Linda and Sophie Visit

It was school holiday time and Sophie came over to stay with Linda in Auckland.  They took a trip up to Northland and stayed with Jane's in-laws at Parua Bay then came over and spent a couple of nights with us in the apartment. I had not seen Linda for quite a long while so it was lovely to have them and to catch up.





I took a photo of Linda taking a photo of Sophie  -  then got one of them both.  Taken in the Game Club's rooms.











After dinner in the Oceans Hotel Restaurant.

Sophie working off her dinner.

The weather was not great for their stay and the day they had to drive home was awful but they were keen to get back before Jane's family left for their holiday so they had a very careful trip back to Auckland in the rain. 

Landlubbers for Five Weeks

The eleven days we spent on "G-Force" quickly passed and it was time to ferry what we needed over the next 5 weeks over to apartment 209 in Oceans Hotel which was to be our temporary home.  We had been looking forward to it as a sort of "holiday" from living on boats.  It is a lovely apartment situated on the top floor at the end of the building so we were close to the bank which is covered with native bush.  We saw and heard a lot of wild life going about their bsiness.                                                 

 A couple of photos - towards and from the kitchen. A staircase behind the kitchen goes up too an upstairs ensuite bedroom and large store room

The views over the marina were fantastic.  I used to enjoy watching the day get light in the mornings sitting in bed with a cuppa.  This pohutukawa tree was still in glorious bloom when we moved in and during the day the birds and the bees came to feed on the honey from the flowers and there was a pretty red carpet underneath from the falling needle- like petals.  There were many tui birds who also liked to feed on the flax flowers on the Village Green over the road.  One summer rain storm finally did away with the last of the pohutukawa flowers.

One beautiful morning sunrise.

Looking out over the Village Green - well half of it because there is as much again at the left of the photo.  This is popular for picnics and ball games and it can be hired as a venue for wedding marquees, markets etc.  The annual "Wine Tour" concert is set up here when it comes to Tutukaka (last one was 3 weeks ago sorry no photos) and as you can see helicoptors can land (by permission from marina management only). It is also used on fishing competition days as an overflow carpark for the cars with boat trailors.

During our time here we managed to arrange the purchase of our next boat.  We had been watching the market while waiting for "Irrepressible" to sell so we knew what was available of the sort of boat that we wanted and were delighted to get our first choice.  It is a very live-aboard-friendly power boat with all the creature comforts.  No sails !!  We saw the actual boat a year ago when we went and stayed with Dave and Bev near Picton so it has not been bought sight unseen.  The biggest concern now was to get the boat here before our time at the apartment expired because it was booked out to someone else after then.

Christmas and New Year on "G-Force"

It was a busy time for us at the marina as 2011 drew to a close.  There were deaths in the families of two of the staff members and a bad accident in the family of the host and hostess for the Christmas Party so that had to be rearranged and we ended up having it at the marina.  There was a spit roast in the car park below and the food was served in the large social room upstairs.  There was a good attendance and it ended up being a fun day with the live-aboards invited to join the Trust and staff members and families.  

While all this was happening our boat "Irrepressible"  quickly sold.  By quickly I mean that the buyer knew exactly what he wanted and he wanted it before Christmas.  Our boat filled the order and he bought it on the spot and asked if we could be off it in a WEEK !   So there was a  mad scramble to get our belongings boxed and ferried up to the truck.  You would not believe how much stuff you can get on a Young 43 boat !  We thought we had a problem with accommodation because the hotel was booked out with an apartment free in 11 days time  (which we booked)  and a marina neighbor, Alan Going,  kindly lent us his fishing charter launch,  "G-Force,"  for the 11 days. This is the second time Alan has been a land-lord to our family.  Angela and Zane rented his house for a week while they were on holiday here about 4 years ago.   It was quite comfortable and we grateful to be able to stay on the marina because John worked right through keeping the office open for the many travellers who stop over at that time of the year.  Actually, a lot of the visitors ended up staying here instead of moving on to their chosen destinations because the weather was so bad during that time. 

Here are some pictures of "G-Force."  It had all we needed for the 11 days and the bunks were very comfortable. 

On Christmas day we cooked a dinner which we had late in the day.  We had thought that it would be a good idea to eat out for dinner this year but all the businesses were closed for the day  -  including the hotel kitchen.  Their guests were given pre-prepared food and meat to barbecue if they wished.

We did not see the New Year in.  There was a function on at the Game Club but we preferred to keep our normal bedtime hours.