Hi there
As Aoifa says the Cook Islands were truly paradise. Rarotonga island itself is only 40k all the way round with lush mountains in the middle and glorious beaches at the edges. We had a glorious week generally chilling out by the pool or by the beach although we did manage to do a bit of sightseeing and some snorkelling and also went on a jeep safari into the mountains which was really something.
We also met some really cool and lovcely people here (a big shout out to the mental Aimee and Tracey from Christchurch and the other newly weds Craig and Sarah) so you'll be delighted to know that the non stop partying and drinking has continued to the extent where on four of our nights we ended up jumping in the pool (fully clothed).
The other thing thats made the Cook Islands so special was the friendliness of all the locals. The hospitality here has been something else.
On the final night we did the island pub crawl where a bus takes you round the island stopping at the vcarious hosteleries. Am pleased to report that the 3rd pub saw further victory for the big man in the weekly nativce dancing competition. As I was clearly the oldest and heaviest I cant help thinking that there may havce been an element of me getting the sympathy vote or maybe it was simply the fact that I can still bust a groove that would put John Travolta to shame. I also have to thank Aoifa for managing to get the DJ to play Kevin Little after my numerous failed attempts ( I think she told him I was going to cry if he didnt play it soon)
We've just hit San Fran and it seems fantastic and will report more later however first of all Id like to tell you about a little incident at the airport where a younger guy being led by a slightly older guy jumped passed us to the front of the security check out que. Aoifa's frown turned to a full all out girly beam when the younger guy turned around to the rest of the que to apologise. It helped that the guy in question was Jake Gylenhaal. After 3 months of seeing some of the most stunning places in the world who would have though that Aoifa's high point would come at LAX airport.
see you soon.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Monday, February 2, 2009
Hi there..we did our time travelling and survived!!!! The Cook Islands are just amazingly fabulously astoundingly fabulous!! Absolutely love it here, I thought Bali was good, but this is sooooo much better!! The weather is roasting..even when you're doing nothing you're sweating (can you imagine what thats doing to poor doug?!?!?) and our apartment looks straight out on to a fabulous lagoon with fab blue water, white sand and crashing waves..the people are so friendly and nice and we've already managed to find some drinking buddies to help while away the nights!!
Suppose Id better tell ye about auckland first though eh..although it pales in comparison to here, everything does, summer hols will never be the same experience for me again!! Sorry..auckland, ammm our apartment was fabulous, perfectly central and lush which was cool, am trying to think what we did, got drunk probably a lot..oh no wait I remember now we got to see Joe Rockokoe in the flesh...yummmmmmie!! Oh he was fabulous, we managed to get out to see the Auckland Blues play the Queenstown Reds (very imaginitive with their team names over here!) in a warm up game before the Super 14 thing starts..oh there was lots of lovely rugby men there, and they all hung around after the game to give autographs and pictures..I got a few of my Joe, maybe one too many for a married woman but hey ho!!
We did the bungee rocket aswell..ahahaha that was fabulous, we got the video evidence to prove it and its very funny..doug was sh**ting in his pants before we did it so much so that he started to make me nervous but he's very glad he did it now, but like me, will never do it agin!!
After that I think we drank and ate as usual..made a big night of our last night in NZ which resulted in a humoungous hangover for our time travelling, but we managed it and arrived a day behind from when we started!! It was very exciting!!! Auckland was just anpther city for me I must admit, whilst I absolutely adored BOI and Coromandel P not sure Id be rushing back to auckland, although always good to say you've seen it!!
Right must away back to the pool before I melt into the ground..may this week never end!!! I hear the UK is all snowed under..maybe we might get stuck out here..Iv already left my passport practically outside my front door in the hope someone steals it!!
Suppose Id better tell ye about auckland first though eh..although it pales in comparison to here, everything does, summer hols will never be the same experience for me again!! Sorry..auckland, ammm our apartment was fabulous, perfectly central and lush which was cool, am trying to think what we did, got drunk probably a lot..oh no wait I remember now we got to see Joe Rockokoe in the flesh...yummmmmmie!! Oh he was fabulous, we managed to get out to see the Auckland Blues play the Queenstown Reds (very imaginitive with their team names over here!) in a warm up game before the Super 14 thing starts..oh there was lots of lovely rugby men there, and they all hung around after the game to give autographs and pictures..I got a few of my Joe, maybe one too many for a married woman but hey ho!!
We did the bungee rocket aswell..ahahaha that was fabulous, we got the video evidence to prove it and its very funny..doug was sh**ting in his pants before we did it so much so that he started to make me nervous but he's very glad he did it now, but like me, will never do it agin!!
