Tales from the Rugby World Cup

Photos: Otago/Southland

deepsouthrugby — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 15:51:00 GMT

Oct. 31 - Halloween in Kingston

deepsouthrugby — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 15:43:00 GMT

Oct. 31^st - Halloween in Kingston

We've stopped our South Island odyssey for a couple of days in Kingston for golf and laundry and late mornings. Kingston is 50 km around the lake from Queenstown. We spent 30 minutes taking a quick look at Queenstown which was too much of a bustling tourist mecca for us. Our five best sensory experiences since leaving Mt. Cook on Oct. 29th

Sound: The thunderous sound of water rushing through Maungawera River Gorge outside Wanaka before we sat on the beach knitting, sketching, and watching snow capped Mount Aspiring.

Feel: Frustration and elation as we struggled to find our way through the maze at PuzzleWorld in Wanaka.

Sight: Bungy jumpers off Kawarau Bridge where A.J. Hackett first launched the bungy jumping craze.

Taste:A tough choice between Indian curry at Bombay Palace in Wanaka (Tom’s birthday celebratory meal), mixed berry ice cream at fruit and veg stand along road from Wanaka to Queenstown, fish n chips in Kingston, and capsicum & kumara soup at the Kingston Flyer Café.

Smell: The smell of the coal fire burner on the Kingston Flyer (the steam train running from the idyllic village of Kingston) as we played golf on the hill above the tracks.

Oct. 28th - The” Awesome” South Island

deepsouthrugby — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 19:10:00 GMT

We left Auckland Wednesday morning Oct. 26^th and flew to Christchurch. We stayed in the home of Kate & Stuart who are relatives of a good friend from when we lived in London. Their home is in the “Orange Zone” which means they have been waiting for 9 months to hear if the government is going to repair the infrastructure in their neighborhood or tell them to tear their house down. Their stories reminded us of the nightmare of Katrina in New Orleans with the added horror of constant after-shocks. Yesterday we set off to drive to Lake Tekapo. Along the way I said to Carolyn that I was sceneried-out and was finding it hard to believe that the South Island would be that much more scenic than what we saw in the North Island. Ten minutes later we came over a pass and below us was the beautiful turquoise water of Lake Tekapo surrounded by snow capped mountains and I took back what I had just said. We took a cabin in a travel park, with a view of the lake, which was walking distance to a trail up to the observatory at the top of Mount John and an even shorter walk to thermal pools where we spent a few hours as darkness closed over us.

Today we set off for New Zealand’s highest mountain, Mt Cook. We were planning to have a quick look around, a short hike, and continue on to Wanaka. The views were so stunning Carolyn actually used the word “awesome”.. (She quickly revised her exclamation to ‘awe inspiring’). The weather is glorious and the mountains so spectacular that we decided to spend the night so that Tom can wake up on his 59^th birthday to this wonderful view.

Photos: Lake Tekapo/Mount Cook

deepsouthrugby — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 18:45:00 GMT

Oct. 23 - World Cup Final

deepsouthrugby — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 20:42:00 GMT

Five Best Sensory Experiences from the day of the Rugby World Cup Final

Sound: The incredibly beautiful voice of Hayley Westenra rehearsing the “World in Union” as we walked past Eden Park 5 hours before kick-off. We were on our way to pick up Tom’s press pass and find a pub to soak up some atmosphere when her voice reached out and pulled us to the fence outside the stadium where we stood entranced.

Taste: A juicy roast pork sandwich on a fresh roll picked up as we wandered the Eden Park area in the sea of black shirted All Black fans and an occasional ripple of Les Bleus supporters.

Sight: The French team in V-formation walking determinedly toward the All Blacks as they performed their haka before the match. It was a sign of the determination the French would bring to the 80 minutes of match time.

Feel: The thrill of a once in a lifetime experience as fireworks exploded, Hayley Westenra sang “Now is the Hour”, and the All Blacks accepted their gold medals and took their victory lap. Sixty-one thousand fans were on their feet cheering and a nation of 4 million breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Smell: The deliciously sweet smell of jasmine as we walked back tired and elated to the Bamber House hostel (our home in Auckland for the past 10 days) on a pleasantly cool spring evening after celebrating at the Eden Rugby Club.

