January 2 – 4, 2024

We finished at Winona Forever and called a couple of Ubers (Auckland didn’t have any large enough for all five of us) to get us to the Sky City Bus Terminal on Hobson Street, where we arrived soon after.  This, our first interaction with the bus system, would be mildly disappointing as I was expecting something like the nice terminals we had experienced in Mexico.  This one was small, crowded, dirty and with few amenities.  As the trip progressed, we’d come across a variety of ways to board the bus, ranging from a dedicated station, some pretty nice ones, to a seemingly random bus stop with just a sign to alert you to its function. 

Also disappointing throughout the trip would be the absence of promised Wi-Fi, and not promised but expected power outlets and perhaps, an onboard toilet or two.  This meant that on the longer journeys, one needed to have fully charged devices and a power bank to recharge a phone or tablet from.  Also, paramount would be to watch one’s fluid intake in order to go up to three hours without a potty break. 

Our bus was ready for boarding not long after we arrived at the terminal and so we proceeded to check in with the driver.  Prior to departing I had printed out, and saved a copy to the cloud, a copy of each bus, ferry and train ticket we would be using.  As it turned out, none were needed as at each step along the way the person checking us in did so on a tablet, or a phone, which had us already listed. 

We climbed on board and chose our seats, a good thing as it would fill up for the journey and as we would discover on a future leg, that we’d have to split up and take any available seat.  The trip itself was uneventful with one brief stop in Thames where the line to use the restroom there was too long to contemplate (another bus was there as well, swelling the temporary population) and so I hurried across the street to a gas station to nab a Tip Top ice cream bar for Joanna and I to share.  It was like the Magnum bars we purchase in the states and in Europe, but perhaps lacking the Belgian chocolate of the latter, not quite equal.  But good none the less.

Soon enough we arrived at the next to the last bus stop on the outskirts of Tauranga, described in our ticket as “Outside the Countdown and Bethlehem Shopping Centre” to find Beppie and Ian both waiting for us.  They greeted us warmly and after making introductions all around, they shuttled us in their cars (it took two of them with the five of us and our luggage) to their house in the hills above Tauranga.  Thus, would start a highlight of the trip, spending time with these two wonderful individuals.  Their house is large and nicely appointed with lovely grounds and inviting places to spend time in and relax. 

We offered to take them out to their favorite place for dinner one night, but they advised it was closed for the season and so we enjoyed our meals with them at home, making our way through Ian’s well stocked wine cellar and generally spending hours in engaging conversation.  Another advantage to our stay with them is that Beppie’s Sister Trixie and Brother-in-Law Geoff operate a tour company, Scott Tours, with whom we would book our two planned days of activities. 

The first day would be a dive into Māori culture at Whakarewarewa, the living Māori Village.  But first, Geoff picked us up at the house and then drove us a few miles to the town of Mount Maunganui, which is the cruise ship port for this part of the island.  The bulk of his tours come from the cruise ships, and he needed to pick up the other passengers there.  Meanwhile, to kill time, he dropped us off at Dixie Browns at the base of the Mountain so we could enjoy breakfast while we waited. 

There Joanna ordered the Dixie Brown Omelet (bacon, cheese, spring onion and fresh tomato served with hot buttered toast) and I had the Mediterranean Style Egg White Omelet (Broccoli, spinach, tomato, feta cheese, sundried tomato, spring onion and basil pesto).  Both were quite good, but as it would turn out we switched halfway through as we like the others better.  As we were beginning to find pricing consistent during our travels, we settled the tab at 56.00NZ ($36), a relative bargain for two breakfast entrees and two lattes. 

Soon enough Geoff arrived with our fellow passengers, and we took off for the hour-long drive to the culture center near Rotorua.  But first, as we were early for our appointed time there, we stopped at Redwoods Memorial Grove, a 15 acre stand of California Redwoods.  As a response to clear-cutting of New Zealand’s native forests by the end of the 19th century, these trees were planted at the beginning of the 20th century as part of a program to assess the viability of various exotic tree species for commercial forestry in New Zealand.  The project drove the New Zealand government to establish a tree nursery at Bay of Plenty where different tree species were imported from overseas by ship.  The resulting seedlings, including redwoods, were moved and planted in the area in 1901, chiefly using prison labor. 

The grove’s original planting consistent of thirty acres of trees, six of which have survived to the present day.  Subsequently, these trees have grown faster than in their native homeland due to the richer, well-drained soil and higher rainfall in the area, reaching over 230 feet in height only 100 years later.  Additional seedlings were planted in the area at later dates, including near Lake Rotokākahi.  We would later learn during our travels that this importation of non-indigenous plants, and animals, was a real problem for New Zealanders and we will address that in future blog posts.  For now, though, we climbed back into the van and made our way to Whakarewarewa.  We’ll cover that and more in the next post. 

Links

Tip Top: https://www.tiptop.co.nz/

Scott Tours: https://www.scott-tours.co.nz/

Dixie Browns: https://dixiebrowns.co.nz/

Redwoods Memorial Grove: https://www.alltrails.com/trail/new-zealand/bay-of-plenty/redwood-memorial-grove-walk

Whakarewarewa: https://whakarewarewa.com/