The Great Pegasus and Beautiful Geraldine...

The drive from Picton, the drop off point on the south island, to Dunedin, which is much of the way down the east coast of the south island, is about 10 hours.  We planned it so that we could eat a late lunch at one of our favorite restaurants (in the whole world).  We realize that is a large statement to make, however the experience at Pegasus Bay Winery delivers- every time.  Granted, we have only been there twice now, yet both times the meals were probably among the best meals we've ever had.  The drive to Pegasus took a little longer than we expected and being they close at 4p, we scooted in the door about quarter till 4p and were hesitant to see their expressions as we were 45 minutes late for our reservation.  Fortunately (this would have rarely happened in the states) they welcomed us as though it was their first hour of business (for the day) rather than the last, which made us feel much better!  Pegusus is a sustainable business model all the way around, from their Biodynamic vineyard to their seasonal menu.  All we can say is they know what they are doing in the most unpretentious, enjoyable way.  

A bit on the dark side, the table at Pegasus consists of a wine barrel top, which is understated, practical, and resourceful!

 Oh, two very happy people!

The grilled calamari salad was at its freshest and fantastic...

Zeph's salmon was perfectly seared with fresh green olives on top and some equally fresh olive oil...

A light "salad" consisting fresh figs (picked from their grounds), on top authentic water buffalo yogurt, with honey, and gorgonzola...good enough to be dessert!

Dessert consisted of an extremely dark molten chocolate cake of sorts, rhubarb, and fresh vanilla bean ice cream...

Now you will understand why this truly is one of our favorite (special treat) spots!  Needless to say we did a better job at not eating too much as this can ruin the entire experience.  And, we continue to be inspired by passionate people like those who run Pegasus.

 They had to let us out of Pegasus...

After our late lunch, or early dinner, we drove a couple more hours closer to Dunedin and stopped at another great spot we had visited once before, Geraldine.  Geraldine is a sweet spot, and in our eyes fully self-sufficient being that she has her own organic yogurt company, cheese factory, chocolate factory, jam factories, organic produce stands and then some!  Geraldine is a combination of brilliantly green rolling farmland, scattered with orchards, and large foothills leading into the Southern Alps.  It is very beautiful scenery!  We were fortunate to visit their farmer's market in the morning before finishing our drive and it was a special treat in itself.  There were about 15-20 vendors, all local and mostly organic, with brilliant creations such as a hazelnut and honey spread (the Kiwi version of Nutella, yet even better).  Pretty neat as well because both hazelnuts and honey are "grown" in New Zealand and with local ingredients like that it is easy to understand the inspiration locals have to create their own amazing creations!  We felt honored to experience this perfect little market and it was a perfect send off to continue our drive south to Dunedin.   

 A great image or shadow of us in our lovely Isuzu Bighorn, named Queen Sally (it was Sally then we adjusted it to Queen Sally after the infamous Queen Sally Diamond Deli in lovely Wellington)...

The Welly Zoo and Another Ferry Ride...

First, our sincere apologies for the delay in adding to our blog.  (Now the excuse) We have had no internet where we are staying in Dunedin, which means $5/hour internet use in the city!  Fortunately, our new friends Kashi and Derek have an office downtown where they have let us "poach" their internet, so we are beginning to catch up!  Well, I am catching up for both of us on this end while Z is catching up our bank account at his new job on the other end...


We were scheduled to leave Wellington for Dunedin on Tuesday however that changed when Graeme's airline was canceled due to the now famous volcano.  We could not leave Wellington without saying "so long" to him and hearing about his adventures in Cambodia, so we rescheduled our ferry trip for Friday morning (take note this is the third ferry trip and with one more we will be open to any donations as the lovely ferry is not cheap and air travel would be less expensive if we didn't have our vehicle and bicycles).  That said, in the bonus days staying in Wellington we got to visit the Welly Zoo, which was awesome.

 A perplexed Meerkat looks like a cross between a badger and a squirrel...

 As Zeph was taking this picture, there was a pair "getting busy" just to the left...use your imagination!

 The giraffes were enjoying lunch and fortunately the walkway was taller than they were so we could get a unique view of their gracefulness! 