Oct. 22 - Eve of World Cup Final

deepsouthrugby — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 08:52:00 GMT

Oct. 22^nd -We spent the eve of the World Cup Final at the Ellerslie races in Auckland. Despite being sure we had chosen all the winners, we only succeeded in the last race when Apache Sky landed us $2.90. However it was a fun afternoon and we had wonderful roast ham sandwiches while we waited for our ship to come in.

Yesterday was the Bronze Final, Wales versus Australia. We met Huw and Celia for lunch and spent the afternoon mooching round the bars close to Eden Park. Sadly Wales didn’t live up to the promise shown earlier in the tournament and despite an exciting try in the last minute, they never really got into the game.

The day before we had intended to take the ferry to Waheke, an island close to Auckland. By the time we got ourselves organized it was almost 1 o’clock and we decided to abandon the trip. Searching for something to do we wandered up to the Sky Tower and decided to have lunch there. We rode the glass lift to the 52^nd floor and ate a wonderful lunch in the revolving restaurant, and watched people jumping from the floor above. It was quite amusing to see bodies flying past the window, pausing to have their photos taken then plunging to the small target 53 stories below. After lunch we came across some All Black players relaxing in the afternoon sun and stopped to request a photo to which they happily obliged.

Despite frequent heavy showers on Wednesday, we took the ferry to Devonport, a 10 minute ride across the bay. In between showers we managed to climb Mount Victoria and take in the impressive 360 degree view. After attempting a walk to see the sights, we took shelter under a couple of yachts on the foreshore and decided to abandon the walk and head back to our cozy hostel.

On Tuesday we said goodbye to our campervan. Despite the joys of not having to run out in the cold and rain to use the bathroom or have a shower, we had become quite attached to it. Huw and Celia said the same, s o we didn’t feel quite so weird. On the way to the depot we passed a sign for Villa Maria wine which we often drink at home so decided to take a detour for a tasting. Even though it was in an industrial area close to the airport, they had created a rural looking space with rows of vines, sculptures and a natural amphitheatre. We managed to get the van back in one piece and moved on to life using public transport which to date has been easy to figure out, on time, and not that expensive.

We are now looking forward to tomorrow and hoping to see the All Blacks raise the Webb Ellis trophy to a packed stadium. While Tom enjoys himself in the press box for the last time, Carolyn gets the special treat of hearing one of her favorites, Hayley Westenra sing “World in Union” before the match begins.

Farewell Campervan!

deepsouthrugby — Tue, 18 Oct 2011 17:50:00 GMT

Oct. 17^th – Laying in bed in our en suite room at Bamber House Hostel in Auckland while the rain patters down.

Memorable experiences since we last wrote the blog in Miranda on Oct. 13^th

On the night of the 13^th at the mineral bath in Miranda all the kids had to leave the pool at 8 pm . We had a fantastic late night hot soak under the stars.

October 14^th : We played 9 holes at the golf course in Morrinsville and then drove into Hamilton where we shared wine, dinner, and stories of rugby, our travels, and Neil and Karen’s years in New Zealand before sleeping in a real bed for the first time in a month.

October 15^th: After parking the camper van in Alexandra harness racing car park in Auckland with hundreds of other camper vans, we took the bus to the Fanzone where we sold our extra ticket to the Wales v France match. Tom went to a press conference for New Zealand while Carolyn sat having a drink and reading the paper, not realizing she was sharing the hotel lobby with the All Blacks. We spent a lovely day full of anticipation for the game. We walked the 5 km. Fantrail from Queen’s Wharf to Eden Park stadium stopping often for a cider and to chat with local and visiting rugby fans. We met our Welsh friends Huw & Celia who had flown in from Christchurch for the match at the Eden Rugby Club bar and shared their excitement of a possible (probably) Wales trip to the final. Eighteen minutes into the match most hope was dashed by the red card issued to Sam Warburton. Wales battled one man down and had several opportunities to win even playing with one less man for most of the match, but France ended the winner (9-8). We caught the last shuttle bus back to our campervan and spent our last night with the occasional need to unload some cider at the port-o-lets scattered among the campervans.

