Our New Home in Capitola

11.19.08: We’ve been in our new, temporary home in Capitola for almost a month now. Because we returned with no jobs, we didn’t want to go through the credit process of a traditional leased house. So we are in a month-to-month vacation rental for the time being. We came here during a great time of the year. Not only because of the beautiful weather, but because the summer season has already passed and many vacation rental owners were looking for winter renters. The house is fully furnished. We didn’t want to go through the hassle/cost of having our storage containers shipped here, just to move everything again in a few months. Because of this, we are still living with what we had in our luggage, plus the boxes of stuff we shipped “home” along our journeys, plus what we put in our cars when we left. Of course, two of our surfboards were easily accessible when we landed here in CA! On one hand, it is nice to still be living “minimally”. On the other hand, it is killing us not to have some things. I know Sean would LOVE to get started on shaping his next surf board, but all his tools are locked up in storage. I have had to purchase a few things that I’d otherwise be able to get in storage, like some office supplies, a printer (to print out resumes) and some other small household items.

Overall, I am happy that we spent a few more bucks to get something more comfortable to live in than “just a box near the beach”. We LOVE the “Jewel Box” neighborhood in Capitola, where our house is located: small tree-lined streets and cute little well-maintained houses with mature landscaping. We’re about three streets down from the bluff that overlooks the Capitola pier and village, and you can see the entire Monterey Bay if it’s clear. From there, you can walk right down to the village. And on a big swell, we walked down with a board and surfed the jetty while Kai happily played on the sand. On other surf days, it’s about 1/2 to 1 mile to The Hook and Pleasure Point breaks. We do have to drive there, but are working on getting some cruiser bicycles instead.

Unfortunately, we are still unemployed and feeling the pinch. Right off the bat, I came across a couple opportunities that I would have loved. But, they came and went quickly. Since then, I haven’t seen as much. And to be honest, it’s hard to concentrate on a job hunt because I’ve still been in “culture shock” being back here. The wonderful spring-like weather has not helped either! Instead, I’ve been occasionally catching some waves, discovered a new yoga class, and have been looking around for pre-schools that Kai can eventually attend. We also celebrated Kailani’s third birthday with a small gathering here at the house. Sean also sent his resume to a couple places with no luck. His previous employer has no problem re-hiring him again. But, it would mean a harsh commute. So, it would probably be just until he can find something closer. In the past couple of weeks, a couple of our friends have also joined our ranks. (They were laid-off.) Coming back to US soil when the economy fell apart was a bit harsh. But, at least we were able to be back to vote and hope that everything will slowly pick-up now. We are still hopeful that it will just take a little bit of time. Overall, life is good! :-)

California: Sunnyvale, Santa Cruz and a Road Trip Up North

Kailani painting her race car tires black


Two sisters out for sushi dinner


Look at all those groceries. Starving student no more!
(The beer was Sean's!)


The view from Highway 299


Taking the Audi through the drive-through Redwood tree


The Mendocino Coast


Fort Bragg

Happy to be back in California!

10.06.08: Our plane from Lihue, Kauai to Seattle wasn’t exactly on time. We ended up leaving around midnight and the plane was scheduled to land in around 7am after a 5 hour flight. It hardly seemed enough time to get any sleep, but we survived. From Seattle, we had a few hours layover. I at least managed to catch a few Z’s lying across the chairs at the gate.

Kailani cried more than ever when we touched down in San Jose. I’m sure it was just lack of sleep, but I couldn’t help but wonder if she knew our trip was over. After Jimmy picked us up from the airport and we got settled, we decided to get a bite to eat for lunch. Of course, we ended up going at Whole Foods. I do have to admit that it WAS nice to grab a bite to eat there, and to see all the familiar good foods that they sell. Since we hadn’t eaten any “official” Mexican food since we left the country in February (yummy fish tacos in Kauai are the closest we got) we invited a few friends for Casa Lupe in Sunnyvale for our first dinner. The re-connection with our friends was great, and good ole’ Casa Lupe food was just the same as ever. Sometime that day, Kailani asked if we could go on an airplane again. It was kind of heartbreaking to tell her we didn’t have any plans to anymore. Thanks, Jim and Jen, for the ride and putting us up for our first night back!

The next three days of being back in the Bay Area, we stayed at the Saunders’ house in Sunnyvale. (Thanks guys!!!!) For Kailani, longing for “some friends to play with” the past several months, it was the best place to stay. She is one month older than Noah, and the two have “officially” known each other since conception as his parents and older brother were living next door to us in our duplex at that time. They are so similar in demeanor and personality; you would think they are two peas in a pod! Everyday, we commuted over-the-hill to Santa Cruz to look for a temporary house. The drive got old fast. And, we never really found one that stood out as “the one”, but had a few options to choose from.

That Saturday, we also visited a nursery school in Santa Cruz. It was a little too early for us to start thinking about it, but they were having an open house that we didn’t want to miss. We were also honored that we were able to be there for little Mosley’s first birthday party. Kailani had a great time painting wooden cars as she so carefully painted the wheels black, avoiding everything else. I was impressed!

Later that day, we hit the road and drove up to see Caitlin in her new off-campus apartment for two nights. Since she was living in furnished on-campus housing last February when we left, we put all her bedroom furniture in our storage containers. Needless to say, her apartment is fairly minimal. Sean and I made a bed on the floor with a small pile of blankets, Kailani got Caitlin’s “loaned” mattress, and Caitlin got the couch that her roommate, Dana’s mother bought them. Since the “starving student” can’t afford to normally eat sushi, she took us, including Dana, to The Boathouse for dinner. I do have to say it was good, and reminded me of the old Hanamaru days. Kailani’s getting to be an old pro at using the chopsticks. Perhaps, the amount of time she spent in Asian has paid off! I played a reverse-role by bringing our dirty laundry to her house. But, made up for it by taking her grocery shopping and making two large pots of her favorite, spaghetti sauce, which we froze the excess for later. As we left Caitlin’s, we decided to stop for a tasting at Stubb’s, the only organic winery in Marin County. It was situated in hills above Petaluma and the landscape reminded us of New Zealand, except not as green. I didn’t realize it when I found the place, but they didn’t have a tasting room. Instead, Mary Stubb popped open a couple of bottles for us to try in the dining room of her beautiful house. They had a really nice Pinot Noir and good, not-too-oakey Chardonnay. Making this pit stop proved to be a worthwhile treat.

From there, we continued up north to Weaverville, in the Trinity Alps, to see friends, Karen, Mark and almost-eight year old Emily. The weather was great this time of year and we really enjoyed landscape and beauty of California, especially now that we can compare it with everything else we’ve seen. I used to dread the drive up Highway 5. But this time, I saw things that I never gave a second look at before. Kailani and Emily play extremely well together. So again, she was thrilled to have another friend to play with. While Emily was at school, Karen took us for a visit to a local winery. Unfortunately because it was harvest time, the staff was in the vineyards picking and their tasting room was closed. Still, it was interesting to go from the bare branches of Australia and New Zealand, where it was just warming up from their winter, to the full leafy vines of California during the fall. Later that afternoon, Karen, Kailani and I had the pleasure of accompanying Emily to her soccer practice, while Sean and Mark decided to bike there. It was just a few miles away, but as the crow flies, meaning you had to get over a mountain range. It seemed to take a while, but for Sean not riding in at least a few years, he survived fairly well. That night, I checked the internet, just to see if there were any new postings for rental houses, and found a sweet deal that I couldn’t pass up calling, right on the beach and for a great price (in exchange for it being on the market, which didn’t bother us any).

The next day, we left Weaverville via Highway 299 to Eureka and down the coast on 101. This was breaking new ground as we’ve always rushed back down on Highway 5. It was beautiful drive alongside a river and Sean vowed that we’ll be going up there again soon so he can try fishing. We stopped for lunch at Lost Coast Brewery where Sean says he had the best oysters and chips ever. I do have to agree. I had one of his oysters, and they were pretty awesome. We also had the Ten Beer Sampler for $10, and it included two additional samples of their seasonal beers. How can you pass that up? Our favorites were the Downtown Brown, Winterbraun and the Indica Pale Ale, which had a bit of a skunky taste. As we continue down south, we drove past some of California’s giant redwood trees which were absolutely stunning. It was definitely the biggest forest area we’ve ever been to and doesn’t come close to anything we’ve seen in the past eight months. We even decided to drive through the tourist magnet drive-through redwood tree. It’s too bad Kailani was napping at that point. But, Sean and I still got a kick out of taking a picture of our well-missed and beloved Audi going through it. From there, we hit Highway 1 west through some of the windiest hills we’ve ever drove to the Shoreline Highway, where it hits the Mendocino coast. Sean was getting tired of driving, so I took over, relishing the way the Audi handled every twist, turn, ascent and descent. If you ever want to truly test drive a car, I highly recommend taking this route which is NORTH of the Mendocino Coast (not Highway 20 or 128 that most people take from the Bay Area). That night, we ended up finding a great little room right on the cliffs overlooking the harbor in Fort Bragg, and it didn’t cost an arm and a leg. I guess it helped that it was the middle of the week and I don’t think it was considered high season. Although, with such beautiful weather this time of the year, one would think it should be.

