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Sunday, May 7, 2017

Home Again

After our two week trip we have made it home, safe and sound.  Always a bit of a worry with big trucks and crazy drivers on the road.  There were several scary moments – one was when a big truck came hurtling towards us, encroaching on our side of the road on a blind corner as we drove around a steep bluff.  And later, when the car behind us overtook us on a double yellow line, not knowing what was ahead. 

At Otorohanga we spotted this gorgeous Kiwi on the edge of the town.   Otorohanga is known as Kiwi Town and has been very successful in breeding our national bird in the Kiwi House and National Bird Centre.

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Welcome to Otorohanga

It was rather special when we visited the Blue and Green Lakes at Rotorua.  Would you believe that we were last standing on the lookout on the narrow isthmus separating these  two lakes on our honeymoon, all those years ago, when we did an all day trip taking in some of Rotorua’s scenic delights.

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On the isthmus – look this way for the Blue lake, and that way for the Green Lake

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At the lookout

As we left Lake Taupo on our way home, we stopped at the top of the hill so I could take photograph Mt Ruapehu and Mt Ngauruhoe looking as picturesque as ever across Lake Taupo.  It’s no secret that I love looking at the mountains, and Robin often ask me just how many photos I need to take of them.  What a question – as many as I can!

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Mt Ruapehu and Mt Ngauruhoe looking across Lake Taupo

I’m rather pleased that I found some spare time to stitch the last two blocks of my Christmas ABC blocks, designed by Michelle Ridgeway from her series Alphabet Noel.  I’ve stitched “Y is for Yule Log”, and “Z is for zzzing”.  I’ll be stitching four more blocks to give me a total of 30, then I can put my Christmas blocks together.  But as far as my knitting goes, I’m feeling a bit “bah humbug” about it.  After knitting away merrily as we traveled here and there, I discovered that I misread the shaping instructions.  All my own fault of course, but I’ll need to sit somewhere quiet and sort out what needs to be done.

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Y and Z blocks completed

As to be expected, I did my fair share of visiting laundromats,  some commercial ones and others at Motor Camps.  In my scheme of things, holiday or not, the laundry must get done!

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It’s laundry day again

Now we are home again, it’s time to catch up on things and reflect on our trip.  Actually, we will be away again before we know it, hitching up the van again next Friday.  Not a long trip this time, only for the weekend.  But before we go, I’m itching to “roll the dice” again on Monday morning, and get into some more sewing.

4 comments:

Jocelyn is Canadian Needle Nana said...

Love your blocks and extra special that they were stitched while on holdiay. How fun for you to return to the honeymoon lake site...all so pretty.

Razzle Dazzle Quilter said...

Ha ha my family asks me the same questions about photos of the mountains. I can't stop taking them.

Nancy J said...

To think I drove past that isthmus for years, on my way to work at Rotorua Hospital ( as it was named then), and we lived a little further on almost at the very end of Spencer Road looking over Lake Tarawera.When we first lived there, at night I could count 5 homes with lights!!!! Now it is so expensive to buy there, and so many more living permanently. The mail and the school bus came only to The Buried Village!!! So glad you had safe ( but scary in parts ) travels and are home again.As a blog friend says " Jiggity Jig".

Tired Teacher said...

I take a LOT of mountain photos, too. I love the mountains.

Seeing your photos of your area gives me the urge to travel. Your area is gorgeous!