If you’re in Auckland, make the time to see Waiheke Island...
it’s a short ferry ride away, and so worth the trip. They have a ton of great hiking trails,
wrapping around the coast and cliffs.
Don’t forget to take the water... the walks are steep and hot, and take
you up little narrow headlands jutting out into the sea. The hikes wind through vineyards and tasty
wineries, where we stopped off in desperate need of water. The views are breathtaking, and we definitely
got a good workout in.
We’ve found the people
we’ve met from NZ very friendly and hospitable.
We met a lovely local couple at the end of our hike who invited us in
for homemade scones and a cool drink, and to enjoy their stories about life in
NZ, overlooking a beautiful beach from the front porch of their beautiful beach
cottage. They bought their little
vacation paradise back in 1967 for a steal.
They so kindly gave us a bit of a ride around the island and then dropped
us off for tasting at the MuddBrick winery, one of Waiheke’s finest.
We ended up later at a
little cafe deck overhanging the beach; in search of a meal, we haven’t quite
worked the timing for meals out yet.
When we’re hungry, it seems as the kitchen’s always closed. But, they still had their famous “hot chips”
(french fries) and mayonnaise - which we still can’t figure out the infatuation
of dipping already greased up potatoes in mayonnaise- and a couple of cold
beers to go with it.
There was a great photo
framed on the wall of a local beach, done by a local artist, with a saying that
summed up my feelings perfectly: “Life
isn’t measured by the number of breaths you take, it’s moments that take your
breath away.”
