New Year's Eve

Last leg in the camper from Hamilton to Auckland, then had to muck it out and cram our stuff into an estate car- which seems tiny- then off to Coromandel. It doesn't look very far on the map but we drove through a torrential rainstorm which made it hard going. By the time we arrived on the peninsula the sun had come out again and we drove up the western coast- and I mean literally on the water's edge with a hair's breadth between me in the passenger seat and the crashing waves...I gave Richard lots of advice on his driving...The coastline is known as the Potokuhawa Coast because of the 'New Zealand Christmas Trees' that grow there, with bright red flowers in December/ January. Very much a holiday area with many holidaying kiwis- when I say many it's all relative- there are actually very few people around! Lots of people boating and fishing. We arrived at Coromandel Town which is full of cafes and art shops, shops selling tackle and bait and lots of slightly bohemian / hippy types. We had a bite to eat and then found our home for the next week- Driving Creek Villa. Those of a jealous disposition turn away now. It's fab! Timber and glass, posh colonial style, veranda, Japanese Hot Tub, set in the bush, sound of Tuis Bellbirds and Fantails singing in the garden, babbling creek at the end of the garden.... I won't go on. Apparently this is where gold was first found in NZ 150 years ago. David our 'host' gave the children a pan and sent them off down to the creek. They havn't come back yet...apparently there are eels in there...

We saw in the New Year sitting in the hot tub under the bright moon and stars. Beats a noisy drunken party any day!

Happy New Year Everyone. xxx

South to North...

Another wonderful ferry trip through the Marlborough Sounds and across the Cook Strait- don't think I'd ever get tired of this boat trip- then hammered up State Highway 1 (two lanes in some places!) with a quick stop at a farm to feed some deer- then somewhat further north we rounded a bend to see Mt Ruapehu rising up ahead and for a while- before clouds descended- we could see its snow clad summit. We camped at Ohakune at the foot of the mountain and looked forward to a beautiful view and maybe a walk in the morning BUT when we woke we could hear rain drumming on the roof. So stayed in bed a bit longer than usual, then drove to the 'base camp' (which in the winter is a ski resort) and it was FREEZING! and lots of warnings at the visitors' centre about hypothermia and drastic weather conditions- so we didn't bother going for a walk and hit the road again. We had a lovely drive up through 'King Country' which we've decided is our favourite landscape and stopped for a picnic and vertiginous climb up a knobbly hill to a memorial to a missionary called 'Miller'! Apparently he had back scruffy hair with a curl on his forehead. Although the Maori called him Mira 'cos they couldn't say it properly.
Arrived in Hamilton at tea time, a really nice leafy university city, but feels like we're just passing through- which of course we are... Feeling a bit sad and end of holidayish 'cos we've 'only' got a week left and we have to say bye to the campervan tomorrow (a mixed blessing- we have enjoyed it a lot but R's back is a bit achy) but we're really looking forward to the Coromandel and a change of pace.

Christchurch to Kaikora

27/28th December
Even though the sheep population has halved over the last few years they still outnumber the population here by 1 million;1 or thereabouts- you would expect the odd hamlet or village between centres of population like Christchurch and Kaikora, and then up to Blenheim, but no, nothing. Which makes it a little unnerving when you think you're about to run out of deisel. But we managed OK in the end, fortunately. On the way we found a sheep shearing shed where Paul Daniel's twin brother showed us how it was all done and we all collectivley wondered why anyone still runs sheep when a fleece fetches only 37p. Apparently venison and vineyards are the new sheep, and you can see why. A lot less pooey for one thing.
Arrived at kaikora earlyish, which is a small town in a perfect physical setting, with the Southern Alps as a backdrop and pacific ocean in front. Unfortunately the town is a bit tripperish and tacky, unlike almost all the other places we've seen, but we managed to find a nice restaurant and reduced the crayfish population by 1 and a half. Afterwards we played on the lovely pebbly beach until sundown. Great fun trying to balance tall towers of pebbles.
In the morning those rugged Hawes menfolk went off whale hunting while the lily livered womenfolk lay on the beach. No more boat trips for us! After the second sperm whale Oli was apparently unimpressed- went back to his Lord of the Rings book- but Richard got some good shots of the Whale's Tail... and then about 100 dolphins escorted the boat back to shore.
This afternoon we travelled through marlborough country- or wine territory for those 'ingenues' amongst you. There are 48 wine producers in Blenheim alone- we didn't quite manage to get round them all but had a jolly good time none the less. Actually I think the children were a bit bored, but hey ho.
Tonight we're in Picton before the ferry back to the North Island and civilisation! Two heavy days of travelling before we get to the Coromandel where we will spend our last week. So you may not hear form us for a while... love to all...

