The Randfields Down Under

All Good Things Come to an End

2010-04-25T08:10:00.002+12:00

Lazy times in Big Sur were clouded by worry about whether the ash cloud would disperse in time for our rescheduled flight. We had fun finding our way to the central car drop off in San Fran in rush hour, and abandoned it to somebody somewhere in an anonymous multistory carpark. Hotel del Sol looked after us for the last 2 nights, a bit of a misnomer as it was now cool and cloudy with showers. However we were in a great spot in Marina, close to the beach , and running distance to the Golden Gate Bridge. The morning after arriving we went off to tour round Alcatraz, made very lifelike by the fantastic audio commentry which had everyone tiptoeing around, with only the occasional, sudden noise and reverberation of one of the cell doors being slammed shut. We heard tales of the escape attempts and felt some empathy, trapped as we were on the wrong continent.
We briefly explored some of the fantastic street art murals in the Mission, significantly seedier than the centre of town. We rode up and down the millions of hills on trams from a bygone era, and found, at last, quality cafes. We liked San Fran, and it gave a nice end to our trip.

We were lucky and ,although delayed by 5 hours, our flight left that night and we emerged bleary eyed in London Heathrow. So excited to see a WHSmiths, British Newspapers, Polos,
Glasgow transfer and home at midnight, far too excited for that time of night.

A pile of shopping,washing and chores awaits us. Despite this its good to be home.

photos - Buckskin Gulch, Zion

2010-04-18T15:38:00.007+12:00

Buckskin Gulch

Zion- Angel's Landing

Not for the vertiginous

A long way down!

Los Angeles- and North

2010-04-18T12:57:00.004+12:00

Well our stay in LA was lengthened some what by the unfortunate turn of events and has been rather overshadowed by long periods spent holding on the phone trying to contact various airlines but we have still managed a few outings, although we have barely scratched the surface. We basically limited ourselves to Hollywood and its environs. Fortunately the Hotel was able to extend our stay and was central enough to make brief forrays out between phone sessions.

Highlights? Universal Studios was great. The \2behind the scenes" studio tour was good , the queues were short and the rides were fun. We found enough memorabilia from recent films to excite the kids and a good time was had by all. The surrounding marketing paraphernalia is a bit overwhelming but I suppose that is to be expected. With our extra time we even went back for a second visit and braved the rollercoaster. Although Californians are noteably fitter and leaner than their countrymen, no thanks should be given to the influential studios- offering bargain all you can eat day passes to children. Yuk! Mind you, if you can keep an all you can eat buffet down on some of those rides...

The other major thing which we did was a tour of the movie stars’ homes which the kids enjoyed although there were a stack whom they had not heard of. Highlights for them - Simon Cowells, Michael Jackson’s (where he died) and Elvis’s houses. Also a lot of noteable modern history- OJs bid for freedom, John Belushis and River Phoenix's od spots. Places of indiscresion for Hugh Grant and George Michael ( no, put the phone down, not together!) I was quite taken aback by the number of very large properties which were owned by other people - presumably peripherally involved in the movies….a lot of wealth out there. In one sense it seems strange that these vastly wealthy high profile stars actually live in houses , rather than space ships or private islands. On the other hand, why wouldnt you see Paris Hilton out walking her dog? (A. the dog walks her)
Despite the chance of rubbing shoulders with the rich and famous at the poopascoop dispenser, we were keen to get out of LA and explore , rather than sit around and mope about delayed flights (and Man City loosing the derby in extra time- again!). With no work to race home for we should really see this as a great opportunity- though whether the insurance company will see it that way is a different thing...

Guess what spiderman

is saying to spiderman....

the strange things you see

on the streets of LA

So onwards, Bladerunner like, escaping from LA. We have hired another beast of a car and are "on the road" heading up the coast road towards Big Sur and San Fran. The driving is easy and after a brief sojourn "Sideways" through Santa Barbara winelands, we have stopped in Morro Bay at the sea overnight. The scenery is greener and the surf is impressive. (Helen's) My motivation for marathon training is a bit shaky and I need to pull my finger out. I can’t see me doing and long runs but should keep things ticking over….

Adieu…..

Good Luck Runs Out -Randfield's given extra week for good behaviour!

2010-04-17T13:03:00.003+12:00

Most of you will probably already know, but a volcano in Iceland errupted recently, causing ash to blow around Europe and stopping all flights in and out of the UK. This was very bad news for us, as we were all looking forward to flying home after four months abroad.

Our flight, NZ002 from LAX (Los Angeles) to LHR (London Heathrow), was due to leave at around 1630 on the 15th April 2010.

Dad started up the laptop and loaded the internet. Our homepage is BBC.co.uk. They had ALL the details....

We spent most of our morning phoning airlines and checking the internet for details. The internet told us our 'Basic Rights' and stuff. When Mum finally got through to Air New Zealand, they didnt follow any of the rights. Apparently, those were only for European airlines. The next available flight from LA was on the 22nd April. A WEEK away. Our hearts sank. This was a disaster.

Anyway, the outcome was..
Mum managed to find an earlier flight from San Francisco (up the coast). Departs a day earlier (21st April).Dad found out about car hires and now I think we've confirmed hire and are going to drive to San Fran. Ewen and I got over it and are accepting that we will miss a week of school (YESSSS!) and will also have to wait till we see our good friends again ( :( ).

Kerry

2010-04-16T14:49:00.006+12:00

Canyons Canyons and More Canyons

We woke to clear blue skies but ice on the ground and a chilly wind. Helen forced ¾ of the troops out for an early morning run. She found some great tracks in the woods- great until you spotted the coyote tracks (and god know what else).
5 miles up the road the endless flat plateau suddenly dropped away into the Grand Canyon. Awesome doesn’t do it justice. Big isn’t big enough. Vast. Perhaps that’s the word. The Canyon swallows up the view in front, to the left and to the right – and down. Down , down and more down. Somewhere , a whole vertical mile beneath us , the River Colorado grinds away relentlessly. Its best imagined as a canyon within a canyon, the inner canyon, so steep sided that you cant see the river from most rim views, is itself bigger than most canyons you will have seen.
We took the free rim shuttle bus and walked 7 miles back to the start. Each turn gave a different viewpoint. The sun was warm but it continued to fight a battle with the cold wind. The views were stupendous and constantly improving as the sun started to drop and the depth(!!) improved.
After a fairly lengthy walk time was getting on so we decided (not too popular at first) to hang around for sunset. The temperature dropped again but we found an observation point which allowed a small rise in core temp before braving the views again. Boy was it worth it. The expansive views got more and more colourful as the sun set and the shadows lengthened. It was quite awe-inspiring.

Day 2 in GC and we had opted to walk down into the canyon. All of the signposts tell you not to underestimate the distance and that walking down in summer can be particularly hazardous but we thought we would go and see how far we got. Simon opted for another early start and caught sunrise and ran down and back for an hour and a half. Not all the way but a good way down so we were hopeful that we would make it a good way down too. The weather was chilly again so we waited until the sun was into the top of the canyon a bit and set off – thick compacted ice covered parts of the well-made track down from the rim.

The track weaved its way unrelentingly downwards – 1.5m resthouse, 3m resthouse and down to the Indian Garden. We had hoped to make it to Plateau Point from where we should have been able to see into the inner canyon but we too had underestimated the time it would take and were down at Indian garden still 20mins from Plateau Point but after 3 hours walking with a daunting climb back up yet to come. As the signs says – going to the bottom is optional but getting back to the top is mandatory. Hels and the kids set off back up and Si ran to Plateau Point to get a view of the Colorado river snaking its way thru the valley bottom.