The next day, we woke and drove straight down to Santa Cruz. I would have loved to make another couple pit stops, but we were playing phone tag with the “sweet deal” house broker and wanted to view it ASAP. We at least took the scenic drive down Highway 1 from San Francisco to Santa Cruz. Again, we got to see California in all its autumn glory. Taking a few extra days to take this little road trip definitely proved to be worthwhile in our opinions!

When we saw the house, it was everything we expected and then some. (The “some” would probably be the slight view of the 26th Ave. beach.) But, we still had to go through the application process, and it was going to take a couple days for the owner to make a decision. We found a room at a local Best Western, but only for one night because they were fully booked beyond that. The next day, we looked and looked for something else. But because it was the weekend, we couldn’t find anything decent and inexpensive. I suggested we go to a campground. But, we didn’t have any camping gear and Sean didn’t seem to think it would be comfortable shoving everything into the front seats, putting the back seats down, and all of us sleeping back there. I wonder why… ;-) Eventually, we found ourselves aimlessly driving around town with a car full of all our belongings, wondering what to do next. We were really feeling “homeless” by then. We finally ended up taking a room at a place where I was less than thrilled over it’s cleanliness, but kept telling myself it was only for one night.

As it turned out, the owner of the house STILL hadn’t made a decision. We again found ourselves driving around, wondering what to do while waiting for him. We still hadn’t seen our friends who live in Santa Cruz, Tammy in full blown pregnant magnificence, or their new house, as they had moved there after we left. So, we ended up showing up at their doorstep unannounced. They ended up offering us to stay with them and it sure beat the “dirty” motel room. So, we took them up on it and ended up there for the rest of the weekend, after we had dinner with other friends, Jim and Jen from Sunnyvale. I’m sure Jim and Jen were planning on coming to see us at our new house, but that obviously didn’t happen as fast as expected now that we were waiting for the “sweet deal”.

Again, staying with John and Tammy ended up being a blessing. Kailani loved playing with their girls, Maiah and Ella, and it was such a treat to spend time reconnecting with them. Tammy, the girls and I took a trip over the hill to the mall for some last minute things she needed for the baby and I was able to get some much needed “essentials” myself. Meanwhile, Sean helped John by crawling under the house with him for some renovation work. We can’t thank you guys ENOUGH for putting us up, especially so unexpectedly!!! When the broker for the house finally called me back, we found that they took another applicant. I wasn’t heartbroken but a little irritated, mostly because we waited when we could have moved into our second-choice house, albeit pricier and not right at the beach. But, we wouldn’t have been aimlessly driving around “homeless” and bouncing around like we did. Still, I don’t think I really have anyone to blame but myself, for waiting around for the house.

Promptly that Monday morning, we signed a month-to-month lease and picked up the keys to our new furnished bungalow/cottage in the Capitola “Jewel Box” neighborhood. The process to find a house definitely took us longer than expected, but the place is comfortable and it’s where we now call home, at least for the time being… :-)

Kauai, Hawaii

10.01.08: Packing for Kauai seemed increasingly difficult, despite sending yet another box of stuff back to the mainland. We decided to leave our New Zealand board on the Big Island as a “family/community board”, but we also retrieved a duffel bag full of summer clothes and Bali artwork that Tutu and Caitlin hauled back from Australia for us. We are also carrying some cooler weather clothes and Kailani’s new car seat, so it seems like a lot!

We arrived at the Kona airport with what we thought was plenty of time to spare. After going through security, we plopped down our carry-on stuff in the lounge while I went to the bathroom. I heard an announcement about our flight boarding, so we picked up our stuff and went to the gate only to find that it wasn’t open just yet. We went back to the lounge and didn’t even have a sip of our drinks yet when they announce the gate’s now open. Urgh! But, at least it took off with no delays. But, before making it to Kauai, we arrived in Honolulu for an hour layover. We made the best of it by having lunch. Although the delay on our second flight was only a short one, it did seem to make us feel like we got into Lihue, Kauai with no time to see friends or do anything else that night. When we checked-in to our condo at Poipu, they gave us a complimentary upgrade to a two bedroom, two bath that was super spacious. After spending six weeks cooped up in a tiny campervan in New Zealand, it was pretty luxurious to have such a big place!

The next day was our friend’s, Rory and Lisa’s, wedding day. It wasn’t until the afternoon, so we made use of the first half of the day by going to Poipu beach. Sean rented a board and paddled out while Kailani and I played with a rental boogie board in a shallow little lagoon that was perfect for little one’s. Kai practiced standing up on the board and we also took turns pulling each other around on it. Later, we ran into Lisa’s brother, Paul, his wife, Sarah and their four kids. Luke, third oldest, found a crab and Kailani played with the four as they made a “home” for the crab in the sand. Paul, Sarah, Sean and I reminisced about New Zealand as they spent a year living there several years ago. Before heading back to the condo to get ready for the wedding, we made a stop to the Kukuiula market in Koloa town to get some essentials for the kitchen. I was happy to find that they had a pretty decent selection of organic and natural foods, so we’ll be going back there, I’m sure.

The wedding was a short walk down, between our condo and the Grand Hyatt, where Rory and Lisa were staying and where the dinner reception was. They picked a spot on the beach for their ceremony based on a turtle sighting in the water. And, just as we walked up to that spot, we saw some there. I’m not sure if it was on purpose or not, but there was also a nice “right” peeling onto the rocks. The ceremony was intimate with about 30 people there. And, their minister did a beautiful Hawaiian-style ceremony. It put a tear in my eyes when Rory and Lisa included Lisa’s 16 year old son, Mikiah, in the ceremony by presenting him with a ring as well. Rory and Lisa have been together for 13 years, so we already view the three of them as a “family”. But, we feel so honored to be invited to wedding to make it “official” and grateful that we were able to make it. We can‘t be happier for them, especially because Caitlin, Sean and I have had the pleasure of camping, snowboarding, traveling to Costa Rica and hanging out with them since Caitlin and Mikiah were young groms playing with each other. We are all bummed that Caitlin wasn’t able to make it. Dinner at The Tidepools at the Hyatt was a great finish to the ceremony. We had some great conversation catching up with Rory’s brother, Pete, his parents, as well as meeting the rest of Lisa’s family and their friends. They served Lisa’s favorite wine, Cakebread Chardonnay, as well as a Napa Valley Silverado red (Cab, I think). And, the food and service was outstanding as well. I devoured both the salad that had a hint of macadamia as well as the crab cake appetizer. For the main, Sean and I both chose the oven roasted banana-macadamia crusted Mahi Mahi with a perfectly-cooked scallop and shrimp. Kai chose the kid’s steak. I asked if they could substitute her mashed potatoes for rice and mentioned that she was ¾ Asian, and our server chuckled. Oh, I can’t forget the chocolate mousse “bomb” for dessert that I devoured and put me over the top.

Although the wedding reception ended with us all making plans for the next morning, things seemed to fizzle out. I’m sure it was the wine talking, and it caught up with us that Friday morning. Sean lost his voice talking to everyone the night before and I was feeling tired as Kailani woke up at the crack of dawn. Sean managed to make it out for a surf session with Rory and the boys, and JUST as Kai and I were going to meet up with Lisa at the hotel for a swim in the pool, I ended up finding Kailani lying between our couch and coffee table with tears in her eyes. I’m not sure what that was about, but we ended up not making it. I put her in bed for a nap instead. Later that afternoon, Sean took Kailani to the Hyatt for a swim session with Rory while I went to the market. And, later that evening, everyone from the wedding gathered at our condo complex pool area for a BBQ.

