KATI KATI

Jason and Stephanie invited me to travel again with them for a few days and to stay in their campervan.We left Rotorua and headed up to Kiti Kiti in The Bay of Plenty to visit a New Zealand couple, Christine and Tony, who had befriended Stephanie's Aunty and Uncle on a holiday in Scotland. They were so welcoming to us all.I was a bit nervous because I had tagged along, but they made me feel so welcome.They even invited us all to stay the night at their house! Tony took us for a scenic drive around the area. There were lots of fabulous murals all around the town depicting the various wars and moments in history.

We also checked out the local beaches at Waihi while Christine stayed at home and cooked us a lovely hot meal.
The next day they took us on another sightseeing trip which included seeing an open cast gold mine not far from their house.
It was so lovely the way they welcomed us into their home when we had not met them before. I hope that I can repay their kindness one day when they visit England again.

They gave us lots of fruit from the trees in their garden and we went on our way. We booked into a prize winning campsite with a thermal pool en-route to Auckland.
The next day we headed for Auckland and I hired a car for the last two weeks of my stay in New Zealand to explore the Top of the North Island. Jason, Stephanie and I went to the comedy club because I told them what a good time I had had there last time I was in the city. But we had a hidious time, I have never seen so many bad comediennes in one place. It turned out that Wednesday nights are new material nights. They try out new gags and if they do not work they do not use them again. Well there were a lot of gags that did not work and it was rubbish!!!. But we had to laugh because they were so bad. I stayed in the campervan for another night with Stephanie and Jason before saying my goodbyes to them.
They flew to Melbourne to begin their year in Australia. I will miss them, we have had such a good time together and I loved staying in the campervan. I booked into the YHA in Auckland for a night.
In the morning I drove from Auckland, along the breathtakingly beautiful coastline, to Paihia, on the North East coast. It is a beautifull place near the sea. Europeans first settled here in 1823.
It is one of the main tourist spots on the north end of New Zealand. Adjoining Paihia to the north is Waitangi, the site of the historic signing on February 6th, 1840 of the treaty between mainly local Maori chiefs and the representatives of Queen Victoria's government.
The treaty then toured the country and many other chiefs added their signatures.