What's up?/The North Island

Josie claims that everyone wants to see pictures, and nobody wants to read my ramblings. I disagree. I don't have any pictures right now. There are pictures, they're just not on my computer. I'm in the kitchen of the Peppertree Hostel in Palmerston North, and I'm watching Josie make cookies.

I guess the last time I posted was last week? Since then, Josie and I visited the Coromandel Peninsula, where we stayed at a hostel overlooking the beach. We borrowed kayaks and went on a 3-hour sea kayaking trip (just by ourselves). I fell out of the kayak when I was riding a wave into shore. I came out laughing though.

We went to the town of Coromandel and visited a silly little tourist attraction, the Driving Creek Railroad. An eccentric artist/potter created this small-scale railroad track up a mountain, and they charge $20 a person for the one-hour tour. We went up a mountain and then back down in a little train. It was adorable and touristy.

On Monday and Tuesday we did a farmstay with a family in a little rural town. Don and Davina live on a 2-acre hobby farm with their three young children, an adult child, and another older child that pops in and out from time to time (much like I do with my Mom and Dad). They have several sheep, some "chooks" (chickens), and a baby cow. They were absolutely wonderful. I wish we could have stayed longer. We spent the time doing some chores (stacking firewood and raking leaves), walking a little trail near their house, as well as reading probably a dozen books to Dallas, Martin and Chance (um, 5, 6, and 3, I think?). Jos and I are disappointed that we didn't take pictures. I completely forgot to though. It was the first time since I've come to NZ that I didn't feel like a tourist.

This afternoon, while on our way to the hostel, we stopped at a wool outlet and purchased some yarn that's made from 70% merino wool and 30% possum fur. That's right, possum fur. Not Opossum, just possum. It's a non-native species of marsupial that you see all over the place on the side of the highway. As roadkill. Apparently their fur is very warm. It's certainly novel. I got a couple of different colors. Somebody is getting possum mittens for Christmas!

Jos and I are on our way to Wellington. We'll be there tomorrow sometime in the afternoon. We're going to go to some museums, and visit the Wellington Zoo, and probably try to find some night life. We'll be there over the weekend, after all. On Monday morning we're going to cross to the South Island by ferry.

Okay, not very exciting to read the blog without pictures, I guess. But they'll be up soon.