October 16^th: We drove to the top of Mt Eden and cruised around Auckland Domain before checking into our home for the next 10 days – Bamber House Hostel. The hostel is close to Mt Eden and Mt Eden village which has nice cafes, bakeries, and bars and is walking distance to Eden Park stadium. We joined the crowds thronging to the stadium to watch the All Blacks beat the Wallabies (20-6). Tom had a press pass and Carolyn returned to the hostel to watch the match on tv with her new hostel companions.

October 17^th; Tomorrow we have to turn in the campervan, so we took the opportunity to explore a little north of Auckland. We drove over the Auckland harbor bridge with beautiful views of the Sky Tower and downtown and headed to the mineral spa in Waiwera. We took the one hour private spa with sauna and steam package. After we relieved the pain to our aching feet and legs we cruised back towards Auckland stopping in Orewa for a pathetic excuse for a seafood platter.

Oct. 13th - Two Days of Mineral Baths

deepsouthrugby — Thu, 13 Oct 2011 17:54:00 GMT

This is our next to last night in the campervan. Tomorrow night we will be in a real bed in a real house. The brother of a good friend of Tom’s from high school emigrated to New Zealand at least 30 years ago. His name is Neil and he coincidentally played rugby for Notre Dame in the first rugby match that Tom ever saw. Neil and his wife Karen have invited us to spend tomorrow night with them in Hamilton. Saturday we’ll be up early to drive the 130 km into Auckland for the semi-finals. We have our last night in the campervan Saturday night after Wales vs France and Sunday we move into our room at the Bamber House Hostel which we have through the finals. Since the last blog on Oct. 11th we drove the short distance from Tokoroa to Matamata. Matamata is famous for being where they built the Lord of the Rings set of Hobbiton. They were filming the upcoming movie “The Hobbit” so tours were cancelled. After a coffee and some very touristy pictures we drove on to the mineral baths in Te Aroha. For NZ$36 we got our own private mineral bath with what was called the only natural seltzer mineral water bath in the world. The campsite was also supposed to have a mineral pool, but the owner (a Swiss lady who had come to New Zealand as a scientist to do research on dairy farming and was deserted by her husband after they bought the campsite) claimed it was too wet and windy to fill up the pool. We had a pleasant evening in the kitchen hearing stories of the travels of a young English couple who were traveling the planet as geologists. Today we pulled out of Te Aroha in a steady downpour. The weather report said it would clear and as we headed north into the Coromandel Peninsula the rain slowed to a drizzle and then stopped with an occasional shower. We visited the town of Thames and after a quick look around with a stop at the local rugby and sports center to watch the areas U-13 provincial sides playing we went to the town of Kaiaua on the seabird coast for what we had been told was award winning fish and chips. The fish definitely lived up to the hype. Fortunately Carolyn had her own bottle of vinegar to properly season the meal. After lunch we retraced our route to the Miranda Holiday Park where we have parked for the night. There is a great mineral pool here which we enjoyed for a good while before a couple of the U-13 rugby teams from the Thames tournament showed up to take the place over. THS

