We paid a visit to Chateaubriant, a little French café/bistro in Devonport, Auckland, which we used to live almost right next to. And yep: they still make delicious food and coffee.
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Daniel and Curtains, Nelson, NZ
That’s the car we currently drive around in. It was generously lent to us by Cymen – one of the owners of Rankers. It’s called “Curtains”, because it still has its original ads from a curtain shop on it.
The Whanganui Journey
The three of us – Andre, Nicole, and I – spent the first 3 days of February with a 3-day canoe/kayak trip on the Whangnaui river called the “Whanganui Journey”.
Andre was in a single sit-on-top kayak, while we were in a double canoe. Our gear was stowed in somewhat watertight barrels or dry bags.
Overnight, we stayed in the familiar DOC huts. The first one was John Coull hut.
Because we didn’t have to carry all our gear in a backpack, we could afford to bring some more luxurious food and drinks. Like fresh veggies, tortilla wraps, and a couple of beers. So, on the first night we had some burritos.
On day 2, one could do a little walk to the “Bridge to Nowhere”.
In general, the trip consisted of easy and enjoybale paddling most of the time, with the occasional rapid in between for some more speed and excitement. To escape the heat, we occacsionally stopped at a small beach – called a “shingle” – to rest and go for a little swim to cool down.
The second hut was Tieke Kianga. This hut has a marae – a Maori communal house – right next to it, belonging to the local Iwi (a Maori tribe).
Overall it was a very nice trip and certainly something different than hiking.
Misty Wainui Beach.
I was really positively surprised by this one. It looks like a painting.
The recipe: the Lomo Lubitel, a roll of Portra 400, a misty and drizzly Wainui beach, and a lens I couldn’t keep dry.
At “The Church” – our accommodation while we were in Gisborne. That was also where we had our Rankers meetings.
It was great to finally meet (part of) the Rankers crew in real life and be able to chat for extended periods of time. I’ve been working with them for almost 3 years now, and it was an awesome week we spent with them!
And we felt very much at home in this charming house right by Wainui beach.
Nicole at Wainui Beach.
Chickens in love.
Picnickers. Auckland, January 2016.
With Thomas and dog Smilla at the beach.
These are the reason I haven’t posted many photos from our current NZ trip, yet. Apart from my iPhone, I only brought film cameras with me this time. But I got 3 colour rolls developed and scanned two days ago, and so I’ll be able to post a few of these now.
This time, we met up with Juri, Renata and their daughter Ruby in Auckland, New Zealand.
Devon, England, July 2015.
Devon, England, July 2015.
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Whanganui Journey, Day 3
Whanganui River, NZ
Canoeing break.
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Bridge To Nowhere, Whanganui Journey Day 2
Whanganui River, NZ
Nicole on the Bridge to Nowhere.