Saturday is an extra day for us. As we've been finding of late, it dawned bright and sunny. All very laid back, thanks to Barry and Joyce. We do some laundry, I help Barry clean out Joyce's car of the dirt and sand from the visit to the beach. Just putter and relax. Lunch out at a quaint former post office in a nearby park. Everyone is enjoying the weather. We even take a few minutes to watch a fierce croquette tournament and manage to stay awake for the whole ten minutes we watch. Barry says that he believes the rules are that you must be over 90 to get into the croquette club. Yuk.
Evening and we go over to our day hosts, Eileen and Grahame, home for dinner. Lots of good talk, and an excellent meal. So the clock ticks onward and it's time to close up shop for the day.
Sunday, again bright and sunny if not all that warm, and we rouse, breakfast, and finalize packing. We load the car and take our leave from Joyce who couldn't join us. Barry takes us to the railroad depot. The scenic train pulls in, right on time, from Wellington. It is ultra-modern with large viewing windows, headsets and even power outlets. Our seats are at a small table. The other type of seating is pretty much standard train/airplane types.
Off we go, smoothly and very quietly. We watch Palmerston North disappear and the landscape of New Zealand unfold as we head toward Auckland, some eight hours away. Our cameras are busy, as every turn seems to reveal another painting-quality scene. Sheep dot the pastures, and of course, cattle. Even farm-raised deer show up now and again. We find that the time slides by easily. Down a couple of cars is the lounge car with meals, drinks, and snacks for purchase. Very nice lounge. Sort of reminds us of the lounges in the fine trains of days gone by - just much more modern. At the rear is the open viewing car. Lots of fun, albeit just a bit chilly. But you can easily move from side to side for that "best" picture.
Can I tell you what mountains or towns I was photographing? Duh. Most everything has a Maori name like Pakihiroa (I didn't make that up), and they don't stick in my brain. Very majestic mountains. Snow-clad peaks. Vast vistas of rolling green hills and forests. Many, many rivers and streams. It's sad, kind of, to find out that until you get north of Auckland, the fishing isn't all that good. Unless you like eel. Oh, well, they're pretty to look at.
Another four Friendship Force ladies are with us on the train. We just naturally gather as we come off the train. I guess two weeks of being together has stuck with us. The terminal is just off the waterfront in downtown Auckland. At this point, we say our farewells (most of us will gather again at the conference. One, a lady from Brazil is going home and is concerned about getting back out to the airport where her hotel for the night is located. Fortunately, there is a city shuttle bus that she can take to the airport, and then call her hotel for their shuttle. Joy and I repeatedly tell her how to make this happen - the bus stop is only a half block from the train terminal. She continues to try to muddle the process. Her English is not great, but very serviceable. Finally, we lead her to the bus itself and talk with the driver. If she will simply get on the bus, all will be fine. We can now go our own way. Good luck, Rosa.
Only a couple of blocks and we're at our Air BnB. A neat older downtown building with a creaky but excellent 70-year-old elevator. Ben, the owner, welcomes us. He's very nice. Just like Trevor at our first stay two weeks ago. We should be very comfortable. Tomorrow we scope out the conference site and all. Right now, just a bite to eat and relax, then sleep.
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