Into Week Six

It's Wednesday already. The day is quite pleasant but we cannot persuade Emily to go out anywhere. I went for a circular walk down to the sea and back. In the afternoon I made my first ginger bread house. For tea we drove down to the fish and chip shop and met Sally on the sea front. However, the wind was cold and we returned to the house to finish our meal. 

The next day we were able to persuade Emily to go out to Crystal Mountain. When we got there the attendant asked if we had been before, to which Emily quickly replied that it is one of our favourite places. She started on the bungy jump and ended there.

 We all went on the train and the visit to the gem museum. Emily went on the horse ride and lots of time on the tractor ride. She fed the animals and petted the rabbit. I took lots of pictures of a peacock that was displaying its feathers. Dinosaurs have appeared everywhere.

As part of the outing we made our way to the cafe in Ellerslie to meet with Sally and be treated to authentic Mexican food.

The next day, as forecast, the rain was torrential. The storm drains here are massive and take the rain water straight out to sea. The coast road can flood when the tides are high and it is blowing a storm off the sea.

The plan was to take Emily to 'Extreme Edge' climbing centre. This was everybody else's plan. We were then supposed to go on to 'Wendy's' burger place, but we were forced to return home by the large crowds already queuing. The next plan was for me to take Irene and Emily down to the manicurist in St Heliers and I would meet Sally for a drink in Mortimers.

The wind and rain were backing off a tad and we sat under the awning, being heated by red glowing electric fires and consuming our beers. As we sat we could see the small cloud that was on top of Rangitoto expand until it obscured the island and moved towards us with more rain. This passed quickly over us and the island became visible once more.

We took one car home and then picked up the well manicured ladies before driving along the coast to Mission Bay. As we went along we could see that the sea had taken a browny hue as the wind whipped up the sea, bringing up the sand in this shallow part.

As requested by Emily we ended up at the Masala restaurant. Thanks to the poor weather it was easy to park and the restaurant was very quiet. Despite this the service was very slow and there was talk of leaving. However, when the food did arrive is was well worth the wait. It was obviously prepared fresh. Sally and Emily had a frozen yoghurt before we came home.

Surprisingly, the  next day was to be very different. Although it started with some light drizzle it soon stopped and by the time that Irene and I got to Hamilton the sky was blue, there was just a breeze and the heat built up quickly.

Once more the crowds were out in force and again we were in the overflow car park. Hamilton Gardens are always beautiful, but today they were spectacular. Our first call was to the toilets and then to the cafe where we had coffee and cake, sitting looking over the lake.

Everyone's a Master Chef

After coffee we paid a couple of dollars each to visit the local, Waikato lilly growers exhibition. This was a real bonus as we watched and heard real enthusiasts talking about their interest.

 Having walked around the lake we found our way to the central gardens where the themed gardens were to be found. Last time we visited this area it was August 2003, it was far cooler, less colourful and less crowded. When we made our 2003 visit to the 'American Modernist Garden' it was quiet. This time children played in the pool.

I repeated some of my shots from the previous visit, including one of Irene on the bridge in the Chinese garden. In one of the gardens Irene overheard a child asking its mother if she could play in the ornamental fountain. Obviously the answer should have been 'No', but the answer was that it would be all right unless someone told you off. 

I almost forget to write about the secluded spot that we 'found'. It took sometime to realise that we were not looking at three circular holes and a mirror.

There were new gardens which included Tudor, Maori, tropical and an English version of a Chinese garden. This was a large lawn with the façade of pagoda. New gardens are planned. 

This visit to central gardens was interrupted by a trip back to the cafe for lunch.

Our final walk was up to the Victorian greenhouses. We have previously enjoyed seeing these but this time they were closed to the public and a wedding breakfast was laid out.

Route 1 always amazes me. It goes from the far north at Cape Reinga down through Auckland and away to Wellington on the south of North Island. A ferry then takes vehicles across to Picton where it continues to the far south to end at Bluff. Even on the bit of it that we travelled to Hamilton the road is so varied. It has three and four lanes in Auckland. It is sometimes a dual carriageway, but suddenly the speed limit drops from 100 kpm to 50 kpm as it goes through townships where you can pull off for refreshments. There is a lot of modernisation going on with new roadways and fabulous flyovers.

On the way back we made a stop at service station north of Auckland. It was very modern with a number of eating place, including a MacDonalds. Here I consumed a Georgie Pie. This is basically a mince and cheese pie. It was world famous in New Zealand, disappeared for some years ago and was re-established by MacDonalds about two years ago. It was delicious.

Twice during the week we had passed Hillside Community Church which is about 10 minutes drive away and we decided to pay a visit on Sunday. I saw on the website that it was a baptist church and to my surprise one of the ministries was called 'Silver Eagles'. It is still the holidays here and it was quiet. It was housed in a large building. Unlike many of the larger churches we found the people to be very open and friendly. The service was very much Pentecostal and was led by a very gifted musician. The service was very open for the congregation to share their thoughts about the scriptures. The contributions flowed and very uplifting. We left them with promise that we would return.

We took our lunch to the top of Mount Wellington, but the cold wind had returned and we only ventured briefly to look over the landscape. From here, with the tide out we could see how narrow, but navigable was the channel from the end of the Spit to Howick.

We wanted somewhere less windy to walk so I drove us down to the Panmure Basin. The tide was out and it was practically dry. However, I was able to take my first shot of my first good sighting of a kingfisher.

The car was pointed towards Pakuranga where I knew would be a Warehouse. There was not a great choice of shorts but I found a suitable pair to buy before heading back.

