A Kiwi Christmas and New Year

The highlight for us was being able to spend 5 weeks in such a beautiful area and having good friends who made this possible.

Touring the Coromandel, an area tourists tend to by pass. Driving down unmade roads and discovering small coves and beautiful beaches almost deserted due to the lack of tourists.

Driving on almost traffic free roads wherever we went. No traffic jams - even in rush hour!
With a total population of 4 million for both North and South Islands, we found it very stress free.

A green country with scenic views, quiet beaches and peaceful small towns.

Quick Tips:

If you have a car, make sure you top the tank up before commencing a journey. Petrol stations are few and far between, especially in the countryside. Also make sure you have a map with you - if you get lost there aren't many people about to ask (especially in tourist free areas).

Christmas and New Year is the main holiday period in New Zealand, so reservations in advance would be necessary for popular areas.

Although warmer than the UK, it is a green country which indicates a lot of rain. We found the best weather to be early January. A high factor sunscreen should be worn due to the thinner ozone layer in this part of the world.

Best Way To Get Around:

Having some sort of vehichle (car, bicycle etc) is best. New Zealand drives on the left, but the roads are very quiet with not much traffic. We don't remember seeing any public transport, although we were told there is a ferry which runs between Tauranga and Mount Maunganui.

Bus tours are also available and can be booked before leaving your home country.

Situated behind a high hedge on the main road, opposite the car sales lot, on the edge of the town, it is part of a budget motel chain and although not 5-star, is very clean.

For NZ$95 we got a room with a king size bed, a table and two chairs, a TV and patio doors which opened onto a communal lawn area with garden chairs. There was also kitchen area with fridge, microwave and all the essentials for breakfast making if necessary. The bathroom had shower and wc and there were ample towels.

The lady who checked us in was very friendly and the room very clean. Although situated on the main road, we didn’t hear any traffic.

I had previously turned down an offer of a room at another hotel for NZ$110 with the
advice "you will get what you pay for," but we were very happy with what we got.

Arriving in Whittianga at a busy time of year (the week between Christmas and New Year) we were hoping to find a vacancy. The first motel we approached was full, but had a reserve list of private rooms for rent. A telephone call ascertained there was a room available and we were directed down the road where Peter was waiting at the gate of a small apartment block to show us our room.

This was on the ground floor overlooking the garden and consisted of a double bed, wardrobe, table with two chairs, television, etc., and there was a very nice bathroom next door. We were allowed to put the car on the drive in front of the garage. The room, bedding, bathroom and towels were all very clean and we were very comfortable.

Peter lived upstairs and invited us for breakfast the next morning where he provided us with juice, cereal, toast, and tea or coffee. The Motel set the rate of NZ$90 which did not include breakfast, but he insisted so my husband gave him NZ$5 (which wasn’t much).

I think he was lonely and liked to talk to people which is why he rents his room. He was very informative about the area and all the people he had met from all over the world.

Although we found Thames to be very quiet, with hardly anyone on the street, the takeaway of this restaurant was very busy. We can only assume the clients came from the many motels on the approach to Thames.

We decided to eat in and entered through a side door to climb the stairs to the restaurant. The area was vast – there were so many tables, but only one other couple dining.

Monday to Thursday is a la carte, with Friday to Sunday being buffet. For our meal we had two soups, two main courses with rice and two lagers for a total of NZ$56.

The place was clean, the food good (we had more than we could eat) and the service quick and efficient.

My husband always has to have fish and chips when at the coast and being in New Zealand was no exception.

Situated on the corner of Monk and Albert Street, the main entrance to Snapper Jack's is on the main road and although this restaurant is small it was quite busy.

Here we ate delicious fish and chips for NZ$15.90. We were informed later that the fish was Gurned (which we had never come across before). Also on offer was Whitebait on wholemeal toast with salad for NZ$22.50. The restaurant offers juices, sodas, tea and coffee. It is not licensed for the sale of alcohol, but you can bring your own and there is an off license next door. We saw one couple order their meal then go out and return with two bottles of beer.

Our youngest son is a Lord of the Rings fan and as it was filmed in New Zealand he asked if we could get photos of the film set for him.

We found out that the Hobbit Village is actually situated just outside Matamata. The official sign for the town states “Welcome to Hobbiton” with Matamata underneath it. Visiting the Tourist Information Office we were told the village was situated on a farm to which you have to take a tour bus. The making of the film is explained on the journey and the cost was NZ$50 per person (which we thought expensive). Whilst discussing whether to take the trip we looked at postcards and realised the village was now nothing like it was when the film was made, so we bought a couple of postcards for our son and decided against the trip.

