Sun Dec 15
The trip started off a little bumpy with confiscated sunscreen in Maui, Air New Zealand serving dinner at 1AM rather than letting passengers sleep and no one in the family getting much sleep. We concluded that starting a trip with a red-eye isn't the best idea. We landed around 8AM and decided to go with the bigger rental car. It had built in GPS which proved useful throughout the trip.
We successfully drove on the left hand side and made it to Devonport and found our lodging. Our hosts Jennifer and Graham were very nice and pulled out some toys for the boys. The apartment was right across the street from a large park and maybe 150m from the beach, so it was quite conveniently located. Despite the lack of sleep, the boys had plenty of energy and went over to the park and played soccer, climbed trees, played cricket and flew Graham's balsa gliders.
I hit the wall at about 1PM and declared it nap time. After nap, we explored the town and went shopping at New World for supplies. Finn found the gummy pythons and was very excited. We brought our shopping supplies back from the store and had a picnic in the park. We had a simple pasta dinner and an early bed time, although it was quite difficult to go to sleep since it stayed light past 9PM.
Mon Dec 16
I went for a jog through the park and the attached golf course and neighboring parks. I found nice views out over the headlands and over the tidal swamps. I asked a local about activities and he recommended the tunnels on North Head.
Once the rest of the family was up and fed, we grabbed the cardboard that Graham had put out for us and drove to the top of Mount Victoria. Finn hopped right on and had some good rides down the grassy knoll. I gave it a go, but it was pretty bumpy and a tad rocky for old bones. Ty enjoyed towing the cardboard back up the hill for Finn's next run.
On the way home we headed to North Head to explore the defense tunnels. It was pretty interesting and the boys enjoyed climbing on the various cannons and guns.
After a mediocre lunch in town and some quick down-time, we headed out for a low tide beach walk. Laura was able to show me the house she had found to buy. :-) We aborted at the rocky outcropping and turned the hike into a beach swim. It was a little chilly, but we had fun with the water football and a wrestling game.
We (the adults at least) took a quick nap and then went on a hike to the fort that was about half a mile away. The boys were acting up and decided to stay home and play in the park. We found them playing nicely in the park and joined in. We all headed over to the the beach for some play time with the soccer ball. Then a mellow pasta dinner, a little bit of local television (we found a talent and a magician show) and then off to bed for a good night of sleep.
Tomorrow we are off to the Coromandel Peninsula.
Devonport
Sunday, December 15, 2013
Devonport, North Island, New Zealand
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