There is something psychologically challenging about doing the uphill on the way back but the kids were great and we motored back to the top in record time for an ice cream and hot chocolate stop…..Going down was hard work but you definitely got a different view from within the canyon with the towering walls of the South Rim above you. Fantastic.

Just to round off Grand Canyon we did a South Rim viewpoint tour the next day on our way out. The size is unspeakable and as we drove off we passed some of the canyon from the Little Colorado River carving a convoluted route through the flat countryside. In any other position this would be a major sight but due to its position so close to Grand Canyon, you barely notice it splendid though it is.

Long straight roads heading to the shimmering horizon across barren flat desert of orange dirt took us deep into the Navajo reservation. In Tuba City we learnt about the Navajo at a museum and left as baffled as we arrived. The only thing we found out was that they have a different time zone. No matter what time zone you are in, sunset still happens when the sun goes down so as the shadows started to lengthen we found ourselves in real cowboy country- Monument Valley. Remember all those classic scenes of flat topped rock towers standing above flat barren shrub pocked dessert, with tumbleweed blowing across the road? Ok, add in John Wayne or the Malboro Man. Well there we were. Quite surreal, once again. The sun set, the temperature dropped (there’s still snow on the surrounding mountains) and we were off back to Hicksville (Kayenta). We tried hard to find some old classic westerns on DVD to put us in the mood further, but were unable to- til we realised we were in a Navajo Indian reservation, and generally the Injuns didn’t get particularly good press in those films.. Had to settle for hanging up my spurs and chewing a cheroot in the bar downstairs instead.

Another brief drive across amazing desert scenery took us to Page. Page is a new town, created in the 1950s to support a massive dam and power station. After hundreds of miles of dry nothing it was bizarre to see the huge chimneys belching out smoke and the busy western town with a golf course with lurid green fairways amongst the bare rocks. As bizarre was to see the waters of Lake Powell, created by the dam, and stretching 100miles into the distance.

We had a couple of nights in Page which gave us time to explore some ….canyons.
Firstly we visited Antelope canyon. This was on an obligatory Navajo led tour with Bonny, a feisty Navajo midget with a presence twice her size. Antelope canyon is a slot canyon- generally 1-3metres wide, cut up to 30metres deep through the sandstone. Its more akin to caving than anything else, and certainly as different a canyon to the Grand Canyon as black is to white.
The dry sandy bed made for easy walking. However we were in a party of 14 and there were several other parties there too- many specialist photography groups with massive cameras and obligatory tripods, so we were muscled through by Bonny, who had us up down this way and that to get the best photos. It was incredibly photogenic- infact the photos are possibly better than the real life- the colours are more vibrant, and you don’t have the noise and hustle of the crowds. A great trip all the same.

That afternoon we decided to hire a motorboat and explore the lake. We had already explored the slick rock of the lake shore and had discovered with a very brief skinnydip that the water temperature was not quite the Bay of Islands, but set off non the less and explored … some canyons. Firstly the lower Antelope Canyon then the adjacent Navajo Canyon. Although there was quite a wind and chop on the water, making it a little less pleasant, once again the canyons took our breath away. By this time we were feeling we’d seen and done canyons, but once again we found something different. Antelope canyon had shear rock walls of 30-50 metres , and a width of 30-10 metres- at least as far as we ventured before chickening out before our rudimentary 3 point turn in a motor boat skills could be exposed. Navajo Canyon was of a bigger scale, broader allowing some speed in the boat, but enclosed by cliffs up to 100metre high. The lake extends up these serpentine canyons begging you to go just a little bit further to see what might be revealed around the next corner…and the next .. and the next.. We just got the boat back in time.
A strange interlude happened that night. The kids went to the cinema (Diary of a Wimpy Kid) and Helen and I went out on the town by ourselves. We had some lovely sushi, but were missing the kids (..or bored of each other? I don’t think so) and soon were waiting for them to come out of the cinema. We have been together as a family so much for so long on this trip, sharing so much. I cant over-emphasize enough how this trip has been about us as a family rather than the place we have been. The exciting venues have been merely a backdrop to our family life which has grown stronger and stronger. Ok I’ll shut up now.. Where was I? Ah yes, canyons.

So we left Page and headed west- definitely into cowboy country now- indeed a lot of the Hollywood westerns were filmed around Kanab. There’s a place near here (Virgin, Utah) where having a gun is obligatory! And lots of strange polygamist sects.
Before we got there we had one last canyon to explore- Buckskin Gulch. I’d love an explanation for the name- it sounds like an area in Forrest Gump. This was another dry slot canyon, like Antelope canyon, but without the crowds. You made your own way there, firstly by 8 miles of rough roads, “barely passable” by normal vehicles. Apologies to Dollar rentacar. Then a walk along the dry stream bed and into the canyon. Once again it was phenomenal, all sorts of nooks and crannies beneath towering cliffs that in many place you could stretch across and touch with each hand.
An amazing place, well worth the exploration.

We holed up for the night in Zion Mountain Lodge and finally found a copy of The Magnificent Seven and Bonnie and Clyde to make us feel at home. The next day we explored Zion National Park, though not until Kerry and Helen went off to do their John Wayne is big leggy horse riding thing. Getting to the park required a scenic drive through rocky badlands studded with trees. Then an impressive tunnel (God Bless America etc etc again) dropped you into the valley proper where you were greeted with an impressive arena of rock walls – rather canyon-like actually. This did seem slightly different from our previous canyons as it was greener and even had a river in the bottom.
We set off walking up to Angel’s Landing. This followed a line of weakness up the rocky valley side – blasted into a half open tunnel in places- then through a side canyon, then up “Walters Wiggles” – a series of 20+ stone built zig zags to a breech on the ridge above. This gave vertiginous views down to the valley bellow, and also along the narrow fin of rock out to the peak of Angel’s Landing itself. This was extremely exposed, with chains to hold most of the way The summit was an impressive vantage point of the whole area but we could see clouds amassing down the valley and the first few spots of rain were already in the air. So we raced back down to the valley bottom as the rain increased. By the time we arrived back at the bus it was a cold wet grey afternoon- I think it used to be like that in Scotland sometimes…
As we drove back up the road to the Lodge the rain had turned to snow and by the time we arrived back there were a couple of inches lying on the ground. Now we weren’t expecting that.

The following day we headed, rather reluctantly , back to Vegas , where we had a brief overnight at Circus Circus before an early morning flight back to LA.