Oct. 11 - Wine, Quarterfinal Madness, & Mountain Top Panic

deepsouthrugby — Wed, 12 Oct 2011 15:00:00 GMT

Oct. 11th - Today we were planning to spend in Okahune, a ski town at the base of Mt Ruapehu, but the weather forecast of rain and gale force winds for tomorrow caused us to unplug the van and head north. We skirted the western shore of Lake Taupo and arrived in Tokoroa. Tokorua is a lumber town not far from the thermal spring town of Rotorua. The town’s claim to fame is about 30 totem pole type sculptures scattered through the town centre. They call them talking poles, but they don’t actually say anything. Highlights since our last blog on the morning of Oct. 5th. October 5th: Ignoring the chilly weather that threatened rain we set off on rented bikes with our Welsh friends, Huw and Celia. Our goal was to taste wines at several vineyards in the area and we succeeded. The area, we discovered, is especially renowned for its pinot noirs and they were tasty. Dinner was grilled lamb and hogget chops back at the campsite with bottles of local pinot noir and sauvignon blanc. The campsite owner recommended that we go into town for the finals of the karaoke contest and it was a treat. Our favorite (Pip Maynard singing Black Velvet) didn’t win, but a great time was had by all. October 6th: It was a drizzly day, and we had a slow start. We drove to a vineyard in Gladstone that had been recommended to us, but there was no one there. We had a great meal of lamb fry (livers) and grilled lamb salad at the Gladstone pub before returning to Martinborough for an early night. October 7th: Tom was off before sunrise to catch the bus and train to Wellington to play like a sport journalist at pre-quarterfinal press conferences for South Africa, Australia, and Ireland. Carolyn rented a bike and visited a vineyard after doing laundry. When Tom returned they went to a pizza restaurant in town and shared stories of their day. October 8th: We said farewell to Martinborough and traveled over the Rimutaka mountains for the last time. After parking at the Lower Hutt Top 10 campsite we caught the bus into Wellington. We strolled the chilly streets around the harbor visiting a lovely weekend market right on the waterfront. Our Welsh friends had gathered at a restaurant and bar called Shed 5. We met them there for pre-match drinks before weaving through the sea of Welsh red and Irish green clad fans to the stadium. After the match we met everyone at a very crowded Shed 5 to celebrate Wales’s victory and watch England lose to France. October 9th: At last a beautiful sunny warm day in Wellington inspired us to be up early and wander parts of the city we hadn’t seen before. Carolyn climbed Mt Victoria and Tom strolled through the Oriental Bay market and Courtenay Place Fanzone. We met up at Wellington’s marvelous free Te Papa Museum before strolling along the waterfront to the stadium for a last time to watch Australia beat South Africa. October 10th: The camper van was unplugged, battened down, and heading north by 9:30 a.m. We followed the route to Wanganui that we had driven three times before. We stopped at the un-bull-lievable town of Bulls for lunch and a final laugh at how all the signs in town fit the word “bull” into them like the police station is called the constabull, restrooms are called relievabull, the school is called knowledgeabull, and so on. Although rain was forecasted it was still sunny when we arrived in Okahune. Snow capped Mt Ruapehu seemed close enough to touch. After checking in the campsite we drove the 17 kilometers to just below where the ski lift starts. For the last kilometer the road was incredibly steep and narrow with no guard rails and in places seemed to be falling off the edge of the mountain. We were both wrecks and shaking when we finally found a place to park. We took a few pictures, touched the snow, turned the van around, and slowly crept back down the mountain. And that brings us to now. We’re laying in the camper van listening to the rain beating on the roof after our self-guided walk through the talking poles of Tokoroa and an evening watching Mr. Bean as Johnn y English at the Tokoroa Cinema.

Two Rainy Days in Martinborough

deepsouthrugby — Thu, 6 Oct 2011 08:11:00 GMT

Martinborough is a little Kiwi town an hour east of Wellington over a winding mountain road surrounded by vineyards, olive groves, sheep pastures, and a wild Pacific coastline. The town was laid out by an Irish settler named Martin in the 1800’s with the streets forming the pattern of the Union Jack. The town square reminds us of what Sonoma might have looked like 50 years ago.

The weather was cold and drizzly. Our first afternoon in town we stopped at the local butcher to purchase 4 inch thick lamb chops ($12 US per pound) before deciding to leave them in the fridge and go to the movies. The local cinema was showing a French Canadian flick called Incendies in French with subtitles. The theatre was a little larger than a living room with big comfortable chairs and a little table between each two seats to put your glass of local Martinborough wine. The movie was intriguing and weirdly depressing and uplifting at the same time. Go see it if you can find it.

The next day our Welsh friends Huw and Celia called to say they were coming to join us as the weather was bad all over the North Island and they were scrapping their previous plan to visit the beaches on the Coromandel Peninsula. With the rain coming down we decided to drive along the coast. The wind and rain made the rugged coasts look and feel particularly formidable. Our goal of climbing the lighthouse at Cape Paliser was thwarted when the road was crossed by a rushing stream. We looked for a way to hike across the stream, but eventually gave up and drove back to the town of Lake Ferry for a bowl of hot spicy pumpkin soup, hearty beef pie, and a huge fish sandwich eaten by a roaring log fire. Wishing to walk off the calories we head out over the volcanic sand dunes to where the mighty waves were breaking on the shore. As Carolyn stood waiting to have her picture taken, a giant wave came rolling in and grabbed her . She fell to the sand with the water tugging at her from all sides trying to pull her back into the abyss of Cook Straight. Tom, who had taken off like a little spring lamb running from the vicious sheep dog when he saw the giant breaker about to engulf him, turned now to rescue his darling. As he reached her soaking wet bedraggled body Carolyn summoned up her last vestiges of strength to lift herself from the oncoming rush of another wave and we dragged each other to safety.

