It all began when DH mentioned that he had a job in Gisborne that would take him away from home for a day or so and wondered - perhaps idly at first - if I would like to go with him. Since I had never visited the area but had heard enough about it to arouse my curiosity, I agreed to go. So DH planned the job to coincide with school holidays (and thus my holidays) and on ANZAC Day we set off.
The early part of the trip was a walk down memory lane. How any of our children can fail to recognise a particular landmark is beyond me, but it seems they did. (Hint: think of a particular photo that was on our 'fridge for many years.)
For DH, it was also a journey back to his boyhood days.
And then it was on to new territory.
After DH had finished work on Friday, we had time to do some sightseeing. Gisborne is renowned for many things (including the first town in the world to see the sun rise, and the shortest river in New Zealand at just 1200m long) but until we visited I had no idea that it had not one, but two, statues of Captain James Cook and that one of those statues is a fake. It's been shown that it's definitely not James Cook, despite the belief when it was first cast in bronze that it was indeed the famous captain. Nowadays, no one seems to know who it is but it makes a good photo.
(The fake.)
(The real.)
(Nick Young, the ship's boy and whom Young Nick's Head was named after.)
It was while viewing the real Captain Cook that we met a lovely couple from Perth who asked us to take their photo and then went on to tell us that they make a hobby of collecting photos of James Cook. Hmmm, that's given me an idea.
Naturally, since Gisborne is the first in the world to see the sun, we made plans to see a sun rise. I will admit that it was tempting to stay in bed given that it was a Saturday morning, but the desire to be able to say "We saw it first" won over and we donned warm clothes and went to watch the sun rise. It was worth it!
Later that morning, we left Gisborne, and made our way to Son#3 and DIL#3's happy little home. This was the highlight of the trip - even better than seeing the sun rise! It was great to see them again and to see them looking as happy and gorgeous as they did when this video was taken.
Now, it seems that DH and I have got a taste for road trips (especially now that a friend put me on to travel bands which have revolutionised my life: all those hours in the car and those winding roads and not a moment of car sickness!). We're already planning the ones we'd like to do next. Whether we ever do or not is another story, but we'll have fun planning - and if we can fit in another trip to see family, all the better!
The early part of the trip was a walk down memory lane. How any of our children can fail to recognise a particular landmark is beyond me, but it seems they did. (Hint: think of a particular photo that was on our 'fridge for many years.)
For DH, it was also a journey back to his boyhood days.
And then it was on to new territory.
After DH had finished work on Friday, we had time to do some sightseeing. Gisborne is renowned for many things (including the first town in the world to see the sun rise, and the shortest river in New Zealand at just 1200m long) but until we visited I had no idea that it had not one, but two, statues of Captain James Cook and that one of those statues is a fake. It's been shown that it's definitely not James Cook, despite the belief when it was first cast in bronze that it was indeed the famous captain. Nowadays, no one seems to know who it is but it makes a good photo.
(The fake.)
(The real.)
(Nick Young, the ship's boy and whom Young Nick's Head was named after.)
It was while viewing the real Captain Cook that we met a lovely couple from Perth who asked us to take their photo and then went on to tell us that they make a hobby of collecting photos of James Cook. Hmmm, that's given me an idea.
Naturally, since Gisborne is the first in the world to see the sun, we made plans to see a sun rise. I will admit that it was tempting to stay in bed given that it was a Saturday morning, but the desire to be able to say "We saw it first" won over and we donned warm clothes and went to watch the sun rise. It was worth it!
All too soon, it was time to say goodbye, and head on home. But even that part of the trip was not without its compensations.
Now, it seems that DH and I have got a taste for road trips (especially now that a friend put me on to travel bands which have revolutionised my life: all those hours in the car and those winding roads and not a moment of car sickness!). We're already planning the ones we'd like to do next. Whether we ever do or not is another story, but we'll have fun planning - and if we can fit in another trip to see family, all the better!
Comments
What is a travel band? I was wondering about all of your happy exploring with nary a mention of car sickness.
Beautiful pictures, by the way, and I am glad you got up and saw the sunrise. Your Captain Cook photos made me laugh.
winterwren