On Saturday, we figured it was about time we venture around the rest of the island. We grabbed Rory’s brother, Pete, and went for a ride. As we headed north, we rang up our friends who we met in Bali, Abe and Darrah. They were adding some barbed wire fencing to their property as their two cows escaped and were partying with the neighbors. We decided to stop by. We were in awe as we looked around the landscape surrounding their property – two HUGE rocks jutting up the top of the mountain behind them, and a river mouth opening out to a beautiful beach on the other side. Pete later admitted that he was wondering where the heck we were taking him. But, just the same as how we felt about Abe and Darrah, he was pretty stoked to meet such cool and friendly locals.

We were still in awe over such lush and green landscape as we made our way up north. Our next stop was Tunnels Beach right near “the end of the road” (the furthest north you can go) where we went into the large and deep tunnel. It seems so large, until you walk out of it and see that it’s one small part of this huge, huge sheer face cliff. The afternoon was topped off first with a shave ice (we had macadamia ice cream with coconut and pineapple shave ice) as well as some pretty good fish tacos, probably the closest we’ve gotten to Mexican food since leaving the US (although we still don’t count is as “true” Mexican).

Sunday, we were back at our local beach for some playtime for Kailani in the lagoon while Sean and I switched off surfing at the break nearby. Later that evening, we were scheduled to go to a luau with folks from the wedding, but plans fizzled out, mostly when news that it’s held indoors got out. We still had another great dinner, but at a pizza place instead.

Monday, we were scheduled to leave for the mainland, but not until late night. We spend the early part of the day packing up…again. And then, our friend, Clinton, who moved over here from CA came by for a visit in the afternoon. Timing seemed to be perfect for us to give him our leftovers (including some extra soaps, TP, etc.) and he recently moved into a new studio. After having one last dinner, we received an escort to the airport from Clinto. He definitely knows his way around the Lihue airport and everyone knows him as well, because he works there for United. We are truly appreciative of all the hospitality that we’ve been given during our stay on this island! Thanks all!

The Big Island of Hawaii

09.25.08: After going to be around 2-3am, there was some effort to wake-up that morning in Honolulu. We didn’t have much time to spend at the hotel but to eat the free and unfulfilling continental breakfast and go back to the airport. Somehow, we underestimated and Kailani was down to her last pull-up. So, we were really testing her potty-training skills. I pulled out the cheap Channel knock-off sunglasses that I picked up on a beach in Bali to find that the arm had broken off and it was not repairable. :-( While waiting for our plane at the airport, we grabbed lunch. I got the Kalua pork sandwich and Sean got some chicken teriyaki skewers. Even though it was airport food, it was still nice to have Hawaiian food once again.

Luckily, the flight to Kona was on-time and there were no other hassles, unless you count the Hawaiian Air $25 oversized luggage fee for the surfboard (as opposed to it being free on Air New Zealand). As we got off the plane, memories of spending the night there last Christmas due to a cancelled flight home came back to me. Boy, wasn’t that a fun night! Tutu, aka Grandma Karen, was there to greet us with lei’s and all. She just moved into her recently-built new home just two days before, so we were grateful that she was able to find time to pick us (and the board) up. She even had Kailani’s new car seat that I ordered and had shipped there. First order of business was to hit a store for more Pull-Ups as well as some essential groceries since the new house had an empty fridge.

At Tutu’s new home in Waimea, we were honored to be her first house guests. Even though I was expecting to unpack it myself, she somehow pulled off setting up a room for us to stay in. The last time we saw the house was last Christmas during the framing process and came together beautifully, even with the dust still settling. Waimea is quite higher in elevation that most would think it gets in Hawaii, so the weather can get rather cool at times. But, the view of the valley below from Tutu’s house is spectacular when there’s no bog (this sulfuric fog from the volcanoes) and it’s clear.

The rest of the week was not your typical tourist agenda. We were there to help Tutu and her move, acclimate and get settled back into the US, as well as get ourselves looking decent for the wedding next week. Although there was only a three hour difference from New Zealand, that night, I ended up with a serious case of jetlag, worse than anything I’ve experience so far. I just couldn’t sleep all night! By morning, I couldn’t pull my head up off the pillow and was moving pretty slow. Fortunately, we didn’t have any early plans.

Tutu still had yet to pick-up her second car, the convertible PT Cruiser, from her old condo in Waikoloa Beach. So we headed there. We also stopped by The Sunglass Hut in the Queen’s Marketplace nearby. I tried on about five of their less expensive sunglasses before the sales guy suggested a pair of D&G’s. They worked pretty well, but I still tried on another twenty pairs before giving-in and getting them. I can’t believe I went from a cheap ole pair of Channel knock-offs to an actual designer pair. Sean ended up getting a pair of Arnette’s as well. It was great not to feel so “naked” anymore and we were both feeling a bit more “civilized” again with some decent shades that weren’t all banged up and scratched. Back at the condo, we packed-up more of Tutu’s odds and ends in the two cars. Now that the condo’s vacant, is also up for rent. It’s very tempting to think of moving there, especially when the owner is tempting us with weekly “Date/Kailani and Tutu” nights. It’s fully furnished, so all we’d have to do is roll our suitcases in and jump across the parking lot to the pool with our new shades. :-) With two cars full, we went back up the hill to the new house in Waimea and spent the rest of the day digging through boxes looking for essentials like a spatula.

Saturday morning, I went to my first yoga class since we left California. I was excited that there was an Anusara class (that I also attended last Christmas) at the studio, No Place Like Om, right in Waimea. After the class, I had a nice chat with instructor Katherine, also the owner of the studio and found that No Place Like Om had recently converted to an Anusara-only studio. Isn’t Waimea lucky?!? She also told me that Santa Cruz just finally got an Anusara instructor that just recently moved into town since we left CA. So, at least I won’t have to commute to the valley for Anusara classes.

After, Sean, Kailani and I headed to the Waimea Farmer’s Market. Although it was fun to see the different booths with produce and crafts, I didn’t shop much. The thought of trying to eat up all the leftovers during our last three days in Auckland stuck with me. There were a number of booths selling ready-made food as well. Sean got the typical Hawaiian pork lau lau and pork teriyaki lunch plate. I had a few bites and worked hard not to devour the rest of it. It was good!

Later, we headed to the Kona airport to pick up a small moving van and then back to Tutu’s condo to move a few more pieces of furniture. After going back to Kona to return the van, we headed to the Kona Brewing Company for an early dinner where I had a beer sampler with: the Fire Rock Pale Ale, a good ole’ standby; the Macadamia Nut Brown Ale, a seasonal beer and one of our new favorites; the Pipeline Porter, made with Kona coffee and our favorite last time; and Seasonal Stout (don’t remember the name exactly) which I’d have to say was even better than the Pipeline Porter. Before jumping in the car and heading home, we stopped by their “Growler Shack” in the parking lot and refilled the “growler” (gallon jug) that we had purchased last Christmas. This time, we got the Macadamia Nut Brown Ale. Yummmm!

Sunday was our beach day. We went back to a beach that we really liked during our last visit, Pine Tree (aka O’oma or Kohanaiki, not exactly sure) for some surfing. It’s right near the Kona airport and it takes about 20 minutes to go down a ½ mile road in 4-wheel drive. You can actually camp there too. We were blessed with waves again at this spot, so Sean and I took turns with our New Zealand board. Even Kailani caught some waves. There’s this part of the beach that’s protected by a reef area and forms a perfect “baby pool”. While Sean was out, Kailani spotted a couple of 4-5 year old boys playing there with boogie boards. We grabbed one of Tutu’s boogie boards and I was pulling Kailani around on it and pushing her into some waves. She started watching how the boys were doing it, and pretty soon, she was jumping on the board from the shoreline, paddling out, and Sean (who ended his session) would turn her around and push her into the waves. I got some pretty good footage of it and hopefully will be able to post it up. (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zc68qhR5miI and http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZkttdSYZdnk)

After Pine Tree, we went into Kona to the Verizon store. I was feeling even more “normal” again when they were able to re-activate my phone. Unfortunately, I had to get a Hawaii phone number that will have to be changed to a CA number when we get there. But, it’s sure nice to have a phone again that you don’t have to worry if you have enough pre-pay minutes left! I also picked up a couple other goodies. First, a Bluetooth headset since hearing that there’s a new California law prohibiting anyone from talking on a phone while driving. Second, an internet USB card for my laptop. So, we won’t have to search for wifi hot spots anymore and worrying about purchased time running out. Ah, technology!