Two Fat Kiwis -44! Happy Birthday Richard

Another little session of pressie opening this morning as we celebrated R's 44th. Who would believe it. The children are calling Mr Badger because of the pepper and salt stubble now decorating his face- he has pledged not to shave until he is 45...we'll se about that. Actually he looks quite rugged and not at all like an insolvency accountant!

We drove out to Akaroa which is an old volcano, with a harbour filling in the middle. 'Swimming with Dolphins' was the planned activity, in a 'calm and sheltered harbour'. Needless to say the dolphins had gone on their boxing day holidays so we had to leave the calm and sheltered harbour for the swelly and churning open water. Unfortunately M and S had left their sea legs back on shore and couldn't fully appreciate the company of the beautiful hector's dolphins that did come and swim alongide. But we did have a good swim and enjoyed the trip anyway. But very glad to get back to shore.

Happy Christmas Everyone!

We're still having to remind ourselves that it IS Christmas- it's very low key out here. However Sophie and Oliver were in no doubt that the big day had dawned- fortunately not too early- and pleased that Santa had found them all the way down under. It was even suggested that if they moved quickly they could get back to the UK in time for another stocking in 11 hours time. But they decided to stay put after all.

Just had a big nosh up, and a bottle of Cloudy Bay (best wine ever made???) Now setttling down to some christmas telly, kiwi style. (i.e british and American films.)

Happy Christmas all, we miss you . Those who haven't worked out how to post yet, figure it out soon cos we'll be home in 16 days!

Arthur's Pass

Apparently it used to take the horses 4 days to cross Arthur's Pass and take two years off their life with each crossing...I can believe it...crossing in a Britz 20cc Campervan can be only slightly less stressful! Reaching heights of up to 1000m between mountains of 2000m...hairpin bends with names like 'Death Corner' , 'Misery Creek' and 'Terrible Knob' ...some parts of the road had concrete rooves to protect vehicles from the rockfalls- other parts most definitely didn't. Anyway having held our breath for 2 hours we reached the Canterbury Plains and eventually the welcome tameness of Christchurch where we rolled up at the 5 star hotel in clothes that haven't been washed for 3 weeks and a campervan that really lets the side down. Even this failed to perterb our hosts, as polite and welcoming as ever. Just had a huge room service nosh up and children glued to the tv (already singing along with the adverts...) See you tomoorow for Christmas greetings!!! It really doesn't feel like Christmas Eve.

Yes those really are lupins!

Seals, Canoes and Pancakes

Saturday 23

Started the day with a visit to a Fur Seal Colony at Tauranga Bay- over 100 seals and pups. Very smelly. The colony is at Cape Foulwind named by James Cook after he was stranded offshore by a raging storm in 1770. No sign of bad weather today. We were adopted by a Weka, a flightless bird a bit like a kiwi but no so shy. Stopped at a deerted, rugged beach pounded by huge coasters, spent a happy hour collecting driftwood and interesting stones.
On our list of 'want to do's was canoeing or kayaking, Oliver especially, and at Punakaiki we found a place hiring out canoes so we togged up and paddled energetically up river. Outstanding landscape- huge granite cliffs with rainforest edging the river, clear waters, little sandy or pebbly beaches. The paddling was very hard work and we'll ache tomorrow (having ony just got over the riding aches and pains!)
The famous pancake rocks at Punakaiki were only a 5 min drive away so that was our next stop. A weathering and layering process (stylobedding, apparently) means that the limestone rocks look like giant stacks of pancakes.
Camping tonight at Hokitika, next to the beach, the children now completely barefoot and feral, are in their element.

