PHOTOS - 1

I am not sure how many photos i can publish each time so here is an instalment

two views of PICTON
this is the ferry port for South Island. it is a beautiful little town that most people just drive through on the way to other destinations.   Well worth stopping off for the restaurants alone.

this is HOT WATER BEACH at Waikato on the Coromandel Peninsula (North Island).
this is where people rent spades from the locals to dig holes in the sand at low tide.  the holes fill up with luke warm water from underground springs and they then sit in the holes with a smug expression.  the competion for the best spot was intense...i did not participate

my first attempt at a selfie with my selfie stick
Cathedral Cove is in the background

HUKA falls which provides about 30% of the electricity in NZ
this photo does not really do it justice...suggest that you google Huka Falls and look at the website.

a local tin of beans note the similarity to HEINZ that is because they own the Company but never changed the name

two shots from the south bound ferry in the Queen Charlotte Sound (South Island)

i took over four hundred photos so there will be more to follow but finally in this instalment  for the animal lovers..the following  two chaps or maybe girls

MONDAY 13-APR-15
I have been back home for nearly four weeks and once more I need to apologise for the lateness in updating the blog. this is something which should be done at the time as the memory fades and some of the finer details are lost. i am having issues with the hard drive on my PC which cannot upload the photos from my cameras and phones because of lack of disk space.   working on this as i am getting complaints about the lack of photos on the blog.

BLOG UPDATE
the last four days went by very quickly
on Saturday 14th March I made my way down from Russell to Orewa a beachside campsite about 40kms North of Auckland.  Mistake...it was absolutely chock a block with refugees from the Auckland area weekending and it was Mother's day with familes converging and meeting up.   Queues for the kitchen / showers / toilets and extremely noisy.  The TV news was full of doom predicting that Tropica Cyclone (category5) "PAM" was about to flatten poor Vanuatu and would hit NZ the following day. The wind stared to get up a bit overnight.

Sunday 15th March
the TV gloom merchants had some effect on the campsite...the tenters were up at the crack of dawn getting the tents down in the stengthening winds and packing up to go home. I also packed up everthing and dumped the accumulated rubbish and stuff that was not going back to Scotland.   The drive down the final 40kms was uneventful and as i roughly knew where i was going made it back to van rental company without getting lost and in record time because of the lack of traffic. On the way i had dropped my bags off at the hotel.   The van inspection was superficial and the new crack on windscreen (caused by my deceased feathered firend) was not noticed.   Auckland was heaving with Eagles fans, who come in all shapes, sizes and guises.  It could be considered illegal to photograph some of the sights (mainly women) that i saw...full length mirrors are maybe in short supply in NZ.  Next i encountered loads of people wearing stupid looking green hats, why?  because they were celebrating St. Patrick's Day in advance and there was going to be a parade at 13:00.  as you would expect the pubs were busy and i was trying to find a pub somewhere who was going to show the Australian F1Grand Prix and although it was on Sky no pub was showing it, even the largest sports bar who had five screens preferred to show cage fighting because the clientele were betting on the various aspects.  The sports bars are really alcohol selling betting shops with some food.   i had to settle for the St. Paddy parade which was over and done with in five minutes.
When i checked into the hotel in the afternoon i was given a room on the nineteenth floor, just what you want when the Tropical Cyclone is due.   Fortunately it was the opposite side of the building from where the wind and rain were coming. 
Monday 16th March
The Cyclone was downgraded overnight after it had wreaked havoc on Vanuatu, but it was still extremely windy and wet in Auckland.  It made landfall further South and East at Gisborne (the first town in the world to see the sunrise) who had some rough seas and high waves but nothing too drastic...thank goodness. As the weather was unsettled i spent the day watching the TV and trying to get everything back into the holdall.  i needed three attempts and finally got everything contained without bursting the zips.
Tuesday 17th March
went out for the major fry up breakfast to stoke the boilers for the journey home and asked the hotel concierge to book me a shuttle bus to the airport but he offered his cousin to drive me personally for the same price.   The guy turns up wearing a chauffeur outfit in a black "suburban" luxury van and he insists i sit in the back and he pointed out all the interesting sights on the way. Best value twenty pound journey ever.  Emirates check fast and efficient and i was issued with a voucher and instructions for the hotel in Dubai.  take off on time, next stop Brisbane.   Sitting beside a small Austrian woman with limited English and she will be my travelling companion to Dubai.  On the outside was an Australian woman who regularly made the "hop" between Auckland and Brisbane.  No sooner had the seatbelt sign been switched off when she rang the bell for a gin and tonic.  This was the first of three plus wine with the meal...she must have had Scottish ancestry. missed the last seven minutes of a movie because the efficient cabin staff confiscated my headphones twenty minutes before landing.  Everyone was unloaded at Brisbane and us transit passengers were put in a holding area without access to caffiene which i had been looking forward to.  back onboard the refreshed and refuelled A380 for the long haul to Dubai.  I never slept more than half and hour during the transit to Dubai and managed to see the end of the movie plus three others and a TV mini-series. sitting behind me on this leg of the journey were two male Brummies.  The larger one was extremely loud and his conversation was unfiltered when talking to his "partner", who he addressed as "our kid".  He had the most uncomfortable journey of his life and made sure everyone knew this. this food on this leg was disgusting with goat curry which i took or Fricasseed Chicken which my neighbour chose. We both left the main course and ate the salad starter with the pudding. 

