Macandrew Bay

Macandrew Bay is located on the Otago Peninsula.on the edge of Dunedin’s Otago Harbour, and is named for pioneer settler James Macandrew who lived here during his later life. Early residents of the area called the bay "The Hundreds", due to the large number of boulders which covered the foreshore.

Macandrew Bay is a suburb of Dunedin, but has the feel of an isolated coastal settlement and is often regarded as a separate township, even though the heart of the city is visible 10 kilometres away at the head of the harbour. It is both a commuter and a harbour-side retreat from the city. Macandrew Bay's 2001 population was a mere 1131.

On Sunday 15 March, we drove along the coast, through the “village”, and up and over the mountain to Larnach Castle. 

Larnach Castle. You might think me too tight not to have paid the $29 (each) for admission into their garden, but, hey, I’m not all that mad about formal gardens.

(Above): Jeanette outside the Macandrew Dairy. No sign of anyone to sell a paper…

(Above): A pretty bird sitting in the shade.What else can I say?

(Above and below): Two picturesque views of Macandrew Bay across to Dunedin City across the calm blue water.

Slow Post

Technology is one of those difficult-to-understand things.

Don’t get me wrong. If you take the time and trouble to e-x-p-l-a-i-n and to r-e-e-x-p-l-a-i-n (in an easy-to-follow simple language manner), then I will probably get the gist of the particular thing or concept.

Last October, I acquired a new computer, after the previous one has committed hard-drive suicide. There is always a whole string of stuff the owner of a new computer is requested to do. Stuff that we generally do without even taking the trouble to read all the terms and conditions and the other fine-print.

One of the “stuff”, I suspect, was probably an invitation to have my photos automatically uploaded to a Google storage drive. Quite neat, if you’re short on hard-drive storage.

However of recent times, I’ve been getting email messages from Mr Google+.They have been making me feel a bit guilty about not having got around to posting a few stories about our trip down south, because they suggest a story attached to one of the photos automatically uploaded to the skydrive…

Perhaps I can get hold of that software which writes the report/ novel/ blog for you, given a string of inputs…

Here are a few examples of the Google+ messages: the “moments” are the number of photos in that group; the ”view story” button takes you to a new page, with a selection of the photos and prompts for commentary, and captions to each snap.

Maybe I must stop this procrastination and get on with it…

Flags In The Square

Tuesday 10 March, Cathedral Square, Christchurch. I had seen photos of the wrecked cathedral a number of times on the Internet, but, like anything else, one wants to look at the real deal and see it in the flesh. To the right of the ruins, I saw this large number of plain coloured flags hanging in a huge grid pattern.

“…With its intensity of colour and unexpectedly graceful, rippling movement, Sara Hughes's vast flag wall brings a lift to the space, as well as to many who have already encountered it. The work is part of the Transitional Cathedral Square artist project, which also includes large scale interventions, closer to the Cathedral, by Chris Heaphy. This project was first unveiled to the public with the reopening of the Square on 6 July 2013…”

“…Hughes says she wanted to create a work for Cathedral Square that had a lightness of touch and incorporated an aspect of the Square left standing after the earthquakes and the demolition. Flag poles and the flags they fly are symbols laden with meaning and history. It was my intention in creating a wall of flags (648 in total hung between the poles) that the work would take a protective role within the Square and that the movement and colour of the flags would blow optimism and good will into the site. The scale of the work draws attention to the buildings that are not there. The colours of the flags I selected were in contrast to the grey and dusty environment I experienced on site visits to the red zone before the Square was opened last year…”

45 And Counting

I awoke fairly early that Autumn Saturday morning in 1970. My head was a ball of nerves and jumbled thoughts. What had I forgotten, what still needed be done before 3:00 that afternoon?Questions like these, and others, filled my thoughts and blocked my mental passages, as I toiled  to prepare the Ford Anglia for its very important journey to the Carefree Cottage in Onrusrivier later in the day.

Whether this is an accurate account of my movements, my thoughts and actions, is debateable. Somehow I think that I could not have accurately described these matters 45 days later, let alone 45 years.

Not that it is, or was, important. But, retrospectively, the meaning and significance of that day, is the important part.

A few hours later, around 3:20pm, I would hazard a guess, I was standing to attention, dressed semi-formally and  stiffly in a posh white shirt, necktie, black suit, black shoes, black socks (I think) and hair Brylcreemed slickly onto my knobbly skull. I was standing in front of what seemed to be a small sea of faces,mostly familiar, witnessing what was being said. I was part of a small group in front of these witnesses.