Friday 22
Woke at last to a beautiful sunny morning- still chilly, especially in the shower block…after stopping off at 'Kathmandu'- our fave outdoorsy shop, to stock up on children's fleeces (only brought 1 sweatshirt each- now extremely dirty!)- and sleeping bag liners (we have been advised there is a 'cold snap' coming,) we travelled from Mapua to Westport, a lot of driving on windy roads. From Murchison we followed the path of the mighty Buller River. After our lunch stop at the Rivers Café in Murchison we found the Buller Gorge Swingbridge, the 'longest swingbridge in New Zealand' at 110 m long and 17m high above the raging Buller River! Quite a big incentive to get to the other side though as there was a lovely walk ; the family experienced varying degrees of trepidation as we crossed- M and O surprisingly most confident, S and R opting for the easy option of returning by the flying fox comet line…I managed to get myself talked into a jet boat ride up the Upper Buller Gorge. What an amazing ride it was. A small boat but very powerful, just 6 of us on it in total, including the driver Mark, the nicest guy we'ver met in NZ yet (and that's saying something). The ride on a jet boat involves immense accelerationa and deceleration, lots of swooshing around, driving headlong towards cliff faces, and changing direction at the last minute, 'handbrake turns' –ugh, but most importantly views of outstanding scenery that you wouldn't otherwise be a able to see. This was my ONLY attempt at extreme sports! We went 14k downstream at speeds of up to 50 mph, then turned and went upstream to the powerful Ariki Falls. The boat needs only 4" of water to drive in, so a lot of the trip was in white water and very bumpy. We all LOVED it. Mark let me out for the last 5 minutes so I could take some video of the last couple of spins.
It was then only an hour to Westport, not a great town but the site is lovely. We're in a cabin tonight, very welcome. Comfy bed aaaah. We were attacked by sandfles on the river and making good use of the 'Scratchy and Itchy' ointment that Sally recommended. (Spare one in my luggage for you Sal.)

More than Abel Tasman- Our favourite place so far...possibly

Thursday 21st.
Again, rain first thing. Maybe this is why the land is so green. Felt very indecisive about what to do. Had planed to power on down south to the glaciers but this area is so amazing decided to spend another night so we have a chance to really see the Abel Tasman. We booked a trip on a water taxi to go a few miles up the coast to another bay- the only way to get into the AT as there are no roads. A very swelly but picturesque trip, past 'Split Apple Rock'- a huge granite rock that looks as if it has been dissected by a giant cleaver. The boat dropped us at Torrent Bay- THE most beautiful place. Gorgeous beach, sand golden and fine, water turquoise, forest/ virgin bush backdrop. A few 'bachs' (NZ holiday home- very tasteful) No tackiness anywhere. We joined the AT track and walked for an hour or so- met lots of other walkers, tramping is a serious business in NZ- and returned to the beach to wait for a pickup.

Come and get us , water taxi!

Very chilly but sunny. Can feel the wind, sun and salt on my face!
Returned to Kaiteri and decided to find another quieter campsite, found a good one in Mapua, a quaint, artisanal hamlet with a beach and good
fish restaurants. Ate at the 'Smokehouse' and stuffed ourselves, again…

Weds 20th December
Woke to the sound of rain hammering on the roof- shame. It did dry up though and our drive NW to Nelson saw thin, low veils of mist skirting the forested mountainsides as the rain evaporated. Lots more windy roads- glad to arrive at Nelson, a large town where we had a good wander round, coffee and cakes. Everywhere feeling quite Christmassy which surprised us as we had all but forgotten the existence of Christmas- even the children! Visited a lovely book shop then jewellery studio for a bit of Christmas shopping.
Headed NW again towards the Abel Tasman national Park to overnight stop at Kaiteriteri. Perfect beaches, although the camp was huge and felt crowded- we have been spoilt by small quiet sites- Bought the kids a takeaway then abandoned them whilst rich and I ate at the nice restaurant! Another bottle of Kiwi Sauvignon down the hatch…

North to South

Tuesday 19th
Managed to be on time- in fact, early, to catch the ferry which is just as well as it's pretty much fully booked until Feb! A very comfortable ship bit like a cross channel ferry but a much more picturesque crossing. The sun sparkled on the turquoise water….and so on. The best bit was the long steam into the Marlborough Sounds to Picton- an hour of steep wooded inlets, islets and ever changing vistas. Perfect. Arrival at Picton then we headed east along the windy, steep but rewarding Queen Charlotte Drive- more great views.