Wednesday 18th March
arrived Dubai on time (05:00) and was directed straight to the Emirates hotel desk on the concourse.  i was escorted with the six transit passengers from our flight to a minibus which took us to the hotel.  fantastic room so straight to bed with the alarm set (for five hours) although the hotel would call also.  as usual i couldn't sleep properly as frightened to sleep in so around nine o'clock got up and showered then down for the breakfast.  Got into the restaurant 15 mins before closing so it was nice and quiet with a baconless feast laid out.
again stoked up for the final leg.   Got to the airport three hours before the flight and as i did not have to check in had plenty time to wander through the duty free which i would estimate to be (in total) the length of Princes Street in Edinburgh. The flight was delayed in taking off because some woman pressed the cabin staff button during the push bach from the stand and informed the head steward that she has lost her passport.   Just before she was going to be ejected it was found on the walkway to the aircraft by the ground crew.
The final leg of the journey was a breeze compared to the Brisbane / Dubai part. More movies were watched and the food was better.  Sainted wife and daughter were there on arrival at Glasgow.. tears all round

not the plane i travelled in but the Air NZ plane has great artwork...especially appreciated by hobbits

more photos to follow...shortly...honest!

Monday 9 March onwards

all I seem to do is apologise for not keeping the blog up to date.  Some nights it is so slow and I lose everything. It is currently Friday 13 March so I will bring you up to date.
Monday 09 March
Weather again not very good so I decided to head up to WAITOMO CAVES arrived late afternoon by which time the weather had improved.  The local tourist information bureau told me there was a general store beside the campsite (36kms round trip from the nearest town) but this was not the case.
Dined on pot noodle, cheese on toast and an apple, this is living. Nice forest walk before dinner..on the flat for a change.
Tuesday 10 March
Took the three cave tour to view the underground rivers and gloworms who inhabit the ceiling of the caves.  Each of the caves was completely different...great day, even when on a boat undergoround in complete darkness and silence except for the gloworms and someone trumped. in an aluminium boat the noise was immense. Great evening cooking on the bbq with Germans and Dutch and of course beer.
Wednesday 11 March
Drove from WAITOMO to Whangerei which is north of Auckland
A largish town by NZ standards but with a bit of character and a spectacular and accessible  waterfall near the campsite.  Another nice night on the bbq with South africans and german farmers.
Thursday 12 March
Had a easy little drive of 87kms although nearly got killed by the stupidity of a Japanese/Korean/Chinese eejit.  NZ has a lot of three lane sections to allow overtaking slower vehicles so this eejit who had been toddling along at 50kph on the two lane road puts the foot down of the three lane section making it hard for everyone to overtake.  Poor ETTIE did not have the oomph so I didn,t bother to make the attempt and slowed to sit behind him when he slams on the brakes just as we return to the two lane section.  I managed to stop in time but the logger behind had no chance, fortunately for me there was nothing coming the other way and after some gear crunching he went past me instead of through me.  There are international gestures which are understood by the orientals.  There has been road  rage by the locals at foreign tourists...now I know why.
Final destination was Russell in the bay of islands area... Great site so staying on for two nights
Dined out on pizza to be served by a young girl from Portree who worked in the hotel I stayed at when attending cruise ships...even smaller world.
Friday 13 March
There is a tropical storm incoming but the weather is good today so decided to get the van in shape for handing back on Sunday and started packing (10 mins) ...a nice little forest walk to a remote beach then a ferry across the bay to a larger town...a nice chilling day.
Got my final two nights Sunday and Monday accommodation sorted though had to pay a premium as there are very few free rooms because of everything that is happening over the weekend...Eagles in concert, a wine festival on waiheke Island
That's all for now folks

