Lovely Mangonui

I hadn't forgotten what a lovely relaxed place Mangonui is. Fantastic to hang out in the winter when there are few tourists. We've done the usual things, coffee and snacks in one of our favourite cafes and checking out the weekend markets. I found myself parting with a surprisingly large amount of cash on some wonderful local olive oil from Hihi Olive Estate plus dukka. Mmmmm It somehow slipped into my bag. we couldn't leave Mangonui without mooching around the wharf to see what they're catching.


 


It would be amazing if we could say we caught this Kingfish, but no, it was snared by this young man from a fishing boat out of Mangonui. I feel a bit sorry for the big fish though, as I'm sure he was quite happy swimming away, but its heartening to know they are still there.















Eating seems to be high on our daily agenda so we were easily enticed into guying smoked Hapuka wings from Mangonui's famous fish shop. Melt in the mouth yummy!

 There have been some heavy rain showers with lots of squalls coming through which shake our van like crazy. There's so much energy out there its exciting!

There are plenty of good walks around here during fine breaks - including a decent hike up the the hill to a trig station.

Keri Keri to Hi Hi Beach

It is a long time since I had been to Keri Keri, but I was impressed. What a fantastic small NZ town with everything you could want in the way of supermarkets, library, boutique movie theater and a selection of cafes. Then there is the Turner Center for arts events. A photography exhibition by a local Keri Keri gold medal winning photographer, Chris Pegman, blew my socks off with his pics of the Milky Way over Cape Reinga, the moon and lots of others. I also enjoyed hanging out  at the Chocolate Factory Cafe where they the give away samples of their yummy products.

The 4.3km walk from the Stone Store to Rainbow Falls was something else. 

Warren and I have now settled in for a week at Hihi Beach, only 15 minutes from Maungonui. It was recommended to us by a new friend made on the road and has proven to be all she said it was. The place was empty when we arrived and the caravan park manager offered us the best site right by the beach. It is so lovely to hear the sound of the sea. We could easily imagine we are in the islands and Warren loves the fact there is no traffic. Today we even saw a pod of dolphins! We could be here longer than we thought, though today we drove up the Kari Kari Peninsula to check out parking possibilities on Tokarau Beach. The beaches do look wonderful but this possy might be too good to pass up.

We are enjoying being in a motor camp. Those things that we take for granted at home are a luxury. Like electricity, lots of hot water and showering as long as I want. Putting on two big loads of washing and hanging it out on the line on a sunny day was bliss. So different from going to a launderette and shoving it in a much used washing machine and drier. Mind you that works too, I'm not complaining.

Getting enough exercise can be challenging what with lots of books to read and happy hour to attend to. Here we have a lovely beach to walk on but its not always so easy, and I don't have my regular yoga class, though I do sometimes get the mat out.                                                                                     

Here is a novel way to get those abs working. In Wellington we were parked beside some people who were selling hula hoops. It was probably a rip-off considering the hoop is only a piece of alkathene pipe, but it is jolly good exercise once you get the hang of it (which did take while). Of course Warren could do it straight away.

Keri Keri is a great little town with a fabulous Saturday morning market where we loaded up on fresh veges, free range eggs and a pot of lemon honey.

Where else would you find the Dog Whisperer's Choice specialized dog food?

We are parked behind the RSA where there is a huge paved area, along with a bunch of others. Saturday night saw us having a few drinks at the RSA to watch the ABs beat Wales on the big screen.

Checking out the range of vans, fifth wheelers, buses and house trucks is a fascinating hobby. They all have advantages and disadvantages. This one, belonging to Richard and Maureen, has outdoor living in the form of a cute fold out deck.

This house truck is built on is a 1966 truck and has been the owner's home for some years. Its awesome! The manual washing machine is mostly decorative but actually works.

I'm currently reading Gretchen Rubin's book about how we form habits. It's called Better Than Before. She wrote The Happiness Project which is also excellent and made her quite famous.  I'm trying to implement some of her ideas and I recommend the read if you want to assess yours. (I downloaded it to my Kindle). She has created a framework for how we respond to expectations which are both internally and externally motivated. It is an interesting concept I think as our daily habits have a huge impact on how we live.

One of the things about the travelling lifestyle is that existing good habits (eg exercise, getting up at a respectable hour) can easily go by the board to be replaced by the attractions of staying in bed to read in the mornings, not to mention the temptations of extended happy hours with new friends. We have retained some of the good ones though. We mostly eat well and Warren still brings me a cup of tea in the mornings.

While travelling has many compensations, there is a loss of regular activities, like walking groups, book club, yoga classes and Warren's regular music nights, and of course contact with friends. Of course with no jobs to go to the options are wide open.

We spent four nights at the Ruakaka Raceway over Queens Birthday weekend with the Fifth Wheelers, a sub group of the wonderful NZCMA. About 45 motor homes gathered making for a very pleasant social opportunity. Happy Hour is a daily 4.30 pm ritual, usually lasting until 6pm.

We meet heaps of interesting people from all walks of life practically every day, and it is interesting to take a look at the demographic. They are mostly retired couples, baby-boomers travelling NZ. Some live in their very classy fifth wheel rigs while others have a home to go to. We fit in there but they are mostly in much more up market outfits than ours. Perhaps we should have joined the Gypsy Fair? Warren has his musical instruments stowed on board in the hope of a jam but they have been few and far between. He couldn't leave home without his trusty guitar, ukelele, jimbe drum and sitar. This lot did enjoy his music one night, with one enthusiastic singer.

On Monday we moved just a short distance to Whangarei and are happily parked in a free parking area near the new bridge, along with about ten others. Its an awesome spot by the river and the shopping ares.Thank you Whangarei District Council. At first glance I thought Whangarei had not changed much since we lived around these parts. (We moved from Ngunguru to Auckland in 1998). but actually there are some great developments. The path along the Hatea River to the town basin is a wonderful asset, as is the park which was the city dump when we lived here. Today we discovered the excellent new library built behind the old one and beside Forum North.  I was able to pursue my very new hobby - genealogy - with the help of a volunteer to guide me through the relevant websites.

It has also been lovely to catch up with some old friends from Whangarei area. Driving around conjures up memories on every corner, all good ones.

Here are some of my poetic thoughts about it.

MANAIA REVISITED

Ghosts gather as we cruise the Heads Road
Retracing old journeys
Forgotten landmarks slip into place
Manaia with her lumpy crown,
The sweep of the bay
And mangroves, those comforting amphibians
Their feet an undersea web, make
Homes for small creatures,
Toi toi flags blown and drooping
But I know their brightness
Against punga fern and ti-tree
Flame trees too in spring,
Exotic orange
Mecurial inside a big scudding sky
And grey rippling tide

We're in Northland

Our ten days in Waipu has gone really fast. Waipu township has all the necessary places - 4 Square grocery store which stocks everything - even sewing machine needles when I broke one while sewing my new van curtains. There are a several interesting op shops too, as well as a pharmacy, wine shop and a selection of cafes where you can buy a decent coffee. Waipuans are keen on their history which is reflected by the Waipu Museum where the the story of the Scots who came here via Nova Scotis in the 1800s, is told. Many of their ancestors still live here. Being right in town we have seen heaps of our grandchildren, Harrison (7) and Mila (5) both at their home and when they come for Karate, basket ball and rugby practice.

Poppa Warren, Mila and Harrison with ukeleles

Harrison with Elroy