We've been at Muriwai Beach for a few days enjoying the Autumn sun and using up food as we only have 7 days left in New Zealand. I wouldn't say I was bowled over by New Zealand when we first arrived, but I've gradually come to like the place and after almost 6 months here it's going to be strange to leave in a funny kind of way. I've got used to eating Hubbards cereal for breakfast, drinking Mac's or Monteith's beer in the evening, not being able to buy Naan ...

We drove from Waitomo north to Raglan along quite a scenic route, taking in a couple of sights along the way. The Mangapohue natural bridge was a few minutes walk along a gorge; apparently it used to be a massive cave which eroded and then collapsed, leaving only a small part of the roof in place which now forms the 'bridge'. Having seen a few, not overly impressive, waterfalls in NZ we nearly didn't bother stopping at the Marokopa Falls. We were glad that we ...

As I'm always encouraging Richard to try new activities, some of them outside his comfort zone, I thought I ought to challenge myself and face some of my fears. As most people who know me will agree my two big hates are the cold and fish. So I decided to go to the Waitomo Caves and do black water rafting in very cold water containing fish and even worse - eels. Richard had already stated he was going to sit this one out. I don't think he could face the embarr...

The last major section of New Zealand that we wanted to explore was the East Cape from Gisborne to Opotiki. We didn't know quite what to expect as most guide books seem to miss that area out, but estimated we would probably spend about 3-4 days there. Our first stop on the trip was about an hour north of Gisborne at Tolaga Bay which houses New Zealand's longest wharf. Not top on our things to see, but as we were passing through we stopped to take a look. The ...

Gisborne is meant to have one of the driest climates in New Zealand and indeed the local papers have been full of stories about problems in the agricultural industry caused by getting even less rain than usual. Things had to change, however, and unfortunately for us the rains came almost as soon as we arrived in the city. On the other hand, the farmers must have been pleased. Before arriving, we had mentally placed Gisborne on a par with Hastings and Napier. ...