Well possums...once more apologies for not updating the blog for the last two days...things have not gone as planned.  The weather has been horrendous constant heavy rain and high winds.  Schools were closed and some major roads had landslips. I drove up to glacier country to see the Fox glacier or the Franz Joseph glacier. I drove up over hill (or maybe mountain) passes ETTIE did not like these but managed by consuming immense amount of petrol.  When I got to both parking areas I was met by wardens/rangers who advised that unless you were fully geared up with hill walking foul weather gear and pokes it was not advisable and that they were restricting access to to further east viewpoint unless people were taking the expert guided tours. I reckoned the best thing to do in these conditions was to drive on so I put in a full nine hour day to the west coast highway.   Even in the hostile conditions it was a beautiful drive up to GREYMOUTH campsite which was on the beach beside a runway.  It rained all evening and night and spent a great night drinking with a couple from Shetland with whom we have a mutual acquaintance (small world).  Also Aussie nurses and husbands, good fun and conversation.
Next day Saturday, the forecast was much the same so decided to drive instead of sitting it out.  I headed for the East Coast toward wind country in the hope of leaving the wind and rain.   It partially worked as around 14:00 if cleared to sunshine.  During the route there are blow holes where the sea punches through rock...unfortunately didn't see them as again the weather was rain/wind and I pulled up behind two bus loads of oriental tourists so the queue was too long fo Mr. Impatient...back on the road.    I ended up in Blenheim (cloudy bay country to the wine aficionados) on a campsite beside a railway line and the main road to the north Island ferry...so around three hourly intervals the freight trucks passed going north or South interspersed by freight trains....not having much luck the last two days with ferries.
Having put in two hard days drivingand cut a day from Christchurch I have three days in hand so I intend to go north of Auckland for two/three days in ETTIE....this was not in the plan.
Managed to get a Sunday morning booking on the 08:00 ferry so after a 05:00 start I arrived in Wellington at noon and headed north to a place called Whanganui.....right n the coast and although there is no rain the high ends are still here.  ETTIE doesn't like wind either....she's a dancer.
So here for the night with reasonable wifi, but it is a bit remote so it is spaghetti carbonara from a jar with additional mushrooms and bacon...with a cheeky IPA beer.   Going to have an easy night and morning and have a light driving day tomorrow ...checking out the small towns along the way....mainly beach areas.
One full week left with ETTIE before the divorce...she is high maintenance fuel wise...this country has massive ranges of fuel costs highest in Wellington was 2.18/litre and lowest was here at 1.71/litre that is NZDs divided by two for pounds.   Diesel is even cheaper about half the price of UK.
The standard of driving here is good and other drivers are very courteous ....there are of the course the testosterone fuelled young guys driving the Subaru Impreza who have their own rules.   There are a lot of doughnut circles on wider roads outside the towns....the police are trying to clamp down on this.
Will hopefully be able to update tomorrow (Monday)