Later that night, we ordered pizza for dinner. I do have to mention that I could barely stop eating the Zesty Fiesta pizza, which had chorizo, sausage, tomato and jalapeno peppers (which I picked off, but still had “essence” on it). It was reminiscent of the Golden Greek from Jake’s in Sunnyvale that we used to get.

On Monday morning, I accompanied Tutu to her Pilates class, my first time ever. I felt like I was fumbling a bit and sweat a lot. But, it felt good to stretch out the soreness from the yoga class two days before and was fun to listen to the ladies chit-chat.

After class, the four of us headed to Mountain Thunder, an organic coffee farm up in the hills of Kona. They do free tours every hour, where we learned everything you think you could possibly know about coffee: the four processes it goes through to make it; the different colors, sizes and roasts available; what good coffee should be like; etc. I know this place must be really good with their marketing because they have appeared on several television shows, apparent by the TV playing a DVD of all their appearances at the farm, but I do have to say that I’m impressed with the quality of their stuff. And, although I actually don’t normally drink coffee anymore, I still will never look at a coffee bean the same again. After the tour, I was also able to take Kailani down to check out their pig, baby goose and chicken. She always gets a kick out of seeing animals.

The rest of the afternoon, we spent getting lunch, doing some errands and shopping for outfits to wear to Rory and Lisa’s wedding in Kauai next week. For what seemed like a small selection of shops to choose from, we did quite well. However, we did have remorse in spending that money when we went back home to watch CNN and find out how bad the stock market did that day! Watching what they have to say about the Presidential and especially the Vice Presidential candidates was a little more entertaining, but still depressing.

On Tuesday morning, the contractor, cable guy, window covering guy, AV guy and Concrete Pete were all at the house finishing up loose ends. It was also our last full day on the island, so we left to take care of stuff: dump run (there’s no garbage pick-up in Waimea), post office, market and lunch. We then decided to go back to the beach for a quick afternoon surf session. We cruised by Hapuna beach, hoping for some variety, but it was flat. So, we ended up back at Pine Tree. It was also pretty small there, but at least there were waves. Kailani was so excited to go “surfing” on the boogie board again that she pulled her clothes off and got dressed into her bathing suit herself. Sean went out and I took Kai into the water right after we had a couple of mongoose sightings. She did so well that I didn’t even have to retrieve her after pushing her to shore on a wave. She’d jump off the board, turn it around, jump back on it, and paddle back to me (with the slight help of a mini-current). I have a feeling that if she spent enough time in warm water, I’m SURE she’d be surfing in no time!

Later that night, Tutu treated us to very-easy-to-go-down lilikoi margaritas and dinner at the Kawaihae Harbor Grill Seafood Bar, down the hill and near the shipping port from Waimea. It had been drizzly all day in Waimea, so it was nice to escape that, sit outside on their lanai and enjoy the fresh sea air for the night. The geckos were out and Kailani had fun watching them, if not watching the PSP. The food was great and it was especially nice to have such a nice going-away dinner and spent with Tutu!

Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

09.25.08: In Auckland, we woke up at the crack of dawn for our 11am Hawaii flight for a number of reasons. First, the hotel said our taxi could take up to an hour plus to get to the airport during morning rush hour traffic. Second, we had the rental car seat to return. From there, we needed to hop on an airport shuttle. And then, we had to retrieve the surfboard and we were advised to check-in early because boards are only allowed pending space available. Well, the taxi took no more than twenty minutes; the shuttle was probably no more than five; and I’m sure we were the first one’s to check-in for our flight. After all that, our flight was delayed by two and a half hours! At least there was one good, shocking thing. Air New Zealand doesn’t charge oversized baggage fees for surfboards. Yep! US carriers can typically charge $125. So, I didn’t believe it until it happened. With our half day spent waiting for our flight to take off, we ate both breakfast and lunch before we were given refreshment vouchers, drank our way through the vouchers, and did some last minute shopping at the Auckland airport, spending way more than our budget allowed.

The plane ride was about nine hours and felt even longer than that. With as much flying as we’ve done, I thought I’d be able to endure it better. But, that’s one of the longest legs we’ve done in the past several months, and it felt like it. Kailani flew like a champ. She was pretty happy the first part of the flight, took a really long nap in the middle, and woke up in the groggy and quiet state where she sat on my lap and watched on-board videos until we landed.

When we finally landed in Honolulu, it was September 25th at midnight. (If our plane wasn’t late, it would have been one day earlier due to a short hop over the International Date Line and a three hour time difference.) Because we checked-in so early, our luggage was the last to come out. I was amazed when we passed through immigration and customs with only a couple questions and were allowed to enter onto US soil again. Not that there should be any reason to believe otherwise, it’s just felt like we’ve been gone so long. I was sure glad we decided to book at The Ohana airport hotel when the free shuttle was right there to pick us up and the ride was only three minutes long. Although the hotel was recently remodeled, it was definitely nothing to rave about. But, it was close and good enough to crash for the night. Once in our room, it took us some time to settle down, but we were finally able to get some sleep.

Auckland: Part 3

Check out the beautiful colors on those Hallertau brews.

From the Auckland airport, "Good Bye New Zealand!"
(Notice the new pink, organic cotton tiki shirt in both pictures that Kailani refuses to change out of.)

09.21.08: Our third and last time in Auckland hasn’t been very exciting. We drove into a campground in south Auckland, near the airport, from Raglan, made dinner and crashed for the night. The next day, Kailani bee-lined it right to the playground and made friends with a couple older girls (four and six, I think) from Australia who were just ending their trip here as well. It seems many people use this campground as their last stop (pretty obvious, due to the full trash/recycle cans and leftovers in their kitchen) before returning their vehicle to the airport and flying out. Their family of five had been camping around both the north and south island for 59 days, which beat us by a week and a half. Wow!

After that, we started getting ready to leave the country for Hawaii. Our first stop was to Kumeu, to go back to the shop where we got our board. We wanted to return the book, New Zealand Surf Guide, that Bryan, the owner of Hardcore Surf, let us borrow. We also talked about selling the board back to him, but ended up liking the great price that he sold it to us for, and decided to keep it. Instead of selling us a board bag, he was nice enough to package it up for our flight. He supplied a cardboard box and we ended up using our NZ wool duvet as cushion. That worked out great, as it was an investment to acquire and I hated to see it left here, but didn’t think it was worth it to ship/carry home.

Kumeu is also a wine region, and after taking care of business, we were hungry for lunch. We ended up at the Hallertau Brewbar and Restaurant, co-located with the Riverhead Winery. Sean ended up with a beer tasting “paddle” and I ended up with a sparkling fruit wine (boysenberry, feijoa, pear and apple cider) tasting “paddle”. We had some great seafood chowder as well as trying their ostrich burger (with a slice of beetroot, which is standard in all Oz and NZ burgers). Along with the warm apple crisp and Westbrook Dessert Reisling (which they call dessert wines “stickies” here), all was great.

Our last order of business was to check into a hotel so we could unload all our junk and sort it out, pack some, send some home via post, throw away trash, etc. I thought I finally found a place, but as we got there, it ended up being RIGHT in the heart of Auckland with lots of people walking around and traffic. They didn’t have a car park (parking lot) on-site, but had a loading zone in front and garage around the block. When I went in, I came to find the garage wasn’t tall enough to fit our camper. So, we spent the rest of the afternoon driving around until we found another room. Although this suburban motel unit wasn’t as nice as the downtown apartment, it was on the ground floor and had free parking right in front of our door.

The next day, we were still taking care of business, packing and shipping some stuff back to CA. We ended up with a TON of stuff! Luckily, we were able to get a box from the hotel, and ended up needing/getting another from the post office. And the cost for shipping those boxes back? Let’s just say…ouch!!! After that, we went to lunch at a quaint little café down the street in Parnell. Then, we went back to our room to sort out the rest of our junk.

On Wednesday, we took a ride to the airport so we could drop off our surfboard to be stored for a day. We figured it would be easier to take it while we still had the camper, rather than trying to find transportation that would be able to handle it. After, we went to the Auckland CBD (downtown area or “Central Business District”) for some lunch and last minute souvenir shopping. Last time we were in Auckland (on our way to Kelly Tarlton’s Antartic Adventure), I spotted a sign for a Chinese restaurant that looked good. Unfortunately, I couldn’t figure out where it was again when it was time to eat lunch that day. This time around, I finally figured out where it was. So, that’s where we went for lunch. The restaurant is called China and it’s right off Quay Street sort of behind the big Foodtown. They serve Yum Char (dim sum) all day, and we all ate more than we thought we would. There were lots of people eating there, but not so many that we couldn’t get a table, and many Asians. For us, that always seems to be a good sign. (Well, Asians at least in Asian restaurant.) Fortunately, we walked some of it off doing that last minute shopping. From there, it was time to drop off our camper. With that and the afternoon almost gone, we went back to our hotel, finished packing everything up and set the alarm clock for the crack of dawn.

