Easter Weekend in Napier

 You know what it's like when you set off on holiday - you seem to have all the time in the world and then it's all over.  We were attending our caravan club rally in Napier, with plenty of plans, people to see, things to do, plus a little shopping.  It didn't all fall nicely into place though.  On my "must do list" was a visit to Skeinz, a local company which spins their own wool.  I had found a pretty 6ply cardigan pattern for myself and was after some yarn.   Of course there were several lovely colours available, but I couldn't resist this soft blue, nice and squishy in big 100gr balls.  Call me predictable but I really can't go past blue.

A new garment for me

My other purchase there was a ball of knitting cotton in a nice burgundy shade.  I'll be knitting a couple of cotton dishcloths for the caravan from this, our caravan upholstery is in this colourway.  Not that it really matters just for a dishcloth or two, but whatever makes me happy, I guess.

I can see a couple of dishcloths coming

My other purchase was a tea towel for the caravan, very cute I thought.

We had a busy five days in Napier, and had planned to meet up with my late sister's daughter Lisa and her adult children one day for lunch.  Sadly that didn't go as planned as Lisa was sick and the lunch date was cancelled.  But we slotted in a lunch with our caravan friends at Silky Oak, a wonderful chocolate cafe instead.

Robin enjoying his iced chocolate

We took our caravan buddies Helen and Owen to Birdwoods, a "new to them place".  There is a lovely little cottage on site and we had often mentioned this cutest little lolly shop to them.  Oh no, they said, we are not buying any lollies! And guess who walked out the door with a bag full, firmly clutched in his hands?   We were in need of a coffee after all this excitement, so went into the rather posh Birdwoods cafe.  We were escorted to our table, and a friendly young waitress came and took our order.  We noticed a group of ladies partaking in High Tea with the gorgeous tiered tray full of delectable morsels.  But when we inquired the cost per person, we gulped and decided no, it would have to be a really special occasion to warrant that price.

Jenny, Robin, Owen and Helen

Another morning we went to the local market.  What a crowd there was, families with kids, people with dogs and plenty of golden oldies like us.  My aim was to purchase some fresh seasons apples, found them easily enough.  Then we did some cheese tasting, and three lots of cheese jumped into our bag.  Some nice fresh bread rolls for our lunch, and some beef from the meat stall, and that was our lot.  We came away feeling quite pleased with our purchases.

Farmers Market

Our caravan club members shared Easter Buns for Afternoon Tea one day, and Easter Eggs another day.  And I'm pleased to report that the Easter Bunny tracked us down in the caravan to deliver a delicious Lindt Golden Bunny to us both.

One for him, and one for me

Gemma had a fine old time relaxing with us outside the caravan when the weather allowed, firmly contained with her harness and lead, of course.  She loves popping into any open lockers she can find, here she is checking out Owen's locker, which was handily left open.  

Wonder what is in here?

Napier City suffered a devastating earthquake in February 1931, with 256 deaths and many thousands injured.  The city was levelled, and fires burned in the city for 36 hours before finally dying out.  The sea floor and beach rose 2.7m and the present Napier Airport  stands on land which was once part of a lagoon.  When Napier was rebuilt, the streets were widened, services improved, and the building style used was Art Deco.  Napier has a world renowned collection of Art Deco buildings.

National Tobacco Company building in the Art Deco style

This row of houses, known as the Six Sisters, are among the few survivors of the 1931 earthquake.  They were built by an architect who wanted a two storey house for each of his daughters.   Some of the  houses are now owned by commercial businesses, with a few  reverting back into family homes.

The Six Sisters

 

As Monday afternoon wore on I started to feel unwell, coughing, sneezing, head aches, I was certainly coming down with something.  We left for home a day early, and after helping unpack the caravan, I fell into bed.  Youve guessed it, I had caught the dreaded Covid.  After several years of feeling rather smug that we had never succumbed, it had now caught up with us.  Robin tested positive a couple of days later, and neither of us feel quite so smug now.  To be honest, my ribs are so painful with all the coughing, not pleasant at all.  So we will be staying home for the next week or so, rearranging appointments, and resting up.