QUEENSTOWN

Managed to get a decent wifi connection here in Queenstown
The journey down to queenstown was "sweet as" as the say here, magnificent scenery all the way through vineyards and alpine meadows with sheep and cows. Nothing major to report nice weather all the way and great roads at the start.  Stopped of at the ajhackett bungy site (the original) to watch around forty adrenaline fuelled youngsters committing themselves to a lump of elastic.  I reckon overall the girls were braver than the boys.   I had intended to do the zip wire but it was closed for maintenance...I have photo evidence, honest.
Queenstown is fantastic full of shops trying to take your money from you in advance of committing suicide in a variety of ways.... Bungy jumping, tandem free fall parachute, tandem para gliding, white water rafting, downhill mountain biking,  to name but a few.   I opted for the jet boat and asked the receptionist at the campsite which was the best...she recommended the most expensive which gave the least time on the water but involved a run up the sides of the SHOTOVER RIVER GORGE.  this turned out to be a single track dirt road which was constructed may years ago my gold miners.  This was not for the faint hearted especially when you encounter another vehicle coming the other way hauling a trailer of white water rafts.   The actual boat ride was about fifteen mins each way in the steepest part of the river going through water only six inches deep at some point at between 75/80 mms per hour doing sliders and three sixties to show off...didn't buy the photo but being a true scot I photographed on my iPhone someone else's (twenty dollars saved).
Whether once more starts a bit cloudy but by noon develops into a blistering hot day.  Only found out that the sun is at its worst here around 14:00...the hard way.

Again because of the young backpackers the food and drink here is reasonably priced...I ate out on fillet steak plus trimmings last night for £18.25.  Not bad and beers are £2.50

Lots of observations and social comment but I reckon the wifi is dying ...to be continued

Big drive ahead tomorrow to glacier country on the west coast

PICTON to Christchurch to Lake Tekapa

The road journey from PICTON to Christchurch was easy and uneventful...just long straight road through vineyards.  On arrival at Christchurch I went straight to the town centre which was the centre of the earthquake , it is basically a building site with building being demolished and new ones in progress.  There is an area where there are shops and restaurants operating out of freight containers, very ingenious.  Got a flavour of the place so cut my planned stay from two nights to one.  I got the last slot in the campsite and even cooked the ubiquitous spaghetti and sauce (that is what most of the young backpackers live on...so why not me)...it rained all night and I felt sorry for the kids who are camping especially the one who were moving on with a soaking wet tent.

Once I eventually found my way out of Christchurch in the rush hour I took the scenic route heading south and inland towards the mountains and the alpine region.  The intention was to go to Twizel but I stopped at Lake Tekapa which is at the base of Mount John where there is an astronomical observatory. I had hoped to take the night tour but the forecast is cloud and drizzle.  I decided to walk up to the summit...there are two tracks...one takes two hours at a gentle stroll or the other is a one hour lung wrencher ...I took the one hour and when I reach the top I find that I could have driven up...probably best that I walked up as ETTIE doesn't do hills too well.
The pitch on the campsite is fantastic overlooking the lake which is turquoise blue and flat calm.
I hear it is snowing in Scotland .. It was a lovely day here with a high of 24C.
Onward to Queenstown tomorrow and I and one day ahead of schedule
Will post pics as soon as I get a decent wifi signal

More photos

More photos
Yes the lake was that colour

HUKA falls

PiICTON

The ferry crossing was smooth as anything the final hour consists of weaving up fjord like coastline with some spectacular views...good value for money at £86 for car / driver on a 3.5 hour crossing.

PICTON is the ferry terminal for the South Island...most people just drive through here but it is a very picturesque wee place.  There are a lot of care home and sheltered accommodation so I reckon it is a place people come to spend the rest of their days...they could do worse.   Have taken the day off with no driving so found a campsite about five minutes walk to the centre.  The intention is to seek out the green lipped mussels everyone raves about.  

I have been getting a conscience about not doing enough and it seems like hard work...I even referred to the van as the office (Freudian slip) during a conversation with home the other day.  I need to relax more and come to terms with the fact that I will not be able to do everything I want.   The main object is Queenstown where all the adrenalin stuff happens but there will be no bungy jumping for me....but I have a plan for some stuff if the back holds up.