After drying ourselves in the camper van and changing clothes we drove back to the campsite to lick our wounds, dry our clothes, and wait for Huw and Celia. After greeting our Welsh pals with stories of our adventures and glasses of wine, we wandered into Martinborough for a delicious Thai meal and stories of their travels and exploits at the bridge clubs of New Zealand.

Photos: Martinborough

deepsouthrugby — Wed, 5 Oct 2011 08:33:00 GMT

Photos from in and around Martinborough, New Zealand

Tom's Rugby World Cup Predictions

deepsouthrugby — Mon, 3 Oct 2011 19:10:00 GMT

Every time we got back to the camper van after a rugby game, Tom would get out his blue marker and write the scores on his chart, obtained from a newspaper when we first arrived in New Zealand. Last night was the final game in the pool matches so there was a lot of updating to do. After he had finished writing up the winners in each pool and who would be playing who in the quarter finals, I asked him to make his predictions for the final matches.

The winners of the quarter finals:

Wales will beat Ireland

South Africa will beat Australia

New Zealand will beat Argentina

England will beat France

So in the semi finals?

Wales will beat England

New Zealand will beat South Africa

Now he’s going to stick his neck out and tell you the winner of the rugby world cup 2011

Tom says there’s not much neck sticking out, he’s going with the favorite,

New Zealand will beat Wales

So there you have it, Tales from the Rugby World Cup will not be responsible for any losses at the betting shop if you follow his predictions!

Oct. 3 - Horse Racing, Golf, New Friends, & Rugby

deepsouthrugby — Mon, 3 Oct 2011 18:45:00 GMT

October 3rd: The Rugby World Cup pool matches are over. The past 2 days we were in Wellington to witness the upset of the tournament (Tonga over France 19-14) on Saturday and New Zealand’s 12 try romp over Canada (79-15) on Sunday. This morning we drove 60 kilometers through the Rimutaka Mountains with Carolyn clenching tightly to the seat. We stopped at Kaitoke Regional Park to look at locations where they filmed Lord of the Rings. We’re now reading the paper and doing laundry on a drizzly afternoon at our campsite in Martinborough. We’re resting here for the next 5 days before returning to Wellington for the quarterfinal matches : Ireland vs Wales on Saturday and South Africa vs Australia on Sunday. Our five best sensory experiences since we last wrote our blog: Sight: Our horses coming in at Palmerston North racetrack so we only ended up losing $.60 before joining the city’s attempt to break the Guinness Record for most consecutive rugby passes in the town centre. After an hour setting up and 3 failed attempts the city decided to let the current record stand. Feel: The soothing healing powers of New Zealand Manuka honey and grapefruits which we had been told would cure our lingering colds. We bought the local natural remedies in Feilding which has either won or bestowed upon itself the title of New Zealand’s most friendly city. Sound: The baa-ing of spring lambs as we played around them on the Shannon golf course after being directed by Rosie at the info center in Shannon to Farmer John’s house. John let us park our campervan in his yard, opened his house to us, and loaned us his son’s golf clubs before heading off to his other house on the coast with his grandkids. He refused to take any payment. Kiwi hospitality is truly amazing! Taste: We had 2 wonderful brunches in Wellington area. On Saturday we joined Tom’s longtime rugby buddy Bob and Kathleen for potato and leek soup, steak and oyster and Guinness pie, and mushrooms on toast at Captiol Restaurant and Sunday we went to new Kiwi rugby buddy Wayne and his wife’s house in Ngaio for eggs benedict and egg and bacon pie and a very pleasant morning with some of Wayne’s neighbors and other world cup rugby visitors. Smell: The breads and pies and croissants in the French bakery in Greytown after we hiked the forest paths and swinging bridge in Kaitoke Regional Park and before setting up camp in Martinborough.

