South via East

Monday hit and the guys had to head back to their Auckland homes ready for work, so I travelled in the opposite direction towards the eastern-most point of the mainland, East Cape. The bitter cold of morning drew me from my sleep the following day and I decided to start the walk up to the lighthouse around 0600hr with two guys also crazy enough to be up that early, Konstantin and Leo. We were the first 3 people in NZ and almost the first people in the world to see the sunrise that day. And it was actually one of the most spectacular sunrises I've seen over here too. Awesome!
From here, I drove south through the rugged, little-travelled terrain of the east coast to NZ's longest pier, measuring in at 550m, just south of Tolaga Bay.. It's bloody long! Then it was on to the world's eastern-most city, Gisborne. This is the place where Captain James Cook first landed in 1769 - and there are many Cook monuments and statues commemorating this fact (including one that they thought was a statue of Cook, but later discovered to be that of some other unknown captain... how embarrassing!) In the night time I met up with Leo again for a bit, then drove up Titirangi (Kaiti hill) to the (world's eastern-most) observatory to do some stargazing on a perfect clear night. For someone who's been so fascinated by the Universe and has studied astronomy and astrophysics at uni, I've done surprisingly little actual stargazing.
On my way down south again on Tuesday, I decided to take the coastal route towards Mahia Peninsula - an absolutely stunning, serene and windswept landform which was once an island but now forms part of the mainland due to a huge sand bar formation between them. It would be a fantastic place for a holiday home! Following this, I detoured inland to Lake Waikaremoana (Sea of Rippling Waters - and the waters were definitely rippling in the incredible wind there that day) in Te Urewera NP. Te Urewera is described as one of the country's most attractive parks, and the lake itself is certainly spectacular in its branching, asymmetric form. I took a few hours out to climb to the Pukenui summit overlooking the entire lake - yep, windy up there too! Another couple of hours later, at the end of the day, I had arrived in Nelson.
Nelson is known as NZ's Art Deco capital and it has been suggested that the city challenges Miami for the world title. It was devastated by an earthquake measuring 7.9 on the Richter scale in 1931, leaving the entire Hawkes Bay area virtually flattened. The city and surrounding areas, including nearby Hastings, were rebuilt hurriedly within 2 years, during the peak of the Art Deco architectural design period, literally setting its history and character in stone. Nelson, like New Plymouth and many others, is a lovely place to spend some time just taking in the atmosphere and culture - the region is also a huge player in the wine production sector of NZ. I seem to take a particular liking to the towns with an art/cultural theme.. New Plymouth, Nelson, Wellington, Melbourne in Oz...
In the morning, I got to chatting with Melanie, a sweet as gal also using her vehicle as accommodation down by the shore. We hung out for most of the day, she showed me a new poi combination, and even caught up with Leo again for a few drinks and games of pool at the local - I won of course ;). On the way again Friday, Mel and I checked out the nearby towns of Hastings and Havelock North before parting ways and I headed up the area's highest point, Te Mata peak, for some awesome views over the entire Hawkes Bay area.
Taking a detour off the main highway took me through some more beautiful scenery - wildly undulating yellowed-grass fields, dairy and sheep farms, sleepy towns, winding roads, stock crossings, perfect country houses shaded from the sun by trees all the colours of autumn - to a place with the longest name in the world.. I can't be bothered writing it out, so I'll just put up a photo :) Get this though, it's a shortened version (!) of 'The Brow of a Hill Where Tamatea, the Man with the Big Knees, Who Slid, Climbed, and Swallowed Mountains, Known as Land Eater, Played his Flute to his Lover'! Nice name.. why can't they name a street or something after my big knees? Anyway, I was hoping to wind my way to a town called Masterton by that night, but petrol reserves were getting a little low so I cut back to a place called Dannevirke, on SH2.
Very early in the morning.. around 0700hr, I started my journey through the Tararua wind farm again towards "student city", Palmerston North (affectionately, Palmy) for a gander before driving down towards the southern tip of the North Island (east of Wellington), Cape Palliser, via Martinborough. Here, there is a seal colony, the town of Ngawi (known for using bulldozers to pull their fishing boats ashore), and an attractive lighthouse atop the headland overlooking a picturesque sweeping coastal landscape - and the biggest waves I've ever seen crashing directly onto the shore! From here it was the home stretch: stopping by the tree-sheltered shore of Lake Wairarapa, passing over the Rimutaka range, visiting Upper Hutt (Lower Hutt's northern counterpart), and finally... back to Wellington to party it up that night with Sash (my ex-flatmate), his mate Jesse, and Mel in my pub, Kitty's.
So there we are.. The travel part of my time here in Aotearoa is over.. That is sad in itself, but I am also relieved: it can be hard work sometimes going from place to place, always sleeping in a different bed or different location, and living generally in a state of unsettlement.
I'm staying with Sash here for basically the rest of my time in NZ before flying out the end of this month.. Then it's back home to good ol' Adelaide town for me!

Photos:
1. First to see the sunrise at East Cape
2. Konstantin, myself and Leo at the lighthouse
3. Good fishing out there...
4. Cook standing proud in Gisborne
5. Looking out towards Mahia Peninsula
6. Waikaremoana from a vantage point
7. Playing with fire, Nelson
8. Mel and I on Bluff Hill, Nelson
9. Looking over Hawkes Bay from Te Mata
10. Hmmmm.. anyone want a go a pronouncing it?
11. This picture sums up my experience of NZ roads..
12. From the lighthouse over Cape Palliser
13. Oh ok... Here's another shot of that sunrise...