I intend to drive in the direction of Christchurch tomorrow (Monday) on the coast road but if anywhere takes my fancy I will stop over.
Here are some photos from the past three days since the geothermal park
I can only upload photos from the iPad and then only when the wifi is up to it
Not sure if the will all upload as I may have exceeded my quota

Lake Taupo to Napier / Hastings / Wellington

On the journey down from Lake Taupo there was  an horrendous accident involving a car/trailer with a wagon and drag logger. There were three cars with stock cars on trailers in convoy...one of them decided to overtake his mates and didn't make it he was embedded into the side of the logger's trailer .
The driver died and the passenger was helical to hospital.  The road was closed for three hours whilst the police carried out their investigations.. When I passed the scene I saw the car with the front end compressed into the body..   I could not get into the campsite at Napier because I was late in arriving and therefore kept going to Hastings. A one horse town and the shot the horse.  Because the is Hawkes Bay wine country there are loads of immigrant workers, seasonally employed.  They were hanging about the deserted town centre at night, no one else, no locals... Did not feel safe.
There were signs in the campsite warning visitors to lock up securely at night...glad to be away.
Next day the journey from Hastings to Wellington was straight forward..through some fantastic scenery,in particular gorges. Unfortunately there is no stopping permitted and no viewing places, so no photos. I found a camp area five minutes drive from the ferry terminal and with a bus stop into town at the end of the driveway...sorted.   I went into Wellington city centre which was heaving (Saturday) with shoppers.  This capital city is compact with shops taking up most of the city centre.
I was attracted by noises from a bar and of course had to investigate...the cricket was on the TVs with the black caps (NZs) anhialating the Aussie batsmen.  Really getting into the cricket.
The wifi is very poor and even where I have to pay for it the speed is so slow...hence the lack of photos and blog posts.  If it cannot be saved at the time it is lost forever
Currently sitting on the ferry to the South Island which is similar to the Stranraer to Larne ferry except there is a school of Dolphins exciting a group of German girls...you don't get that in the Irish Sea.  Next door they are showing the movie Frozen ...I now reckon I known the words to the song.
I am keeping this brief as I am not sure I can get it saved...watch this space.

LAKE TAUPO ou

This was a good decision to break the journey here.  On the way I stopped at a geothermal park which has a geyser called Lady Knox which blows at 10:15 everyday...whilst sitting there waiting for the big event one of my neighbours commented that it was amazing that this happened at the same time everyday.  Myself (Mr cynical) and a German guy both came to the conclusion that there was someone underneath stoking the boilers...not quite, but at 10:15 Along comes this kiwi guy with a bag of "stuff" and explains how this happens.
Approx every twenty fours hours the two chambers beneath build enough pressure to give off a spout...to encourage this reaction he stuffs the bag of surfactant (similar to detergent) down the hole and stands back.  After about two minutes the geyser erupts for about another two minutes...the audience fight for the best photo positions and the Japanese win with the Germans a close second and the Aussies in bronze medal position.  The Brits were too well mannered to offend anyone so got the worst photos.  This park called WAI-O-TAPU is a must and good value...I spent about three hours here although I got lost with four young German girls who were following me because I looked as though I knew where I was going...silly girls.   Next stop on the journey down from rotorua to Taupo was HUKA FALLS quite a spectacular water fall not high but very rapid through a narrow gorge, similar to Niagara after the main falls.   There is a jet boat which performs crazy manoeuvres right up to the final cascade and people pay good money (£57.50) for the pleasure.  I'm saving mine for the South Island where there is scarier one.
Once again a nice easy days driving in ETTIE with good weather until around 18:00.
I checked in to a TOP 10 Holiday Park...it is massive but only 50%full at the most.  The facilities are excellent...the kitchen in particular is both spotlessly clean and modern.   Once more I wondered about the culinary expertise of these campervan people.  There was a Vietnamese woman cooking up Duck with Pakistan choi and other veg in a wok for her husband and son.  An English woman was cooking lamb chops with crushed garlic potatoes and broccoli with a home made mint sauce using the herbs from the camp garden.  I was dining on frankfurter sausages and beans on toast., eaten out of the pot to save on the washing up.   I will have to rethink this cooking idea as I had the preconceived notion that campervan people roughed it...not true.
FLIES...I didn't mentions this subject earlier but as you may know the NZs are paranoid (and rightly so) about any foreign beasties or plant diseases getting into the country.
When I was in Auckland a fruit fly was discovered in a suburb, so they locked down the whole neighbourhood, not permitting any vegetable matter in or out.  They set traps and caught three of his mates...job done?
When I was in rotorua the first night I made the mistake of leaving the light on in van with the door open...party time for the LAKE FLIES, in they came and refused to leave...I ended up with the portable light outside to attract them out, this worked on around 90% but there is always the hardcore party animals who stay until the end...most of them died after being swiped by the dish towel.  They didn't bite me but my South African neighbours got more than there share.  Before I came away from Scotland I bought AVON "skin so soft" which as guys at Finnsrt oil terminal will testify to keeps the little chaps at bay. Our midgies are bigger than the NZs cousins.  A young guy from Texas told me not use it all up as the sand flies in the south are more ferocious and do give severe bites, I may need it.
That is all for tonight, the gentle thumping of the rain on the roof of the van is quite soothing and it is nearly 22:00...time for sleep.
No time to proof read this as the wifi connection is poor and I'm afraid I might lose all this rambling.

