So let's see if this will work: a map I put together showing all kinds of points in New Zealand where we slept, ate, drank, shopped, photographed:
View New Zealand 2009 in a larger map
What I now wonder is if I should make a map of the two trips - I think it could be quite interesting to see how much of the country we've covered overall.
Still more trip photos and entries to come!
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
return to Martinborough
Conrad and I did what we could to balance places new to us with places we enjoyed two years ago on the recent trip to New Zealand. A case in point is the village of Martinborough. In 2007 we enjoyed a sunny day trip and winery tour there, coming up for the day only from Wellington. This time around, we spent a night there, heading north from Wellington to Napier.
Here's what we didn't realize when we planned this: the grapes would mostly be in, and the vineyards would be busy with the start of wine making. As such, mid-afternoon and midweek there weren't many opportunities to taste wine close in to town. The whole village was fairly tranquil, in fact. We checked in to our hotel, the Petit Hotel (four rooms, nicely restored old building),
and headed across the street to the Village Cafe
for lunch. Not too many people in there, and we happily read
and tucked into the Caesar salad (yes, that is a fried egg - a neat variation on the raw egg that goes into the traditional tossed-at-the-table salad)
and charcuterie plate.
We'd parked for the night, so a glass of wine each as well. Yes, that IS a shocker.
After lunch, we set out walking. There are wineries farther out, but we wanted to go to the ones within a short stroll of the village center. Alas, not too many have midweek cellar door hours, and fewer still have such hours year-round. We ended up at Ata Rangi just before closing.
I wish we'd taken photos inside. We had a great little visit, in fact - talking with the winery owner and some others there, enjoying the wines (and the labels - gorgeous!). Our little stroll resulted in three bottles (two half size ones among them) coming home with us. Success!
For dinner we wandered to the bigger, parent hotel next door and in to their bar. In the off season, the dining room was not open, but there were a number of good options for eating available in the bar. Not only that, but the bartender gave us great advice (and samples) of some wines. I'm kicking myself right now - I'm at the Vancouver condo blogging there, but the menu is at home in Chicago. My memory is poor, and my descriptions of these items will be paltry:
A salmon tartare. I think.
More fish. I think.
Salad.
Cheeses.
Pathetic of me.
Over night, the ominous clouds we saw earlier
left a bit of rain - not much - but rocked our little building with fierce winds. Somehow we didn't mind being awoken often - we had no rush planned for the next morning, and we kind of liked the feeling of being so sheltered inside.
In the morning, though, a sunny day in the village,
and under these blue skies I got behind the steering wheel to try driving for the first time in NZ.
Here's what we didn't realize when we planned this: the grapes would mostly be in, and the vineyards would be busy with the start of wine making. As such, mid-afternoon and midweek there weren't many opportunities to taste wine close in to town. The whole village was fairly tranquil, in fact. We checked in to our hotel, the Petit Hotel (four rooms, nicely restored old building),
and headed across the street to the Village Cafe
for lunch. Not too many people in there, and we happily read
and tucked into the Caesar salad (yes, that is a fried egg - a neat variation on the raw egg that goes into the traditional tossed-at-the-table salad)
and charcuterie plate.
We'd parked for the night, so a glass of wine each as well. Yes, that IS a shocker.
After lunch, we set out walking. There are wineries farther out, but we wanted to go to the ones within a short stroll of the village center. Alas, not too many have midweek cellar door hours, and fewer still have such hours year-round. We ended up at Ata Rangi just before closing.
I wish we'd taken photos inside. We had a great little visit, in fact - talking with the winery owner and some others there, enjoying the wines (and the labels - gorgeous!). Our little stroll resulted in three bottles (two half size ones among them) coming home with us. Success!
For dinner we wandered to the bigger, parent hotel next door and in to their bar. In the off season, the dining room was not open, but there were a number of good options for eating available in the bar. Not only that, but the bartender gave us great advice (and samples) of some wines. I'm kicking myself right now - I'm at the Vancouver condo blogging there, but the menu is at home in Chicago. My memory is poor, and my descriptions of these items will be paltry:
A salmon tartare. I think.