 The Senegal tiger gave us a great show of tricks before they got quite a hefty snack, consisting of lots and lots of...meat!

 The Sun Bears were creative in enjoying their coconut snacks as they are able to eat with all fours- can you imagine?

I escaped the zoo!  (so did Z)

  We also got to make Graeme a welcome home meal consisting of local mussels, which was amazing.  

The mussels was from Al Brown's new cookbook- Go Fish and they were heavenly...Fortunately, Zeph has impressive patience when it comes to cleaning mussels!  The tomato sauce had garlic, port, and red wine and the bread was fresh sourdough.  Heaven on a plate!

As well as eating some of the award winning Kohu Road vanilla bean ice cream with some local fig jam on top.  (No pictures of this as it wasn't around long enough for a camera to be involved!) Now, onto that ferry...

A Good Day...and Love the Beast

A beautiful native specimen in the Nga Manu Nature Reserve

We took a drive up to Waikanae, which is about an  hour north of Wellington, on Tuesday to visit the Nga Manu Nature Reserve.  It is a special place for many reasons.  Aside from being a great (natural) display of New Zealand's beautiful flora and fauna, it is where Ivan & Irene's (Zeph's Grandparents) memorial benches sit (can't think of many better ways to be remembered).  There are two benches, each within close proximity of each other.  

 Zeph on Irene's bench and I am sitting on Ivan's bench in the distance...

 Happy nature reservists- not to be confused with Naturists!

Each time we go and sit on the benches we find great joy in the space they provide.  Whether it's reflecting on all we have to be grateful for (lots) or sitting and watching the silly ducks decide how to plot their next attack on us, there is no other way to say than it is just a really nice place to sit.  

 The ducks act quite innocent yet they move quick when on a mission!

 In memory of Irene (Zeph's Grandmother)

In memory of Ivan (Zeph's Grandfather) 

Before our sit, we took a stroll through the reserve's bush walk, where they have native plants and trees labeled with explanations and stories for those of us not familiar with what is native here.  There are several big ponds where ducks and geese practice their take-off and landing strategies while the swans preoccupy themselves with themselves.  

 Sarah thoroughly enjoying the nature walk (and the hat her mum knitted her)!

Zeph is especially happy when camera is in hand!

Zeph is obviously quicker than I am in the camera department!

Yesterday we woke to some good winds here in Wellington.  This time, not only did it sound like the porch furniture was moving across the porch, it might have been blowing an occasional house off its slab!  Needless to say, when it is this windy and we want to go mountain biking, we drive over to what is now our friendly stand-by, the Makara Peak Mountain Bike Park.  This day was one of those days where no matter what you do (or how much coffee you drink- Zeph), you just don't feel awake or altogether, together!  Fortunately, while on vacation, we can just enjoy that space and not have to rush getting out of it.  So we left on our ride up to the peak.  The single track winds, or as Kiwis call it "undulates" up to the top of the peak which is about 1,500 feet above sea level, through beautiful canopies of ferns.  To make matters even more enjoyable, it had just rained the night before so the trail had perfect traction with the rocks being just a bit on the slippery side.  Needless to say, while this ride was just a little over an hour in length, it was perfect.  It was so fun winding our way up the trail, feeling the warm sun on our backs, it almost felt like we were levitating up the mountain.  Pure peaceful bliss.  And, then we started the downhill!  It was one of the best, flowing (flowy is the mountain bike term that we have come to love) single tracks with whoops and berms tossing us all around (in a good way) all the way down off the mountain.  One of those trails you never want to end and one of those feelings you never want to forget.  We got to the bottom, exhilarated and at peace, all at the same time, with very big smiles on our faces.  A good day indeed!

 Perfectly happy!

On a side note, we actually rented a movie the other day that is worthy of watching.  It is a documentary by Eric Bana (the Australian actor most women instantly remember).  It is his story about his passion for cars, or a car in particular, a 1970-ish Ford Falcon  XB, that he has owned for over 20 years, rebuilt 3 times (about to be 4) and raced in the Targa/Tasmania multi day road rally twice now.  The story isn't so much about him, but the relationship with the car through all these years and how it has been the fabric interwoven within his relationships with his best friends and family.  It might not sound like the most exciting of stories, but it is a story well told with some beautiful pictures of Tasmania, that most don't see every day.  So there it is, the shout out to Love the Beast.  (Those of us who have or continue to have relationships with inanimate objects can especially relate- Sarah).  