After that I think we drank and ate as usual..made a big night of our last night in NZ which resulted in a humoungous hangover for our time travelling, but we managed it and arrived a day behind from when we started!! It was very exciting!!! Auckland was just anpther city for me I must admit, whilst I absolutely adored BOI and Coromandel P not sure Id be rushing back to auckland, although always good to say you've seen it!!
Right must away back to the pool before I melt into the ground..may this week never end!!! I hear the UK is all snowed under..maybe we might get stuck out here..Iv already left my passport practically outside my front door in the hope someone steals it!!
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Bay of Islands
Howdy all.
Have just arrived in Auckland following 4 nights in the Beautiful Bay of Islands and I have to say our time in the North was one of the real highlights of the whole trip.
We stayed in Paihia (the main town in BOI) which is a gorgeous setting right on the beach and with numerous cool Restaurants, shops and Bars dotted around the town.
That said we have been out and about exploring.
Wednesday was taken up with a boat cruise around the Islands going through the Famous Hole in the Rock and stopping at one of the Islands for lunch. On the journey back in the afternoon one of the high points was where they chucked a net out of the side of the boat (the net is still attached to the boat), you then jump in the net with several others while the boat takes off and you have to cling on to it for dear life...I thoroughly enjoyed it although I suspect the two Maori Girls behind me did not have such a good time. The power of the water had the effect of pulling down my shorts slightly, thus exposing my bare, white, fat, Scottish Bum for them and several others to see. I can only hope that this is a friendly gesture in Maori Society and not an act of aggression.
The high point of the cruise was the inpromptu show that a School of Dolphins put on for us. Watching them jump out of the water doing their various twists and turns is really quite astounding. We had hoped to go swimming with them but unfortunately were not allowed as NZ Maritime Law prevents people from swimming with Dolphins where there is a Baby dolphin in the School.
I can't say I was that upset as the Captain of the Ferry did say that apparently a Hammer Head Shark had been seen happily swimming with another School the day before. That said I am sure one glimpse of my backside and he would have backed off.
On Tuesday we did a coach trip up to cape Reinga at the very far north of the North Island. The scenery up there is fantastic and we stopped at a beautiful beach with cracking waves for lunch. The high point of the trip though was on the way back where the coach stops at these enormous sand dunes and after a quick walk up to the top of them (ok a long and wheezy walk in the case of myself and Aoifa) you then get to surf down them. After that the bus drove along the beach for a further 60 miles only stopping to point out various other vehicles which have been caught in the incoming tide and stranded forever. The busdriver even managed to do his bit for international relations by loosing a Korean couple on the trip.
thats all for now, talk soon
Have just arrived in Auckland following 4 nights in the Beautiful Bay of Islands and I have to say our time in the North was one of the real highlights of the whole trip.
We stayed in Paihia (the main town in BOI) which is a gorgeous setting right on the beach and with numerous cool Restaurants, shops and Bars dotted around the town.
That said we have been out and about exploring.
Wednesday was taken up with a boat cruise around the Islands going through the Famous Hole in the Rock and stopping at one of the Islands for lunch. On the journey back in the afternoon one of the high points was where they chucked a net out of the side of the boat (the net is still attached to the boat), you then jump in the net with several others while the boat takes off and you have to cling on to it for dear life...I thoroughly enjoyed it although I suspect the two Maori Girls behind me did not have such a good time. The power of the water had the effect of pulling down my shorts slightly, thus exposing my bare, white, fat, Scottish Bum for them and several others to see. I can only hope that this is a friendly gesture in Maori Society and not an act of aggression.
The high point of the cruise was the inpromptu show that a School of Dolphins put on for us. Watching them jump out of the water doing their various twists and turns is really quite astounding. We had hoped to go swimming with them but unfortunately were not allowed as NZ Maritime Law prevents people from swimming with Dolphins where there is a Baby dolphin in the School.
I can't say I was that upset as the Captain of the Ferry did say that apparently a Hammer Head Shark had been seen happily swimming with another School the day before. That said I am sure one glimpse of my backside and he would have backed off.
On Tuesday we did a coach trip up to cape Reinga at the very far north of the North Island. The scenery up there is fantastic and we stopped at a beautiful beach with cracking waves for lunch. The high point of the trip though was on the way back where the coach stops at these enormous sand dunes and after a quick walk up to the top of them (ok a long and wheezy walk in the case of myself and Aoifa) you then get to surf down them. After that the bus drove along the beach for a further 60 miles only stopping to point out various other vehicles which have been caught in the incoming tide and stranded forever. The busdriver even managed to do his bit for international relations by loosing a Korean couple on the trip.
thats all for now, talk soon
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Finally the sun has come out in force and the last few days have been what i imagined the 7 weeks would be like..we've been up around the coromandel penninsula and oh my god it is just gorgeous...absolutely roasting hot sun and beautiful beautiful beaches..we had to do a 40 min hike to a place called cathedral cove yesterday and the pain was well worth the beach that we ended up on, I cant describe how fabulous it was, google earth it and maybe you'll see!!