2010-04-11T04:43:00.002+12:00

The You Ess of Ey

Well we finally left New Zealand and headed for the “land of the free” – the USA.
After an uneventful flight with the usual lack of sleep and excess of film watching, we touched down in Los Angeles and then transferred to Las Vegas.
We were all agog looking out of the taxi window as we drove in from the airport around the back of the (in)famous Las Vegas Strip. Amongst the glittering array of shiny hotels we could pick out a medieval castle, a pyramid, the New York skyline, even the Eiffel Tower. Wow! What is this place?
We briefly settled in to our room at the Hilton then decided to hit the town. We just couldn’t wait! But first we had to negotiate the massive foyer of slot machines, roulette wheels and croupiers. We had seen nothing like it before. People of all shapes and sizes (well, mostly XXL) sat feeding the slot machines as we drifted around in a daze, almost as gormless as them. If we lingered too long a steward would appear from nowhere and advise us to move on as the kids aren’t allowed in the gambling halls (but are allowed to pass through them, which is just as well as it seems that the each Hotel resort is set out so you are funnelled through the gaming halls to get anywhere)
We found our way to the relative calm of the Monorail ( past the sign to the Barry Manilow shoppe -with record your own karaoke booth) before disembarking at another resort hotel and fighting our way through endless shopping malls and more gaming halls. And people everwhere!! Where had they all come from? Is this why Russell was so quiet?? Eventually we found our way to an exit (cunningly hidden) and emerged, Alice in Wonderland-like, into Paris! There in front of our eyes was the Arc de Triomphe! OK, so it didn’t have 8 lanes of mad French drivers honking their horns, just a couple of stretch limos and someone somewhere in the distance saying “have a nice day, ma’am”
The lights of the strip illuminated the early evening. We were drawn to the Eiffel Tower, and within a few minutes of orderly queuing and a slightly lighter wallet (a common theme in these parts) we were “en haut” (up top) and looking down on the strip. We had a birds eye view of the Bellagio fountain display, and were able to sing along to every heart-stirring Celine Dion word of the soundtrack. We were surprised to feel slightly chilly- after the warm humidity of New Zealand this was a harsh dry desert wind which would haunt us for the next few days. So we headed back down, and indoors (although there was plenty of outdoors indoors, too- they really have everything here) and tried to find our way back home via something half decent to eat. We eventually found an expensive but nice Chinese at the Hilton (woe betide you trying to explore anything that isn’t actually a resort on the strip- its surrounded by parking lots and construction) then collapsed into a fitful and dry sleep.

Vegas 1, Randfields 0.

Day 2
Sleep. Fitful. Dry. Breakfast. Huge. People. Casinos, Slot machines. People. Walk. Shops. People. Crowds. Big people. Noise. Busy. Lost. Excess. People. Hassled. Coffee. Sensory overload. Hotels . Resorts. People. Hotels. Queues. Windy. Cold. Tickets. Dollars. Neon. Concrete. Shops. Facsimile. Walk. Aquarium. Dollars. Pyramid. Shops. Who wants this? Escape. People. Food. Coffee. Hotels. Evening variety show. Shops. Crowds. Let us out! Please!!

Vegas 2 Randfields 0

Day 3
Today we had to escape from Vegas. But we had arranged car hire from a circus. What would we get? Noddy’s car? No a 3.5 litre Dodge Charger. A big, thirsty, brutal beast but with a cavernous boot that swallows up our multiple bags. I guess our carbon footprint will be Elephantine, but that’s all part of the American experience!!

If we were to buy some trees, this part of Nevada- and into Arizona- could do with a few. We were on the freeway and out of Vegas so quickly you had to pinch yourself to make sure it wasn’t some sort of bad dream. Within an hour we were in barren scrubby desert with bare mountains forming the horizon. We also had some unseasonal weather on our tail, cold windy and wet chasing us all the way to the Hoover Dam where we stopped to marvel at one of the American nation’s finest engineering accomplishments. Lots of god bless America and inspiring quotes from Rooesvelt, Lincoln and others. Lots more driving took us further east , where, finally , we could get some kicks- on route 66, of course. We made a brief detour to a classy 50’s style Route 66 Diner for lunch- all lime green and florid pink upholstery. Finally we were getting some of the “real” America. Happy Days!
The Fonz never did walk in, so we drove on- and on- and on- to eventually arrive at dusk in Tusayan, a nowhere pit stop town on the outskirts of Grand Canyon National Park. It was cold- minus 6 overnight- with a sharp wind and a flurry of hail as we sat in the spa pool! Interesting training for returning back to Scotland- after so long in the heat of New Zealand we were a bit put out by this.

Reflections on Russell

2010-04-10T03:05:00.004+12:00

Well here we are in the US – 6 days out of Russell and time to reflect on our time there as we spent a huge amount of our time doing while we were there.

My broad impression is that this was a fantastic sabbatical and Russell was the perfect destination for lots of reasons, Firstly it is a beautiful spot, surrounded by the Bay of Islands and littered with stunning beaches and out of the way spots. As time went on and we managed to spend some time on the water we had some truly memorable days sailing, ringoing swimming and lazing about in unspoilt and stunning locations. We all felt relaxed and had lots of time to be together. Kerry especially loved the swimming and was constantly wanting to jump in, jump off and generally have a go. It was great to see.

Secondly the weather which was unseasonably dry and I just got into the habit of expecting 25 degrees fine and partially cloudy. I did not wear a jacket the whole time and spent all my spare hours in shorts – it makes life easier.

Thirdly ( and probably more importantly than that) the Russell community. The separation from the Mainland makes a very definite community feel wherein we were rapidly recognised and welcomed. There were many community events which we enjoyed thoroughly and even in the short time that we were there and knowing that it was temporary, people were incredibly kind and interested. This was best exemplified by the school. Where to start about the school. 115 kids in a local school in the heart of Russell with a fab Principal with a great can do attitude and a love of the outdoors. Ewen seemed to spend half his time geocaching, doing impossible algebraic games and generally having a ball. The kids all had a strong respect for Maori traditions and there was lots of singing and weekly Haka practice. I also really enjoyed seeing them being a part of competitive games – there were 2 swimming galas – inter school during our time and the kids took part in both. It was great to see the school spirit and the importance put on sport – Riverside could learn so much. Much of the after school sport was run by parents but centred around the school. The attitude was welcoming encouraging and inclusive with a pride put in the achievement of all. Although you could have said that some of the work was not so academic especially in Kerry’s class, the experience was fab for our kids and they have learnt so much.

The other factor which made Russell such a positive experience, was the presence of the Birches. Ian was a patient and fun partner to work with who immediately made us feel comfortable and always seemed to have the time to answer our endless stream of questions. We barely knew Rachel when we arrived but loved her company. She helped us to be included and I will really miss her.

SO why aren’t we staying? As Sara has made it plain that she wants to leave, we had lots of people asking us if were going to stay ‘in paradise’. This made us think more strongly about what we liked about it and what made us want home.

The truth of the matter is that we are happy in Scotland and are not really looking for a change. Living in Russell would also give us several complications. Firstly the on call is an issue. 1 in 2 . It is very quiet – we only saw 10 patients OOH in our 9 weeks and never at night. If you can relax and be happy to be in Russell it is not an issue.

Secondly the fact that it is only a 5 session job so it is not really enough for us to share and I love my job and would have to work a bit more to really fell that I was doing it well. The other local job options would be a bit limited.

Thirdly the isolation. This is also part of the appeal and adds to the sense of community but makes it more difficult to go other places and I think I might get cabin fever after a long time.

So, NZ did us proud again. We feel incredibly lucky to have landed on our feet and been to Russell and we know that we will go back. Our friendship with Ian and Rachel will also last and I firmly hope to see them again. I still love the country and the people….maybe if we had gone to Russell 5 years ago…who knows.

Get a load of this! Fresh local seafood!