On our way home we stopped at Cambridge – a town which has a lot of British residents and a few antique shops. We expected it to be a bustling town like Cambridge in England, but it was very quiet with few people shopping although it was the week before Christmas. This is probably due to the low population of New Zealand, the total population of both islands being only 4 million.

The journey back to Tauranga led us through Karangahake Gorge, which is very beautiful and has the Ohunemuri River running through. There is also a Historic Station with a vintage train which you can ride from Waihi to Waikino and a winery with a good restaurant situated here.

At the end of the Gorge is the gold mining town of Waihi which is one of the most famous in New Zealand. Gold mining production is hidden behind the main street where there are lots of old wooden buildings housing shops. Sculptures depicting the old mining era are dotted round the street and tours of Martha Mine – which is modern and produces 75,000 oz of gold and 650,000 oz of silver – are available weekdays, reservations essential.

Eleven kilometres from Waihi is Waihi Beach. The beach is very safe and from the north headland is a short walk to Orakawa Bay past spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean. At the other side Bowenton is the site of a fortified Maori Pa (village or fortified community).

Tirau is a small town known for its antique shops and very popular with tourists and New Zealanders alike. Here you can meander through the many antique outlets agonising over items with a price tag NZ$2000+ - identical items of “old fashioned” furniture which you couldn’t sell at home and have taken to the dump as a last resort!

There is an Information Centre in the shape of a large dog and the Wool Centre housed in the shape of a sheep, as well as craft shops, shops with beautiful housewares, in fact shops to suit every taste. Cafes are also plentiful for that welcome sandwich and coffee and a pleasant day can be spent here.

On this visit the Teddy Bear Maker - home of Heatherbelle Bears - owned by Heather Germann was my destination. Heather has all sizes, brands, styles and prices of teddies – toys and collectibles – along with kits for home sewing for sale and on my last visit I had learned that she made teddies from old fur coats (or as Heather states "Heirlooms made from recycled fur"). The prices vary a lot with a 6” teddy made from mink on sale at NZ$350. However, for a teddy made from a fur supplied by the purchaser the prices are very reasonable at NZ$50 and determined to make use of two coney fur jackets I had from the 60s I had mailed them to my friend.

Unfortunately, they had not arrived by the time of our visit, and thinking they had been lost on route I purchased a teddy made from Musquash for NZ$70. I was very tempted by one made from white (bleached) Possum fur at a price of NZ$450, but I resisted!

On our last day, however, my coats arrived so it was a mad rush to get them to Heather which meant that I had to leave them with her to be made up and mailed back to me in the UK. Heather explained that as it would be very humid and too hot to work with fur she would not begin making them until March.

It was a long wait, but in June my two bears were delivered and I am really pleased with them. Heather advises the size of bear she can get from each fur and then you can pick the style. I had the traditional style with the hump on the back. The Musquash bear I had purchased had a (purposely) wobbly head, but the others don’t. All limbs and heads swivel and although made to the same pattern all three bears look different.

Volcanic action in the Waikato region has made it one of the worlds greenest places and ideal for agriculture, raising dairy cattle, thoroughbred horses and exotic timber.
Due to this richness the Maori people did not want to sell the land forcing the Government to confiscate it in the 1860s Waikato Wars.

Situated in this region, the Waitomo Glow-worm Caves are one of the natural wonders of New Zealand and a big tourist attraction. For NZ$30 each you are taken through the caves by a guide on foot who explains about the stalactites and stalagmites. One of the caves has wonderful acoustics and we were asked if anyone would like to test them by singing. No-one volunteered so our guide - a Maori lady - gave a rendition of a Maori song.

As our tour progressed we reached an area where there were glow-worms on the roof, at which time the lights are dimmed to allow you to view a myriad of tiny lights.

The tour then continues to a boat which you board and drift slowly through the dark caves with glow-worms overhead lighting your way. No photography is allowed until you near the end of the boat journey.

Tickets are available from the Visitor Information Centre at the Museum of Caves situated further up the road. At this area refreshments and toilets are available. There is also a large car park across from the caves entrance, so you don't have to walk.

There had been a fire prior to our visit with a lot of the buildings and surrounding area being lost. The area was recovering, but a lot of the buildings were temporary ones.

The area also offers other activities such as abseiling into caverns, floating through caverns on tubes, horse trekking, jetboats and 4 wheel drive guided tours. There is also the Ruakuri Bushwalk which takes you through 3 short caves with unusual limestone formations.