A group consisting of me, my wife to be, in a Dutch-reformed church with a Jewish clergyman speaking English in a predominantly,almost exclusively,Afrikaans-speaking environment. I was perspiring, beads of perspiration clearly visible on my forehead, and fortunately not really visible under my armpits. Whether the weather was abnormally hot or not, I cannot recall, but I can certainly remember the perspiration.

I guess I was listening to what was being said, but, honestly, whether I was comprehending the words and their significance, I cannot say. The short stubby clergyman continued in his eloquent voice, “And do you, James, take Jeanette to be your lawfully wedded wife…”

I suspect that I said “yes” to his question. I have never regretted it. A scene similar to that flashed vaguely before me this afternoon once again. Precisely 45 years later.

Today, we are both 45 years older than we were that day. Much older, but hopefully a bit wiser and bound together by a lifetime of experiences and fond memories.There have been many ups and correspondingly many downs, but,on the balance of scores of plus and minus, I reckon I gave that Jewish English-speaking Afrikaans clergyman the correct answer on that eventful Saturday afternoon...

Pathway To Dawn

Monday 9 March 2015.

“Arahura” in Maori means “Pathway to dawn.” Arahura is the name of the 148-metre13,600 ton InterIslander ferry which we boarded and left Wellington at 10:30am, bound on a 92-km trip to Picton on New Zealand’s South Island.

First things first, so we toddled along to the food court for a traditional bacon and egg breakfast. Tasted good. Then we sit back for the next three hours ten minutes for the cross-straight crossing. Outside on the deck, the air is surprisingly pleasant, as opposed to the icy experience I seem to recollect back in 2011.

Shortly after loading the vehicles and departing from the terminal, we leave the safe waters of Wellington Harbour Bay by passing through the heads of Pencarrow Head (the oldest lighthouse in NZ 1859) and Barrett Point. Thereafter, we leave the North Island waters and travel in a north-westerly direction, headed for Whekenui Bay, where according to Maori tradition, the great explorer Kupe killed the giant octopus he had pursued across the ocean to New Zealand.

Along the top of the South Island, we go through the Tory Channel and Cook’s Lookout (the straight between the two islands was named in 1770 after Captain Cook.  The strait is known to the Maori as Raukawa, which was previously found by explorer Abel Tasman, who mistook it for an inlet in 1642. The narrowest part is 22km wide.

As we round Dieffenbach Point, we steer slightly left-ish and enter the Queen Charlotte Sound, which is one of New Zealand’s most popular holiday areas. Straight ahead lies our destination, the ferry port of Picton.

A new and different view of the coastlines around each bend…

One last lesson in Maori translation: North Island = Te Ika A Maui and South Island =TeWai Pounamu

This is a notation for personal reference only:  Day 1 (Mon 9): Depart Wellington 10:30 on InterIslander Arahura, arriving Picton 13:40. Drive through Tuamarina 2:00pm, Spring Creek, Grovetown, Blenheim, Seddon (2:30pm), Ward (2:45pm), Kaikoura (at this point the mileage stood at 72,257), Goose Bay (4:15pm), Parnassus, Cheviot (5:00pm), Domett, Waipara, Amberly (5:45pm), Waikuku Beach, Woodend (6:00pm) and Kaiapoi to Christchurch (6:30pm). Sleep over on Monday night at the Earnslaw Motel at 288 Blenheim Road, Riccarton 03 348 6387. The mileage at this point reads 72,448 which is 408km from Waikanae and 191 from Kaikoura.

(Above):The road between Picton and Christchurch is long, but varied. The road surface, sign-posting and road markings are of the highest standards. The only drawback is the maximum speed anywhere is 100, and through towns the limit drops down to80 and then 50 through the built-up sections… We passed one red patrol car parked on the side of the road.

(Above): Jeanette shares a joke on one of our mandatory 10-minute stops. Something about the wind likely to blow me away…Taken on the rocks close to the highway just north of Kaikoura.

(Above): So-o-o… It wasn’t a joke: the wind certainly knows how to blow along that stretch!

We find the Earnslaw in Blenheim Road without any fuss. The lady at reception proves to be friendly and helpful,although the passcode for the WiFi doesn’t seem to give me full Internet access, so this post will have to wait…

Strange Anniversary

This week, exactly one year ago, two new creatures entered our lives. Unexpectedly.