2010-03-26T22:17:00.000+13:00

http://tvnz.co.nz/national-news/killer-whales-flip-psuedo-orcas-meal-3435027/video

Russell -life in the fast lane

2010-03-24T21:11:00.009+13:00

Being Russelled

As well as dipping our toes in the water with sailing (metaphorically) we have also found time to explore some of the tracks around this neck of the woods. The cape Brett Trail follows a ridge line north of the Russell peninsula with fantastic views to the Bay of islands on one side and the wide open Pacific to the other. It ends at cape Brett, a lighthouse and DoC hut. We didn’t make it that far- 20km each way of continuous up and down, but we did make it back to the car in time for a swim in Oke bay.
Today we explored another ridge top route realising after we set off that this was defined as a route not a track, and as such was a barely discernable fight through thick bush , up and down , with no view . Makes us appreciate the freedom you have exploring the hills of the UK. Still all that bush whacking was rewarded with a dip in the ocean .
Last week Sarah, a fellow coast to coast survivor, was visiting and we took the opportunity to take the sea kayaks out. We were blessed with a beautifully calm morning, with glassy seas. We explored the headland to the north of Russell and as I paddled in to a sea cave on the swell I turned to evade a bit of floating drift wood, to suddenly realise that the driftwood, 3 metres from me, was actually a big seal! We proceeded to watch this majestic beast pirouette languidly, almost showing off . At one point he swam on his side with tail fin and arm fin (?) majestically raised. Quite a show. After this we headed off across the bay to the Black Rocks, some block like basalt formations. By the time of our return the wind had picked up a bit giving us a more stern challenge , and reminder of the Coast to Coast kayaking.

We had planned lots of weekends away, but as we get to the end of each week we become Russelled and cant be bothered going too far. We believe this to be a particular risk to travellers in this neck of the woods, and very infectious. Symptoms include leisurely chats to anybody walking down the street about the weather (especially the lack of rain and state of your water supply), spreading to a widespread rash – a bronzed appearance over all sun exposed parts- and then, in the later stages, an unhealthy interest in the local newsletter, “the Russell lights” . The severest of cases will often be named in person in this esteemed journal, often associated with articles about the local tip, or the state of the local flower pots. Nasty.

So more and more we have slipped more into this dangerous state, enjoying the walks, runs, swims, beaches, cafes, friends here on our doorsteps. Russell has a remarkable amount going on, from live music to car boot sales to international boxing (the “Tussle in Russell”, actually the boxing was cancelled because the contender was knocked out, supposedly by someone who didn’t like him mouthing off in the pub the week before!). We even have “cutting edge” theatre! Last week we celebrated Kororareka day (Kororareka being the Maori name for Russell, meaning sweet penguin. Don’t ask why. It’s a long story). Various school groups sang songs and the boys did their KapaHakas (Hakas). Fantastic. There was some ceremonial lighting of canons and then a traditional Maori Hangi lunch (meat and veg slow cooked overnight buried in a heated pit). This was all perfect preparation for the run up to the flagstaff on top of the local hill. As you might have guessed, all the Randfields had entered (with Kerry taking photos- again). And what a performance. Dad winning , Ewen coming 4th and Helen first women home. Probably our best results to date, though the truth was a little less impressive. Only 20 entries. Only 5 adults. However, I now have my name engraved on an impressive wooden sculpture of Hone heke on show in the local marae (meeting house).

simon

Russell Medical Services- a review

2010-03-24T21:10:00.000+13:00

This is a copy of an article we wrote for the local Russell newsletter , about the differences between the NZ and UK systems

Any of you unfortunate enough to have had to attend the doctors’ in the last few weeks may have met one of the two of us – Helen and Simon Randfield – 2 GPs from the UK filling in temporarily for Sara Ralph. We are both GPs in Stirling, Scotland and are in the fortunate position to be able to take time out every 5 years to work somewhere else for a period.

We have had a lucky break ending up in Russell thanks to our friendship with Ian Birch. We have worked in New Zealand twice before, the first time with Ian in Christchurch 19 years ago. When we contacted him looking for contacts to help us to organise a sabbatical in the North Island, he put us in touch with Sara who was looking for someone to fill in for a while. We jumped at the chance so here we are in Russell.

The most obvious difference between the National Health Service (NHS) in Scotland and the health service here in New Zealand is that the user pays. This may at first seem to be a negative point, but a small charge stops many from abusing a service that due to financial constraints, will always have limitations. Our impression is that the average Kiwi patient, at least here in Russell, is generally more resourceful and has tried a variety of different things before involving the doctor. The counter to this is that people might be less likely to call on a doctor when a doctor is really needed, especially overnight or at the weekend, when out of hours charges are more significant. However, we haven’t seen any evidence of any delay seriously affecting the outcome. That might partly because 9-5, Monday – Friday, you have unbelievable access to your doctor here. In the UK you will often battle through many tiers of administration before finally getting an appointment with your doc – and that may be a week later. Here it seems that you can turn up at the medical centre, and the staff will do their best to get you seen the same day if appropriate.

This reminds us to mention how wonderfully supportive we have found all of the staff at the medical centre. The building is light and airy and ‘healthy’ in an architectural way. Simon works in a converted basement with frosted glass skylights which offer a glimmer of daylight for the few months of the year when the sun shines in Scotland! The health centre here is also incredibly well stocked and able to cope with most emergencies, in a large part due to the supportive nature of the Russell Community Medical Trust. In an amorphous suburb in a mid-sized town in Scotland, it is hard to get that feeling of community support back in Scotland.

Although the human body and the diseases that go with it don’t change much around the world, making our skills eminently transferable, the administrative systems which support health care vary wildly so that the main challenge for us as incoming doctors is understanding the systems in place. Firstly it takes years of experience to know who to refer to whom and when, so appreciate your resident docs for this battery of knowledge. Secondly we have to contend with ACC – a novel system but with a huge array of associated paperwork that can slow down the novice. And thirdly Pharmac which decides centrally which medications are available fully subsidised and what the rules are for prescribing certain more specialist and expensive medications under a Special Authority. This is potentially a great cost saving measure and concentrates resources into evidence- based cost effective prescribing, but baffles us Poms who are used to prescribing more freely, albeit with an eye on the cost.

Out of hours cover is the main downside of work in Russell. We’ve now become accustomed to working long hard days at home, sometimes starting at 7am and not finishing until after 6. However we hand over care out of hours, so we know that we will get a break. Here your doctor is here for you virtually 24/7. this is an amazing resource to have on your doorstep, which you should value highly.

The main plus point about working here is the friendly nature of everyone – even in the consultation. Back at home this would be very unusual. Indeed we will be very wary of the possible disinhibited ‘nutter’ who calls us by our first name. Beware if visiting the UK!! Everyone is very keen to hear our story and to tell theirs. It slows down the consultation but there have been some very genuine offers of eats/drinks/ferries/kayaks/books etc etc. Thank you all and we will return everything…sometime!

Drs Helen and Simon Randfield

Kawakawa Swimming Gala

2010-03-24T15:51:00.003+13:00

Qualifying-
We were all getting ready for our race to get into the event to represent our school.
We all arranged in lines for our age group and jumped into the “ice pond” and waited for the moment… Finally it came and off we went, leaving a trail of white foam behind us. I was pleased with myself after I heard that I had got 3rd and was a reserve for freestyle. Next it was the breaststroke – my favourite – and soon I was at the other end; with the thought of first hanging in my head. So over all: 3rd and reserve for Freestyle and 1st for breaststroke , and for my sister, she got into breaststroke.

The Main Event-
That Friday we went on the bus and drove over to Kawakawa. I wasn’t needed for freestyle since all was fine with the others. Our school did amazing when we went out side for lunch but breaststroke was still awaiting me.

