The best so far

The kindliness of the couple giving Brian a lift when the van broke down

Walking into a fabric shop in Rotorua and getting chatted to for 20 mins

A free pint in a pub in Napier

Dusky dolphin with babies leaping everywhere, including within inches of the boat

Coming out of the pub in Oamaru to find 4 Blue Penguins waddling down the pavement opposite

A stranger stopping at a Dunedin bus-stop to take us into town

(lots more, Sperm Whales, Albatrosses, Speights Brewery tour, people saying "Hello" on the street)

Wine, Wind, Whales & Water

After Rotorua we headed across to the E coast to the Hawkes bay Wine area. A quick pilgrimage stop at Gisborne and just up the coast to the small village of Whangara where we could take a photo opportunity of the morae, meeting house and coastline that was Whale Rider - by the way the book is a great read too.

After that we chilled for a couple of days in the art deco capital of the world (OK so Miami citizens might complain about that last phrase!) and took in an excellent Hawkes Bay winery tour. Of course it was a coach tour because it was definitely a case of "swallow, not spit"!

Then the weather changed for the worst - firstly gale force winds lashed the bottom of the North Isle (where we were) and the top of the South Isle (where we were heading). So rather than a whirlwind tour of Wellington we caught the ferry a day early when the winds were just under gale force (as opposed to Strong Gale forecast for the next day). Of course the crossing as a millpond - completely the opposite to the days driving either side when we regretted having such a small high sided van.

Down the E coast of the S Island we headed for Christchurch but spent a day or so at Kiakoura. Great boat trip (the first for a couple of days because of the weather) showed us 2 Sperm Whale, about 200 leaping Dusky Dolphin and albatrosses including the Wandering Albatross (world's largest wingspan)

A quick stop at Christchurch to catch the Royal New Zealand (agricultural) Show and on down to Dunedin via Oamaru to watch the Blue Penguins return home from the sea (Liz say "They were so cute!"). Apres les ventes, le deluge - Dunedin didn't so much as rain as just sit immersed in cloud - it was bitterly cold and the moisture seeped everywhere. Still most of the rest of NZ was undergoing floods so I suppose it could be worse. So the stay in Dunedin (a city reminiscent of grey, dour Scottish cities so the weather was appropriate) was curtailed and we pressed on the Invercargill where this comes from

Well - we;re on our way in NZ at last

Tokyo was fun, tiring but fun. Think Wembley 15mins after the proceedings are over. Shibuya crossing at 7pm is 10 times more crowded and hectic. Still we saw a wedding at one of the temples and a lot of very interesting shops and I'm still not sure we know quite what we ate

As you probably heard the first Campervan broke down - huge clouds of black smoke and no power - not what you want when you are climbing a steep windy hill just outside of Kawakawa. Just desserts I suppose, since 15 mins earlier we'd both urinated on a work of art (if you are curious Google Hunterwasser and Kawakawa).

So a tow and then truck later we found ourselves dumped for the night on the road next to one of the most scenic beaches in NZ. Also it was Nov 5 so all the locals came down to the beach to let off their fireworks - fantastic scenery and a free fireworks display compesated a little for the problems.

Another day, another towtruck. This time out to the Ford dealer who took just a couple of hours to diagnose a blocked catalytic convertor. Fixed just in time to go meet up with the other van the hire firm sent up from Auckland

So a day and a half behind schedule meant a very long driving day but saw some ginormous trees and a pleasant forest walk on route.

Today we've got as far as Rotorua, famous for its hot springs. Just walking through the park there is bubbling mud and steaming, sulphurous water everywhere. Even our campsite has hot springs