ROTORUA

there is so much to do here but so little time.  I went up on the cable car to the top of the local mountain.  They have various mountain bike runs (not for the faint hearted) plus zip lines and roller luge runs.   I settled for the roller luge and did five runs each 3/4 mins.  After each run you go back up on a chair lift...the weather was a pleasant 22/24 degrees so the lift back up was really welcome.
Thought about the zip wire and then read all the exclusions etc. so reckoned the old back might not take it...maybe I'm just chicken.  Went to a geyser / Maori reserve and whilst standing in the queue I heard two families describe it as a waste of money...so about turn. Because of this I have decided to change my itinerary and instead of heading to NAPIER tomorrow I will go to Lake Taupo and stop off at a geological park which has a geyser that goes off every day a 10:15.  I all probably cut my time in NAPIER back to one night.  Apologies for the lack of photos I cannot upload photos  from my Nikon or Olympus to the iPad and need to rely on my iPhone.  Will try to get more.
Dining out again tonight as the campsite tomorrow is a bit remote and I will probably end up with beans on toast.   The professional tourers that you meet seem to cook just the same as at home...I saw a woman the other night construct a beef lasagne for six from scratch.
I find everyone very helpful no matter what age or nationality...they are eager to give tips and advise on what to see. If I took it all in I would need six months minimum.   I am going to change the way I planned to do things...I will now try to do something at place where I overnight before travelling on.
I can the get something done late afternoon at the destination.  I was worried about the campsites being full but I am assured by all the travellers that the high season is over and there should be vacancies.
That is it for today...it is nearly five o'clock ...early to bed tonight.

ETTIE the campervan

a bit foreboding compared with some of the others I have seen

Campervan day one

Auckland to Coromandel peninsula
Picked up the campervan on Sunday morning at 09:30. They all have names and this one is called ETTIE, I will get a photo on the blog shortly. She is an old bone shaker with over 420,000 kilometres on the clock. Unfortunately she is automatic and doesn't like the hills, either that or I cannot drive one very well. The journey was painless I got directions out of Auckland from the concierge at the hotel and then picked up the signposts for the coromandel peninsula..simples.  The roads after you leave the main highways are not the best...a bit like like Skye after a hard winter.  When I left the main roads it was very much like being in Skye, the high passes, the bikers (hundreds) and the old grey haired dude (me) driving the campervan at 45/50 mph.  The only difference is all the lush foliage at the side of the road...I can see why they want to adopt the FERN as their flag symbol.  I stopped briefly at two towns enroute, THAMES & COROMANDEL TOWN for comfort breaks and to investigate if I could stock up with provisions ..no success.  I crossed over the peninsula via a steep mountain pass to the larger town of WHITIANGA (pronounced FITIANGER) where there are two large supermarkets, so I am stocked up with essentials,they sell STELLA ARTOIS but I opted for TSINGTAO as it was a better deal.  I then drove round to the other side of the bay about twenty minutes away by road but around five mins by water taxi if you are on foot.   This is where I spent the night at COOKS BEACH RESORT...this is an upmarket campsite with loads of facilities and the kitchen / ablution areas are immaculate.  If the future one turn out to be like this I will be sorted.
Sorted out the van and went to the local chippie which is run by a Glaswegian Woman who has been here for twenty one years...the clue was in the the name of the shop"FRYING SCOTSMAN".  Hoki and chips = £3.90 the best bargain I have had since I arrived.
OBSERVATION...they have extremely strict controls on booze here and the onus is on the pub manager or supermarket supervisor (who must be named on a board) to be responsible for the customer.  Example: I was in a bar watching England getting cuffed at cricket when this young oz guy (24) came in to enjoy the spectacle.  Because he only had an Austrailian driving licence with him to substantiate his age he could not be served.  He would have needed his passport to prove his age.
The bar manager must not serve you if you are drunk.  The pubs in Falkirk would be out of business within a week if this was applied at home.   When alcohol is purchased from the supermarket the checkout operator needs the supervisor to sign off on age and sobriety (I passed on both counts)