From Aotearoa (New Zealand) with aroha (love, same as “aloha” in Hawaiian) here are just a few things we will most remember about this country: the beautiful green landscape and the friendly people; great waves in clean, CLEAN water; beaches teaming with life, all the mussels, oysters and kina (urchins, or so Kailani calls “Ivans”, from the movie “Surf’s Up”) that we ate; how unpopulated it is compared to California (as I say, just as many sheep and cow in NZ as people in CA). I’m sure there’s much, much more than that too!

Raglan

Raglan's Famous Long Left-Handers

At the Waingaro Hot Springs

...and the Big Splash!

Some YouTube Videos of the waterslide:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XM3-Y0zxP8c&feature=user
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HssNL185fCg

09.17.08: After several hours of driving, we finally arrived in Raglan in the dark. Right as we entered town, it started raining for the first time in probably about a week. We drove around looking for Solscape, where they had cabins and these cute little cabooses to stay in, as well as a supposed seven campervan sights. Sean had trouble finding the reception area, and ended up knocking on the door of a guest staying in the front house. It turns out that John is from Pleasure Point in Santa Cruz. I think this is the second American we’ve run into in the past month of being here. The reception area ended up being closed, so we started looking for a campsite on our own. We couldn’t find anything. Apparently, they were going through some construction (building some spacious new cabins with a beautiful view) and there were now only four campervan sights and all were occupied. It was dark and late, so we ended up parking in their lot and crashing for the night.

In the morning, we woke to find we were up on a hill with a view overlooking one of Raglan’s best surf breaks in Manu Bay. Luckily, management was able to “bump” one of the cars from a campervan sight to another spot, as it was really only a construction worker’s car parked there. Unfortunately, we were also charged for spending the night in the car park, but it was a small fee and well worth it. It turns out that Phil, who owns the place, actually grew up in Cupertino until Junior High. We also met some more Americans, three gals from Oregon who had just arrived to New Zealand the night before. From NZ, they were going to Australia and then Bali, basically a backwards route from what we took. Again, small world!

We went about 8 km back into town to have breakfast. This sleepy little beach town, considerably large for New Zealand standards, has a really creative and artistic flair to it that you can see from many of the houses and in the cute shops in town. We ended up at the Tongue and Groove café for breakfast where I ordered the Nasi Goreng. I guess I was feeling reminiscent after talking about Bali with the Oregonian girls. It ended up being one of the best I’ve ever tasted, perhaps even better than anything I had in Bali.

The rain continued throughout the day, either pouring like buckets or clearing-up for a while. We drove around, checking out all the different surf breaks, but it was pretty much blown out and victory-at-sea. We heard from a couple locals how the swell had just hit a couple days ago. (The “should have been here yesterday” line) We spent the rest of the afternoon lounging around at the campground hoping that the next swell that’s supposed to hit in the next couple days will bring good waves.

On day two at Raglan, the weather and waves didn’t really change. We had breakfast at Tongue and Groove again, and explored the boutiques around town. After that, we had to find something else to do. We ended up a few kilometers up north to the Waingaro Hot Springs. It wasn’t nearly as nice as the one’s in Lake Rotorua or Lake Taupo. In fact, the water might have been chlorinated. But, my back was in desperate need of a chiropractic adjustment and Sean’s has been bugging him too. I’m sure it’s all the driving we’ve been doing. At least they had some fun little slides for Kailani. And JUST as we were ready to leave, they turn on their two warm water hydro-slides, The Big Splash, 450 ft and New Zealand’s longest water slide, and the Kamikaze. We had a blast going down and made friends with another surfer/snowboarder Kiwi guy named Karin who invited us to go back to his place to hang out and have a proper shower. Unfortunately, out of the one day that we actually had plans, it happened to be that day.

We headed back to Solscape and met up with John and his girlfriend Lisa, both from Santa Cruz, for a sunset glass of wine on their cabin’s deck with a view. We had a great time chatting with them as they seem to me like a good representation of the Santa Cruz population. It really made me homesick to move back there and be a part of that community after all these years.

On Saturday/day three at Raglan, we originally planned to be heading out, but the weather and waves finally cleared up. So, of course we had to stay longer. After going to another café for breakfast for Eggs Benedict (so rare of me to eat!), we went to Wainui beach, a beach break. I let Sean go out first while Kailani and I collected all these cool little “swirl” shells that neither Sean nor I have ever seen before. After watching him struggle (and loose his Eggs Benedict) paddling out, I decided to pass. We ran into Kelly from Oregon again, who was also looking exhausted. After chatting for while, we took off. We were heading back to Solscape for another night, but ended up deciding to drive by Manu Bay to check it out. It turns out that the waves there were looking better. Manu Bay is known for it’s long left hand breaks and reminds me of the Hook in Santa Cruz, except it’s a left and there are some sketchy rocks to get out past instead of reef. Sean went out (to redeem himself) until it started dropping.

When we went back to Solscape, all the campervan spots were taken. We were also liking John and Lisa’s cabin, and they left that day. But unfortunately, someone else beat us to that too. Luckily, there was another cabin available, The Ivy House. It was actually the first house built on the property, what I nicknamed “The Hobbit House”, covered with ivy and ended up having just a nice of a view. Since the bedroom was in a loft on the second floor, you also had a view from there. It was pretty rustic, but we ended up loving it’s charm. It was also pretty nice to stretch out, be in a “real” bed and under a “real’ roof for the night.

On Sunday, we checked out and headed back to Manu Bay for one more session. The swell had dropped, but still there were some waves. We took turns paddling out and then hit the road back up north to Auckland.

Wanganui

Mount Taranaki


White Cliffs Organic Brewery

09.16.08: We drove north from Wellington for a few hours and finally decided to stop for the night in the town of Wanganui, along the west coast of New Zealand’s north island. After checking out this campground that had a shower and toilet for every campervan sight, we decided that a tiny grass “parking lot” behind a motel with little outhouses between each sight was a little too crowded for our taste. So instead, we went to a campground near Castlecliff beach and surf break. The beaches on the west coast are a lot more rugged, with black sand and a lot of driftwood, rather than the white sand and gorgeous blue waters of the east coast. Unfortunately, the waves at Castlecliff were also pretty blown out. So, we had dinner, an early night, checked the barely breaking waves the next morning and continued our drive up north.

Highway 3 meandered along the coast for a few hours but then cut inland when we got near the Taranaki District, aka Cape Egmont. This area looks pretty strange on the map. It sticks out from the island and has a huge mountain, Mount Taranaki, right in the middle of it. The mountain is high enough to get snow and is a ski area. Driving up to it reminded us of driving towards Mount Bachelor in Oregon. The strange thing about this mountain though, is that all around it is coastline. So, you can actually be at the beach with a snowy mountain as your backdrop. Although you can take Highway 45, aka The Surf Highway, along the coast around Mount Taranaki, we opted to drive right up north to the town of New Plymouth to check it out first.

In New Plymouth, we found some decent waves at Fitzroy beach. I was a little lazy. So, I let Sean go out first while I stayed in the camper and took a quick nap. Kailani played around with and inside the big box that we store the surfboard in. She keeps asking for a playhouse, but Sean thinks that we can get away with giving her a large cardboard box and cut window holes in it. ;-) Unfortunately, the tide started dropping and waves died right as Sean went out. So, by the time he finished, there was no use for me to go. We hit the road again.

Just as Kailani fell asleep for her afternoon nap and we were all ready to make some tracks, we come upon some signs that say “Brewery coming up in 1200 liters”, etc. I didn’t think we were going to stop until we came upon the actual brewery and noticed that it was an organic brewery. White Cliff brewery, in the middle of nowhere, was one of six organic breweries in all of New Zealand (and one of two on the North Island). We tasted a wonderful Mike’s Mild Ale that reminded me of a chocolaty porter and had a nice and refreshing conversation with the owner, originally a school teacher from South Africa, who really takes pride in her organic, non-filtered and non-pasteurized brew (fermented and non-pasteurized being especially good for digestive health). They also sold some organic Feijoa Sparkling Wine, a Plum Port and Pinot Noir from the South Island. Along with some organic macadamia nuts, we walked out with a little of everything. With all these bottles of organic wine and beer and only a week left in New Zealand, I’m sure we’ll be leaving with some of it. I also came upon a brochure there, advertising the web site, organicexplorer.com, listing organic food, eco-accommodation and ecotourism businesses. I haven’t been online to check it out, but am still a little bummed that I again didn’t know about this when we were planning our trip here. But what can you do?

