Our second view.....and MY last....I waited at the port with our luggage while Tom went to get the rental car.....an hour later, he shows up in a van with another couple and a driver???? The rental pickup location is 15 miles from the port.....a detail not mentioned in prior emails......hmmmm
Rental car (Toyota Corolla) acquired, we take off, but not very far....just around two "round abouts" (traffic circles), driving on the left side, white knuckled, stressed to our collective max, but, alas, another major hurdle to jump. ......our communications setup with Verizon which we had plannned for months before our departure was all cancelled during our voyage...we received an email while on the ship, advising us that New Zealand had switched to GSM negating all our plans.....we had to find sim cards which is no big deal, but we also had to be certain that Tom's ipad mini would be our GPS. And we don't speak the techno language.....We did some homework and discovered that an upstart company, 2degrees, is giving Vodaphone stiff competition....
This kind, patient beyond belief young man, Shane, helped us equip the mini and Tom's iPhone for communication and GPS use. He did not roll his eye balls, nor laugh, nor snicker...even sent us to his competitor down the corridor....but, in the end, he made the sale....and for much less than the Verizon deal...
Ok, so it is sorta "hokey", but as we left the 2degree store, we passed this sign.....which was my Mom's nickname and now my "grandmother" name.....a sure sign that good luck is coming our way...
To celebrate and fortify ourselves for the upcoming drive (on the left side, in traffic), we decided on this place for lunch....and a "board meeting", planning session.....Our goal is to get to the South Island as quickly as possible....simply because the further south we go, the colder it will be....and we are here at the beginning of their autumn. So we triple check our route (two paper maps and Tom's new iPad mini GPS.....off we go!
So far, looks pretty much like the Midwest....lots of cattle and dairy farms, rolling hills and beautiful farm pasture land.....cattle, cattle everywhere.
Lake Taupo.....the largest lake in New Zealand
Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder
And THIS is Tirau's Information/Visitor Center!
We finally arrive at our first night destination: Turangi, located in the middle of the North Island. Our lodging is pictured below.....It is a bed and breakfast in a home...
The name is pronounced "EEKA" and is a type of bird.
The driveway approaching the house was filled with summer blossoms!
Charming and inviting....our hostess advised us to go to dinner ASAP.....Turangi is not very big and most things are closed by 8 p.m.
We walked to dinner down this path....
by this little river....
to this restaurant, The Bridge, which looks very plain, but the food was delicious!!!! Yea! WE MADE IT!!
