Hail all,

Sounds like mahem at the homestead, what with throwing stars flying everywhere and manic dvd watching and coffee drinking!!!!
Geoff prectically ground that latest packet himself!!! Well, he ground a bit of coffee anyway, in a small restaurent cum coffe shop at the top of a hill in bali! Hope it goes down a treat and that you are freezing goodly quiantities for my joyous reture!!! Yes, i will be returning despite many attenmpt to suggest that i set up house here!!! Many a nice plot of land ready for house building but funds are lacking and a spot of toiling at the good old homestead is required i believe before any abode hunting can commence!!! I believe that the front facing bedroom on the second floor is vacent and i will take this opportunity to book in from feb onwards!!!!!! Cake making in lieu of rent what what!!!!

Well, we are in kerikeri at the mo and i am about tonwrite the large mail so will not dali to long. We found the camsite with the rope swings over the river!!! Have not tested them out yet as they look like the same ropes, and are not sure about plunging into the inky depths of the river. Freezing here last night!!!! The coldest night yet. Itbis however sunny today, and we will be inspecting the town and having a relaxing day in preparetion for the one days labour geoff got us!!!! Shifting a heavy water feature and then lauwn laying in the afternoon. $70 each plus lunch. Can’t say fairer than that!!! There is so much work hear it is leaping out and bitting you on the nose. I fail to see how Jul didn’t get himself a job here!!!! You should have stayed at this classy campsite you morron!!! WE have then organised some wwoofing for wed, a quick trip round the bay of islands and the coramandel and then geoff is going to do a few flying lessons with his birthday money while i hopefully wwoof in a horsey place where if you are good they let you ride!!!!!!! Classey.

Glad the dvd’s are coming in usefull! Hope all the stuff got home ok.

Keep texting.

Love Tanya

PS Jul – must have been a painfull wrench. What are your plans now with regards to toiling or uni??? What is annika going to do? I manages to delete the text you snt me of her e-mail address – the delete reaction kicked in1 Send it again would you. Cheers

ok mama, i’ve logged into the bavardage and have to wait for an e-mail beofe i can write anything!!!

Love Tanya

Hi everyone!Hi Dod, somthing wrong with my e-mail so could you send this yo everyone on my mailing list? cheers

Been agesd i know, but i have been so busy! The last mail was from OZ i think. Well, sydney was great fun, and i shoppped gfor some winter clothes and we had a nice walk round the town seeing all the sights. It is very clean and unpolluted compared to london!!! Unfortunatelly the weather was cloudy and rainy so not great, but a good time was had by all on the whole!

We went to Bondai beach on one day, all exited about it from what we had heared, and were surprised to find a small insignificant strip of sand whan we got there! Not impressive at all, and the town was a dump to say the least. The one redeaming feature was a walk round the cliffs, and we did a bit of rock climbing which was fun!

The flight to auckland was fine, and we landed in NZ all exitment and anticipation of the second big chunk of our trip! A small and not very pituresque town greeted us as we got out of the airport bus. The urge to haggle for the price of this was great but we managed to hold ourselves back!

Haveing been warned off ACB’s by julio (the biggest backpackers in NZ i think) we headed for the lesser know Kiwi hostel. WE soon found out why it was not weel know as it was a dump. The room smellt foul, the beds were dank and rancid, the bathrooms were outside a locked door so unless you could remember the code by heart, or else nip in after someone else, you got left outside in a dripping towel after your drippy shower which i did! It also appeared to be inhabited souly by memberd of the older generation who had dropped of the road of life and had settled themselves into the hostel for the duration – almost part of the manky furniture one would say. An altogether unsatisfactory place for the 20 dollars we had to hand over each. WE made ofr the haven of ACB’s the day after and all was well!!! The room are clean, the staff friendly, the kitchens and bathrooms fine, and altogether made auckland barable.

The great car hunt started the day after arrival – we worried about what to do with Rich, but were soon relieved as he found his was into a gaming place and plugged himself intoa battle game happily! Geoff and i went round the hostels [picking up adverts and contacts for cars and vans. Thenre were loads and things were looking rosy!

Two days later we were shadows of our former selves. ASll the lfe had been drained out of us. We had managed to see three out of the the many cars we wanted to view due to everyone putting down a mobile number and then either switching their phone of, leaving the money swallowing answer maching on or else just diconnecting it in an attempt to thwart the happy car buyer! Stressfull was putting it lightly! In the end after andless trudging round the foul city and getting no joy we went back to one of the first cars we saw – names grey turd as it was so ugly and bough that. We really wanted a van b ut the luck was not in our favour and we just wanted to get going.It actually turned out to be a great buy – touch wood. Economical, easy to drive, heater works and all in all it’s fine. Rich slepped in it until he left yesterday and it was fine. We testeed it out for the first time last night and parked it by a beach. We went to sleep and woke up to the sound of the waves, and all in all it was most pleasent.

We have spent the last week and a bit goping round north island seeing as many lord of the rings things as we could and doing many of the sports. our firsat stop was hobbiton which we were all exited about. However, our exitment turned to farmer cursing as we found that the owner of the field was charging $50 to get in and have a look!!! My favourit was the elven woods which looked just like the film. It had to be said though that on the whole the sights wre not impressive and there was no effort made to make them any better.

Activities inclueded flying a plane (geoff flew!!!), caving and blackwater rafting which involved absailing down into a cave, wading through the freezing water in boots and wetsuit, looking at the glow worms which were great, and then after a spot of pot holing, rock climbing back up!!! Great fun!. Geoff and Rich did a bunjy – i was needed on theside to do the photos, and we all did zorbing. For those of you not aquainted with the zorb, it involves being thrown into a huge plastic ball, water and soap chucked in after you and the thrown down a hill to creat a washing mashing effect – much fun was had by all!!!!

We are now alone agin after saying goodby to Rich, Roger and Geoff’s mum who came out to visit. WE had a great time but it will be nice tyo do some woofing now!!!

Well, as this is costing an arm and a leg ina lesser know library i will leave you all,

Love tanya

Hail all, just off to take rich to the airport but will be back soonest to write a mail. Thanks for the mail mama! Sounds like you had fun!

T

Hi all, not much time to write as rushing around like blue ased flies!!! WEll, in Taupo at the mo and it is freezing cold. There is a free camp pit down by the river, and the temtation to camp there is great, but the actual fact that we might freeze has persuaded even eoff to go to a cosy cabin in a camp site. we might venture into the wild coldness when it is just the two of us and we can squeese in the car for warmsth. All a bit dame and raiy here at the mo. we did a great caving thing the other day which i shall enlighten you about another time, and are heading skydiving on te morrow conditiond prevailing!!!

Jul – Geoff is proud of you!!! Sounds most character building to me – the no pay angle always seems to work. At least it is not freezing over there. A shame about the locals and their anti friendlyness, but hey hum, all part of the great web and all that. You could gve me annika’s e-mail so that if we are ever around the same area we could meet up and even offer a lift!

Dod – I signed in again to the balster nationwide thing as i couldn’t rcall me data!! you should get a letter in the post with details shortly

Mama – thanks for the mal, i will write in greater detail whan have a mo. sounds like those two need a good shaking and should have to do a bit more work round the place to wake them up!

Love Tanya

Hail all,

Just did blaCKWATER RAFTING IN WAITOMO