We are here in Wellington for a few more days before we head across on the InterIslander ferry once again (continuing to involuntarily contribute to the financial success of the ferry being this is our third trip in a little over a month) on Tuesday.  From there we will drive the 900km, 10 hour drive down to Dunedin where we will get to unpack our bags (YAY!) and get into a little bit more normal life, well, enjoying life.  In the meantime we get to check out the Wellington Farmer's Market on Sunday and Cafe Ora, a 100% gluten-free cafe with rave reviews, for a special treat Sunday brunch, as well as Graeme's return from Cambodia!  Much to look forward to! 

 She was not camera shy in the least!

Southern Hemisphere wonders...

 NZ Flax

Alright, we are going to get some things out in the open about New Zealand and the southern hemisphere that we are still getting used to...

1.  There are A LOT of stars and constellations down here that those in the northern hemisphere never get to see and vice a versa...including a recent viewing many saw of the Aurora Australis on the south island...

2.  Christmas time is in the middle of summer.

3.  The moon's waxing and waning sides are opposite the northern hemisphere, so the moon is waxing when lighted on the left side and waning when lighted on the right.

4.  Dudes where shorts and short shorts here and it is normal- it is the influence of Rugby, the manly sport.

5.  There are roundabouts instead of stop signs, promoting fuel efficiency, safety, and general flow of traffic.

6.  People drive on the left side of the road.

7.  The toilets really swirl the opposite direction as the northern hemisphere (and supposedly on the equator, the water goes straight down)!

8.  The sun's strength is a bit stronger down here, not so much because the hole in the atmosphere is closer, but because there are less pollutants in the air, making a thinner filter for the sunshine.

9.  There really is no nuclear power in New Zealand, most the power comes from wind, geothermal, and hydroelectric.

10. (along those same lines) No nuclear powered boats are allowed into New Zealand's harbor (the last one was in the early '80's and we just met the guy who drove his 14' boat into the US navy ship and later fined $100).

11.  There are no capital gains taxes in New Zealand.

12.  There are California Redwoods, Sequoias, and California Poppies in New Zealand.

13.  The second favorite flavor of ice cream among Kiwis is Hokey Pokey- a carmel, crunchy, confection made from Golden Syrup and we assure you, is quite impossible to pass up!

14.  The airplane ride from LAX to Auckland airport is about 12 hours- not bad! (and it's the best airplane food you will ever have if you fly Air New Zealand).

15.  The seasons are opposite on the northern hemisphere, so always about six month's difference in season.

16.  Kiwis are into their coffee!  And, for good reason- most of it is organic, fair trade, and with a roasting date to inform the consumer of how long has passed since it has been roasted.  Brilliant!

17.  Kiwis, while into their coffee, are also very into their tea, probably of English influence.

18.  New Zealand is overcoming its English influence when it comes to food (we'll forgive them), with cafes all over that now focus on fresh, light, seasonal cuisine (less meat pies, etc.)

19.  There really are a lot of sheep (they don't tell you there are equal amounts of rabbits and furry possums)!

20.  Meat is naturally free range here as well as the eggs, making them highly nutritious and, hold onto your horses, good for you!

 The Seatoun Tunnel...leads to the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow!

Windy Wellington?

Ask anyone who doesn't live in Wellington and they might tell you Wellington is known for its wind.  Ask anyone who lives in Wellington and they will speak only of its perfect weather.  Funny, the wind turbines never seem to be moving...So, this morning, we woke to a windy, stormy morning and as outdoor furniture was being moved across the porch by the force of the winds, we decided to go for a walk instead (bike riding in wind does not equal fun).  We bundled up in warm clothing (in which we really promptly overheated in about two block's time as the sun came out and we were shedding clothes faster than the wind was blowing)!

 We have a theory that the wind turbines around here might have the brakes on...

WETA is an impressive collaboration of a whole lot of creative, happy people doing what they love- and making great movies in the process!

