It's Tuesday here.  OK, OK.  I goofed off and didn't get it done last night.  So you get two today.

First, yesterday the 29th here.  A pretty laid
back day.  In the morning, we gathered at the FF clubhouse (which they share with a dog training organization) for some special entertainment.  A group of Maori singers performed for us.  Lots of songs with some beautiful harmony.  And a large and imposing man who did all those Maori grunts, shouts, and the "sticking out of the tongue" thing.  We all loved it.  Then they joined the group for mid-morning tea. Or coffee.  And cookies and cakes.  Don't they realize just it is to resist that stuff?  I'll have to buy two seats to get back home at this rate.  But it was fun, and we had some very good conversations with the Maori group.  And these folks were the real deal; not just some people pretending to be Maoris.









We broke up and went our separate ways.  Sue took us to a lovely city park which has a lake and a Winter Garden.  Just the place for early spring.  The sun was out today, but it's still pretty breezy and chilly.  Had lunch at a cafe on the grounds and then spent some time in the winter garden.  Just like being in the tropics, away from the chilling breeze.  And ever so colorful!

Next, we head toward the coast and the area where Sue grew up.  We stop to visit her friend Thelma, who lives in a 120-year-old house.  It looks like a small cottage from the front, but we find that it stretches way back; a wide central hallway with rooms to either
side.  Thelma, as it turns out, is an avid gardener.  She even has an large avocado tree, grown from a seed, which produces lots of avocados.  We'd been told that such a tree wouldn't produce fruit.  Seems they were wrong.  We found that we really liked her chickens and doves.  But we liked them best at her house.

Next day.  Today.  We gather at the "clubhouse" and proceed to the Taranaki area.  We make a stop at a cute little historic village.  Not exactly a good presentation, as things were somewhat shoe-horned in.  But of interest, nonetheless.  Lunch at Halbard Gardens - most of the time was spent eating or listening to our driver, FF member, and guide Laurie explain the gardens and the Taranaki area.  Lots of rhododendrons, azaleas and such.  Then on our way to the mountain itself.  At the base visitors center, we have a great view of the mountain.  Reminds us a bit of:  Mt Rainier, or Mt. Fuji.

Then we take a short and damp trek to a vantage point to see a beautiful waterfall, Dawson Falls. Although it's a bright sunny day, the ground and plants are wet from the spray of the falls.  Very thick foliage.  Reminds David of the Olympic rain forest.






On the way home, we stop at a "Possum and Merino" shop.  Yes, possums.  But the New Zealand possums are not nearly as ugly as ours in the U.S.  They hire people to hunt and trap the little beasties, which are too numerous in NZ.  Then they tan the skins to make a very light and supple leather.  The fur is combined with merino wool to make a very soft fabric.  Yep, Joy found just the right item.  Very pretty.  Fortunately, she didn't buy the wierd Davy Crockett hat:

Then we wound our way home through beautiful views of farmland, sheep, lots of sheep, cows, lots of cows, and distant views of the ocean here and there.