The first night was relatively comfortable, a couple of tweaks and I should have this sorted. The sound of the continuous rain on the roof is quite comforting .
Still waking up at 05:30 same as at home...
Will get a photo on the blog of ETTIE once it is light.

I maybe should have practiced more before I cam on my trip. As it has rained today I reckon I have now cracked it, so here are the trial photos assuming I do not break my upload allowance
The pub and the sky tower

Auckland

Auckland is a very modern city...I did the ubiquitous bus tour which was poor quality when compared with those I have done in other major cities.  there is not a lot to see here except to walk around and absorb the atmosphere. I reckon it would be good to go offshore to the surrounding islands but the queues for the trips have been enormous or full charters caused by cruise vessel passengers. There has been a cruise vessel in each day since I have been here.   The food though is fantastic if you like Japanese/ Chinese/ Thai (which I do)
I find everything here expensive by comparison to Scotland even although the rate of exchange at 2NZD to the pound is quite good
The weather on Thursday was bright and sunny with the temperature in the mid twenties but today (Friday) it has been overcast with rain showers. I had planned to go up the sky tower but when the visibility is not good it would be a waste of money. There is a jump off for £110 which is a controlled descent from about the same height as the Eiffel tower but don't think the back would take it.  Will leave all this adrenalin stuff for later on.  In the apartment at the moment creating this post with the TV on...the programmes are virtually the same afternoon rubbish that is on our channels at home.
I don,t reckon I will be watching afternoon tv when I commence my semi retirement .
This city reminds me of Toronto so much they even have the same type of "plastic" banknotes in NZ as they do in Canada.
I can see what people see in living here, the climate and the outdoor lifestyle.
I cannot wait to get my camper van and have been to the hire company to sus out the vans as they all have different paint jobs.
Not much else to report or comment upon at the moment will post again tomorrow before my current wifi subscription runs out.

The journey: Scotland to NZ

For all you followers who have been waiting for the scintillating details of my adventure so far, I need to apologise as the WiFi has been dodgy on the journey and on arrival. This is first time I have been able to get things working using my own iPhone as a hotspot...right here we go with a condensed version so far
The journey Glasgow / Dubai / Melbourne / Auckland took well over 30 hours. The flight from Glasgow was delayed by some oil rig worker (Scottish) throwing his teddy out of the cot because he was in the wrong seat ...he was trying to get upgraded onboard but it did not work delayed aircraft by 45 mins and subsequently missed the slot.  Dubai airport is awesome the size of a large shopping mall but because of the delay in arriving did not have time to fully look around...will leave this for the return journey.  The next leg from DUBAI to Melbourne was the longest I have ever sat in the one place at least I had good neighbours a young Dutch girl and an Irish guy (same age as me). The final leg Melbourne to Auckland was delayed awaiting the arrival another flight with a load of pax for the flight.  I am surprised that I did not catch something onboard as all the other old people were coughing and sneezing.  Did not get more than three by 20 minute snoozes mainly because some Middle Eastern child repeated "fasten your seat belts" for periods of five minutes plus every time the pilot switched the sign on, and there was lot of turbulence over the equatorial region. The 380 (double decker) is a fantastic aircraft so I can see why the eejit wanted to get upgraded to first class.
On arrival Auckland immigration was exceptionally fast because I still have an old style non chipped passport.  The q for the chipped was over 100 but for me 5.  The customs  though were something else...I fortunately declared my chocolate as when they X-rayed the bag it was noticed and they swabbed my bag interior for drugs.  They are paranoid about anything coming into the country to contaminate their environment.  There was one guy getting grief for having a dirty pair of old walking boots which were going to be destroyed.  I did not give much hope for the carton on the luggage carousel which was labelled Gaunchou beef company.