We walked over to the neighboring area of Miramar, and went to the WETA Cave.  Well, first we went to a cafe Graeme had taken us to a couple weeks back that we couldn't seem to get out of our minds called Cafe Polo.  It supposedly has one of the top chefs in Wellington and the meals that come out of the wondrous neighborhood cafe do not lie!  Fresh, delicious, and affordable in price, it has quickly become a favorite. 

 Cafe Polo is a delicious neighborhood cafe in Miramar that delivers on all accounts.  Well, we don't know if they actually deliver, but you get the point! A worthy, enjoyable spot!

WETA is an inspiring story about a group of folks, passionate about the creative side of film, got together in the early 90's and created a production facility known for employing the talent of Peter Jackson and creating films such as Lord of the Rings, Avatar, X Men, The Lovely Bones, and about 100 more.  The museum was free, which was awesome, and included a 20 minute video about the facility and the people behind it.  We really had no idea how big WETA was and the technological advances they are responsible for.  One example is that WETA has more computing power than NASA.  They have their own complete armory, where they make all the authentic armory for the movies.  An example of how much time a movie such as Avatar takes just for the digital component alone is impressive.  It took 1,000 working hours to make 1 second of animation for Avatar, which was 3 hours long, which equated to over 1,500 digital animators working on that one movie alone.  It is the most expensive movie ever made, at $450M however no worries for James Cameron as it has brought in over $4.5B in the first six months of being out in movie theatres.

We walked back to Seatoun, meandering through the neighborhoods and over Worser Bay, dropping down to Seatoun from the surrounding hills and enjoying the weather a lot more than if we were on our bikes. We sat at the end of a little pier, still amazed by the clarity of the water and the ability to see the bottom! We even saw a jelly fish meandering under the pier in the beautiful aquamarine water.

View of Seatoun from Worser Bay

Final stop...Rotorua!

 The Whakarewarewa Forest, Rotorua- Quite possibly mountain bike heaven!

We have been excited to visit Rotorua again ever since we visited last time, over a year and a half ago.  We were also really excited to visit our friends Marcello and Heide as well as riding the amazingly, epic mountain bike trails in Rotorua.  On the drive in to Rotorua, we were reminded of its amazing geothermal activity when driving through the forest, there are whisps of steam rising from the hot spots.

 Lively geothermal activity in Rotorua...

 Never a dull moment with boiling water and mud everywhere!

Without question, Rotorua hosts some of the best mountain bike trails in the world which really equals mountain bike heaven otherwise known as the Whakarewarewa Forest.  The forest is an an interesting story in itself as it has been used since 1901 as an experiment to test different native and exotic flora, while research was conducted to see which trees and plants grew the best for commercial planting.  The 10,000 acres of trails have enough variety to keep just about everyone happy.  Well, everyone on two wheels at least! They have done a good job of separating the trails into each specific purpose, such as trails for walkers, trails for horses, and then the mountain bike trails.  We were really excited to be able to stay here for a week with Marcello and Heide as well as knowing they would be taking us out in their own backyard for some epic rides.  More impressively, Marcello and Heide have impressive rides for their mountain bikes.  Both ride fully rigid, single speed bikes with 29 inch wheels.  This means while we have close to 30 gears to ride over rough, undulating terrain, they have...one.  While we have lovely suspension to soak up any error or roughness of terrain, they have...none!  Kind of makes us feel a little silly every time we shift into an easier gear!

 This is not us riding, but a sample of inside the forest and the trails it offered...Notice the sign labeling this trail, just one of many as there are signs and maps everywhere!

Fortunately during the week, Marcello had a day off and took us on a scenic ride.  We rode the perimeter of the forest before dropping behind the mountain onto Green Lake.  Green Lake was unique in its presence.  It is considered a sacred lake and void of all human contact.  When we came into view of the lake, there was no denying its presence.  It was a dark lake and as the sunshine from bright sun hit the lake, it was not enlightened in any way.  You know how with most lakes on a warm, sunny day, a lake pulls you into for a refreshing swim?  No such feeling with this lake, in fact we were all just fine riding around it as fast as we could!  Just on the other side of Green Lake was Blue Lake, which was all that Green Lake wasn't.  It was warm and sunny, with clear water and people swimming in it enjoying the last of summer.  We sat at Blue Lake and had a picnic lunch before riding around it and dropping back into the trails of The Forest.

