Keeping Close to Home

Our two week  Covid lockdown has come to an end.   We've stayed home, riding out the symptoms, preparing easy meals and taking things easy.  During the first week we were both very tired, took ourselves off to bed at 8.00pm, we were so weary.  And with all my coughing, I felt like my ribs had been broken, or at least, battered and bruised.  You know you are not well when the highlight of the day is your after lunch nap!  The symptoms slowly eased in week two, and after several RAT tests, we finally achieved a negative test.  Thank goodness for that.  

Robin takes part in the weekly Crown Research Institute Flu Tracking report, so we are officially reported as having contacted Covid.  This is our first time getting Covid, after all this time, and we cannot have a Covid vaccination for another 6 months.  Hopefully that means that we now have natural protection for a while.

But according to Healthline, having had Covid does not restrict you from getting the annual flu vaccination.  So we fronted up on Saturday morning with a whole bunch of others, standing in a queue for an hour, before finally reaching the front of the line and getting ushered into the cubicle.  A few questions, a quick jab, and we were on our way.  We appreciate this free service, but feel the process could have been handled better for the clients.  If two staff members were on duty, one could have been taking details, and perhaps handing out numbers, while the other was delivering the vaccinations.  With the queue made of of elderly people, standing for that length of time was very difficult.

I'm pleased we are recovered now, and can get back to our weekly routines.  We have a very busy week full of appointments, a lunch out, and an exciting day trip riding the rails in Sunday.  It would have been such a shame  to have missed that.

Final Days in Napier

 The Easter weather in Napier was a mixed bag, reasonably fine but with cold winds, making sitting outside a rather chilly experience.  Luckily it had warmed up on Sunday morning and we took ourselves off to the Hastings Market.  Geoff and Eileen had been experiencing battery troubles so decided to head home a day early.  We waved them goodbye with a few Easter Eggs from the Easter Bunny.

What a crowd there was, families with kids, people with dogs and plenty of golden oldies like us.  My aim was to purchase some fresh seasons apples, found them easily enough.  Then we did some cheese tasting, and three lots of cheese jumped into our bag.  A couple of nice fresh bread rolls for our lunch, and some beef from the meat stall, and that was our lot.  We came away feeling quite pleased with our purchases.

After lunch back at the van we took a trip with Owen and Helen out to Esk Valley to see how the Hawkes Bay Caravan and Camping Club was faring after the disastrous Esk Valley floods.

As we had been told, the club had lost their small apple orchard in front of the camp.  The club rooms had been gutted and the club members were waiting to be told what could be done.  Obviously, there had been a lot of work done clearing silt and debris from the grounds, but now everything is at a standstill.  Power and sewerage will need to be reconnected.  So sad to see.

HB Clubrooms will need a lot of work

To cheer ourselves up we stopped for a fruit ice-cream on the way home.  And I just needed to purchase a pumpkin, it will be soup time before I know it.

Helen, Owen and Robin enjoying their ice-creams in the sun shine

We enjoyed  4zees  back in camp with some Easter Eggs the Easter Bunny had dropped off for us to enjoy.

 Oh yummy, Easter Eggs

John and Flo departed the next morning, so then we were down to two vans.    Our anticipated  family lunch didn't go ahead as my niece was not well, so we took ourselves off to check out the delights of Napier.  The Six Sisters row of houses were worth a photo shoot.  Apparently they were built by an architect who wanted a two storey house for each of his daughters.  They are among the few survivors of the massive 1931 Napier earthquake.  Some of the  houses are now owned by commercial businesses, with a few  reverting back into family homes.

The Six Sisters

We then drove around the port to check out Perfume Point freedom camping area.  There was plenty to see, ships and tugs off the coast, families playing on the beach, even a couple of brave people taking a dip.

Whose is this we spotted?  It was Doug and Desma, our friends from the ICA group, who had also arrived for a breath of salty sea air.  We joined them at the picnic table and had a nice long chat.  We couldn't make it to the previous ICA rally so it was great to catch up with them again.