More fish. I think.
Salad.
Cheeses.
Pathetic of me.
Over night, the ominous clouds we saw earlier
left a bit of rain - not much - but rocked our little building with fierce winds. Somehow we didn't mind being awoken often - we had no rush planned for the next morning, and we kind of liked the feeling of being so sheltered inside.In the morning, though, a sunny day in the village,
and under these blue skies I got behind the steering wheel to try driving for the first time in NZ.
Monday, April 27, 2009
second best meal on NZ trip?
Second best? Possibly. We dined very well while in New Zealand, I must admit. Oh come on - if you've seen this blog before, that won't come as a surprise.
Good meals are more than simply immaculately and creatively plated portions of exquisite treats, served by someone calling me "Sir". Setting, company, occasion - all can override the actual food itself if not complementing what is on the plate.
Or the paper.
On an easy Sunday in Auckland the four of us (plus Elvis) went the takeaway route. We picked up fish and chips (snapper in this case)
and drove up to Mt. Eden where we walked round the rim of the crater to a view of much of Auckland below.
Blankets spread, paper packages of fish and chips unwrapped, a bottle of Lindy's (we tried to taste as much typical NZ cuisine as possible!) opened.
Sunset came upon us
- and we weren't the only ones there to enjoy it, of course.
Just such a remarkably relaxing meal together, and other than champagne flutes, no dishes to deal with.
And, as an added bonus, Conrad and I found ourselves setting each other off into giggles much of the rest of the trip simply by jokingly uttering the supposed NZ pronunciation of the meal: fush and chups. I mean really, how do you top a meal like that?
Good meals are more than simply immaculately and creatively plated portions of exquisite treats, served by someone calling me "Sir". Setting, company, occasion - all can override the actual food itself if not complementing what is on the plate.
Or the paper.
On an easy Sunday in Auckland the four of us (plus Elvis) went the takeaway route. We picked up fish and chips (snapper in this case)
and drove up to Mt. Eden where we walked round the rim of the crater to a view of much of Auckland below.
Blankets spread, paper packages of fish and chips unwrapped, a bottle of Lindy's (we tried to taste as much typical NZ cuisine as possible!) opened.
Sunset came upon us
- and we weren't the only ones there to enjoy it, of course.
Just such a remarkably relaxing meal together, and other than champagne flutes, no dishes to deal with.And, as an added bonus, Conrad and I found ourselves setting each other off into giggles much of the rest of the trip simply by jokingly uttering the supposed NZ pronunciation of the meal: fush and chups. I mean really, how do you top a meal like that?
one goal
Conrad and I learned years back that we can travel well together. Though our friends tease us about our propensity for planning things well in advance, in fact, we don't do a lot more planning than booking necessities: transport, hotel, some restaurant reservations. Instead, when on holiday, we tend to take this approach:
Case in point: 5 years back (wow, THAT long ago!), we spent two weeks in Spain. One day, in Granada (now there's a place to revisit!), we decided to drive down to the Mediterranean coast, about an hour away. En route, we let ourselves detour into Las Alpujarras, the mountain villages, and it wasn't until, oh, sunset, that we made it to the seashore. And yet, ask us about the best day on that vacation, and we will likely both point to that day of wandering through the little whitewashed villages.
Anyway, on to New Zealand where we took a similar set a goal and do everything else en route approach - for the most part. The day that we left Dion and Minna behind in Queenstown largely fit that.
Another thing about us: we love maps. We love to look at them and trace our routes and speculate and just admire the craft that goes into them. So it was that we found ourselves considering various routes to and through The Catlins, in the far southeast of the country. Sparsely populated, scenic. Oh, and home to the southernmost point on the South Island. When Conrad caught sight of that, it became (other than reaching our B&B) the goal for the day.
Here's how we went about it:
Not too bad, hmmm?
