I and my plus one (Jill this time) headed out of Auckland on Thursday afternoon for a long awaited break over the last long weekend of Summer! Not the smartest move, as we sat in queues of traffic from the minute we hit the highway with the other several hundred thousand humans heading south! (All of us getting ahead of the expected traffic jams)
Finally breaching the Auckland borders and enjoying a half hour of cruising….just to hit the next City, Hamilton, in time for their mid afternoon early exodus, and another bumper to bumper, patience testing, 45 minutes before some blue sky, open road on our way to the first bathroom stop and lunch at 3.30pm!
So far the weather had been kind, the promised thunderstorms hovering around the horizons….until just after halfway point the skies opened up, giving the car a much needed water blast and once again reducing speed capacity on winding mountain gorges!
The middle of the North Island (NZ) closed in on us with only an hour and a half left of our journey to go with clear skies and crisp air. A quick comfort and refreshment stop at the pub, soaking in the mountain (enshrouded in cloud) views saw us hit the road one last time for our final destination. Our goal to get through the mountain range before darkness hit…
With very few vehicles heading our way, mission accomplished, we cruised along the side of the Wanganui River as darkness rolled in to a kitchen of smiling faces, homemade bread and pumpkin soup! Aah family!
Brenda and Graeme (Russ’s brother) welcoming me and whoever I bring with open arms and kindness as usual!
Friday brought a cool overcast autumn day as Fraser (nephew) headed to Auckland and the Wanganui weekend crew caught up on the last six months over hot cross buns, leftover pumpkin soup, a beautiful fresh snapper for dinner!
Saturday was market day, and Wanganui provided sunshine, crowds, music food and all the crafts of the area! It was also the day I learned some new skills! Graeme and I had swapped vehicles, he headed to a show in my car and I had the new van to drive the gals around….custom built for Brenda’s wheelchair! A five minute lesson, on the ins and outs, ups and downs(the back kneels to the ground), locks and unlocks and we were away! My practice run circling city streets in search of a car park…as it appeared everyone had the same idea to enjoy the local culture.
A jazz band blasting out tunes from a 100 (almost) year old balcony filling the streets with a Deep South Louisiana vibe. After all Wanganui is renowned for its riverboats.
City wall art added to the Art Deco feel of inner city streets, many of the original 1900’s buildings still alive and well, not having succumbed to modern day high rises of concrete and glass. Main Street shopping concluded our market morning, taking us on an adventure of bespoke local shops, antiques, new, shoes, crafts, books….both Jill and I bringing home some treasures!
The afternoon promised another outing for the girls, including Brenda’s friend Lindsay, who declined the morning adventure, ready for an evening at the Speights Bar in Palmerston North. Jill didn’t quite make it, having ingested some market food that suddenly came back to bite her just before we left. So it was a team of three who headed off (in the spaceship van) to meet Graeme and more family for Thomas’s birthday dinner (oldest nephew). Speights Bar…perfect destination for a Speights Gal! But limitations are on when one is driving, one half pint before dinner and cake, then heading back in my car this time, the hours drive in darkness, to check up on my travel buddy….still horizontal and sleeping it off!
Daylight saving wind back, gave us the leeway we needed to accomplish our early morning start for the journey back on Sunday, before the rest of Auckland on Monday we hopped!
A brief stop before we exited the Paraparas, and headed to the first coffee bar destination…National Park. That is Us and all the other punters who chose an early start. The mountains still under cloud but otherwise it looked like a clear travel day ahead. Very cool, single digit temperatures.
The Macrocarpa Cafe produced an excellent Flat white and bagel for Jill’s very empty tummy!
A six hour journey (including a couple of pit stops) meant we had made the right call to travel on Easter Sunday. After depositing Jill at her house I arrived back at mine around 4pm…unloaded, not unpacked poached eggs for Dinner and an early night!
Feeling relaxed and refreshed, and a little bit of me creeping back in after being around family who love me for who I am…
All who wander are not Lost girls 