A neighbour arrived with two goats en leash. Two boys – one being a chocolate brown Nubian with a friendly smile and long silky floppy ears, the other a wire-haired black and white mountain goat with retro horns and cute smile showing a row of little white teeth. They went by the names of Jacko (Michael Jackson) and Beebs (Justin Bieber), having been named by the neighbour’s children.

The job job assigned to Jacko and Beebs would be to devour all the nasty bramble vegetation on the hillside of the garden behind the dog-fence. They conducted themselves well in the fairly large precipitous stretch of land which we have come to know as Goat Hill, and, somehow, they were not repatriated to the neighbour after doing their contract task. 

Sadly, for reasons unknown to us, Beebs the Nubian died during the winter and he was buried at the lower end of Goat Hill in a shallow grave. To this day, his companion Jacko occasionally pops down to the Goat Cemetery, to spend some time, doing… well, doing what goats do…sort of standing looking blankly into space and…well,probably thinking, or something…

This week, Jacko is celebrating the completion of one year’s service at Goat Hill. How? Well, I suppose he hasn’t the foggiest idea about anniversaries – I’m not trying to insinuate that goats may be mentally challenged when it comes to such concepts, but I have a suspicion… I’m digging myself in deeper, aren’t I?  Anyway, Jeanette says that she has told him, and that he understands. So there.

(Above): Jacko at the dog-fence, chatting about… well, about this and that. And other goat things, perhaps like goat football?

Itinerary

The plan is that there is no fixed plan. We will simply go with the flow. Sort of. Cos I’m not that sort of flow-guy: I like to know where I’m headed, how I’ll get there, when I’ll get there, and where’ll I sleep. Thus, the plans of mice and men. No, not really.

With that in mind, I’ve scratched down some place-names with the consecutive dates from Monday 9 March 2015. And I went and booked accommodation according to that. Hmmm. A bit of a crap plan, I hear you say. Crap, yes, I guess, but I reckon it’s a lot better than the other so-called plan, the plan of Mice.

I predict that this will be interesting: let’s record the list of place-names and dates right here and now, and then we check the details against the actual future dates as they happen. Much like the weather-man on TV…Most times, he gets it quite wrong.

Day 1 (Mon 9): Depart Wellington 10:30 on InterIslander Arahura, arriving Picton 13:40. Drive through Tuamarina, Spring Creek, Blenheim, Seddon, L. Grasmere, Kaikoura, Hawkswood, Parnassus, Cheviot, Domett, Waipara, Amberly, Leithfield Beach, Waikuku Beach, Woodend, Kaiapoi, Belfast to Christchurch (approx. 337k). Sleep over on Monday night at the Earnslaw Motel at 288 Blenheim Road, Riccarton 03 348 6387.

Day 2 (Tue 10): Explore Christchurch, Sumner, Lyttelton, possibly taking a Red Bus tour which we missed last time. Sleep over on Tuesday night at the Earnslaw again.

Day 3 (Wed 11): Leave the car at the motel, and travel to Greymouth via Arthur’s Pass by TranzAlpine Railway,leaving CHC at 8:15 and arriving on the west coast at 12:45. Explore the town, possibly visiting the Monteith Brewery. Sleep over on Wednesday night at the Breeze Motel, 125 Tainui Street, Greymouth. 03 768 5068.

Day 4 (Thu 12): Explore the rest of Greymouth, and return to CHC, departing at 13:45 and arriving at our destination at 18:05. Sleep over on Thursday night at the Earnslaw Motel once more.

Day 5 (Fri 13): Drive from Christchurch through Rakaia, Ashburton, Winchester, Temuka, Washdyke to Timaru (approx 165k). Sleepover on Friday night at the Aspen on King Motel at 51 King Street,Parkside 03 688 3054

Day 6 (Sat 14): Drive from Timaru through St Andrews, Glenavy, Waitaki Bridge, Oamaru, Maheno, Herbert, Waianakarua, Hampden, Moeraki, Palmerston, Waikouaiti, Karitane, Waitati, Port Chalmers to Dunedin (approx 198k). Sleep over on Saturday night at the Alcala Motel at the corner of George and St David Streets 03 477 9073

Day 7 (Sun 15): Drive from Dunedin through Mosgiel, Milton, Balclutha, Clinton, Gore, Mataura, Edendale to Invercargill (approx 220k). Sleep over on Sunday night at the Colonial on Tay in Invercargill at 335 Tay Street  03 217 6058 

Day 8 (Mon 16): Explore Invercargill, including Bluff and Catlins Forest Park. Sleep over on Monday night at Colonial on Tay again.

