Marie-Elisabeth on porch of Anderson Cottage on Harding Farm near Ngaruawahia, New Zealand |
Our hosts - Pam and Malcolm Harding Owners of the Farm |
Arriving at Auckland International after 2 long flights was welcome relief! Hawaiian Airlines was excellent – on time, even early, from San Diego to Honolulu and Auckland – almost 15 hours in the air. We landed at 10:20pm – earlier than scheduled and then waited for the plane to be fumigated as we sat there – all overhead bins were opened and the flight attendants walked up and down the aisles with spray cans. The Kiwis are very careful about their agriculture – the landing form was extensive with many questions about what was in your luggage. The video before landing put the fear of God in you – declare any food item, throw it away, or face a minimum $400 fine! Our bag of almonds were declared and admitted into New Zealand!
We are staying at Anderson Cottage on the farm of Pam and Malcom Harding – wonderful hosts. Their 1,000 acre sheep and cattle farm is 4 kilometers up a winding road – at the very end – gravel for half of the way. So quiet – so dark at night – this is really the country! What a great place to rest and recover from the long plane trip. We can’t figure it out but jet lag has been almost nothing – one night of waking up early. Maybe a quiet farm in a remote area is the formula?
The Official Greeter at the Cottage |
Beautiful Harding Farm - 1,000 Acres |
After the caves, we drove out to the west coast along a gorgeous, winding road with farms; fields of sheep and cattle; magpies, pheasants, hawks, and other assorted birds; green fields and lush forests with barren hillsides at times; and, eventually beautiful views of bays and inlets from the Tasman Sea. To head back to the farm, we took an adventurous route of 50km along a mostly gravel road that continued with some of the same scenery but through an even more remote area – fewer farms and rarely an oncoming car. Our final stop was in Raglan, a popular resort area on another bay along the west coast. Tomorrow – Rotorua!
More photos involving the ship would have been nice since cruising is my forte.
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