Sept. 28 - More Rugby, Golf, & Highlights of a Busy Week

deepsouthrugby — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 10:34:00 GMT

September 22^nd: Taking the cable car up to the observatory and a pleasant stroll on a cold but sunny morning through the botanical gardens, meandering through the highway bisected cemetery back to Wellington.

September 23^rd: Driving from the city to the Lower Hutt campground, taking in the penguin crossing, Eastbourne with a beautiful view of Wellington harbor and an excellent lamb chop dinner before heading out to the USA versus Australia game.

September 24^th: A cold blustery drive up to New Plymouth via the surf highway. We spent the night at Opunake on a deserted world class surfer’s beach. We bundled ourselves into town to watch England, who for the first time inspired some allegiance in Carolyn, play Romania in the local pub, feeding on the roast of the day by a roaring log fire and chatting with the locals who couldn’t comprehend why we chose to stop in their one horse town.

September 25^th: Walking along the coastal pathway with Huw and Celia then Tom using his press knowledge to get us to the Devon Hotel where the Wales team were staying and the fun of watching Celia starry-eyedly getting her photo taken with the players as we watched Ireland playing Russia.

September 26^th: We played golf, dazzled by Mount Taranaki/Egmont which finally came out from behind the clouds. Jim and Bernice, who with incredible kindness invited us to park our campervan in their driveway, meet us in the New Plymouth Fanzone and then take us to a pub where they know the owner for drinks and warm chat that establish (we hope) a long friendship. We shuttle bus to Wales v Namibia with a touching end of match farewell to Namibia, and then meet our Welsh buddies at the Takapa rugby club for Welsh singing and good cheer.

September 27^th: Drive to Palmerston North where we watch Japan draw with Canada and USA battle valiantly against Italy in the local Rosie O’Grady’s pub with a poker tournament going on around us.

Frosty First Day of Kiwi Spring

deepsouthrugby — Wed, 21 Sep 2011 13:57:00 GMT

Frosty First Day of Kiwi Spring

Departing Napier on a cold, blustery, rainy day, we decided to while away a couple hours touring the Hastings wineries. One tasting led to another and before we knew it our credit card was a few dollars lighter and we were loading our bottles of wine into a safe place in the campervan. Interestingly we found we had a connection with the Sileni winery. When we were at Lucy’s wedding in July, Tom met a young New Zealander, also called Tom, whose family owned the land which is now the winery. The manager knew Kiwi Tom and his family and whether that led to us getting excellent serviceand a free tasting or not we’ll never know.

Our next stop was Dannevirke (Danish for Danish Creation). A visit to the I-site confirmed what we suspected, there wasn’t a lot on offer in Dannevirke. According to our grumpy, Kiwi, anti-All Black campsite owner there was not even a pub to watch the Italy v Russia rugby match.

In the supermarket we wanted to know the difference between hogget and lamb. Fortunately for us the lady standing next to us was the daughter of a sheep farmer and told us that her father would never eat lamb if there was hogget to be had. We decided to give it a try. For those of you not in the know, hogget is the lamb that is in its second spring, the next step between lamb and mutton. Fortified with food and wine we found a beautiful site set in a nature reserve, well a few caged deer and aviary, and hunkered down to try our hogget and sample one of our new wines. (For those who want to know we couldn’t tell the difference between hogget and lamb.) We woke up to the first day of New Zealand spring with a crisp frost on the ground and the heater struggling to warm us up. We later found out it had been 0 degrees. It was however a beautiful, sunny morning and we packed up and headed out to Martinborough, our last stop on our way back to Wellington.

After parking the campervan in a trailer park on the edge of the quiet little village of Martinborough, we took the 10 minute walk into the center of town to try the free wine tasting, buy supper (lamb – the butcher had no hogget) and potatoes, and check out pubs where we can watch tonight’s match – Japan vs Tonga.

Rugby, Rugby and More Rugby!

deepsouthrugby — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 11:16:00 GMT

Sept. 19^th – We’re sitting in the campsite in Napier waiting for the laundry to dry and enjoying a little sunshine and space as the French caravans have pulled out after their 46-19 win over a valiant Canadian side.

Sensory Experiences of Last 4 Days:

Feel: The freezing cold of the Taranaki Stadium as Carolyn watched from the stands the USA gather what will be its only world cup win over Russia (13-6) in a mediocre game and Tom enjoyed his first press credentialed pass to a world cup match complete with press room buffet.

