On The Road Again

(ed. note: Only two comments tonight other than the editor is losing his grip with the limited internet access!!)

Before I move on to the next leg of our trip, I really must comment further on Larkspur and our jovial hosts. One morning I paced off 30 yards from our bedroom door to the dining room, not even the entire length of the place. Imagine a downstairs entrance that has what must have been a grand staircase in the 70’s leading to the main quarters. At one end of a very long and wide hallway encased in mahogany is the formal dining room and kitchen. At the other end, a less formal eating area and kitchenette exist, supposedly for the purposes of feeding the young wards of the original owner. Along the hallway, doors open onto bedrooms, a library and lounge. To describe in greater detail our room, imagine 9’ ceilings and 15’ of window encased in blue and white toile draperies, framing an entirely stunning view of some of the 1200 acres of the original estate. The art on the walls is the kind of stuff you might find at your grandmother’s farm, if she, like mine, was a prairie farmer of a certain era—photo-like pics of elegant women circa 1900’s. The bathroom has been updated, mercifully, and is functional and comfortable, with the exception of the arachnoid inhabitants. A walk-in closet completes the suite. Sadly, the electrical access is poor—no plug in the bathroom so I dry my hair in the reflection of the computer screen. All very manageable, except: no wireless internet access! Geoff is going through withdrawal. We have been unable to Skype or to “research” every small question that occurs to us. How much have we come to depend on the computer! Somehow we forge ahead. (ed. note: But look at the view!)

We have massive breakfasts every morning prepared by Vivian and served by Ray. Vivian clearly loves to eat and wants her guests to eat. The first morning, we had cereal and fruit with yogourt, sausages, eggs, bacon, baked tomatoes and mushrooms, toast and 3 kinds of homemade jam. We asked to be cut back on the second day, to poached eggs and toast and just a few rashers of streaky bacon, but this morning, we requested the full meal deal to take us on the long road trip to Rotorua. It has been 9 hours since we have had anything more than a bit of road food. We have found another night market and after having a few glasses of wine in our hotel room we are heading out to nosh on the offerings.

Knowing what we know now about the cost of things in NZ we realized that the Larkspur is a darn good deal at $120 a night. The breakfast would cost us $40 at any café; the bed is comfortable, and the quiet of the country makes it possible to sleep through the night. Fresh towels every day and pleasant conversations with our hosts made the trip complete. (ed. note: Bit of a shock to get 46 litres of gas for $100. – filled the tank 3/4ths)

Yesterday, we had an amazing day visiting historical sites in Keri-Keri, Paihia and Russell. Learned all kinds of things about the history of the NZ tribes, the missionaries and how their paths were interconnected over time. In Russell, we spent over an hour in an old mission that had become a tannery/book maker many years ago, was all but lost in a landslide only to be rediscovered in the 1980’s. Hides were tanned to create book covers, among other things. We learned how that was done as well as how the printing press worked and how by printing text in Maori, the language had been saved. It occurs that all kinds of sayings come from the printing industry: good first impression, cut to the chase, skiving off, strong silent type, etc. Worth looking up. (ed note: if the tattoo parlor had been open when we returned, Geoff would now be sporting this design on his right arm. Alas, he had closed up, even though he was supposed to be open.)

Now we sit in our hotel room in Rotorua. Took a walk through town to the local Countdown, the best grocery chain we’ve found, to buy wonderful wine at a great price. I am in to my second glass, have planned tomorrow’s itinerary and am looking forward to going out and tasting the local food in the market. Still don’t have unlimited access to the computer. Geoff is going a bit wild but I am sure we will get through it!