Tauranga (pronounced Tow--as in cow--ronga) situated side by side with Mount Maunganui, on the Bay of Plenty, is a seaside resort with ample holiday accommodation. In the name of modernisation and improvement, as homes become vacant developers are buying them to demolish and build apartments on the land. Of course this is good for both the town council (more revenue in rates) and developer alike, but many believe it is taking the character out of the area. Tauranga also has a large harbour popular as a cruise stop and there are many varied places to eat – a few of which are listed below:

Gusto, Tauranga - This is one of the many places where people gather for Sunday Brunch and it was very pleasant to join people in egg and bacon on a sunny Sunday morning. The restaurant was very busy, but we managed to get a table on the pavement outside so we could people watch whilst eating.

Bravo, Tauranga - For a break in Christmas shopping, we sat in the sun and ate a beef and horseradish sauce sandwich washed down with a bottle of wine.

Kwang Chow Restaurant, Mt Maunganui – Saturday night was very crowded, but we were just in time to get a table without a wait. The buffet had a very good selection and is cheaper on weekdays and lunchtimes.

Henry’s, Tauranga – Situated on a back street this is a typical lunch break café patronised by local workers and shoppers alike and has a good variety of sandwiches. NZ$14.90 for two sandwiches, latte and tea.

Volataire, Mt Maunganui – Giving the impression of being under the sea with a coral reef and fish painted on the walls (lights at night give a better impression of this) the seafood chowder with garlic bread is delicious and costs NZ$10 per person. Located in the main street it wasn’t busy at lunch time and is also open in the evenings.

Zultain, on the sea front road between Tauranga and Mt Maunganui – A very popular Turkish restaurant decorated in an apt style with lots of low tables, benches and cushions a kebab wrap is NZ$10 and a Pitta with choice of filling is NZ$9.

And a little further afield:

Happy Buffet, Greerton – A very popular buffet with a good selection of food, including pork and beef joints carved by a chef, seafood and a large variety of salads and vegetables. Also available were soups and desserts as much as you can eat for NZ$25 each.

Seaside Café, Maketu – a market is held here on summer weekends and the café is situated on the sea front. Not large, we managed to get a table overlooking the sea and enjoyed Sunday Brunch. People were in the bay at low tide looking for shell fish, but it was very quiet as there was no market.

After a quick visit to our friends at the beginning of 2005, we were invited back to spend Christmas and New Year with them. Our visit lasted 5 weeks and as our friends are self employed, it involved us helping them in their business (fishing tackle, bait and tools) in the run-up to the holidays. As New Zealand has their main holiday period over Christmas and New Year, which is the summer time, trade was very brisk as customers were stocking up for their fishing trips.

I helped in the office and my husband helped with deliveries until he knew his way around the customers, when I went with him and we saw a little of the surrounding area. This meant we were visiting places in the Bay of Plenty which tourists would probably not see. Lots of them were quiet seaside towns, some were inland towns where we wondered where the customers were to keep the shops going and we had to remind ourselves that New Zealand is sparsely populated compared to the UK. One of the villages we travelled through was the victim of a tsunami and the damage could be clearly seen with fallen trees, boulders and other debris.

We took it in turns to look after the business whilst the other two had the day off with us ladies walking, shopping and lunching on our days off and the men golfing on theirs. We also enjoyed visiting various sale properties as our friends were looking for what is termed a “lifestyle property” with a view to starting a boarding kennels and dog breeding business.

A lot of the new properties in The Bay of Plenty are very much like American homes. One story, three/four bedrooms and two bathrooms with small gardens, but the “lifestyle” properties are larger homes with an acre or more land – some with outbuildings complete with chickens - and a lot of them are wooden with (what look like) tin roofs. Brian (being British) was adamant he wanted a brick and tile home and these were what we toured. Properties for sale in New Zealand have “open days.” This is usually at the weekend when the Real Estate company shows prospective buyers round whilst the owners are absent. We found this a good way of viewing a house at our own pace.

In the evenings we were invited to friends or neighbours barbecues with every one making us very welcome. The weather hadn’t really warmed up at this time and there we were sitting round the garden table wearing thick sweaters and coats, drinking wine and eating burgers, chicken, etc., all cooked on the barbie. They all used to laugh at me as I was the only one who was cold and I come from a cold country.

My husband was really looking forward to his Christmas lunch eaten outside in the sun, but he was disappointed in this. The day, although sunny, was quite windy so we had to eat inside and instead of our usual British fayre of turkey, we had ham with sweet potatoes, carrots, parsnips and potatoes in cream and instead of our traditional Christmas pudding, there was pavlova for dessert. We did get to open our presents in the garden. It was all different to what we are used to, but all very enjoyable.