Desma and Doug from ICA group

Back in camp again I started to feel unwell so decided to drive back home in one day, instead of stopping somewhere overnight as we had planned.  Up and over the Saddle Road we went, dropping down into Manawatu, and we were nearly home.  Thank goodness, I was feeling quite peaky.

Wind turbines on top of Saddle Road

My Covid test came back positive - oh dear.  After several years of feeling smug because I had never contacted Covid, my time has arrived.  Guess I wont be going anywhere for the next week or so.

THings to Do, Places to see

 The Archer's and  Benton's went out and about sight seeing on Easter Saturday, starting at Silky Oak Chocolate Cafe for lunch, always a favourite of ours.

Lunch was very tasty, a nice big bowl of Fish Chowder for me, Robin and Owen had a BLT each, and Helen enjoyed avocado on toast.

Fish Chowder for me

An added bonus was catching up with my daughter's friend Heather, who was bussing a group of people from a cruise ship to see some of Napier's attractions.

From here we drove to the Hawkes Bay Golf Club to show our friends the caravan power sites available at this facility.  Good to know about in the cooler winter weather coming and the sites are quite reasonably priced too.

Our next visit was the  Arataki Visitors Centre, a place which neither Owen and Helen had visited before.  We were after some comb honey, and there was honey tasting to do, glass fronted hives to check and and see if we could spot the Queen Bee.  Plus plenty of honey to buy and a great selection of gift ware.  

Arataki Visitors Centre

Another "new to them place" was  Birdwoods.  We had told them about the cutest little lolly shop around.  Oh no, they said, we are not buying any lollies! And guess who walked out the door with a bag full, firmly clutched in his hands?

They couldn't resist the lolly shop

We were in need of a coffee after all this excitement, so went into the rather posh Birdwoods cafe.  We were escorted to our table, and a friendly young waitress came and took our order.  We noticed a group of ladies partaking in High Tea with the gorgeous tiered tray full of delectable morsels.  But when we inquired the cost per person, we gulped and decided no, it would have to be a really special occasion to warrant that price.

Jenny, Robin, Owen and Helen

We had a lovely day exploring, and showing Helen and Owen a couple of our favourite Napier places.  It was going to be a  busy weekend, with even more sightseeing planned for tomorrow.

Start of the Easter Rally at Napier

We took it slowly heading up to Napier for our Easter Rally, stopping at Dannevirke and Takapau on the way.   Arriving at Napier on Thursday, we commented on the many cars leaving the city and heading southwards.   Our venue was the Erikson Road NZMCA Park, nice and roomy here with plenty of sites.  Owen and Helen parked up next to us, and we were joined later in the day by Geoff and Eileen.  

On Friday morning after morning tea Owen got his ladder out, climbed up and helped remove our rather tatty faded NZMCA stickers.  It was a difficult job until he borrowed Helen's hair drier, that really made all the difference, and the old stickers peeled off easily.  Then he climbed up the ladder again and smoothed on our new stickers - what a difference, we can read them now.

Geoff, Owen and Robin replacing our old NZMCA stickers

With that job done Owen decided to check the torque settings on our wheel nuts, on the caravans.  Thanks Owen, for all your help.  What a busy bee you have been.

He was very helpful indeed

John and Flo joined us for the rally later in the afternoon, now we were four.

Turnbull's, Benton's, Archer's, John and Flo

We met in the meeting room for 4zees, and it was Easter buns all round, thanks so much Owen and Helen, they were very tasty indeed.

Easter buns for 4zees

Dannevirke and Takapau

We were lucky to be offered an extra night's free stay  at the Foxton Bowling Club, so we didn't start our journey northwards till Monday morning.  Waving goodbye to the few remaining caravanners, we headed towards Woodville as arranged, to meet up with Owen and Helen for lunch.  There they were, they had arrived before us.  We took our lunch into their van, and ate together.

Lunch at Woodville

Our stop for the night was at the Dannevirke Golf Club.  It had been some years since we had last stayed here, and was a first for Owen and Helen.  

