We had breakfast at the café below the hostel then called a cab to take us to the bus depot. It was the cabbie’s first day on the job and he didn’t know where the depot was. I knew the name of the road so he just drove down the road until we found the depot.
The bus depot was the same as any bus depot. The staff were taciturn, the patrons varied from old ladies to young students, and the waiting area was bare and unattractive. The bus was quite nice, though, with large windows and comfortable seats.
I slept for most of the trip. I woke up for lunch at the Big Apple road house. Mom had pumpkin soup and I had a meat pie. I fell asleep again as soon as we were back on the bus. I woke up when I felt the bus turning left and right rapidly. We were ascending Mt. Messenger. The mountain ridge was covered with palms and tropical foliage and reminded me strongly of the jungle areas of Malaysia.
New Plymouth was bigger than I expected. Bruce’s sister Joy met us at the bus depot and took us out to Stratford, a Shakespeare-themed town near New Plymouth. We watched the glockenspiel, a clock that plays scenes from Romeo and Juliet. From Stratford we drove to Joy and Brian’s farm, Freehaven, where they raise sheep and beef cows.
We had a great dinner of fresh lamb (slaughtered the day before), potatoes, peas, carrots, and so on. The conversation touched on environmental change, farm subsidies, world politics, and much more. Mom was on the first day of a cold and went off to bed at 9pm. The rest of us followed shortly afterwards.
Joy had put a heated blanket on the bed. I couldn’t figure out how to turn it off so it was on all night. That was fine – I was “snug as a bug in a rug” – and had a great sleep. I woke up to the sound of the cows crying. Brian had weaned the calves from the cows a few days before and they had been crying for their calves since then.
After breakfast Brian took us down to the shearing shed and sheared three sheep so we could see how it is done. The dog, Ted 7, had a blast rounding up the sheep and getting them into the run. In the shed Brian showed us the shears, then grabbed a sheep and showed us how he holds the sheep to keep it quiet and cuts the wool from the stomach, the head, the back, and the legs.
Ted 7 rounding up the sheep:
Brian showing us the shears:
Brian shearing a sheep:
Naked sheep:
After shearing, Brian drove us out into the fields in the “ute”or utility vehicle. The highlight, for me, was driving amongst the cows. They ran away from the ute at first, possibly because Ted 7 was in the ute and had separated them from their calves recently. When we got out of the ute the cows were bolder and came up close to us. They were beautiful. Some had horns and some didn’t. I was surprised to see them eat thistles but Brian explained that they ate everything.
Ted 7 in the ute:
Brian and Ted 7 overlooking the fields:
Joy and Brian and Ted 7:
Cows, cows, everywhere:
On the drive back to the farm house I started coughing. I had picked up Mom’s cold. We stuck around the house for the afternoon because Mom and I weren’t feeling well, and drove over to Christine and Peter’s place around 6pm. Christine and Peter have just built their house and the yard is still dirt, but you can tell that the yard is going to be beautiful when Christine gets finished with the landscaping.
Simone met us at the door, followed by Bruce, and we were busy catching up when Karen, Brad, and their four kids arrived. Karen is Christine and Peter’s oldest daughter. The kids made themselves at home, playing games on the television and milling around the kitchen. Peter put steak and sausages on the BBQ and when they were cooked Christine pulled out the rest of the feast: roast chicken, potatoes, pasta salad, green salad, pickled beets, bread, and more. The kids filled their plates first, then the adults.
After dinner Christine brought out a carrot/birthday cake and everyone sang Happy Birthday to me. Karen’s son Cameron blew out the candles for me (I didn’t want to spread my cold) and Christine brought out more desserts: pavlova, ice cream, and fruit torte. Everyone was given a bowl, into which they put a piece from every dessert. I wasn’t feeling great so I stuck with pavlova.
I went to bed early, around 8pm, because I was feeling so awful. I slept okay but woke up early with a severe cough. Mom woke soon afterwards with an equally bad cough. We dosed ourselves with Tylenol Flu and Benelyn cough syrup and felt good enough to go for a tour around New Plymouth with Christine.
Christine took us to Paritutu, a volcanic rock that juts up sharply from the coastline. You can hike up Paritutu but we didn’t because it was a bit windy and cold. From there Christine took us to the beach at Oakura. We took off our shoes and sandals and enjoyed the feeling of the sand in our toes. I enjoyed wading in the surf and looking out over the Tasman Sea.
Paritutu:
Smaller islands next to Paritutu:
Christine and Bruce wading in the Tasman Sea:
The next stop was a café in New Plymouth where we enjoyed a nice lunch. After lunch we strolled along the coastal walkway, then walked into town and meandered around the mall. I started to feel really bad at the mall so we headed back to the house and I collapsed into bed.
I slept from 3pm right around the clock until 7am this morning. I had a high fever that broke sometime around midnight. I felt good this morning, except for a headache. Christine gave me a couple of Panadol (sort of like Tylenol) which got rid of the headache. Now that I’ve had lunch I feel great.
Mom is feeling worse today. She has a wet cough and is short of breath. She had a coffee then went straight back to bed. She got up about an hour ago and is still struggling with a fever and a heavy cough, but says she feels better.
Peter has also been sick. He seems to have developed an inner ear imbalance. Whenever he moves he wants to vomit. Christine is quite concerned because Peter is rarely sick – he’s as “healthy as a shit-house rat”, as Dad used to say.
Bruce and Simone are off at the gym. When they get back we’ll go for a drive out into the countryside, maybe stopping in to see Bruce’s older brother Wayne. We might also drive a bit up Mt. Taranaki.
Bruce and Wayne:
The farm where Bruce grew up:
Mt. Taranaki:
Tomorrow Bruce and Simone will pick up a rental car, and we’ll drive with them down to Lower Hutt, just north of Wellington. There we’ll visit with Bruce’s aunt Rose and his nephew Regan.
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