A couple days later, we were again fortunate as both Marcello and Heide had the day off because it was Good Friday, a nationally recognized holiday in New Zealand.  Heide made lunches and we packed up and drove about an hour's drive to Lake Taupo for a great ride.  Even better, we stopped at one of their favorite cafes in Lake Taupo, BodyFuel, which was full of delicious-ness with tons of gluten free delights and great coffee to fuel us (not Sarah, she's still holding out on becoming a coffee addict and some of us are a bit wary to see how much energy she might have under the influence) for the ride ahead.  The trail was out and back through some of the funnest, flowing singletrack we've ridden.  In other words, impossible to wipe the grin off the face during the ride!

 Lake Taupo is not a sight for sore eyes! The rock formations are stunning! 

We stopped and enjoyed a picnic midway before turning around and riding back the way we came, which was even more enjoyable the second time around!  At the finish spot, where we parked the cars on Acacia Bay of Lake Taupo, we had a second picnic (yay!) after swimming in the lake to rinse and cool off.

 Acacia bay is a little slice of heaven, especially on a sunny day!

The lake was the perfect temperature- a bit cool initially, then once you're in, you barely notice it.  The water was clear/clean enough to see the bottom and it was a beautiful aquamarine color.  Quite a perfect ending to a perfect day.  But, it got even better!  On our way home they took us to their favorite hot springs spot, where we indulged in some beautiful, natural hot springs.  Sitting there in the hot springs, overlooking green rolling hills, it really couldn't have gotten any better. 

The natural surroundings at Waikite Hot Springs made for a perfect ending of a perfect day!

We have now made our way from Rotorua back to Wellington, where we will be house-sitting for Zeph's Godfather, Graeme, while he is on holiday in Cambodia for a couple weeks.  It is giving us a good chance to ease into a little bit more normal lifestyle from our vacationing ways!  We are getting caught up with emails and other bits of reality while we finally have access to phones and unlimited internet again- Yay!  We will be heading south to Dunedin around the 20th of April as Zeph accepted a job offer to work with R&R Sports, which are Patogonia-type outdoor stores here in New Zealand.  Exciting times!

Blenheim and the big boat ride...

WARNING: Food pictures included in this post (more than usual) and you may become hungry regardless of when you ate last.  

After leaving Nelson and making our way to the ferry via Blenheim, we always recall the spots Graeme recommends for us to visit or eat or sit.  Fortunately, or unfortunately, depending on how you want to look at it, we rolled into Blenheim hungry, hard to imagine, but true.  Again, fortunately, we frequently reflect, albeit it was already an entire month ago, that we completed the AlpineEpic mountain bike stage race, burning close to 18,000 calories in a few days' time.  Thank GOD (my pants still fit).  Blenheim is located in the northeast part of the south island, also known as Marlborough country, also known for its famous (and delicious) wines.  Something else to note here in New Zealand they have figured something (else) out quite well- Most of their wineries have restaurants or cafes, enabling one to wine pair instead of just wine taste, or grab a snack, or in our case have a perfect picnic in the middle of the afternoon.  This meal at Wairu River Winery was one of our favorites- it was fresh, simple, seasonal, without being too filling.  Zeph ordered a Sticky Pork Salad that had some Asian influence and I ordered a Corn Fritter Salad that was topped with one of the best tomato sauces I had ever had and, yes, more of New Zealand's very best (crisp) bacon.  If that wasn't enough we had a coconut pavlova with passionate fruit/lemon curd with fresh berries...it was a wonderful (and surprisingly light) meal.

An amazing sticky pork thai salad..

 And the pavlova before it "blew" away...not really...we ate it all and it was brilliantly light...

California poppies are still California poppies, even in New Zealand!

After a night in Blenheim we headed to Picton and boarded the ferry for the north island to head toward our last destination (of the trip) in Rotorua.  We are excited to get to visit Graeme in Wellington again and probably eat some more amazing meals.

 There was a brief deluge while boarding the ferry in Picton

 The size of the ferry is still quite impressive to us...