New Zealand - North Island

After just 5 days in New Zealand, I'm in love with the countryside and the people. We flew into Auckland, rented a car, and started the long drive to Rotorua. Surprisingly, both of us had managed to sleep on the flight from LAX, so we were all ready to go. Lucky for me, Garrett doesn't mind driving on the left side of the road, but I am white knuckled on some of the narrower roads through the mountains.

In Rotorua, we visited Whakarewarewa, a living thermal village and home to the Maori people of Tuhourangi Ngati Wahaio. Very interesting tour of the village and the beautiful thermal pools. We next took a drive to Huka Falls on our way to Taupo.

















Then on to Taupo for the night. Great dinner at a place called VineEatery, which is exactly what it sounds like -- a wine store and restaurant specializing in small plates. We had our first bottle of New Zealand wine there, a nice Pinot Noir from the Central Otago region. And we got our first taste of how friendly New Zealanders are! Next morning, a walk along beautiful Lake Taupo before heading to our next destination in Napier.

The drive was beautiful despite rain on and off, and we managed to get to Napier in plenty of time for a wine tour of the Hawkes Bay region that I had pre-booked. Our guide, Hamish, was a lot of fun. Four wineries, plus a drive up Te Mata Peak for gorgeous views of the Hawke's Bay region. Talk about white knuckles!


We started Day 3 watching the sun rise over the Pacific Ocean from the balcony of our motel room. Then we rented a couple of bikes and road a trail along the bay -- perfect weather and an easy beautiful ride of about 25 km.



Walked around Napier, which claims to be the Art Deco Capital of the world. After a devastating earthquake in 1931, the whole town was rebuilt in the Art Deco style. For dinner, we decided to go somewhere in walking distance so we could drink wine and not have to drive. Hamish had recommended a restaurant called Pacifica, which only a couple of blocks from our motel. The food was amazing. Not sure you can read this image of the menu, but believe me, it was memorable.