To Havelock, which we were very excited to find is known as the 'Green Lipped Mussel Capital of the World', and there are some serious contenders for that title, I can assure you. Anyway, we had a lovely lunch of steak and chips- only joking! 2 big bowls of aforementioned mussels with extremely green lips. Loads of food for very little money. We LOVE New Zealand!
We found our campsite- Smith's Farm, which was on a farm, and the very nice man (Mr Smith) told us of the walk through his cattle meadows into the bush and ending up at a waterfall. Sounded great until the frisky steers (adolescent cows) decided we were easy prey which was slightly unnerving. However we shielded ourselves behind the children and the danger passed. The walk was fab, we felt like explorers. The waterfall was really high like something from a shampoo advert. The campsite is really quiet and we feel like we're at the edge of the world.

Monday18th.
Rain had cleared and we had a good run down to Wellington, arriving in time for coffee. We headed straight for Te Papa ('Our Place' in Maori) which is the national museum, a $350 million construction in modern style, all angles and slopes. Very impressive displays on NZs cultural and national heritage including a house in which you could experience a virtual earthquake. We began to flag and found a café for lunch, then did some Christmas shopping! Last chance before we leave city life. The hotel we stayed in was a sight to behold (in a good way!) recently refurbished…they'd had to move 200 yards to make way for the museum so the hotel was called 'The Museum Hotel de Wheels'. It was decorated in an over the top Laurence Llewellyn Bowen on acid style- very eyecatching. We ordered takeaway pizzas (from Hell, again) and slept soundly in real beds.

Thermal stuff

Sat 16th Dec 2006
Our first stop this morning was the Rainbow Springs Kiwi Encounter- the children very keen to see kiwis as soon as we arrived in NZ! On the tour the guide explained the need for kiwi conservation- 80% of the birds die before reaching adulthood because of dogs, cats stoats and possums. Looking after the eggs and raising the young is incredibly labour intensive and truly a labour of love but you only have to see the kiwis to see that it's worthwhile...gorgeous creatures with big personalities.
We then set off for Taupo to the south and stopped en route at the Wai -o -tapu thermal wonderland. Hot and smelly which upset the more sensitive member of our party but features such as the champagne pool (little fizzy bubbles) steaming craters and blowholes, colourful mineral terraces. Again, a very well done tourist destination, very tastefully managed and not busy at all.










Stayed overnight at the Taupo Thermal Resort- u.s.p thermal pools which were bathtub hot which we soaked in before going back to our cabin (yes, we upgraded to a 'cabin' - no larger than the cv but hey, a change is as good as a rest! ) We ordered take away pizza from 'Hell'- red hot chillies on R's- appropriate rumblings all night considering the volcanic and gethermal nature of the region.

Sunday 17th

On the way to the Prawn Park- more of that later- we saw a sign to Taupo Horse Treks and on impulse stopped and booked a ride. We had an hour to kill and stopped off at the Honey Hive which had all sorts of products bee and honey related, edible and otherwise. Bought some bee sting cream for Grandpa's bad joints! And Bee Nut butter- homey and peanut butter- delicious! Honestly.

Then back to the stables where we mounted up for an hour's ride into the Forest of Waireke- R on Paddy, a sturdy beast and so was the horse; Sophie on Lilly, a delicate filly, and so was the horse; Oli on Eno, a determined little chap, and so was the horse, and M on Fiction, whom to watch was simply poetry in motion! And so was maryanne.....? After about half an hour we reached the top of a hill and looked out over the 'Craters of the Monn'- another thermal area whose name explained itself. Then we split into two rides, Oli went with the sensible ones, walking pace , the rest of us went on the 'fast' ride- cantering up hill and down dale. Very exhilarating- but we're paying the price now as we can't easily walk!

