Saturday - 10 March 2012 – Bay of
Islands – New Zealand
Weather today is foggy and rainy. The ship was rocking and rolling all night –
great for sleeping. I puttered around
the room in the morning downloading photos, working on the blog – it’s amazing
how time consuming our electronic gadgets
– and I don’t even have internet on the ship.
We are tendering here in Waitangi – which is not as
convenient as walking off the ship. It
takes about 15 minutes to get to the dock – a shuttle bus takes us into town –
a nice little town. Two arts and crafts
markets are going on with beautiful handmade goods – baby
sweaters – aprons – teddy bears (I had to hold Phil back) but we did not buy
anything. Beth purchased a couple of
really nice aprons – and a cheese board made from local wood with stone inlay.
After a browse around town – Patte, Dave and I decide to go
to the Waitangi Treaty Grounds – a short shuttle bus ride outside of town. The Treaty of Waitangi was signed here on 6
February 1840 between British and the Maori Chiefs. This treaty was the foundation of New Zealand.
The grounds of 506 hectares are on a point with a view of the
Waitangi River estuary – a beautiful spot.
On the grounds are: The Treaty
House – restored to the original British Residency era – a Maori Meeting house
opened during the centenary celebrations in 1940 – a Maori Waka – canoe which
requires a minimum of 76 paddlers. It
is a worthwhile visit –
Getting back to the ship is an adventure – the rain is
intermittent – the seas are rough on the tender – we decide not to come back to
town with our computers which is why
these blogs are late in being posted.
We make it to Trivia – The Cape Codders come in 2nd -- that will keep us coming back.
Dinner tonight is again in Polo Grill – for some reason Phil
has struck up a friendship with Jose’ –
who is in charge of reservations. This
is a night to remember – the atmosphere in the Polo seems almost catastrophic –
everyone is rushing around like the keystone cops. Just at our table – the waiter spills
something on Lynn – it takes 30 minutes for Beth to get a diet coke – Phil’s
lamb was way undercooked – a tray full of dirty dishes crashes to the floor
just behind Phil. Everyone was so
apologetic but we were just taking things in stride – after all we didn’t have
anyplace else to go.
All of our meals were good – they just took a long time.
Another good day!
Thanks for Reading.
Pat
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