Lots of people were counting on me in the breaststroke, so I had a lot of pressure put on me, but that didn’t slow me down as I cruised to the finish for a First place. My sister finished 3rd in her heat and went on to come 5th in the final. Sadly there was no final for my age group since everyone could fit in one race.

There was an un expected “medley” for years 11-13 so me aged 10 snuck into the 11-12 years and came 3rd .

Ewen

We are sailing, we are sailing……..

2010-03-23T15:40:00.005+13:00

Helen

I think that we quickly realised when we arrived here that to make the most of the Bay of Islands, you had to take to the water and get out amongst the islands. We looked at some of the day trips but Simon decided to give me a sailing course for my birthday – for both of us!

It actually was a great idea as we have flirted with yacht sailing for a while, having done a basic course years ago in Christchurch with a one legged salty old sea dog and having been out with various family members with superior nautical knowledge,

So armed with our dinghy sailing skills, off we went for 2 days with Theo, a German cum Kiwi who was very laid back and managed to pepper our 2 days with various tales about his love life and medical history. Still after an astoundingly short apprentice ship (sic) we were deemed ready to take a boat out on our own. I think that the truth of the matter is that the BOI is a very easy cruising location as long as you pick relatively benign conditions.

We did our first solo day last Wednesday. As luck would have it the forecast was not very benign with the usual ‘soft’ conditions in the morning with a gradual ‘filling in’ having been replaced by 20 knots gusting to 30knots…seemed a bit fresh for us but good ol’ Terry at Great escapes was quite relaxed so off we went – over towards the Kerikeri inlet as that made more sense in a SW wind.

To avoid a tack by tack account of the day, I will summarise with – reef in , lots of speed and a great day. No damage to the boat and we felt much more confident having survived. Ready for a trip en famille.

This weekend we took out a 25 foot boat for an overnight trip. Armed with not quite enough food (according to my family!), we set off with a good although not too windy forecast. The sun shone all weekend and Terry’s ‘soft but filling in ‘ prediction held true both days. We had beautiful swimming, sailing and walking conditions on the islands and even the kids (who had been none too keen on the idea of a weekend cooped up on a listing boat) had a great time. There was loads of time for chatting, jumping in off the boat, battling with the heads…… and trying to get some sleep. Would I do it again? Definitely yes , probably not every weekend and I don’t see myself donning the peaked cap, unfurling my jib and becoming a yachtie but it was great fun and took us to places we could not have got to otherwise….

Now for Kerrys version of the same weekend........

Blog Entry Kerry 23.03.2010
Sailing Weekend

Friday 19th March
We’re going sailing this weekend. Staying OVERNIGHT – I repeat: OVERNIGHT – on a boat!!!!! Cool, don’t you think?! We go tomorrow morning. To Great Escapes. I can’t wait! I’m so excited!
We had tom yum for tea. Mum said she had only put in half the amount of spice and diluted the soup with coconut milk, but it was still REALLLYY spicy! I had to pour half of my drink (milk) into my soup to cool it down, and STILL it was spicy!
Went to bed after tea.

Saturday 20th March
Early in the morning, I faintly heard Mum come in to my bedroom and call my name. I lay motionless because I thought she was getting me up to go sailing. She didn’t try again, so I went back to sleep. I woke again at about 8:20am and got out of bed straight away. I don’t know why, I just felt like it. I climbed the stairs to M&D’s room, where Dad and Ewen were playing with Dad’s iPod. I asked where Mum had gone. “She has just left for a run.” Replied Dad. Oh. I had wanted to go for a run this morning. With Mum. Ahh! That’s why she woke me up! I should have said something! That’s annoying. “But, if you go real fast, you’ll catch her at the front door,” said Dad. I sprinted to the door, but she had gone. I started out up the stony drive, hoping to find her just around the corner. Then I kept going, and I ended up running all around town in my pyjamas! Such a CRACK UP!
We left for Great Escapes Yacht Charters at 10 in the morning, almost exactly, because that was when Mum’s on call finished. Dad drove us to Okiato, where we got the vehicle ferry to Opua. Terry from Great Escapes showed us Solitaire, the boat we’d be taking. We unloaded our bag-loads of gear ranging from food to snorkels to torches to clothes. The bags were shoved up the heads, as there was nowhere else big enough for our huge bags! After a (long) chat to Cindy, M&D finally motored us off toward to islands. I was starting to be excited! Staying overnight on a boat! Pretty cool, huh?!
We stopped for a break at Roberton Island, a beautiful island with tidal lagoons on the north side. The time was 12 o’clock noon so it would be about high tide. We all got changed in what space there was, and then swam in the clear blue sea to shore. The lagoons were almost full, but REALLY shallow. I had a turn with the snorkel then, but couldn’t see anything except rocks, scarily close to my nose.
One of the nurses that work at the Medical Centre is called Sue. We met up with her and her partner, Chris, in the bay at Roberton. They were out sailing this weekend too, and they had known we’d be at Roberton, so they came to say hello.
Our original rough plan was to anchor up over night in Urupukapuka Bay, but we changed our plan (Mum and Dad changed it) when we heard what Sue and Chris had to say. They were going to be staying in Assassination Cove, a sheltered spot not very far away. M&D said, “Well, we’ll plan to head over there, but we might not come, depending on what we find around Moturoa Island.” So, that’s what we did.
We sailed to Army Bay in Moturoa, where Dad and Ewen went for a run and Mum and I drank tea and had a biscuit in the boat. Well, it IS fair; we went for runs that morning!
It was about five o’clock when we left Army Bay for Assassination Cove, almost tea time (if you count ‘almost’ as two hours). The wind wasn’t really around, so we had to motor down there. The water was like glass; so still and clear. It was amazing.
Ass. Cove was beautiful. So quiet and still. The only thing was that it was quite busy. Lots of yacht sailors had obviously had the same idea as Sue and Chris. Oh well, doesn’t matter.
We had an awesome chicken curry for tea that night. Mum had forgotten to pack the vegetables, so it was only chicken, sauce and rice, but that was just perfect for Ewen and I! Some of us brave people went for a swim before bed. (That’s Me and Ewen, not M&D!).
Mum and Dad went over to Sue and Chris’s boat after tea, and Ewen and I stargazed for a while before going to bed. The stars are so pretty. There is just so many of them. They crowd the sky on a cloudless night, each one twinkling for your attention. Ewen spotted the Southern Cross and I spotted Orion’s Belt.
We crept to bed and shut the canopy. Ewen got to sleep pretty quickly, but I kept waking him up when I was scared. I heard a crackling noise coming from the under the boat, and I got really worried. So worried that I called to Dad on Sue’s boat to come and investigate. He rowed over the 3 metres of still water separating our Solitaire from Tern, Sue’s boat. The paddles made ripples in the water that kept going for ages and ages through the cove. I had to stop daydreaming quickly, though, because Dad needed help onto the boat. He said it was just plankton or something, and not to worry because “this boat has been a boat for years. I doubt that Terry and Cindy would’ve sent us out with a breaking boat.” After that Dad went back to Tern, I lay on outside for a while, almost going to sleep, but was awoken by the cold night air pinching me and persuading me to return inside.