The next day our goal was to get to Dunedin Airport in time for a flight to Christchurch connecting to a flight to Auckland. Easy enough. Conrad and I had some good conversation with Helen-May over breakfast, said good-bye to her and her husband, Alan, then headed up the coast. On their advice, we veered off to see the lighthouse at Nugget Point. Sound advice: the fog rolled over the hills and humps and rocks,
clearing to give us a lovely view
of the Nuggets and of the seal and sea lion colonies far below.
We made it to Dunedin in good time but with the additional memory of the sights along the way.
This is the point in the blog entry where if I haven't recommended a business enough, I will. We did a lot of hunting around the Web to settle on a Catlins accommodation before choosing the Greenwood Farmstay,
and we realize we shortchanged ourselves on its hospitality and on the Catlins itself by limiting ourselves to one sole night. Foolish us. We utterly recommend Helen-May and Alan and their B&B, and we suggest not rushing through the area, even if you have only one goal in mind.
- Set one goal for the day.
- Do anything else that comes along, so long as you can still reach that goal.
Case in point: 5 years back (wow, THAT long ago!), we spent two weeks in Spain. One day, in Granada (now there's a place to revisit!), we decided to drive down to the Mediterranean coast, about an hour away. En route, we let ourselves detour into Las Alpujarras, the mountain villages, and it wasn't until, oh, sunset, that we made it to the seashore. And yet, ask us about the best day on that vacation, and we will likely both point to that day of wandering through the little whitewashed villages.
Anyway, on to New Zealand where we took a similar set a goal and do everything else en route approach - for the most part. The day that we left Dion and Minna behind in Queenstown largely fit that.
Another thing about us: we love maps. We love to look at them and trace our routes and speculate and just admire the craft that goes into them. So it was that we found ourselves considering various routes to and through The Catlins, in the far southeast of the country. Sparsely populated, scenic. Oh, and home to the southernmost point on the South Island. When Conrad caught sight of that, it became (other than reaching our B&B) the goal for the day.
Here's how we went about it:
- Drive south, avoiding Invercargill and hitting the coast at Fortrose. Stop for a snack.
- Take photos of wind-sculpted trees.
- Park with the other vehicles by a paddock and walk through the pasture to Slope Point. Take photos. Check the goal off the list.
- Take more photos of trees.
- Stop at Curio Bay to see the ancient petrified forest remains.
- Stop for another snack, this time at Niagara Falls. Bluff oysters, in season and fried in batter.
- Find the falls, snicker at the joke.
- Stop to admire a bigger waterfall: Purakaunui.
- Get to the B&B, take the owners up on the offer of a pre-dinner drive over paddocks to the cliffs overlooking the Pacific.
- Follow the owners' advice on visiting a cove to see the yellow-eyed penguins - and sea lions (we think).
- Enjoy a good and very generous dinner of venison at the B&B, washing it down with a bottle of Devil's Staircase Pinot Noir picked up two days before.
- Sleep well.
Not too bad, hmmm?
The next day our goal was to get to Dunedin Airport in time for a flight to Christchurch connecting to a flight to Auckland. Easy enough. Conrad and I had some good conversation with Helen-May over breakfast, said good-bye to her and her husband, Alan, then headed up the coast. On their advice, we veered off to see the lighthouse at Nugget Point. Sound advice: the fog rolled over the hills and humps and rocks,
clearing to give us a lovely view
of the Nuggets and of the seal and sea lion colonies far below.
We made it to Dunedin in good time but with the additional memory of the sights along the way.This is the point in the blog entry where if I haven't recommended a business enough, I will. We did a lot of hunting around the Web to settle on a Catlins accommodation before choosing the Greenwood Farmstay,
and we realize we shortchanged ourselves on its hospitality and on the Catlins itself by limiting ourselves to one sole night. Foolish us. We utterly recommend Helen-May and Alan and their B&B, and we suggest not rushing through the area, even if you have only one goal in mind.
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