Before that it was the National Park as Doug said, the bike ride was amazing, prob made better by Doug's struggle through it, some bits were pure hilarity made worse by the fact I couldnt laugh out loud for fear Doug would through the bike and probably himself off the mountain in his frustration...as you can imagine the c word echoed through National Park once or twice at least!!
So now we're down to our last week in NZ, Doug's gutted to be ditching his last hire car of the holidays, most probably because we've been quite lucky with what we've gotten and all he has now to face its the mustard micra machine!!!
So we've got 4 nights up the Bay of Islands and 3 nights to finish in Auckland before we head off to the Cook Islands..am very excited about the cook islands cos we'll actually be going back in time!!! We're time travellers!!!! We leave Auckland at 17.30 on the 1st and get into Cook Islands at 22.00 on the 31st..might just keep going over and back that date line and never come back...how much fun would that be!!!!
be good..xx
Before that it was the National Park as Doug said, the bike ride was amazing, prob made better by Doug's struggle through it, some bits were pure hilarity made worse by the fact I couldnt laugh out loud for fear Doug would through the bike and probably himself off the mountain in his frustration...as you can imagine the c word echoed through National Park once or twice at least!!
So now we're down to our last week in NZ, Doug's gutted to be ditching his last hire car of the holidays, most probably because we've been quite lucky with what we've gotten and all he has now to face its the mustard micra machine!!!
So we've got 4 nights up the Bay of Islands and 3 nights to finish in Auckland before we head off to the Cook Islands..am very excited about the cook islands cos we'll actually be going back in time!!! We're time travellers!!!! We leave Auckland at 17.30 on the 1st and get into Cook Islands at 22.00 on the 31st..might just keep going over and back that date line and never come back...how much fun would that be!!!!
be good..xx
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
Sore Bums
Hi there,
We have now been in National Park for the last 5 days. National Park is a massive ski resort slap bang in the middle of NZ's north Island however during the summer months there is still a lot to do such as hill walking, climbing, Mountain Biking, White Water rafting etc.
Unfortunately however we experienced somewhat monsoon conditions during the first three days during which we did little more than drive around the area.
We have also been entertained by a mad but lovely Geordie couple in the apartment next to us. They are pensioners who are tavelling round the Island. In typical Geordie fashion the guy, Neil has brought no trousers or long sleeve tops with him..he does however have a remarkable collection of bermuda shorts.
On Tuesday we heard that the weather was far better back in Taupo and as such we drove back there with the intention of doing a bit of Para-Sailing only to discover that they were not running that day due to (apparently) high winds.
We consled ourselves with a trip to Taupo Museum and then on to the local swimming pool, a massive complex with indoor and outdoor pools and two large slides, the slides are fully enclosed and has the effect of amplifying any noises you make...I thinik that Aoifa just about deafened the whole complex with her screeching as she flew down.
Thankfully the sun came out big time yesterday and to celebrate Aoifa had the crazy idea of going for a 20KMontain Bike ride through the National Park. It turns out that Aoifa is a fairly competent Mountain Biker, I on the other hand suck, my whole body aches today (especially my Bum) and I think I eventually managed to break the bike in the final few hundred metres....that said some of the views on the track were aboslutely stunning and when you are bombing down the side of a hill it is actually very good fun and I suppose it's about time I did some exercise this holiday.
Our last day in NP today and thankfully the sun is back out, we plan to go for a (gentle) walk before getting an early night so we are fresh for our trip up to Coromandel tomorrow.
We have now been in National Park for the last 5 days. National Park is a massive ski resort slap bang in the middle of NZ's north Island however during the summer months there is still a lot to do such as hill walking, climbing, Mountain Biking, White Water rafting etc.
Unfortunately however we experienced somewhat monsoon conditions during the first three days during which we did little more than drive around the area.
We have also been entertained by a mad but lovely Geordie couple in the apartment next to us. They are pensioners who are tavelling round the Island. In typical Geordie fashion the guy, Neil has brought no trousers or long sleeve tops with him..he does however have a remarkable collection of bermuda shorts.
On Tuesday we heard that the weather was far better back in Taupo and as such we drove back there with the intention of doing a bit of Para-Sailing only to discover that they were not running that day due to (apparently) high winds.
We consled ourselves with a trip to Taupo Museum and then on to the local swimming pool, a massive complex with indoor and outdoor pools and two large slides, the slides are fully enclosed and has the effect of amplifying any noises you make...I thinik that Aoifa just about deafened the whole complex with her screeching as she flew down.