Again, we got in the car thinking that we were now going to make tracks. But further down the road, Kailani woke up and we ended up stopping at the town of Mokau looking for something to eat. Seeing as it proclaims to be the whitebait capital, we went to The Whitebait Inn where I ordered a whitebait burger. Whitebait seems to be one of the country’s favorite foods and are little white fish, smaller than anchovies, that are caught in rivers and streams using a net. The burger was pretty good, as well was the fried oysters and scallops that Sean ordered….of course, accompanied with chips. Finally, we headed off and made tracks to Raglan.

Wellington

We didn't get any pictures of Wellington, but some of the cute ducks at our campground.

09.15.08: We left the Wairarapa Valley south towards Wellington, which sits on the far south of the North Island and surprisingly is New Zealand’s capital city (not Auckland). As we drove over a mountain range into the Wellington area, Sean mentioned how the hills reminded him of Highway 92 going over Half Moon Bay. We spent the night at a campground in the Lower Hutt Valley, and ventured into the city the next day. Just like Auckland sort of reminded me of Seattle or Portland, the city of Wellington, as I’ve heard before, appeared to look similar to San Francisco. It’s right near the water and the building architecture is similar, but without a homeless population, dirty streets, parking problems or zero-lot house lines.

The first thing we did was spot a New World market on the way into the city. I read that the city’s New Worlds tend to be larger than rural ones and we needed a few things. So, I was happy when there were things there that I hadn’t seen in other markets in a while. After, Kailani was getting hungry and I was in need of a Chinese food fix. So, we headed to a restaurant that our Rough Guide called the best Chinese place in the city. Unfortunately, it was closed. Having just fed the parking meter, we wandered down the street to find another place, and had a Yum Char (dim sum) lunch, which was decent. We had to wolf it all down fast as Kailani wasn’t having a great time there, even after being the one who was asking to eat.

After lunch, we wanted to take a ride on Wellington’s cable car, which takes you up a hill to their botanical gardens. Just as we were driving up to the cable car station, Kailani proceeded to fall asleep for her afternoon nap. Seeing as how fussy she was during lunch, we ended up passing on the cable car. It’s not like we haven’t ridden on one before anyway. Instead, we did a drive-by of the botanical gardens to at least see what it was about. Going up there, we got a good feel for what the city looked like. The downtown area had plenty of shopping opportunities, which I could have used a shopping fix too. But, we decided to take advantage of the nap time and hit the road from Wellington up north, this time on the west coast of the island. It seemed weird how familiar it looked when we were going out of Wellington as it looked kind of like the suburb of Daly City, south of San Francisco. But when we were finally out of the suburbs, it was back to looking like New Zealand. The freeway turned back into a two lane road that went in and out of small towns with no stop lights and green rolling hills with sheep and cows, more and more as you got further from the city.

Wairarapa Valley

Middleton Model Railway

Yummy Cymglyn Farmhouse cheese!

09.14.08: In the afternoon, we left Hawke’s Bay south towards Wellington, drove a few hours, and ended up at a town called Eketahuna for the night. The campground is fairly simple, but only ended up costing $12. Again, at least it sort of makes up for the extravagant lunches we’ve had the past couple days. Sean and Kailani were able to do some fishing in the stream near our site before it got dark, although didn’t end up with anything…again. We were still pretty full from lunch, so dinner was simple: salami, a gouda-type organic cheese, crackers, grapes and some Millton un-oaked Chardonnay. Considering that I thought we got a pretty substantial chunk of cheese that morning at the Farmer’s Market, it sure disappeared pretty fast.

Our stop in Eketahuna was not only because it was en route, but there was also a farm that makes organic cheese that I wanted to visit, called Cwmglyn (pronounced Coom-glin). Apparently, they were also famous for having The Middleton Model Railway. I tried calling to see if they would be open on a Monday morning, but my phone was out of batteries and kept dying. However, the night before, I asked the campground manager how to get there, and she pointed us 10 minutes back up the road north to Mangamaire. The town was not more than a couple buildings and there were no obvious signage towards the farm. After going around in circles, we finally found a local walking down the street to ask. It turns out that the farm was not north of the campground, but south. After all that, we finally found Cwmglyn, but the sign outside said it was only open on the weekends unless prior arrangements were made, and it was Monday. However, there was another sign that said the shop was open. We didn’t know what to do, but the owner finally came out to open the gate that leads to the property. So, we were in luck!

It turns out that the 7 acre farm consists of four milking cows, a steer and Biddie and her husband (didn’t catch his name) Fraser-Davies, originally from the UK. The model railway was HUGE and Biddie’s husband was kind enough to turn it on for Sean and Kailani. As well, they had a few toy railways for Kailani to play with. Meanwhile, Biddie fed me samples of her cheese, which were named by which cow’s milk it was made from. We had some of Emily’s cheese, one mixed with cumin and one with fennel, as well as a “Mystery” cheese, unknown because the label wore off during the aging process. I also had a nice chat with Biddie about her cows, the milking and cheese making process, how raw milk is illegal in New Zealand, how another local farmer gets past the law and how they are hoping that it will change soon, since raw cheese is allowed to be imported from Europe. It turns out that they farm with organic methods but can’t afford to pay the $2,000 to become certified, now the second time we’ve heard this. Biddie also had some awesome-looking glass and metal cloissone art pieces for sale in their shop. But apparently, all the affordable pieces are snatched up too quick. With more cheese in hand, we continued our drive down south.

We headed further south through the Wairarapa valley, also known for being a wine producing region. I thought we were going to just go through the town of Gladstone, but ended up having Sean stop the car when we passed by a sign for an organic winery, Urlar. Unfortunately, the winery didn’t even have a Cellar Door (wine tasting room) yet. They were only a year old and had just bottled their first vintage. The bottles weren’t even back from the bottling plant in Hawke’s Bay yet. Hopefully, it does well and I get a chance to come across this wine in the future.

Our next stop was for lunch, in the town of Martinborough, the region’s wine capital. We had sandwiches and a glass of wine each (good, but not great) at the Village Café, right in the center of town. After, we went next door to the Martinborough Wine Center. Although the town is supposed to have many Cellar Doors close to town and within walking distance of each other, we were feeling pressed for time with a little over a week left in the country. So, the Wine Center was our one-stop-shop to learn about the region’s wines. They were tasting a few wines from a local winery (Three “something”), that was not so impressive. But, they also sold all the other region’s wines. I asked if there were any organic wines, and Amanda, who worked there, pointed me to Vynfields, which I took a couple bottles of with me to try.

As Amanda inquired me about my interest in organic wines, I came to learn that she recently purchased 15 acres of farmland (for personal use) with her WINEMAKER partner and they were learning about biodynamic AND organic farming (after also traveling around the world for 8 months). It turns out that they are a member of WWOOF, an organization which matches travelers who are willing to work on organic farms, with the farms. I looked into doing this in Europe when we were originally planning our trip, but ended up putting it on hold “until Australia or New Zealand”. Some of the farms in Europe required more time than we had and/or weren’t child-friendly. Amanda mentioned that their farm animals certainly seemed to be child-friendly and they adopted 21 baby lamb who were either rejected by their mothers or their mother had died during the birthing process and they needed to be bottle-fed. Wouldn’t Kailani have been the perfect helper for that? I couldn’t sleep that night because I was kicking myself for missing the opportunity to stay on a farm that would have been perfect for us! If only we had more time...

Hawke’s Bay

A tamarillo at the farmer's market

Sean and Kailani at Te Mata Peak

No kangaroos in the vineyards like in Oz. This time, it's sheep!