Day 9 (Tue 17): Drive from Invercargill through Winton, Lumsden, Kingston, Frankton, Queenstown to Arrowtown (approx 210k). Sleep over on Tuesday night at the Arrowtown Holiday Park,12 Centennial Ave 03 412 1876

Day 10 (Wed 18): Drive from Arrowtown through Bannockburn, Cromwell, Wanaka, Lake Hawea, Lindis Pass, Omarama to Twizel (approx 247k). Sleep over on Wednesday night at the Mountain Chalet Motel, Wairepo Road 03 4350785.

Day 11 (Thu 19): Drive from Twizel through Lake Tekapo, Fairlie, Pleasant Point, Washdyke, Temuka, Winchester, Ashburton, Rakaia, Christchurch to Kaikoura (approx 466k).Sleep over on Thursday night at Donegal House, School House Road, Kaikoura  03 319 5083

Day 12 (Fri 20): Drive Kaikoura to Picton (Approx 156k) to board the Arahura ferry by 14:30 bound to reach Wellington at 17:40   

Upcoming S.I.R.T.

460 days, a lifetime for a 14-month-old infant, have elapsed since we landed at Wellington airport in our transition from Africa to Australasia. It has been an exciting time, a difficult time, a frightening time, a joyous time, and a scary time, a time of learning and a time of yearning; a time for missing some places and some people, and a time for meeting new people and visiting new places, and, perhaps most importantly, discovering a newer and more carefree lifestyle.

During these 460 days, we have come to know a great deal more about this great little country, not least of which is that it belongs to a group of law-abiding honest first-world civilised communities. We accept and embrace this situation with sincere gratitude. Personally, my only regret about the transition is the fact that we only embarked on this change so very late in life.

We have spent 460 days in Waikanae on the North Island. Who knows how long I will remain a citizen of Mother Earth? I reckon its about time that we see the “other half of NZ”, the South Island.

In 2011, we were fortunate enough to be treated to a fabulous long week-end holiday in the “tropical” sun at the sea in Lochmara Bay by Clayton and Bianca. After that, we took a train trip south as far as Christchurch, where we spent a couple of restful days, before our stay was interrupted by an unfortunate earthquake. Besides that brief encounter, we have had no actual experience of the South Island.

We have looked at the road-maps, spoken to the AA travel consultant, and asked around of others as to what their suggestions are. We have naturally had many diverse answers and conflicting advice. So, surprise, surprise : I am going with my gut and looking for interesting-sounding place names and having lengthy consultations with my friend Professor Goggle.

We have taken the first step along the Long Road on our SIRT* by booking the first few days, being the easy part:

Mon 9 Mar: It will be a full day of travel, driving to Wellington, then crossing the Cook Strait relaxing on the Arahura InterIslander ferry. Arriving three hours later at the ferry terminal in the port of Picton, we will retrieve our car and then drive 340k southwards to in Christchurch, Canterbury in the late afternoon.  Sleep over at the Earnslaw Motel on Blenheim Road to the west of Hagley Park. It’s about 10 minutes from the railway station (marked with a red “X”)

Tue 10 Mar: Having been on the move the whole of the previous day, we have decided to reserve this as a day for exploring those parts of Christchurch which we missed in 2011, and perhaps try to face up to some of my demons in my memory.  Sleep over again at the Earnslaw and hope that we wake up in time to grab a shuttle to take us to the station. The motel manager has agreed that we may leave the car in their parking lot.

Wed 11 Mar: Board the TranzAlpine railway train through the Southern Alps via Arthur’s Pass  bound for the west coast town of Greymouth between breakfast and lunch-time.

 

We will explore the town for the rest of the day, sleepover in Greymouth that night.

Thu 12 Mar: We continue exploring Greymouth and catch the 13:45 TranzAlpine on its return journey back to Christchurch, where we return to the Earnslaw for the night.

Fri 13 Mar:This is the first day of the “real” South Island Road Trip. (I have always liked acronyms, and I naturally call this journey our SIRT.)