North Island Mission Stage 2

On the Saturday evening we found a motel in a place called Kati Kati. After pretty much no sleep the night before we crashed out and looked forward to a day of driving on the Sunday and most importantly driving during the day so that we could see the countryside!!

On the left is a map of the North Island of New Zealand (click for a larger Version).
The red line is the route we took on Highway 1 North, past Lake Taupo and up to Auckland.

We travelled back eastwards via the bay of Plenty and Kati Kati is about where the "B" of Bay is!
We headed East along the coast after stopping in a place called Te Puke(pronounced "Tee-pook-ay") for breakfast. We Drove through the most amazing gorges and forests with roads that just twisted and winded for ages. They were really fast flowing roads and with Ricky Jervais and Karl Pilkinton on the ipod for company we racked up thye miles.
The landscape changed so rapidly. The thing that struck me most was the various types of trees all amoungst each other. There were pine forests with decidious trees together with Palms trees! It was like the enviroment couldn't make up its mind!
You felt that at some point a dinosaur would come wandering out of the trees.

All that you may have seen and heard of the landscape inNew Zealand is true. All the back drops on Lord Of The Rings really are how New Zealand is. The Mountains and the Valleys, the sheep, and there are LOADS of sheep ( steady Matt...! plenty to go round!!!!) the forests and the views are all just breath taking.
I know for a fact that we will head this way again. It has a feel of Canada to it in some parts and then it feels like a greener version of Australia in others.
If you have thought at some point that you may visit NZ and drive around for a month... do it. Its a very special place.


As we headed South back towards Lake Taupo we stopped of at a Maori village near Rotorua.
The area all around Rotorua has loads of natural hot springs. Towers of hot steam coming from the ground are dotted all over the place.

"Rotorua is a smallish city on the shores of Lake Rotorua. The surrounding areas are a geothermal wonderland, with geysers, boiling mud pools, and steaming craters - accompanied by the pervasive smell of sulphur. Rotorua is also a showcase of Maori cultural activities, a centre of tourism and a place of extraordinary natural beauty."

It is a beautiful location thats for sure. Saying that though there is one thing that strikes you as soon as you get anywhere near..."the pervasive smell of sulphur" !!!
Basically ... rotten eggs...! bad ones at that !
You do get used to it but it does make you cough to start with. My eyes started watering but strangley i got used to it quicker than Tim did (?)
We wandered around an old Maori village where the Maori still live and work. The kids were all playing in the hot water of the river while all the tourists threw money into the water for them to dive for.
In the middle of the village the pools are very hot and there are massive amounts of steam that you cant even see through! Now remember that this same steam is sulphur (eggs) and you have some kind of idea what it may be like to walk through a baking hot cloud of stinking steam!

I beautiful place with really friendly people but out 1 hour there was long enough.
Onward South we went!

North Island Mission

With the house sorted and my time at the hotel drawing to a close the next thing to do was buy a car . As most of you know im a VW driver back in the UK. (oh how i miss that car!) So my mision was to spend a weekend looking at Beetles and see if i could find a decent one.
I found a mechanic in Wellington by the name of Lane. Great bloke who seems to do work on VW 's as a hobby rather than a business. He just seems to be doing the "hobby" all the time. a great contact to make even if he does like his later water-cooled models more!!

So i did some digging and i organised to see three beetles over the course of the weekend. all pre 1957 Oval windows and all in various conditions. All based in and around Auckland which is about a 7 hour drive from Wellington !(yeah Right!)
Tim and I set off after work on the friday night and headed north. The roads are a pleasure to drive on , especially in a nice fast hire car! As soon as you leave Wellington you join a motorway. Now most people wiill see in their minds eye the M25 or M1 ... nothing like that.. these are traffic free roads with beautiful mountains on either side. Much nicer driving conditions!
Pretty soon the motorway becomes a one lane fast flowing road that has passing lanes every few KM. You twist and wind through the countryside and along the coastal road as you head Northwards.
Im not sure who told us it was a 7 hour drive. They lied because it took us over 9 hours and we didn't stop on the way exept to refuel! As i got dark Tim and I decided to press on as we were both still very awake and thought it would be a good idea to try and make it to Auckland that night(bad decision right Tim !)
At one point we realised that the stars were really bright. We felt like we were very high up in comparasion to all the valley driving that we had been doing. We stopped and got out of the car and with no artificial light at all we were greeted by the most stunning star-filled sky!
It was pretty amazing!
Constalations that you know and recognise were super bright and the band that is the Milky Way was so clear it was amazing!(Tim says i use that word too often?)
The last 3 or 4 hours drive was done by Tim(thanks mate) and i had a kip ! Who says im like my Dad ??