Sunday 21st March

None of us slept well last night. We were awoken at seven a.m. by some people lifting their anchor behind us. Breakfast was eaten hastily out in the early morning dew. At nine in the morning we left for Urupukapuka Island. It took us aaaggggessss to get there, but we did eventually. We anchored in Paradise Bay and walked over the hill to Other Bay, where there was a café. Carrot cake was on the menu for Ewen (obviously) and a chocolate cake for me, an apple slice for Dad and Rocky Road for Mum. Those didn’t take very long to disappear!
Most of the midday / early afternoon time was spent sailing back toward Opua to end our weekend. We caught a glimpse of the cruise boat Ian and Rachel (friends) were on. They didn’t see us at all, but anyway. Worth the try!
Terry and Cindy were out waiting for us when we arrived back at Great Escapes. They welcomed us, asked questions about our trip and helped us unload our stuff. They’re such nice people! We carried our bags up to the car and drove through Opua and straight on to the car ferry.
Mum and Dad bought us an ice cream when we returned to Russell. I had a Kapiti boysenberry. That’s the best ice cream EVER! It’s like a plain magnum, but the vanilla is replace by boysenberry ripple ice cream. YUM! As another treat, M&D let us have fish and chips from the town chippy. At last!
I enjoyed the sailing weekend very much, the only negative point was the Saturday night and how I didn’t sleep well. Oh well, that just happens sometimes, and you can’t help it!

Kerry x

2010-03-10T22:11:00.002+13:00

Russell- review after the first month.

We’re already half way through our stay in Russell, which comes as a bit of a shock.
We’ve settled into something of a routine, though with the Coast to Coast extravaganza and visitors (Bill and Jo, Sue this last week) life seems to have been hectic! How can life be hectic when you’re only working 2 or 3 half days a week? I’m not sure, but I’ll try my best to explain…
Well, there’s the work. We are enjoying the practice here, it’s incredibly well equipped and the community are very supportive. The pace is easy, especially for a locum. Few appointments are booked in advance, most people just turn up- but that means that they are usually happy to wait. Dealing with the clinical problem is generally straightforward- although you are careful not to step on your predecessors shoes, for example getting too involved with complicated patients on multiple medications. Sorting out all the correct forms can be a hassle, we have ACC here which is a comprehensive accident insurance scheme- that requires multiple forms. Pharmac control the drugs available, so many we are used to are not available (or have different dosing schedules); some drugs need a “special authority” to prescribe- certain criteria must be met before they are funded. This can be quite limiting , but is a good way to bring down costs at a government level and encourage good cost effective, evidence based prescribing (usually). Generally we feel this is a good system, though it’s a hassle as an incomer.
Helping – and hindering the whole process is the computer system. Generally better than what we are used to at home. Links to ACC forms, blood/xray request forms referral forms automatically transfer patient information. One thing that stands out is an automatic connection to the local hospital laboratory results- they automatically get transferred back into the patients notes , usually within 24hrs of being taken. The downside is you get all the results for your patients – including some taken on patients in hospital or arranged by a specialist. And they order some pretty weird tests…
The nurses here share a full time position and always available to assist with trauma, dressings, but spend most of there time not in patient contact- sorting out stock and calling patients with results and arranging follow up. The practice usually has phlebotomy 4 mornings a week too- the nurses don’t do this. In fact the phlebotomist has been off for the last few weeks, so Helen and I have been earning a few extra dollars taking blood twice a week. The pay is crap, but its great having the interaction with the patients without actually having to listen “ professionally”!
The patients are generally pretty resourceful. Whether that is due the fact that they have to pay to see the doctor (although for a registered patient its only $16 (£6), or it’s a kiwi attitude, we’re not too sure. Never call them in by their second name- its all first names around here. People are always interested to know your story, although not in a nosey way. People are relaxed and make time to chat. Rachel describes experiencing this in reverse when in the UK recently when she tried to engage some fellow bus passengers in conversation. So next time you think you’ve sat next to the nutter on the bus again, listen carefully. Maybe they have a Kiwi accent? Maybe they’re from Russell…
The weather remains hot, though not as humid and sweltering as it was a few weeks back. Today it rained, and for the first time in my life I was excited by the sound of rain on the roof. There’s no mains water supply here- everyone relies on rain run off into tanks, and most people’s tanks are running pretty low. Water rationing has been part of the equation since we’ve arrived here. I wonder how long we will remain excited by the sound of rain on our return to Scotland?
Interestingly, there is no rubbish collection here too. You actually pay ($3/bag) for the privilege of throwing your own rubbish down the council chute!! So no whingeing when we get home “what do we pay our taxes for”!
Time at home has been filled by taking on the Kiwi passion for home baking and cooking, Kerry, Ewen and myself have been able to relieve Helen’s burden in the kitchen, with varying results. We have even taken to producing our own muesli and ginger beer! (not together!).
Unfortunately, our kitchen has also been occupied by a rat, who seems to only want to eat our bananas. We seemed to have made some progress with banana baited poison. We also have quite a lot of mossies- certainly enough for us to retire indoors as soon as the sun hits the horizon. So its not all idyllic bliss! One thing I miss from home is silence. Here there is always a near deafening buzz of cicadas. Deep in the forest it can be overwhelming. However its good to know there are no nasty bitey things (just lots of sharp things, as Ewen’s story “when the pain kicks in” alludes to.
I guess our life has been made most busy by a huge choice of fantastic beaches to choose from on the doorstep. When we’re not out swimming or body boarding, we are borrowing Ewen’s teacher’s seakayaks. Hels and I have also completed our sailing course and are keen to line up a weekend trip sailing and camping on one of the islands with the kids. Kerry and I have not quite got used to the yacht keeling over to the side under strong winds, it just doesn’t seem right to see water whizzing past the port holes so close…. But we are slowly finding our sea legs.

So that goes someway to explaining why we are so busy here! How will we cope with the slow pace of life at home?

Rawhiti - Helen

2010-03-09T16:58:00.006+13:00

Rawhiti – the Big Day out etc.

I think that I may have forgotten how to blog. I have been caught up with life…..can’t say I have been busy but Life has been packed – a bit of work lots of visitors – great to see them all – a fair amount of non-strenuous on-call and lots of trips to the beach. Hardly a day goes by without a dip – either on Long Beach – beautiful beach occasional surf and great views – Tapeka point – great small beach – or off the wharf – killer oyster shells but quite a drop at high tide.

One of the highlights for me was the weekend which we spent out at Rawhiti – 40 mins drive down a twisty road and home to a reasonable chunk of the Maori population here. It really is a great spot with fab beaches and once a year the local Baptist church organises a day out for the school and any local youngsters. The sun shone, the sea was calm apart from 4 motor boats dragging banana boats, knee boards, biscuits and ringoes. The pastor’s boat was anchored off shore and was occupied by a posse of teenagers swinging off on ropes and diving in. Pretty idyllic really. The lovely thing was the spirit of co-operation – loads of adults gave up their time to make it work – a BBQ for thousands and slabs of cakes – tray bake like I had never seen!

With Antonio and Stephanie doing a good job of selling life in Russell, on a day like that you could see the attraction….mind you they escape in winter to sail to sunnier climes in one of their 5 boats….not a bad life.

Mum and Dad arrived at night then on Sunday we went back to Rawhiti – punctuated by an onboard vom from little E – for the church service in the Marae. One of the things which has been different about this visit to NZ has been the Maori influence which is much stronger here – at least half the kids in school are Maori and there is a strong emphasis on Maori culture and language in school. Before we arrived here wecame across some negativity about the positive discrimination which is given to disadvantaged Maoris in NZ but havenot been aware of this here. Maybe it exists outwith our social circles. Maori and Pakeha coexist in harmony and it does not even seem to be an issue. The culture is given strong precedence with the boys all learning the Haka and the National anthem being sung in Maori and English. Kerry has almost mastered her Mihi – personalised greeting.