(See www.deepsouthrugby.net for match reports and life of the novice sports journalist stories)

The cozy warmth of the tv rooms at the Wellington and Napier campsites as we enjoyed Ireland’s upset of Australia and Wales triumph over Sa’moa.

Taste: Carolyn has a deliciously comforting jacket potato and Tom a spicy lamb madras at restaurants in downtown Wanganui as we stop on our way back to Wellington from New Plymouth. We searched in vain for a magnet to add to our fridge magnet collection that lines the metal border above the”bed” in our camper van. (Tom continues his research into the great pies of New Zealand with a disappointing ham,cheese, & spaghetti pie from a TipTop shop in Greytown.)

Smell: The cold weather has wiped out Tom’s sense of smell of anything except his nightly Lemsip, but Carolyn enjoyed the aroma of a much anticipated fish n chips at a shop outside the train station in Wellington after a lovely afternoon visiting the 2^nd floor of the Te Papa museum and strolling along a (finally) sunny and warm Wellington waterfront before watching Argentina beat Romania 43-8 in the train station bar.

Sound: The crashing of bowling balls as we settled to watch the All Blacks dismantle Japan 83-7 in a bowling alley close to our campsite in Paraparaumu after checking out a too crowded pub in the town.

The chants and yells of the Fiji fans that drowned out the Springbok supporters at the Wellington stadium as the Fijians fell to the Boks 49-3.

The drunken Springbok fan wandering the campsite and yelling ‘F****N something or another’ at 12:30 at night.

Sight: Snow covered mountains and mist on the hills below them as we left Wellington early and wound along windy narrow roads on our way to Napier.

Two Days in New Plymouth & No Sign of Either Mount Taranaki nor Mt. Egmont

deepsouthrugby — Thu, 15 Sep 2011 12:19:00 GMT

We pushed on through blustery winds to arrive in New Plymouth on Tuesday, Sept. 13^th, on the way looking for the mythical Mount Taranaki – or Mount Egmont as the older locals like to call it. The old timers don’t take much store in the liberal attempts to revert to Maori names. The first night here we went for a little stroll along the beach and got soaked before we could get back. The wind supposedly hit gale force during the night and the camper van was rocking.

Yesterday started out nice and bright. We walked the 4 kilometers into town along the coastal pathway occasionally avoiding sea spray that crashed over the walkway. New Plymouth town centre was alive with Rugby World Cup enthusiasm. Locals were very helpful and if you had the slightest look of confusion on your face someone was soon to stop and ask if they could help. Carolyn & John (rugby pal of Tom’s who is traveling with us for the USA vs Russia match) got tickets to the game. Tom will see the game from the press box! We then went out to Taranaki Stadium for Tom’s first official use of his press credentials to get into the USA & Russian press conferences. See article on the press conferences in the middle column of the home page for www.deepsouthrugby.net .

Carolyn walked back to the camp ground from the stadium and after the press conferences. Tom & John picked up some fish and chips, called a cab, and arrived back in time for Scotland’s 15 – 6 win over Georgia and the nightly deluge.

Sept. 13 - Wind & Rain Not Yet Dampening Our Spirits

deepsouthrugby — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 18:55:00 GMT

On Monday morning we said farewell to our friends Huw and Celia and set off on our journey to New Plymouth around 300 miles northwest of Wellington. We were aiming to get as far as Wanganui on Monday night and finish off the journey on Tuesday. We hadn’t been going along when wind and rain began. It was a hair raising journey as the camper van was buffeted from side to side by strong westerly winds. Arriving in Wanganui we made a quick stop at the I-site for information and the second of Tom’s daily pies (a bacon and feta cheese pie). A quick note to our readers - Tom is attempting to sample qas many varieties of pies as possible on the trip. Fortified by lamb chops, carrots, and mash we had an early night ready to make an early start to New Plymouth. Dodging the gales and torrential rains we had a quick look at the beach and are hoping the clouds will clear so we can get a glimpse of Mount Taranaki before we leave.

Photos: New Zealand Travels

deepsouthrugby — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 18:38:00 GMT

Photos: New Plymouth

deepsouthrugby — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 18:35:00 GMT