Power points were available at a very reasonable charge, so we manoeuvred the vans into position and set ourselves up for the night.

At Dannevirke Golf Club

Going into the office to pay our fees, we got chatting to the man in charge, and Helen enquired if the freezer contained any ice-cream.  No, only frozen pies, was the reply.  Oh, and these sausage rolls.  With that he handed both Robin and Owen a large sausage roll, and didn't want any payment for them.  These are trucked away safely in our caravan freezers, and Robin and Owen have decided to heat and eat their sausage rolls together one lunchtime.  Which just goes to show that it doesn't take too much to keep these men happy, does it?

After one night at Dannevirke, the plan was to move on to Takapau Motor Home Caravan Park for the next two nights.  The name Takapau means Sleeping Mat.  Takapau was once the centre of a large flax milling industry and takes it's name from the flax which grew in the expansive Takapau Plains.

On Wednesday the four of us decided to go on a drive and visit OngaOnga, a historic town not too far away. 

 Full of interesting old buildings, but the wind was blowing a gale as we walked around.  There was an old bush settler's hut, a tiny jail, and the historic general store.

Bush settlers hut

Old jail

Historic General Store

But the most interesting building, in my view was the Coles Brothers building.  Not only did they work as builders, joiners, ironmongers, painters and plumbers, they were also undertakers as required.  Obviously the Coles Brothers were a  very talented family indeed.

Coles Bros building in Ongaonga

We then drove on to Waipukarau for a light lunch and to get a little shopping.  Back at camp, Geoff and Eileen arrived, so there were three of us again.

Staying at Takapau

This is a pleasant little camp, and we enjoyed Happy Hour in the hall with the friendly custodians and other campers.  The custodians have a lilac point Birman, who, they told us, thinks she is in charge of their household, the same as our Gemma thinks.  Robin was on BBQ duty, cooking up lamb chops for our dinner.

Lamb chops for dinner

From Takapau we move on to Napier for our caravan club Easter Rally.  I do hope the Easter Bunny knows where to find us.

Leisureline Owners Club Get Together

We were looking forward to the Leisureline Owners Club Get Together as we had missed the last couple due to Robin's two knee replacements and the time needed for him to recover.  Three vans were attending from our Heretaunga Caravan Club and we met for lunch at Manawatu Boating Club carpark on the Foxton Estuary.  It was a lovely sunny day, which boded well for our weekend away.

 Stopping for lunch  at the Foxton Estuary

Arrival time was after 2.00pm, and it was just a short distance away to our weekend venue at the Foxton Bowling Club.  Here we are, and a nice welcome too at the Bowling Club entrance.

Foxton Bowling Club grounds

Plans had been altered to allow for early birds, so we arrived a day early on the Thursday.  We were directed where to park with our three vans in a row, and we were soon joined by our Wairarapa friends Rae and Dave. 

Turnbulls, Bentons, Archers and McMasters, all in a row

A few more vans arrived during the afternoon, with the remainder arriving on Friday.  Soon we were all packed in, about 34 vans in total we were told.

A fine collection of Leisurelines

Everyone gathered in the club house from 4.30pm for Meet 'n' greet.  Drinks and nibbles and then plates of piping hot savouries were passed around.  It was great to meet up with Leisureline friends who we only seem to catch up with at the annual get together.  There was another welcome sign on the bar, and the Bowling Club were running raffles.  No, of course we didn't win anything.

Welcome sign on the bar

Saturday was rather busy, and started off with Open Home Caravan visits, a chance to look through vans and pick up some extra ideas.  We had a couple quite keen to talk about our three step aluminium step, and we explained that a friend had built it especially for us to make it easier getting in and out of the van,  by lessening the depth between each step.  They were keen to take photos and get one made for themselves.

The six of us took ourselves off to have lunch at Viv's Kitchen in Sanson.  Why not, it was not too far to drive to sample some of Viv's delicious baking, and our club members always love going there.  Cream Horns were on the menu, but I chose a chocolate eclair, together with a Southern Cheese Roll, and coffee.  All very tasty indeed.