Then off to the Prawn Park, basically a prawn farm with bells and whistles. An excellent example of how the kiwis do tourist attractions, very stylishly and without resorting to Disney/Coca cola / Macdonalds style props. We were given bamboo rods with ox heart bait, and shown how to catch them- in theory. It took us nearly an hour to catch two- a labour intensive way to get lunch. But good fun. In the true spirit of animal welfare we liberated them, but took great joy in eating a kilo of their cousins for lunch.

Then off rather late in the day to Palmerston North, through the spectacular Tongariro National Park (3 volcanoes, ash fields, and a road that often gets closed due to bad weather). It rined heavily all the way, and the roads were quite hairy, so quite glad to settle for the night in our little tin box.

The Road to Rotorua

An idyllic drive through rural NZ - Waikato and the 'King Country'- with fields of sheep, cattle, deer and thoroughbred racehorses by the side of the roads. Hobbito was filmed nearby- I'll try and resist any more LOTR references, though it is difficult to associate the landscape from the film!
Rather than go straight to Rotorua where we planned to night stop
we drove north of the lake. We turned off to Okere Falls, on the Kaituna River. A good walk through the bush on very good but empty paths (where are all the tourists?); the only people we saw were a group of young surfy types in bouyanct aids with canoe/ raft things on their backs looking like a troop of colourful beetles, obviously about to jump in and do the falls the hard way! The falls were energetic and picturesque, turquoise with white foamy highlights. We walked on the the Trout Pool and dabbled our hot feet in..bracing! We had lunch in a shack by the roadside, which didn't look promising but had the most amazing array of deli/ speciality foods inside from Muesli to ground coffee, fudge to jalapeno peppers- we bought a selection of all of these and had a delish lunch.
And so to Rotorua. A very functional town, not beautiful.
It really is sulphur city here, set in a unique landscape of thermal springs, geysers, bubbling mud pools and sulphur lakes. Also a very rich Maori heritage.

We were staying at the 'Cosy Cottage' campsite- naff name, great place, 2 minutes to the beach where we dug down into almost unbearably hot, geothermally heated sand and burnt our feet with only black swans for company!

At six we were picked up to go to the Mitai cultural show on a nearby Maori reservation. not really the hawes thing to do an organised trip but it was such a good night. Hosted by a very funny, charismatic tribe member, who spoke a few words in 19 languages to the guests- 'the visiting tribe' as he called them- he only failed with Latvian! We were shown our dinner being cooked in a Hangi- underground pit thermally heated- then walked through the reserve, along side a magical bubbling spring with trout and eels, and a river down which the young warriors paddled their canoe proudly and noisily, in all their war gear (i.e. not much...) We were then invited to watch their show, showcasing their Haka, wardance, and other stories and dances, use of weapons etc. Quite a lot of audience participation too. Oli sat in the front row completely hooked! We hid behind him! We then ate the Hangi food- hmmm. Luverly. Back into the reserve for a glow worm walk and scary stories then home on the bus. Excellent evening- good on those Maories for using their cultural heritage to their commercial advantage but still managing to behave with dignity and integrity. (sorry, serious moment.)

Waitomo

A very exciting day today as it was time to leave the big city for the 'real' kiwi experience.Packed away our belongings- amazing how much we'd made ourselves a home in our little suite… and trooped off to the airport to the campervan depot. After a very efficient induction session we were shown to our new home. We had steeled ourselves for a tiny tin box so at least when we saw it we weren’t too shocked…A few little cubby holes inside swallowed up our clothes, books and other baggage and we set off south headed for Waitomo. Our first views of rural NZ were everything we'd hoped for. We were travelling through the Waikato region after the long river that runs through it. Think of the Malverns crossed with Tuscany but made much more interesting by the odd volcanic plug, sub tropical vegetation and weatherboard villas. Arrived at Waitomo which is renowned for its system of limestone caves formed by millenia of faulting, earthquakes, volcanic activity and underground water. There are several tours you can take- most involving some degree of participation in extreme sport- sadly (!) the lower age limit for these was 12 yrs so we had to content ourselves with a gentle walk through the glow worm caves, including a boat trip through the water filled ones. Sophie could not be persuadeed to sing in the 'Cathedral' ( the largest cave with stalagmites and tites-) but the Korean Tourists behind us did! The glow worms sparkled like constellations in the night sky, quite magical. Then the guide told us the glow is created when the glowworms poo! Oliver thought this was most amusing. Above ground again and we went for a beautiful walk over the bumpy hills and through some sub tropical forest. This landscape was straight out of Lord of the Rings- we expected the Orks to appear over the hills at any time...