Thankfully the sun came out big time yesterday and to celebrate Aoifa had the crazy idea of going for a 20KMontain Bike ride through the National Park. It turns out that Aoifa is a fairly competent Mountain Biker, I on the other hand suck, my whole body aches today (especially my Bum) and I think I eventually managed to break the bike in the final few hundred metres....that said some of the views on the track were aboslutely stunning and when you are bombing down the side of a hill it is actually very good fun and I suppose it's about time I did some exercise this holiday.
Our last day in NP today and thankfully the sun is back out, we plan to go for a (gentle) walk before getting an early night so we are fresh for our trip up to Coromandel tomorrow.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Well hello there to all..hope ye're all well! Thanks to all of you who have texted or mailed on your numbers..I was feeling a bit pathetic with only 2 numbers in my contact list there for a few days!!
So all is going well now after the fecking crap that was Gisborne, to be fair the people at the hotel were lovely but thats the only nice thing Im saying about the place!!! Ever!!!
So Napier was a nice town, it had quite a cool vibe about it, bit of a pity we hit it early on in the week as it was fairly quiet but we did as was expected and drank our body weight in wine as usual..some habits are hard to kill off!! We did another wine tour, which I must admit to have been a bit wary of after the last cruise, but much to Doug's disgust it seemed to be a tour focused on teaching you about wines and history of the region and stuff rather than getting you roaringly drunk like the last one..so thankfully no air freshners appeared in the room in the middle of the night this time..thank god!!
We didnt do much else in Napier that I can remember, chilled out a lot, was good to have accomodation that you could actually sit in for a night rather than jumping off the bed the minute you wake up for fear of what might find you tastier than the sleeping bag!!
Taupo is where we are at the mo and again its a really nice town, seems to be a place for people to stop off for a night or two before they move on if you know what I mean..but nonetherless we've had a good few days here, we went out on a wee cruise yesterday to see some rock carvings..and when I say wee I mean absolutely tiny boat thing, the captain guy was cramming the feckers on, was sure we were going to go under..helped hugely by the captain joking about it!!! As part of the cruise we did get to swim in the Lake (Lake Taupo - the largest lake in NZ as Douglas KEEPs telling me!!) but they only told us it was another of these lakes feed by snow and cold stuff all the time, AFTER Id jumped in..it was freeeeeeezing!!! but done now, the lady beside me said at least its another tick off your list, told her its time that list was thrown away!!
So on next to a week in National Park, oh it will be wondrous to have a whole week of not moving somewhere every few days..although am getting quite concious we're on the homeward run of the holiday and its not sitting with me too well..we're organising our cook islands accomodation at the mo, fabulous as it all looks it'll be fairly sad cos when we get there then that means its only 1.5 weeks and we're back in freezing cold, wet edinburgh with nothing but work to fill the day..like you guys!!!
love to all..xx
So all is going well now after the fecking crap that was Gisborne, to be fair the people at the hotel were lovely but thats the only nice thing Im saying about the place!!! Ever!!!
So Napier was a nice town, it had quite a cool vibe about it, bit of a pity we hit it early on in the week as it was fairly quiet but we did as was expected and drank our body weight in wine as usual..some habits are hard to kill off!! We did another wine tour, which I must admit to have been a bit wary of after the last cruise, but much to Doug's disgust it seemed to be a tour focused on teaching you about wines and history of the region and stuff rather than getting you roaringly drunk like the last one..so thankfully no air freshners appeared in the room in the middle of the night this time..thank god!!
We didnt do much else in Napier that I can remember, chilled out a lot, was good to have accomodation that you could actually sit in for a night rather than jumping off the bed the minute you wake up for fear of what might find you tastier than the sleeping bag!!
Taupo is where we are at the mo and again its a really nice town, seems to be a place for people to stop off for a night or two before they move on if you know what I mean..but nonetherless we've had a good few days here, we went out on a wee cruise yesterday to see some rock carvings..and when I say wee I mean absolutely tiny boat thing, the captain guy was cramming the feckers on, was sure we were going to go under..helped hugely by the captain joking about it!!! As part of the cruise we did get to swim in the Lake (Lake Taupo - the largest lake in NZ as Douglas KEEPs telling me!!) but they only told us it was another of these lakes feed by snow and cold stuff all the time, AFTER Id jumped in..it was freeeeeeezing!!! but done now, the lady beside me said at least its another tick off your list, told her its time that list was thrown away!!
So on next to a week in National Park, oh it will be wondrous to have a whole week of not moving somewhere every few days..although am getting quite concious we're on the homeward run of the holiday and its not sitting with me too well..we're organising our cook islands accomodation at the mo, fabulous as it all looks it'll be fairly sad cos when we get there then that means its only 1.5 weeks and we're back in freezing cold, wet edinburgh with nothing but work to fill the day..like you guys!!!
love to all..xx
Sunday, January 11, 2009
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)