 

Lunch at Viv's Kitchen

When we returned to camp the Bowling Competition was in full swing.  Teams were very serious as they bowled on the greens, with some decked out in fairy wings and tutus - don't ask me why!

Dave and his fairy partner

In the late afternoon we met for pre dinner drinks in the club house.  The tables were all nicely decorated and each person had a small caravan related gift at their place setting, that was a nice surprise. Mmm, the catered meal was delicious, roast beef, hot ham, roast veggies, green peas and gravy. Bubbly for me and wine for Robin made the meal even nicer, and dessert was apple shortcake, cheesecake and fruit salad.  Very nice indeed, and the bowling club ladies did a wonderful job of serving and clearing up.

Geoff, Owen and Robin

Jenny, Helen and Eileen

There was some excitement when the raffles were called.  Both Eileen and Rae won the Easter Egg raffle and had the job of splitting all the goodies up between them.  How lucky were they!

Rae and Eileen won the Easter Egg raffle

Sunday morning saw the Leisureline Team from Hamilton up bright and early and cooking bacon and eggs for us all.  We could smell the aroma of bacon cooking right over  by our van.

Grant on cooking duties

It was a very tasty breakfast indeed.  Bacon, eggs, hash browns and Kranksy sausages.  Toast was "cook it yourself" with plenty of toast bread and butter available.  The hearty breakfast kept us all quiet for a while.  Then it was usual Question and Answer session with Colin, Leisureline company owner.

We were intending to pack up and head on our way when the word came around that anyone who wanted could stay another night.  Why not, we thought.  Geoff and Eileen hooked up and went home, while we decided, together with Helen and Owen, to stay a further night.  It was a  very relaxed day, sitting outside in the nice warm weather, eating lunch and chatting away.  That was followed  by 4zees outside.  Gemma was on her lead, trotting in and out of the caravan at will, then relaxing just inside the doorway.  There were plenty of birds about to pique her interest, but she could only look at them with longing, no bird catching in her life, we hope.

It was a great weekend, the weather was marvelous, and we met up with old friends and new acquaintances.  Many thanks to Tracy and Ken from Foxton for all the planning, and Colin Bates and his family from the Leisureline factory for coming down to join us.

Lunch at Paekakariki

 We met up with our SLG friends during the week.  It was Robin's turn to arrange an outing for March, and he decided to meet for lunch at the Paekakariki Hotel.  The meaning of Paekakariki is "pae" for perching and "kakariki" is a native parrot.  The local cafe just across the road from the pub is called "The Perching Parrot".  

Paekakariki Hotel

Calvin and Helen joined us in Finn's Restaurant for lunch, with Trish unable to make it.  As we sat at the table by the window, we remarked at the railway barrier arms coming down across the road, stopping traffic as a train went by.  This happened time and time again while we were enjoying our meal, passenger trains arriving and departing regularly, and the occasional freight trains too.  This is a very busy rail line indeed.  

We took some time choosing our meals - I was after soup as it was a chilly day, but no soup on the menu just yet, I was told.  Eventually, we placed our orders, and the food arrived.  I tried corn fritters for a change, and Robin enjoyed his sweet and sour pork on rice.  Having a nice meal for lunch means I don't have to cook another meal for our dinner that night.

Corn fritters for lunch

There was  plenty to chat about as usual, including our friend Trish who was about to embark on an overseas adventure, how exciting for her.  We certainly wished her well, and safe travels.  With our SLG numbers so much lower these days, the time for the draw had come around again, and we picked a piece of paper showing who selected which month for the next few months.

Calvin, Helen, Robin and Jenny

THere was an interesting print of an old painting (painted in 1868) on the wall by our table, which I investigated, showing the local Maori people and their waka (boats) on the beach, with Mana Island in the background.

It was time to say our goodbyes and we headed home, stopping off at a couple of places with things to cross off on our list.  And no trip along the coast is complete without a stop to admire Kapiti Island, is it.  This really is my favourite island, I have to say.

Kapiti Island, along the coast road