Auckland is a strange place and not what i expected at all. There is one motorway that runs through the centre of the city and you have to drive if you want to go anywhere. Its a confusing place with little or no sign posts once you leave that lovely motorway.
We found an area with loads of motels but they were all full.! Completely full ! After a short while we realised why... U2 had been playing a concert just down the road and as a result.. yep we could find no where to stay !

Tim said he knew a place out of town and had stayed there before. It was now nearing 4am as we headed NOrth again. We found the area he had previously visited but the story was the same. We ended up sleeping in the car by the beach ! It wasn't too bad but i cant say either of us slept very well. All part of the adventure though i say!

The following morning ( well i say morning ... it was about 3 hours later !!) we headed of to see car number one. Now i wont go into details about the three cars as i will send all of you (except maybe E and Damon) to sleep!
All of them needed work done. One was in top condition but drove really badly, one was in need of work but the guy wanted too much for it, and the last one.. well the less said about that the better!! It had been "restored" a few years ago and one quick look under the carpets at the heater channels made me nearly faint. What was welded must have been done by a blind man or a four year old!! The guy wanted 10000nz dollars (3500 uk) for it !!

Two hopes mate !

Home..

Calling home is something you have to time well. You either get hold of people as they are off to bed and are tired. Or you get hold of them in the morning when they are waking up.
I called Mum and Dad last night to say hi and to see how it was all going.


A small amount of panic rose as I ask Dad " Hows things?" and the reply was a paused..." we're ok..."
"We're fine."
I knew straight away something had happened.

They had been to a family friends wedding and Mum had had another seizure.

Dad explained that Mum had felt a bit odd(no change there then!!!) after looking towards the flashing lights at the wedding disco. Mum said that she wasn't feeling great and needed to get away from the lights. A wise move ther i think!
They were escorted to a room and on the bed , in a controlled enviroment, Mum had a seizure. In comparasion to the other seizures that Mum has had this one was very minor. Thats great news as the drugs to counter act the seizures must be working. Mum came around within ten minutes , knew who and where she was and what had happened.
The ambulance arrived quickly and Mum was discharged after a short while and they then drove back to Fleet and the security of their own bed.
It sounds as if once again Dad has been the tower of strength and a rock for Mum in all this. The outward calmness and positive thinking that he projects can omly be good for all involved , especially Mum. Good work Dad and you know that we are all here for you should you need it.
Mum was up and about the next day and they even made it to Linda and Graham Hix's sunday lunch! A not to be missed occasion so im told as Linda is a Whizz in the kitchen! The fact that they were able to go there the very next day raises a smile on my face and should re-assure everyone that epilepsy is an illness that can be controlled and doesn't have to disrupt the everyday patterns of normal life.
Im so glad you are feeling better Mum and i cant wait to see you at Christmas.

Flashing lights have got to be one of the most common causes of an epileptic fit or seizure for people who have no or little knowledge on the subject. Like me !
I have been reading alot about epilepsy and in particular the connection it has with occuring post-operation.
For a general overview this site has been very helpful.

http://www.epilepsy.com/101/ep101_symptom.html

It talks about how sufferers can feel before a seizure occurs. How they can sense its arrival.
What brings them on and how they can be treated. An informative read and i reccomend it to all.

More on The house

I spoke to my brother Gary yesterday and he said he wanted to see more pictures of the house.... so Gaz... here you go.... more to come as soon as i move in at the weekend.


The last picture is of the view from halfway up the steps to the house. The present owners were in so i had to be sneaky for these pics!


The picture of the road, yes i know its dull, but this is Knoll Street. I'd say its a a 1in2 gradient hill !!! OK, maybe not that steep but crikey its steep!!! I went round there today in my new car (more later on that adventure!) and it struggled to get up the hill ! I nearly burnt the clutch out!

The house itself is stunning. Amazingly decorated with good sized bedrooms and bathrooms.
The kitchen, living room and dining area are all open plan at the back of the property with several sets of glass doors that open onto a huge deck and a beautiful vista over Island bay.

I dont actually have a picture of the view as im waiting to see it first hand as i move in on Saturday.

You can all see it first hand too when you come and visit me and Jo !!