As Kiwi As ..

I have been in New Zealand for 3 weeks now and although we "speak" the same language I feel, at times, that I need a translator!  Yesterday I got a fringe cut .. bang trim.  Every morning we load the boot .. trunk.  Ocassionally we go to a spa or hot springs pool where we wear our togs .. swim suits. And the best thing yet is that they say "as cool as" .. it's a simile but they don't finish it. Like this candy bar below- "As kiwi as .."  Everytime I hear someone end the sentence with "as" all it takes everything within my power not to laugh.

The people we have met so far are great. Kiwis are known for their hospitality.  We are currently in the South Island but I will update you all about our travels of the North Island in the past few weeks.

Tauranga is our home base and it is where my mom's working kidney's pair lives.  The reason I brought my mom to New Zealand was to visit our family friend Fridolin Kathan who donated one of his kidneys to my mom last September. The Kathans are a great family and they have been taking great care of us.

Tauranga has a populations of 111,000 and it continues to grow. The area, like the country of New Zealand, is on old volcanic rock.  In the harbor is Mount Maunganui which you can see from most of the city center and the white beaches.  The Kaimai mountain range is on the western side of the city.

Tauranga City

 Mount Maunganui

 Mount Maunganui Beach

 Old Town - buildings relocated from around the area.

Wonderful walking path around swamp near the Kathan's house where we take our daily walks.

A few days after we arrived we went to Otorohanga where Maureen, Fridolin's wife, grew up, for her high school reunion. While there we went to a Kiwi house and saw a real live Kiwi bird, they are nocturnal birds so the houses keep their rooms dark so visitors can see them during the day.  Many kiwi bird species are endangered species. Their existence is being threatened by the introduction of small mammals such as possum, ferrets, and mice by the early European settlers of New Zealand. More kiwi info

 Many of the streets of the coast towns are lined by cherry trees but because it does not freeze in winter there are no fruits.

 An interesting house in Otorohanga.

 A taste of tree tomatoes for the Americans.

The Kiwis are proud of their kiwi birds.

We celebrated Fridolin's birthday at his daughter Olivia's flat in Whitianga at the end of September. Whitianga is a popular beach town on the Coromandel Peninsula. 

Whitianga 

Symmond's beach 

We took a train ride on the Driving Creek Railway. It is New Zealand's only narrow-gauge mountain railway. The railway was built by a local artist in Coromandel in order to bring the clay in from the mountain side to his art studio.  He enjoyed building the railway so much that he continued until he reached the end of his property.  The bank encouraged him in the '90s to start taking passengers because they wanted him to start paying them back!

 Driving Creek Railway

 Kuotouna Beach

 We got a Tip Top Icecream and walked along the beach.

Coromandel is incredibly beautiful area. We enjoyed everyday of our stay, the weather was beautiful and the people were fantastic!

Honolulu and Pearl Harbor

Pearl Harbor was incredibly moving. We took a bus tour, which I highly recommend. Our bus driver was very knowledgeable and she had this love for history that was contagious!

I truly believe every American should go to the U.S.S. Arizona Memorial, to remind them off the horrible things that come from war and the precious lives that are lost.

Always a good time to thank the service men and women.

The sunsets in Waikiki were incredible!

No trip to the coast is complete without a fishing trip, so we headed to the docks. Kayla and I were stoked!

 Although the fishing trip was not very successful for Kayla nor I but we had lot of fun and the deck hand grilled up the other patrons fishes to share ... Yum!

Kona coffee and new friends

We were in Kona for 3 days. We stayed in the bottom floor of a local family's home, that was listed on airbnb. It was nice to hear the giggles and pitter-patter every morning. LK's mother called her a "Hawaiian chili pepper" she is such a spunky little girl. She has an incredible personality. She became great friends with my cousin Kayla and I. She woke us up one morning with a "See you later alligator! In a while crocodile!" We had an entire conversation with her through the bedroom window. We even painted our finger nails so they matched.

The first morning we drove a couple hours down to Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park. It was a gorgeous drive south along the coastline. 

We stopped at Punalu'u Black Sands Beach.

Although many of the Hawaiian islands are eroding the volcanoes of the Big Island of Hawai'i add 4 inches per year to the coast. There was an eruption in 2008 that forced the park service to close off a large amount of the road so we were unable to drive to the coast and active volcanoes.

We walked through the Hawaiian rain forest that had been spared from the many eruptions of the volcanoes. There we found the Lava Tunnel. The Hawaiians used to be a burial site for their loved ones.

Kayla and I had to make it to the beach, our travels had been full of beautiful beach views but no actual beach day, imagine that! 

That night we went to a great luau and has a fabulous time. There was the funniest guy there putting on a presentation about how to open a coconut. The performers were great and of course gorgeous. ;)

The next day we had a marvelous breakfast with an incredible view.  We had some entertainment from a cute gecko. 

Nothing like a cappuccino to get the day stared off right!

Then we hope on a plane to head to Honolulu. Whoohoo!