We were then only five minutes from our campsite which was small and friendly and all the facilities including a pool which the kids jumped into whilst Richard cooked fajitas and I sat in the sun with a glass of vino...Our van in the middle of the pic...

Waiheke Island

Waiheke Island beach

We met Lucy and the children at the ferry terminal for a trip over to Waiheke Island, one of the largest islands in the Gulf with reputation for a laid-back life style and a warmer climate- we hoped so as the air in Auckland was distinctly damp and chilly! The trip over to Waiheke was a bit grey- we had lunch when we got there and by the time we got to the beach the sun was out and it was perfect beach weather. The children set to finding jellyfish, impounding them in a sandy lagoon: very good natured jellies so no worries there!

The children all got on really well. Sophie has adopted the New Zealand accent already!She and

Hannnah were torn between stretching out and sunbathing and joining in the fun! By the time we caught the ferry home the Gulf waters had turned to jade and the journey was delightful.

Said bye to Lucy and the Pierpoints- maybe for the next 5 years? Old pals Lucy and Maryanne- a long way from Hampshire County Council!

The children surprised and pleased us by joining in a wonderful Japanese meal. Now got to pack in preparation for our move to the campervan- that's going to be a shock after out luxurious stay here!

May not be able to blog for a day or two, depending on facilities at the campsites...but watch this space...

Our hotel is immediately to the right of the HSBC building- 15 th floor for goodness sake. Don't they know this is an earthquake zone?

First full day in Auckland today- great city, none of that claustrophic feeling you get in a landlocked city. The blue sky heps too. Lots of beautiful young things, of all nationalities. the guy in hotel reception recommended a trip over the water to Devonport and as we felt it would be good to escape the city for a while we took the ferry over to this peninsula suburb of Auckland known as the North Shore. It was one of the earliest settled areas of NZ and this is apparent in the heritage buildings; a quaint, unspoilt, quiet area with lots of cafes, bookshops and art galleries. We walked along the shore to the North Head, a historic reserve with lots of fortifications and tunnels and old guns, established at a time when the kiwis were getting twitchy about the Russians- about 1890. The views from the top were incredible- 360 degrees- it's an old volcanic cone- and we took loads of photos of the view back to Auckland . Weather sparkly and sunny with a breeze keeping the temperature down slightly. Perfect. Children already becoming very freckly and photgenic. Will have to cull the photos severely!

Back to Auckland on the ferry- Sophie had a date to go to sleepover at Hannah's; we did a bit a shopping, treated Oli to a very big icecream, then 'home' to open a chilled bottle of Oyster Bay...cheers everyone.

Auckland Arrival

Just a quick post to say we've arrived safely in Auckland, City of Sails. It's clear looking out of our window why they call it that- yachtie heaven.
We had a good flight overnight from HK, Air New Zealand was very comfortable- relatively speaking- and although none of us managed much sleep we were so excited to arrive (11 am local time) we managed to keep going until bedtime. Lucy met us at the airport- great to see her, and she drove us to our apartment hotel which is just up from the Quay in central Auckland. Out of the front window we can see the harbour, out of the back the sky tower (second tallest tower in the Southern Hemisphere). A wonderful room (s) to spend 3 nights in. Sim (Lucy's Hubby) picked us up on the way home from work and we went to their lovely 1940s one story timber cladded home for a meal and to meet the children. Really interesting to see the residential areas so close up, in some ways it felt quite familiar and english, in other ways definitely not! Very envious of some of the plants in Lu's garden- Sim says agapanthus are considered as weeds here! Fell into bed later, now feel refreshed and ready to hit the town. (Kids still asleep, Rich and I raring to go!) Spk later all x