Set off from Glasgow at 21:30 on Monday 16th and arrived at my hotel in Auckland at 17:00 local time on Wednesday 18th...quite a marathon...checked in straight out for a beer and a burger and bed for 12 hours straight.
Reckon I might have an issue with adding a photo here and I therefore don't want to lose this dialogue
So I will close and publish this and update things later.
DavidH

Saturday..14-FEB-15
apologies
I have not been on this blog for some time as I have been busy at work for the final last full time working week. I have a couple of things to do at work over the weekend and then Monday morning to finalise the full time job.   When I return to work (23Mar15)  I am on reduced days 2/3 per week and believe it or not I am looking forward to this.  Anyway I am not thinking about this for the next 5 weeks.
 I am just waiting for the EMIRATES web-site to open to allow the on-line check-in to take place.  The bag is packed (22kgs), the cameras are all charged, the KINDLE is charged, the (2) mobile phones are ready and the i-pad is in the rufty-tufty protective case (Amazon state this is military grade)...reckon I'm ready to go at a moments notice. 
The post Christmas weight did NOT come off as planned and therefore the large waisted trousers have been deployed.  This is mainly due to the enormous amount of eating I have done over the last two weeks.
I do not want you followers to get your expectations up about the quality of the material you will see on this blog.  There will be a lot of photos of food (this is to annoy the guys in the office who think it is naff to do this) and boring selfies (I have stick - courtesy of my daughter)
I have always been fascinated by NZ because of the variety of the topography of the country.  There are not many countries in this world who have Volcanos, Glaciers, Geysers and Alpine mountains.
the other reasons for wanting to do this is that I have never been to the Southern Hemisphere where the night sky is different from us up in the North.
I have looked at numerous bogs from professionals and seasoned travellers who fired up my courage to ask my wife's permission to go on this odyssey but the one that inspired me was that of a young American girl who quoted C.S. Lewis "you are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream" and I then thought, why not I am going to go for this.
The dream is now going to be a reality so watch this space for how it develops..speak to you soon
[there will be photos if i can master the technology]
DavidH

This is the second post, which is now being done by yours truly (the Sheep is not IT literate).  I have been allowed by my sainted wife Lynne (and not so sainted daughter Heather) to go on my gap period (31 days) between retiring and commencing semi-retirement.  This will not be a fantastic, exciting blog that you can see on seasoned traveller's professional blogs.  This will be a record of the build up and the actual odyssey to keep my friends (?) and family up to date with my progress. For those who don't know the details...here goes.

I will finish work on Friday 13th. February (lucky for some) and I fly out from Glasgow on Monday 16th February on the EMIRATES daily flight to Dubai where I catch an EMIRATES A380 (the big double decker) to AUCKLAND (via Melbourne).  I will have a few days in Auckland to recover from the 27 hours travelling and see the sights.  I have hired an old style "hippie" Campervan (no toilet) for 3 weeks with the intention of travelling the length of NZ North and South Islands.  The itinerary is all planned but is also flexible.  After this I have 3 days to recuperate and maybe wash, if I need it...the intention is to go North to the most Northerly point in NZ.  Then it is back home the reverse way except this time I have a 9 hour stopover in Dubai and EMIRATES kindly provide an hotel for the stay.  That is it for now...will elaborate on some of the finer points before take-off in the next 2 weeks and 2 days...meantime if any one has tips or input please let me know. 

we're going to NZ

This is SHUGGY...the old dude (to be named later) has decided to retire. From leaving work to putting his feet up he has decided to go on a gap period of 30 days to NEW ZEALAND.  I will accompany him as a mascot and companion.

This is me SHUGGY the sheep (handsome ain't I).  I was bought for the old dude's daughter about 15 years ago.  I reckon I am wearing quite well...whadya think?  He thought it would be good to take me along as there are a lot of sheep in NZ...any way this is my first post on the blog so I am still learning...next is the i-pad.
THREE WEEKS TO GO  until take off...will keep you updated on the progress and details as it occurs.