Back to Rawiti – the church service was held in the marae and led by Bob and Louise who are the sole Baptist in the community. Lots of the others had slept overnight in the Marae and members of the church also came out from Russell.

We were welcomed in to the Marae wit a song – responded to by Rachel who ahs a great voice. There was then lots of singing in Maori and a rather prolonged hongi – nose touching session, to greet the strangers in to the Marae . Kerry was a bit put off at having to touch noses with a classmate of the male variety but coped very well and Mum – Gran – was on a roll and just kept going with all the other visitors as well!

At the end of the service which had a very participative Baptist feel about Lousie got up to contribute and tearfully shared the events of their night which had included one of their 8 children getting into s fight and them having to tell him to leave the house. It was all incredibly emotional and I was so impressed with her for sharing it as it is generally the sort of thing which people try to keep secret and withn their family group but by sharing it they were opening themselves up to all the other members and allowing others to know that these things happen …very moving….

We felt a bit outsiders then and decided to shuffle off to Oke bay – beautiful swimming spot around the corner. We did have plans to go for a walk but cold not tear ourselves away from the beach – why move on when you couldn’t really improve upon the spot where you are.

Mum and Dad were incredibly game for everything as ever and were great company. We did love seeing them and sharing this spot with them. They joined our rat=catching antics – yes we have been infested but have now won! We also had a great day sailing with Sue who flew in from Japan en route to Auckland – in fine form as ever. I have no idea where she gets her energy from – or maybe looking at my parents I do! Makes me feel rather sloth like doing my 2.5 sessions a week…

Enough wibbling time to sign off.

WHARF SPORTS – Kerry

2010-03-02T20:42:00.009+13:00

On Thursday the 18th of February, the Russell waterfront was really busy with Bay of Islands schoolchildren taking part in an inter-school swimming gala, in the sea. The weather was perfect for a swimming gala; cloudy but warm.
Russell School prepare a lot for this annual event. We had races in our age-groups to find out who was the fastest and who to put forward for the relay team and blah. About five of our swimming lessons were taken over by wharf sports.
The school pool is only 15 metres and extremely shallow. So, it wasn’t the best place to practice for a 30 metre swim in the 2 metre deep sea… Oh well! We made do!

The day came around and everyone came to school buzzing with excitement. We wore a school t-shirt over our togs so that we wouldn’t be muddled with pupils of other schools. All the seniors (ages 8-12) (juniors didn’t take part) walked down to the waterfront together, to find four other schools sitting on the shingle already. I felt a bit sorry for them, we had about three times more than them separately, and also they had to get up early to get here in time. Notice I said I was a bit sorry. Not very sorry! :D

I was in four events, which was really good. I was to be in Girls 12+ Freestyle (Event 6), Girls 12+ Freestyle relay (Event 6a), Girls Open Breaststroke (Event 16), and Mixed School Relay (Event 21). I came third in Event 6, and M&D say that if I could dive properly, then I’d have won. I think my bellyflop attempts were not very efficient! In Event 6a, I was swimming third. I had a disaster. Natalie came in and I completely I forgot to put on my goggles before I started, and my diving didn’t help again. I had to pause and put my goggles on, and then my goggles were full of water and I couldn’t see where I was going or how far I had to go. I think we came 4th overall. Anyway. It doesn’t matter. Miss P put Theressa down for the next relay in my place, and I was grateful! My next race was Breaststroke. I think you can maybe guess what happened. I remembered my goggles this time. My dive totally let me down (again!). I came second. Again, M&D said that if I could dive, or if there was another 5 metres to swim, then I’d have won. IF ONLY I COULD DIVE!!!! The Russell mixed school relay team (Theressa, Mikayla Go, Taine R, Tamati) won their race. I feel that I’d have let them down. Probably with another rubbish dive. Oh well. I’ll never know!
Overall, Russell School won over all; Paihia school, Opua school, Te Kura tua Waikare (Waikare Inlet school), and Whangaruru. We also won the most trophies. Yippee!
I went home happy that day – I had done my best, and I did it for my school. I was PROUD!
I want to do another Wharf Sports; it was so fun (and you get a day off school!)!!! =]

Kerry x

NZ TSUNAMI ALERTS AFTER MASSIVE CHILE EARTHQUAKE – Kerry

2010-03-02T20:35:00.001+13:00

As you all probably know, there was an earthquake in Chile a few days ago. It happened right on the Western coast of Chile. If you looked at a world map right now, then you’d instantly realise why we were in danger. All there is between New Zealand and Chile is 6,000 miles of water.
We had been planning a day sailing with my mum's parents and my mum's sister on Sunday. Auntie Sue loves sailing, and she's only in New Zealand for a weekend (!!! long way to go for a weekend!) and the best way to see the Bay of Islands is to sail. So, this event was booked quite far in advance, so neither mum nor dad wanted to cancel it.
The first time we heard about the tidal wave was when we went on the internet. Sarah Ralph's homepage is stuff.co.nz, which has all the latest NZ news on it. The headline was NZ Tsunami alerts after 8.8 earthquake in Chile or something similar, so as you can imagine, we were pretty scared, especially when we read that it was an 8.8 earthquake (really bad) and that it was due to hit us at about 10am, just about an hour later. Mum had already gone to pick up the boat we borrowed and to sail it over to Russell from Opua, on the other side of the water. All the boats around Russell were being moved into deeper water, further away from land or obstacles the wave might smash them into. All of the Pacific islands were warned, and apparently a wee island had been badly flooded. People were evacuating Gisborne, a city right on the east coast of NZ. Okay, I think you've got the point: a LOT of panic! And it was scarier when you're in the position where it's coming to you and there's nothing you can do about it! And I think that you've figured out that if I'm blogging, then the houses were not blown away! Okay, I'll cut a longish story short (well, shorter). I was the most scared by far, especially when Dad turned the radio on : it was all tsunami warnings. Anyway: the radio basically said: the wave will hit Northland at about 10am, but worse ripples could come later. Up to 12hrs later! And... get ready for the big point (and a big surprise)!!!
Nothing happened! All that for nothing! Apart from a windy day and the tide going very slightly over the high tide line, and nothing else! But this morning at school, my teacher said there WAS a tsunami. It was just very small. She said that the water came up to the bottom of the i-site and that’s all! (The i-site is the information centre on the harbour.) I guess the 6,000 miles in between us and Chile really calmed the waves! Well, I think it was really just luck. Australia was flooded; Japan even was hit and other parts of South America. SO, I THINK CHILE, WITH THEIR 8.8 EARTHQUAKE WAS SLIGHTLY MORE DAMAGED THAN US! God must love us; he stopped the tidal wave from hitting us!