Hawes go Hong Kong

Wow what a day! Hong Kong is FULL ON! Noisy, busy and bright but with a very positive vibe,(at risk of sounding like an ageing hippy) and everyone very welcoming. Especially if you're in the market for a tailor made suit (by tomorrow, very cheap) or fake designer handbag. "Darling - how could you possibly think I would buy a fake Louis Vuitton? " We woke up fairly late and after an 'international' hotel breakfast comprising everything from strange shapes floating in milky liquid to American waffles in maple syrup- hit the town. We surprised ourselves with our map reading capabilities and took the underground to HK island and took the tram up to Victoria Peak. The tram is a 'double reversible funicular railway'; the seats only face UP the mountain- and we realised on the way back this was because if you faced forward on the way down you'd fall off. The slope is up to 27 degrees and rises from 28 m to 396 m above sea level. Quite an impressive set up really and by the time we realised how scary it was we were at the top. The view was very murky- not unusual I understand given the pollution heading this way from mainland China, but given the enormous size of the skyscrapers there was a lot to see and well worth the trip. Lots of tacky shops selling bright plastic things which we thought were very expensive until we worked out we'd got the exchange rate wrong. Spot the accountant! Sophie (magpie) Hawes in retail heaven. There was also an EA Game shop where we played huge screen Sims and racing games for an hour or two 'til we could drag Rich away…
..we wandered round the main streets for a while then caught the Star Ferry back over to Kowloon- good view of the skyscrapers- then when it got dark went to the Avenue of Stars for a grandstand view of the 'Symphony of lights'- a spectacular show with the facades of the buildings glowing with moving lights, synchronised with music, strobe lights and lasers- very impressive. There's not much of that goes on in Chepstow. During the day the skyscrapers looked grey and static; but the lights brought out a different dimension and they almost seemed to be dancing.
By then we'd 'hit the wall' and had a quick meal before collapsing. Jonny, I'm sorry but we weren’t feeling brave enough to try the 'Spring Deer' restaurant… looked a bit too authentic to us!
Can't say I remember anything of HK from my last visit here at the age of two- I imagine it has changed significantly. For all its business and bustle it seems pretty intimate and approachable. Not sure I'd want to stay more than a couple of days though... Sadly there's been no sign of my first love, Tucker Jessie Cruse Jnr , much to Sophie's disappointment.
More sightseeing tomorrow… plane at 8.15 pm… can't wait! Bye for now folks.

Hong Kong Arrival

This is our first blog from foreign shores but it's going to be a quick one because we are soooooo tired. Not even sure what time it is though it is dark outside (Nathan Road, Hong Kong!) and the clock in the hotel room says 10.30. My watch says 2.30 but as we had no sleep to speak of last night we are ready to drop and I think sleeping all night shouldn't be too much of a problem.
The flight was fine, a slight delay of an hour because of some traffic control hitch. Once we contorted our limbs into the requisite tiny space it was clear that we weren’t going to sleep, so had a marathon film watching session instead. With the sunset into a pink and orange sea came our first few of HK, a few ragged tooth like islands then the neon glow of the city crammed into the gaps between the mountains. A landing quite like no other, splendid views; we were quite glad we weren’t landing at the old airport with a small strip extending into the harbour between the tall buildings- apparently quite hair raising!
Horrible coach trip to the hotel, high revving coach driver who enjoyed the hissing jolt of the air brakes every 20 seconds, between the traffic lights all the way up Nathan Road….blurgh…anyway well fed and ensconced in our hotel room…more news tomorrow. xxx

Missing Miller already...

..one of the downsides of going away is that we will miss our beloved fluffy puppy doodle Miller...tomorrow he leaves us for his long winter holiday in Cornwall with Grandma and Grandpa. Tomorrow is his first birthday so we shall send him off with somethig tasty to chew and a new collar (don't tell him, it's a surprise..) Anyway we thought we'd try and post a video with some shots of our summer holiday so we can look back and remember him when we get homesick....aaah...