New Years Eve was to be spent at a neighbour’s house. They were moving directly after Christmas and lots of their friends had been invited as well as neighbours, their home being literally thrown open with every guest taking a contribution of food and wine/beer to be consumed during the evening. Music was being played the whole time, tables and chairs were set outside (which seemed strange to us being used to huddling over a fire at this time of year to keep warm). At midnight we all sang Auld Lang Syne wished each other “Happy New Year” and dispersed for bed. We enjoyed it immensely, but our friends were disappointed that there were so many people there making it too crowded for dancing during the evening.

A walk round the Mount the next morning blew all the cobwebs away. This walk takes you right round Mount Maunganui and is very popular as it has wonderful water views with the opportunity of spotting a whale or two if you’re lucky. On reaching the other side and surveying the beautiful beach, which stretches for miles, again it seemed strange to see it so busy at this time of year. There are campsites at each side of the Mount, both full to bursting. The walk had given us an appetite for ice cream so we sat at one of the many beachside café’s and joined others people watching.

We were on a journey round the Coromandel Peninsular – an area largely missed by tourists, who when visiting the North Island tend to go further north to the Bay of Islands. Our journey would take us up the east coast, across the north part of the peninsula and down the west coast. Having previously visited Tairua, the rest of the journey was new territory and our first nights stop would be Whittianga which gave us time to take the trip slowly, looking at everywhere we thought would be interesting.

Leaving Tauranga at 9am we were ready for morning coffee by the time we reached twin harbour towns Tairua and Pauanui. The area is very pretty, Tairua having one main road with cafes, restaurants, bars and souvenirs shops and being on the coast it is popular with the boating/fishing people. Pauanui – a purpose built holiday community – has panoramic views from the top of the 1200 ft mountain of the same name. The volcanic peak Paku overlooks the harbour of both towns and a 15 minute walk up the steep slopes leads you to the top. A ferry commutes between the two towns every hour in summer.

Venturing into the area of Mercury Bay – so named due to Captain Cook landing here in 1769 to observe the transit of Mercury – we discovered numerous small communities, some with hard to pronounce Maori names like Kuaotunu and Wharekho (Cooks first landing place in New Zealand), then there is Cathedral Cove (which is a marine reserve) all have beautiful white sandy beaches. Some we exited the car and explored more fully, others like Ferry Landing - a small town on the water, so named for the ferry taking passengers to and from Whittianga at a cost of NZ$2 per person - we drove straight through.

One of our stops was Hot Water Beach where there are art galleries and shops. There are two unique hot water springs on the beach, but only accessible at low tide. Spades are for hire at various shops and you can dig a hole to create your very own spa and relax in the warm waters. One hour boat trips of the coast line are also on offer.

Whittianga is a popular holiday resort and being the main holiday season was thronging with people. We saw a B&B with vacancies just outside the town, but decided to go further to see if there was anything available. The first Motel we stopped at in town was full, but the lady made a telephone call and said she had a room for us down the road. This turned out to be in a private apartment owned by a man named Peter (see journal "Peters’ Place").
After settling in, we walked to the marina and spent two hours just sitting on the headland at the mouth of the harbour relaxing, enjoying the sun and watching the activity of the herons, seagulls, cormorants and a kingfisher as well as boats returning from the days fishing.

Next morning was raining, but after breakfast we set off for Coromandel Town and soon the sun appeared.

Coromandel Town was a pioneering town and has restored heritage architecture from these days. Coromandel Goldfield Centre offers one hour tours 7 days a week 10am – 4pm at a cost of NZ$6 per adult and NZ$3 per child. Gold panning is also available. We enjoyed wandering round the many interesting shops and after coffee, found a loop road. Peter had told us we could go further round the Coromandel, but the road was unpaved – which my husband was not keen on – but we went anyway.

The views of the bays were spectacular, although the road was quite daunting in places, at one time it looked as if we were making our way straight into the sea. This whole road is very scenic with spur roads to beautiful bays, scenic views of the rocky coast line from the tops of hills and lovely country side on the flat, but the one thing missing all along are places to pull in to admire the view and take the odd photo. As we dropped down the other side of the mountains, the road hugged the coastline, which changed from the white sandy beaches of the east side to rocks and rough seas and we entered Thames – named for London’s River Thames.

Known as the Gateway to the Coromandel, Thames is 90 minutes drive from Auckland, with a population of 18,000 plus. There was a gold mine boom in the late 1800s but the quartz rock proved too tough for extracting the gold and it was short lived. Noisy during this time, on our arrival most places seemed closed and the historic main street was deserted, but there were a few Motels on the approach and restaurants were open in the town.

