No lying in bed this morning, things to do and places to go, namely Napier about 310 Kms NE of Wellington. Having completed the necessary morning tasks and finished breakfast it was time to load the car and check that we were not about to leave anything in Wellington. Fully loaded, we were on our way by just after 08.30 and headed for highway 2 northbound to Masterton. The sun was trying hard to penetrate the early morning cloud as we joined the end of a traffic jam – yes a traffic jam (unheard of in South Island), to join the motorway. Having said it’s a motorway, there are traffic lights at junctions rather than flyovers – clearly a cheaper option.
We were going quite well when suddenly we started to climb up into the mountains, which we were not really expecting. The road started to twist and turn as we climbed then descended and not only did it go on for about 20 kms, but it was without doubt the most twisty road that we have encountered so far in New Zealand. Once over the Rimutaka Range, we descended into Featherstone and returned to near normal roads. The problem with the twisty roads is that they reduce your average speed tremendously and just add to your journey time. One thing we have noticed in the short time we have been in North Island is that there are considerably more cars than in South Island and hence more traffic. I guess it shouldn’t be a surprise as there are considerably more people living in North Island. The other noticeable fact is that the roads here are less straight and less flat than those when travelling from Te Anau to Christchurch. Also in South Island almost everyone adhered to the 100kph speed limit. They do not seem quite as conscientious here in N Island.
Having cleared Masterton we continued to head North and came across a small town called Ektahuna, which is fairly typical of many small NZ towns in that it looks like a film set for a western. There were two cafes in town and it was past our time for morning tea and coffee, so we chose the closest to where we were parked. As soon as we opened the door we thought we had entered Dr Who’s Tardis. This cafe had not escaped from the 1950’s (apart from its prices) it was complete with a frayed floral pattern carpet and outside toilet. Everything in this shabby old place was a 1950’s relic. That includes the dear old lady that served us. We ordered a tea and coffee and I had a slab of carrot cake believing it counted as one of my 5 a day. You could have fed half the NZ army on this slab of cake, but it was delicious. We were just drinking our morning refreshments, when the guy in front of us at the Avis desk entered the cafe with his wife. They must have ordered breakfast as after about 10 minutes talking with them, the two biggest, big breakfasts I have ever seen in all my life materialised for each of them. Trust me, I have seen a lot of big breakfasts in my time at no end of Dirty Gerts and Greasy Spoon cafes and this looked fantastic. We are not talking variety of food, just pure bulk. There were two massive sausages, at least two eggs, heaven knows how many rashers of bacon and not less than four whole slices of toast surrounding a huge pile of chips in the middle. Had I realised just how wonderful the breakfast was, I would not have settled for a slab of carrot cake!
Just after we started out again, the rain started – just drizzle to start, then more intense as we got closer to Napier. We arrived in Napier just before 2pm, which was too early to check into the motel, so decided to visit the Aquarium of New Zealand. Just as we paid to enter, the cashier said that a diver was just about to feed the fish and sharks. Like many modern aquariums, this one has a plastic tunnel inside the main tank, where you can stand and watch the fish. The diver was handing out pieces of fish to the specimens swimming by, including the odd shark. I don’t understand why the shark doesn’t bite the divers hand off as opposed to just taking the piece of fish. Anyway, she finished feeding everything and emerged with all her limbs in place.
By the time we finished in the aquarium it was time to find the campsite motel and check in. By now it was falling with rain and the prospect of any further sightseeing was looking slim. We settled for afternoon tea and unpacked. Within half an hour the rain had eased and we ventured out into Napier to look at the art deco buildings. The shops were starting to close so after about an hour of wandering round we decided to head back and catch up with posting the blogs and reading our email as we have not had access to the internet for the past two days. Then time for dinner and preparation of this blog whilst watching a spot of local TV.
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