Today it is Monday 11th and I immediately think about Joe starting is new job and hoping that all goes well for him.

We have just been to take Emily to the Auckland Art Gallery for her first visit. For a while we wondered if this had been a good idea, but the last gallery inspired her and after picking up a MacDonald she began her work.

I have done a stupid. Having got a 'pay and display' ticket from the meter I forgot to display it and have a £20 fine to pay. What a day and it is not finished.

Fines here are strange. They seem to be a fact of life. Even speeding tickets carry no more than a reasonable, financial settlement provided they are paid on time.

Tourists or Travellers

Getting there is common to both tourists and travellers. Arrangements have to be made and flights booked. From here on the itinerary of the traveller are freer and the objectives are broader. I began to figure this out more clearly in the short time that we spent in LA and concluded that our trips to the 'upside down peoples on the islands near to Australia' came more in the category of travels than tours. Not that it really matters.

Our flight through the night started on Tuesday evening in Auckland and ended on Tuesday afternoon in LA. When we left it was Autumn. When we arrived it was Spring. We travelled with the New Zealand cycle team, whose coach took our window seat and rooted himself in it for the 12 hour flight. They were a quiet and pleasant bunch, unlike the Argentinian rugby squad that we had shared the airport with.

We had our evening meal in a grill which served meat with unlimited salads. My starter was the clam chowder, which is really delicious and I washed the meal down with root beer. A big guy armed to the teeth entered the restaurant. His badge said that he was a probation officer. Imagine that in the UK. In the morning we had our pancakes and American coffee in a diner. Was more a uniformed, armed officer came in for his meal. I can't imagine uniformed officers sitting down for food in the UK, let alone carrying guns. There presence in UK restaurants might make the staff and the diners feel more comfortable, but I can't help wondering if a high public display of weaponry is in some ways counter-productive.


We had made a decision that in LA we would avoid the booked tourist journeys into 'Unreal Land' and travel into the real city. To do this we took public transport in the form of the 'Metro'. We needed a little help with this from the hotel staff. But, from then it became a piece of cake. The nearest Metro station was ten minutes walk away at Maripossa and Nash.

The LA Metro is generally above ground, using unmanned stations, with a day fare of £2.50. The layout around the city is easy with lines denoted by colour. I made a mistake of getting on to a carriage whose only occupant was a 'hoody', but soon more people got on. (The guide books tell you not to travel alone or at night). For most of the journey we were the only white people on the train and all announcements and signs were in English and Mexican.

The rail journey took us down the middle of eight lane carriageways, sometimes above ground and sometime along streets which were sometimes depressed and sometimes pleasant suburbia. One of our intersections was Union Station. This was built in the 30's in the Art Deco style and was the arrival point of many 'Stars'. We took an opportunity to look out and see the station. It is impressive. Some unused areas are cathedral like and the main concourse more like a grand hotel.

From here we took the Metro to its furthest point. This being Sierra Madre, near the 'Foothills', with our objective being to reach them. The Metro bridge took us over an eight lane motorway. The noise was appalling, but once over we set off out of town. The road was wide, there were less cars and no pedestrians. The heat beat us and after finding no refreshments, having glimpsed the 'Foothills' we turned back to civilisation. To be honest we did not really want to pay golf club prices. We knew that the bars near the station would be cheaper.

Mum had wanted to go into a park and so we got off at a stop called 'Memorial Park'. All of this journeying had actually been in Pasadena.


Having paid homage to a 'Yanky' soldier we set off back to the station and spotted a magnificent building. This turned out to be Pasadena Town Hall.

We had noticed that each station somehow reflected the area. We happened to be in a arty area and I decided to photograph the platform. It was here that we met the real America. That very morning the US government were talking about a $9,000,000,000,000 bail out. But here we met a man whose needs were more pressing. He was a black man and he engaged me in a conversation about my photograph. He had a large holdall. He explained that he was bag-at-a-time moving his belonging from what was his Pasadena home to a 'Project' (council) home in a more affordable part of LA. He seemed to be neither begging, boasting or complaining, but telling it as it is. He was not the only one we met on two continents for whom the recession is a reality.

Next we went to China Town. It is a real home to the Chinese people of the city and they go about their lives and play Mahjong on street corners.

I must do something about the pose.

Our final stop was to be in Downtown LA itself where we purchased 'Smoothies' and sat on a wall amongst the people in the busy city.

A view from the Smoothies.

The return was through busy rush hour. It is a bit scary to be challenged by a fully armed 'Sheriff' ticket collector.

We had a morning before flying home. The bright sun of the previous day was LA smog. We did the half hour walk to the beach the El Segundo town. The beach has beautiful sand, but is delightfully adorned by the petroleum plant and the LA water works.

Some final photos.

The Beach at El Segundo


Grand Avenue, El Segundo (Note the smogged out buildings)

California Poppies (The pretty bits)

Conclusion
After the 28 hour journey back from LA I would conclude that we return as travellers. We had

1. Suffered some deprivations
2. Experienced some risks
3. Had close personal encounters
4. We hope that we are somewhat different because of our experiences.

We had experienced the friendliness of other peoples and shared in some of their the difficulties that this current recession is bringing. We have seen people apparently unaffected by the problems confronting us all, but we have also felt the spirit of resilience and determination that seems to be common to everyone that we met in both NZ and US societies.

Our travels abroad end for the time being, but we are determined to continue to be travellers wherever are journey now takes us.

Note
There was some sadness in our homecoming. Our friend Arthur died in his sleep on the day before we got home. We have been welcomed by all his family and feel that we almost belong with them, especially at this time.
Arthur has left me his railway stuff.