9.13.08: We left Lake Taupo late morning to go a couple hours east back to Napier. We didn’t do a whole lot when we got into town. We were starving, so our first priority was to find somewhere to go for lunch. We ended up at a warehouse converted into a nice restaurant near the wharf just north of town in an area called Ahuriri where we splurged on oysters, a steamed shellfish “bucket” (really a bowl, but the biggest darn bowl I’ve ever seen) and some (unexpectedly fried) crab ravioli in a lobster bisque sauce. Sean loved his Mac’s Sassy Red beer, made in Wellington. And I had the local Brookfields Sauv, although not my favorite Sauv. Ever since we’ve been in New Zealand, Kailani has been asking for rice, sometimes with chicken. The only things they ever seem to have on the kids menu are things accompanied with chips. But luckily I asked, and they were able to serve her some fish with rice. She enjoyed the rice. We didn’t really taste the Grand Marnier in their Grand Marinier Crème Brulee, but it wasn’t half bad either.

Afterwards, we headed down the coast just south of Napier to a campground in Clifton. The greatest thing about it was that it was free AND right along the coast. We thought it would make up for the extravagant lunch we just had. We laid low that night, but Sean tried some fishing again the next morning, unfortunately, with no luck.

On Sunday morning, we left our campground and we headed to the Hastings Show Grounds for the Farmer’s Market. I was excited that we were finally somewhere that had a Farmer’s Market AND we were there during the weekend, when they usually take place. To top it off, we were also in a pretty good produce growing region. Organic produce seems to be very rare to find in NZ’s grocery stores (I think I’ve only gotten apples and bananas), and from asking at the last health food store I went to, it’s pretty much only sold at Farmer’s Markets. Still, I have to say that it was not that plentiful there. However, we did walk away with some good organic cheese, spelt bread, stir fry greens and a cup of coffee for Sean. As well, Kai got an organic yogurt smoothie, I got a fresh “liver cleanser” juice (apple, orange, beetroot and lemon), some stir fry venison meat to go with the greens and some “heat and eat” meatballs in marinara sauce. So, we were stocked up pretty good. As well, I finally found out what a tamarillo was. It’s a fruit that you scoop out of the skin with a spoon, similar to a kiwi. But, it’s red and tastes like a fruity tomato, which makes sense why it’s also called a tomato tree fruit.

After the Farmer’s Market, we headed back towards the coast, hitting Te Mata peak on the way, which I believe it’s about 300 meters high. It was a beautiful clear day, and from the lookout on the top, we had some stunning views of the bay. It had also just recently snowed on the peaks of the mountain range opposite the ocean, so there were some great views that way too. I have to admit that I was a little shaky walking around at the top, stepping around sheep poop. It looked like rolling hills from one side. But on the other side, it dropped off almost vertical. Hopefully, we got some good shots with the camera.

From Te Mata peak, we went back near our campground to Clear View Estates winery. We were hungry for lunch again and Kailani was getting pretty rambunctious in the car. We read that this winery had a restaurant and a children’s play area, so we were sold. As expected, it was right across the street from the coast. The restaurant was rustic but the food was gourmet quality. The wine wasn’t half bad either. So, what else can you ask for? We ordered our lunch and went to the tasting room to pick some wine to go with our food. Sean got their signature dish, made with all local ingredients, for a regional Hawke’s Bay competition. It was a “lamb rack” (as they call it) accompanied with some wilted greens and roasted shallots in a phyllo dough cup. And to go with it, he had a glass of the Pinot Noir. I had the steamed flounder and salmon. Both fish were wrapped together and almost looked like a scallop when it first came out (with the orange part attached, the way they serve scallops here). It was accompanied with a shrimp and spinach orzo. And to go with that, I had the “Unwooded” Chardonnay. Kai had chicken meatballs. Although it came with spiral pasta and marinara sauce, that’s all she would eat before heading back to the play area. And for dessert, we all split a warm apple cake with (a rum?) cream sauce, topped with ice cream, and a glass of dessert Chardonnay. We also walked out with a bottle of their Gewürztraminer and Pinot Noir. It was complete indulgence!

Although I was hoping to do more wine tasting in this area, none of the wineries stood out as a “must see”, and we are starting to feel pressed that our time here’s running out fast. But, I do feel satisfied that we were able to take advantage of what this area, known as the culinary capital of New Zealand, has to offer.

Lake Taupo

09.11.08: We left said good-bye to the chicken, cows and horses at The Waipatiki Beach Farm Park, went south to Napier, filled up on gas, and then headed an hour and a half west to Lake Taupo. As usual, more rolling hills with sheep and cows and the weather was rainy and windy.

We checked into the Lake Taupo Top 10 Holiday Park, mostly because we read that it was a recently-built, modern facility and it was that time of the month again. No, I’m not speaking about female stuff. We figured they would have some good internet facilities to take care of bill paying. Needless to say, we didn’t do anything that much exciting that day. I found a post office to send my “starving student” daughter some money, and spent most of the rest of the day paying bills and taking care of business (including booking our flight back to CA. So mark the date, October 7th!), while Sean and Kailani played in their playground, complete with another bouncing pillow. However, we did find a great little café in town called Fine Fettle that served organic-if-possible, wholesome food. I got a Caesar salad, Sean got the mussel chowder and Kailani got the wheat-free, dairy-free lasagna.

We liked that restaurant so much, that the next day, we were there again for breakfast. Sean got the eggs benedict and Kailani and I shared the buckwheat pancakes. As well, we also had a detox juice with a double shot of wheatgrass. Yum! This is the second time we’ve ordered pancakes for breakfast, and both times they’ve come with bacon and grilled bananas. So, I’m guessing those are the standard fixings for pancakes. All was good again. In fact, we also ended up with a frozen package of their takeaway mussel chowder, to eat later.

We moved down the road to another campsite, The Taupo DeBretts Spa Resort, where they had campground facilities, fresh hot mineral water pools, warm water playground and a spa. We spent most of the afternoon jumping around, trying the various pools. And, our adrenaline-junky daughter kept asking to go down their “Dragon Hydro-Slide” (luckily with warm water) again, and again, and again! It was at least 2-3 stories tall was fast enough to turn me sideways at least a couple times. Needless to say, Kailani tucked herself in and slept well that afternoon for her nap. And Sean and I took turns that evening getting some spa treatments. After that, so did we!

Waipatiki Beach

09.10.08: We left Gisborne down south towards Napier, where the turn off West to the center of the island would take us to Lake Taupo. We knew we wouldn’t make it all the way there, so we decided to spend the night at a campsite called the Waipatiki Beach Farm Park, which was 35 kilometers north of Napier. Driving down, we went past the usual green rolling hills with sheep and cows. (Can I mention enough how many green rolling hills with sheep and cows we’ve been past?!?) But, also went through a forest where there were some pretty steep grades and sharp switchbacks. In fact, the biggest one had a name, Devil’s Elbow.

As usual, it started to get slightly wet, and I was wondering if it was such a great idea to camp so far out of civilization if it was going to be like that. Luckily, it started to clear up right after we checked in. I thought this place would be fun because it was not only a farm, but right on the beach. Although there were cows, horses and chicken right on the property, we didn’t do much with them. But, the beach ended up being this hidden gem in a cove that only had two other houses there besides the campground. Unfortunately, the waves weren’t rideable. But, Sean tried his hand at fishing another time, unfortunately with no luck. Still, we were in awe as we watched the sun set on this beach with not another single soul around.

Gisborne

09.08.08: In the afternoon, we arrived in Gisborne from the East Cape after driving for quite a few hours. We figured that, if the weather was still windy and wet, at least we would be “in civilization” and there’d be stuff to do. We checked into a camp site right near the beach.

The waves were small but lining up, and it looked way mellower than the past two places where Sean got his butt kicked. So, I decided to go out. Out in the water, the waves were actually a bit mellower and harder to read than I expected, but it was still fun. When I got out, I talked to an older fellow who was out there with me, on a 12 foot board. He recommended I go to a local shop where they hire longboards, if that gives you any indication what the waves were like. But at least, the swell should still hold until the next day. And still, it was nice to get wet.

So the next day, it was Sean’s turn to go out. Kailani and I found a GREAT playground across the street from the beach, where they had this really fun “Rocktopus” ride. It was four tires, each hanging from a pole, off a pole in the middle. Not only did they swing around, but also back and forth in a seasaw motion. I would put her on it, run and push the tires around, and then jump onto one of them. Sorry, hard to explain, but she had a good time for quite a while.

After that, we went to a local eatery overlooking the beach for lunch. This was a place we had never been to before. While we were parking our car, Kailani instantly wanted to go into the restaurant and talked about playing with toys. When we walked in, she bee-lined it right to a corner of the restaurant, and behind this partition where staff could get stuff in storage, and found a couple baskets of toys. Don’t ask me how she sniffed them out! Very strange! Anyway, I had some pan fried tarahiki (white flaky fish) and Sean had some fried scallops. Both came with chips. Kailani had the kid’s fish and chips. I tell you, these Kiwis really like to eat everything with chips!

