037 – North Island (Mt Maunganui, Gisbourne, Napier), New Zealand – Life's a Beach, Dah-ling!

After three days of lengthy drives, it was high time to crash for a couple days in the beach town of Mt Maunganui. Britt immediately got down to business.

 

Nana and I voted to head straight to the beach,

 

But G-Dad and Ciel insisted we earn it first, by summiting the 232m volcano.

 

There was still plenty of time left for little sand,

Surf,

 

And local entertainment.

 

Despite it being a beach town, Mt Maunganui wasn’t completely devoid of wildlife. Here we see a rare pink panther on the hunt.

 

Her keen senses identify her prey.

 

She stealthily closes in on her target,

 

And she strikes!

 

The slow moving potato chip was no match for this skilled predator.

 

On our way from Mt Maunganui to Gisbourne we passed the up and coming tourist hot spot, Poynter Rd.

 Quite a thrill for G-Dad and Nana Poynter, I was astonished there was no one there to charge admission.

Other than the biggest Maori festival in the country, which we unfortunately (and unknowingly)

missed by about two hours, there wasn’t much going on in Gisbourne. So, we headed to the wine centre for some local flavour.

 

Ciel dressed up for the occasion. She even brushed her hair for a change.

 Our timing was much better in Napier, we rolled into town on the final day of the annual Art Deco Gala.

 

Our apartment provided prime views of the celebrations.

 

After getting settled, Ciel dolled herself up,

 

And we headed off for a stroll through Gatsby’s Picnic.

 

Where all you had to do was throw on a funny hat,

 

Hop in your antique car (/steam tractor),

Or toss a dead fox around your neck,

 and you’d fit right in!

It's been a tough couple of days.

Time to recharge for our final few days of New Zealand excitement...