country.  We decided to give it a go so I have applied for the job and visited the school.  This gave us the opportunity to have a few days together without children, which is the first time in 10 years!!   The trip didn't start too well as the plane was delayed for nearly four hours with me missing my first appointment with the principal but she kindly re-organised a shorter meeting for later in the day.  We arrived in the mountains of Frankton about eleven which was experience itself, landing with mountains either side is a little alarming but exhilarating.  We got our manual hire-car which was a little dangerous but we were able to get to the school without   killing ourselves, and the meeting went well.

The following day we went on a recon to Wanaka as there is a couple of schools there, there only two schools in Queenstown so the chances of getting a job are very slim.  It took about an hour to get to Wanaka and we drove past a bungy gorge which was unfortunately closed, shame.  The weather wasn't great when we arrived in Wanaka but it seemed like a really lovely place - very small though. On our way back, we headed up the mountains of Cardrona and had a drink in the pub by the fire which was great.  The weather cleared and on our way back to Queenstown we found a view point where we saw the planes fly through - amazing!