Later in the afternoon, we headed a few kilometers out of town to the Millton winery. I had been looking forward to going there as it is a biodynamic and certified organic winery. I seriously can’t remember the last Chardonnay I actually liked. So much to my surprise, they had one that was non-barrel fermented that was very pleasing to my palate. It was very light, both in color and taste. And, not too oaky or buttery like California ones tend to be. The other two that they were sampling that day were also really nice. So, we walked out of there with a couple of Chardonnays as well as a Chenin Blanc and a Malbec. To top off our culinary experience, we stopped by a local fish monger by the wharf, Real, where Sean picked out some mussels and more tarahiki.

After returning back to the camp, it was my turn to go into the water again. The swell was definitely dying by that point, but still I caught a few fun ones right before the sun set. We cooked a nice dinner in the camp’s kitchen that was previously deserted that morning. That night, a group of university students who were traveling around studying rivers took over the place. I think they might have been the same group that was camping with us on the East Cape, but it’s hard to tell since we went to bed so early that night. Kailani is sooo intrigued by people that age, she barely ate any dinner. I’m not sure if it’s because she has an older sister that age or what. Hard to tell, but she was entertained by watching them.

East Cape: Te Kaha and Te Araroa

One of several sceneries along our drive.

Kailani and Baby Bear, during our "East Cape Sunrise Pajama Party"

The sun rising on the East Cape

Early morning herding of cows along the road

09.06.08: From our campground in Ohope, we stopped at Whakatane to quickly stock-up at the local New World market before heading off to the East Cape. During the drive, it was a beautiful, blue sunny day. So far, the East Cape seems a lot like California about 50 years ago, with stunning coastline views and beautiful, blue ocean water, but without as much development or people. I took a TON of pictures because of the beautiful scenery, although it’s kind of hard in such a bouncy moving camper. As we drove along, we were hoping for some good surf spots. But the swell died off and nothing was really breaking. We stopped at a campground in Te Kaha. Again like in the northern part of the North Island, I think we were only camping there with one other person. That afternoon, we walked over to the beach and trolled around on the rocks along the point. Sean found a couple of small oysters and a sea urchin that we ate right there and casted his fishing line a couple times with no luck. Kailani picked-up a good some paua (abalone) shells to add to her collection. Unfortunately, we didn’t catch anything for dinner, so grilled tuna and cheese spelt bread sandwiches and Pitango minestrone soup it was.

The next morning, we continued our drive further towards the tip of the East Cape and stayed at a camp site in Araroa, which boasts the most easterly cinema screen in the world. (More on this below) From there, you could walk right out to the beach, granted you didn’t mind stepping around cow patties. Dairy is New Zealand’s biggest export! Along the way, we found the family that owns the campsite, fishing in the river for white bait, these tiny little fish that they fry up and the kids say they eat like chips. Boy, do Kiwi’s like their chips! They seem to serve them with everything, and apparently compare other things to them in order to get their kids to eat stuff. Anyway, we made it down to the beach, but the waves were a mess. So from there, we hopped back in the camper and drove down the street to Hick’s Bay. It was a more sheltered cove and looked more surfable, although I let Sean go first. He caught one wave and struggled to get back out after that. So, I passed. That night, we went to sleep as early as we possibly could, which wasn’t hard considering how secluded and peaceful it was on the East Cape.

We woke up at 4:30am the next morning so we could drove to lighthouse on the furthest point on the East Cape to see the sun rise. Basically, that point is the furthest east spot in New Zealand, and because of time zones, New Zealand is considered the furthest easterly country in the world. So, when we saw the sun rise, we were the first in the world to see it, and we might have been the only one’s that day. When we got to the end of the road where the lighthouse was, there was only one other guy there crashed out in the back seat of his car. It’s hard to say whether he was there to do the same thing or not. But at that point, you had to get out of your car to walk up several hundred steps to actually get to the lighthouse. Considering how cold, windy and slightly sprinkling it was, and the fact that we were still in our PJs, we opted to park off the side of the road and watch it from the window in the back of the camper, still in our PJs. Sean fixed himself a cup of coffee, and Kai and I played like we were having a pajama party. As far as the sun rise, the sun had to break through the clouds, but it was still fun to see.

From there, we took off to our next destination, which has to be the earliest we’ve taken off in the morning ever. Heading down the coast, we were still on the hunt for some good surf spots. I’m sure Sean was on a mission to redeem himself from the day before. Unfortunately, nothing looked that great. We ended up driving for several hours. Every time we came upon the next camp site, it was still sprinkling and windy. So, we figured we’d keep driving. Otherwise, we’d be stuck in the camper all day with crappy weather. We ended up driving all the way out of the East Cape towards the town of Gisborne. I guess that’s what we get for having so much time left in the day. Finally, towards the outskirts of Gisborne, there was a beach called Makarori, where the waves were lining up. Again, I let Sean jump out only to find him back before I was halfway done with my cup of tea. Apparently, there was still quite a current going on out there. Since we were so close to Gisborne, we decided we’d just go to a camp site there.

Whakatane and Ohope

09.04.08: We arrived in Whakatane early afternoon. The drive was easy and there was no rain. It was a mid-sized town and had a cute little downtown area. We went straight through it to Whakatane Heads, a surf break, to see what was going on. It was situated right at a jetty where the boats go out to sea. A swell had just hit that day and the waves were pretty huge, but not quite hitting at the right direction. There were a few guys going out, but neither of us were ready for something like that. I hate to sound like a fair-weather surfer, but what else can I say? We watched for a while and then headed to a local fish and chips shop for a seafood basket plus some paua (abalone) fritters. The later was not quite what I expected. But still, all was pretty good.

After lunch, we headed to a Top 10 campground a few kilometers down the road in the next town, Ohope. It was right along a large expanse of beach, which kind of reminded me of Ocean Beach in San Francisco. We parked right along it and it was nice to hear the sound of the ocean swell all night long.

The next morning, Kai insisted we go to the playground before we headed back to Whakatane. There was a health food shop downtown that I wanted to stop by to stock up on a few things. Then, we went back to Whakatane Heads. The swell went down a bit. But still, neither of us was up for going out. Instead, Sean decided to fish off the jetty while Kai and I trolled about the beach. No luck with the fish. But, it was fun to see Kai picked up a stick and act like Daddy, pretending to cast out her rod and reel the line back in. After, we went into town to a coffee shop to check up on the internet. Before heading back to the campground for the night, we made a pit stop at the Ohiwa Oyster Farm to pick up some dinner.

The night before, we noticed that the campground had some lovely-looking cabins with decks that faced right towards the beach. (FYI, there were also some awesome-looking ones at Pariki Beach as well.) So that night, knowing that we were on our way to the East Cape, where we heard it’s pretty remote and we’d be more-or-less roughing-it, we decided to see if we could get one. We got lucky. They had one more available, just for that night. The inside was just as nice as it looked from the outside and dinner on the deck was great. It was a slight disappointment that the oysters came in a punnet (plastic container) instead of on the half shell, but they were still good. The fried fish, squid ring and scallop were good too. Though, I do have to admit that the chips are really starting to get old on me… They not only come with fish, but with almost every other dish around here. That night, we thoroughly took advantage of the nice shower for what seemed like hours, I cut Kailani and my fringes (bangs) and we enjoyed stretching out for the night. Later that night, as we were watching what three channels that we received on the TV, I felt our building shake. First, I thought it was the neighbor in the unit next door, but it started to shake harder. That’s when we figured it was an earthquake. It wasn’t a big one considering what we’ve gone through in the past. If I had to guess, it was probably about a high 1 or low 2 on the Richter scale, but just enough to sit there for a couple seconds and wonder if all is OK. We figured we were surrounded by volcanic activity, so what can you expect. After that, we slept soundly for the night.

Staying in that cabin for the night ended up being a great way to wake up and celebrate our fifth year wedding anniversary. It’s hard to believe that we’ve been married for that long and the presence of Kailani makes it feel like she’s been around for much longer. But overall, it’s hard to believe that it’s been five years, and now we’re in New Zealand and we’ve been “on the road” for over six months now. Just like our wedding day, we’re still hanging out on a beach. Our cabin was just as nice as our room at Seascape, so I have no complaints, only appreciation.