We had no difficulty getting accommodation here and watched a beautiful sunset over the Forth of Thames. Activities offered here are Historical and Mining Museums, Goldmine Trail, a boardwalk through the mangroves to a Bird Hide as well as many bush walks and a Saturday morning market, offering local crafts, collectibles and produce as well as a modern shopping mall.

When friends lent us a car we could explore on our own and our first trip was to Lake Taupo via Rotarua and the Huka Falls.

As we entered Rotarua we could smell the hot springs which throw steam up from the pavements and gardens. Lake Rotarua is the largest in the district with windsurfing, kayaking and fishing for trout being allowed. Moaoia Island is in the centre of the lake, has walking tracks and can be reached by boat. We followed the sign to the geyser park (Whakarewarewa), where boiling mud and erupting geysers can be seen and where the Maori Tribe displaced by the eruption of Mt Tarawera in 1886 now live, but then noticed a sign going off to the “Buried Village” so we decided to detour. On the way we came across a “Duck Jam” when a family of ducks decided to cross the road.

We had every intention of touring this site, but just as we arrived it started to pour with rain, so we looked round the Interpretive Centre, souvenir shop then went to their café and had morning coffee. It was still raining when we had finished this snack, so we gave the tour a miss, but picked up a brochure.

When the volcano Mount Tarawera erupted in 1886 the Maori village of Te Waiora was buried, along with 8,000 sq. kilometres of the scenic countryside. Excavations carried out since 1931 by three generations of the Smith Family have revealed some buildings and the museum tells the story of the village. You then venture round the excavated areas through bush to the stream and 30 metre Te Wairere Falls. Admission is NZ$22 per person, with complimentary guided tours.

Back tracking to Rotarua we stopped at the beauty spot of the Blue & Green Lakes.

Green (Rotokakahi) Lake so called as it looks emerald green from the air due to it being shallower than Blue Lake, has a sandy bottom and is named for the abundance of shellfish. It flows to Lake Tarawera (which is 322 ft lower) via the Te Wairoa waterfalls. Being sacred to the Maori it is very peaceful. It is 1302 ft above sea level and 69ft below the level of Blue Lake.

Blue (Tiki Tapu) Lake is almost circular with no apparent inlets or outlets and is a volcanic caldera formed 2000 years ago. This lake is home of the legendary monster Taniaha. From the air this lake appears turquoise due to the reflection of white phyolite and pumice on the bottom.

On our way again, we passed Huka Falls. From the overlook we were able to watch the Hukajet jet boats approach the edge of the falls and do a quick spin spraying water all over the passengers.

Lake Taupo with a surface area of 616 square miles is fed by rivers coming from the mountains and is the result of a volcanic eruption in 186 AD. Cliffs overlook part of the lake with snow capped volcanic cones on the southern side. The country’s largest river – the Waikato – running out of the lake, together with the rivers running into the lake, runs hydro electric power generating schemes. All rivers and lakes are teeming with trout and offer good fishing to all anglers. Among other activities on offer are water skiing, windsurfing and yachting.

As it was the week before Christmas, everywhere was decorated. There were models of Santa Claus in swim shorts decorating street lamps, in one town adults and children dressed as Santa Claus and his Elves were going round the shops handing out sweets to everyone, teenagers were carol singing. All this seemed weird to us as it was so hot and sunny – instead of cold and snowy!!

The north island of New Zealand does not seem to have much wildlife – other than birds which are plentiful and very varied. We saw lots of cormorants, kingfishers, herons and hawks, many wading birds as well as a few species unknown to us, on our travels.

The Kiwi – New Zealand’s national bird – is on the point of becoming extinct and is protected. It lives in scrub and native grasslands, is a very shy bird, semi-nocturnal, flightless and the size of a domestic fowl, weighing between 3-9 lbs. It has no tail, 2” virtually useless wings, and long slender bill which has two nostrils at the top. It also has very sharp three toed feet which can kick and slash an enemy and can outrun a human. Many New Zealanders have never seen a Kiwi bird, but we noticed a couple of places where they can be viewed in captivity – one being in Rotarua.

Possums, which were released in 1837 to establish a fur industry, are in abundance, many ending up as road casualties. With over 70 million of them at large they are decimating New Zealand’s bush and birdlife – including the Kiwi.

The majority of deer in New Zealand are farmed for their meat. We came across quite a few of these farms on our travels and the general opinion was that any “wild” deer are escapees from such farms.

We also noticed that pull-ins seemed to have resident fowl scratching around. We do not know if these were wild or domestic, but they seem to survive by being fed by stopping motorists and all looked very healthy and plump.