Kerry x

When pain kicks in - by Ewen

2010-03-02T20:25:00.004+13:00

When pain kicks in

It was a Friday after school and me, my mum and Kerry decided to go down to the wharf for a late afternoon swim. It was blisteringly hot and mum had just gone for a bike, run, bike so we were desperate to go and jump in at the wharf. We quickly ran back to the house and got changed and ready, we came down the hill all ready and then… SPLASH! We were in swimming around in the murky water. Our friends were there so mum went off for a swim on her own. Shortly after mum came back and went over to the shops, all the boys were under the i-site building playing around in the current, and I decided to follow their path. I chose a different entrance from the others which happened to be the one where all the fishes were- more like I couldn’t be bothered walking round to the other side- so that made me not so keen to jump in so promptly. As I jumped in, I herd a crack from were I had jumped, and then a sudden sting from the soul of my foot, my face turned red as I looked down at my foot to see brown murky liquid rapidly coming out of my foot. I raced to the nearest ladder through the current -and back to dry land. As I looked down half of my foot was covered red with blood. Kerry came over screaming and ran off to get mum. By the time mum came back a woman had noticed what had happened and refused to let mum do the work. I was quickly sent to the health centre with eyes full of tears, and the thought of stitches. The happy and loveable nurse Sue took the bandage off to reveal the half- blood … don’t get to excited it’s not the half blood prince- it’s the half blood foot.
She put a dressing on it and gave me some crutches and off I went not merrily, but not skipping down the street.

Now I know not to go jumping in at the parking place for the ferry, on the left side of the wharf, at Russell beach, in the north island, in New Zealand, on planet Earth, in the solar system, and cant forget where the fishes are!

coast to coast race

2010-02-17T20:29:00.003+13:00

Coast to coast 2010
I first was aware of the Coast to Coast race when we were in Christchurch in the early 90’s. It seemed a mythical, superhuman race , to cross the whole of the South island in 1 or 2 days, by bike, running And kayaking. However- and with no less respect for the race- but with some more experience that these sort of events can be completed by an appropriately motivated human, I was keen to give it a go whilst in New Zealand this time.
However for such a long , multidisciplined race, you do need to put the hours in doing some long distances. Unfortunately, as a result, I guess it was always on my mind whilst travelling around in New Zealand , and way before too. Through the Scottish summer and autumn I tried to squeeze in what I could (training, AND pies). Three wet sessions on swollen Scottish rivers with John Jackson earn’t me an appropriate kayak qualification.
Even then I had to contemplate not doing any white water paddling for 3 months prior to the race, and only seeing my race kayak for ½ hr in Jan, and my race bike for ½ hr ni January.My attempt to run the route in Jan was foiled by heavy rain and impassable rivers. Not ideal preparation, but I got to know my race shoes well as we travelled about.
So, the event approached. My most important asset was my support crew, Helen, Kerry and Ewen. They came down with me , taking time off school, and we picked up a campervan , provisions and bike in Christchurch before heading over to the west coast.
The weather was poor on the West Coast, but cleared up in time for registration. There was an interesting congregation of cars and campers bedecked in gear and lots of eyeing up the oppositions stuff- and the opposition themselves. There were lots of very fit people around, but some less athletic ones too. One competitor had written that he was doing the race because “ a fat man told me he’d done it”. However everyone I seemed to speak to seemed to have finished in the top 10 and know the route off by heart.
There are 600+ teams / individuals competing in the 1 and 2 day race. Fortunately the cream (the elite and the nutters) were doing the 1 day race, leaving the plodders like me in the 2 day race. Each requires a support team to aid at transitions, delivering and picking up kayaks and bikes etcetera. That makes a lot of people, and the event seemed big, with helicopters flying overhead major road closures and big media coverage. This is, afterall, an iconic international multisport race, some would argue the original one.
The big day came. A bit too soon, as it started with a wake up call at 5 30 and a pre dawn cycle and walk down to the beach to the start. At 7am prompt, the mad Rob Judkins set us off on a long journey across the island and a longer journey into the deep recesses of your logic.
However that all changes once the adrenaline is flowing, and you’re off. First a Le Mans type 3km run from coast to bike. Then off for 55km into the hills- I really enjoyed this ride, my first experience of riding in big groups and arrived sooner than expected in the first transition. No time to slow down, back pack on and onto the hill run section. This is a really gnarly 33km run up and over Goat Pass. For the majority of the way there is no track and you are forced to cross the bouldery river more than 20 times. However, it was beautiful and I couldnt have asked for better conditions. But it is tough mentally as you have to be watching your feet every step of the way. As the clouds cleared you could see the steep valley sides, covered in bright red rata bloom, stretching up to the mountain tops. The trail of competitors ahead led you in and out of the bush climbing over roots and slipping down scree. It gradually opened out and the last 1/2 hr was attritional, in the heat of the sun across the barren stoney flood plains. It was great to see my waiting support team , lots of food, drink, a massage and a comfortable nights sleep in the campervan. \like banging your head against a wall- it's great , when it stops.

The weather took a dive overnight and there were emergency changes to the course- the paddle down the white water of the Waimakariri was cancelled, instead a longer(135km) bike ride to Christchurch, then a paddle down the Avon to the sea. Day 2 started off looking grim, but the rain soon cleared and it was hot on the bike with some tough short climbs, then a scary whizz down from Porters, and a long , wind assisted blast along the plains. I averaged 29kmh over this ride- including a brief food and fluid stop and a few steep uphills. The speed was maintained by joining another small group of riders and we worked together to drag ourselves eastwards. Again i was elated arriving at transition; I was already in Christchurch, surely it was nearly done?
The improvised transition to the kayak was chaos, I was lucky not to have problems finding my support team and soon I was off again. I had no idea how long the paddle would take - I thought maybe 2hrs max- but it took 3 hrs with a slow boat, weed and shallows, then a head wind. I was passed by loads of people on this leg ( pleased to notice they all had racing kayaks) and this was dispiriting. There was a final sting in the tail I didnt know about as they abandoned the paddle across the estuary as it was too windy and finished with a (windy) 6km cycle. I had never been so glad to see my bike!! Seeing the finish line I couldnt wipe the smile of my face! The support crew were great, but though Kerry and Ewen were there to greet me, Helen was trapped at the last transition, so it was a shame she wasn’t there , especially as it was her birthday!. As I was greeted with a can of Speights thrust into my hand, I informed Rob Judkins he was a b******d, to which he guffawed loudly.

14hrs 10mins 31 secs. 44th of 282, and 10th Male Veteran. Not bad really.

After all the build up, I cant believe its finally done. Still, I will have to come back and do it properly, with a paddle down the waimakariri......

At the risk of sounding like an Oscars Speech ,I would just like to thank my superb support team- it really is impossible to do this race without them. They too had to endure 3 pre dawn starts, a campervan full of sweaty kit (and dad) and were essential motivators and feeders at the transitions. Thank you!!

back to the south island, Hokitika

2010-02-16T18:52:00.000+13:00

Ewen

After having two weeks in Russell and just starting to settle in at our new school,
Dad dragged us out for five days(all with five, sixish starts)in a camper van to watch him and other competitors doing one on of the main events in NZ, the C2C(coast to coast)over two days.

Anyway we went down on Wednesday to get thing ready like the bike and kayak so that we didn't lose valuable time. On the way there we stopped at Hokitika beach and had a wonderful time-out of the water- As our van stood parked at the foot of the beach,
we were all desperate to go and splash around in the waves, but Mum and Dad weren't so keen on this idea. Fair enough,it did look really choppy but Kerry and I love big waves. They checked in all the guidebooks for a simple excuse but we eventually got them out of their morning siesta and they came with us.

Kerry and I ran straight in and got soaked, Dad and Mum followed soon with their facial expressions. We had some what fun but soon Kerry's piddling around in the sea came to a close as a massive wave came thunderously and toppled over her but that wasn't the worst of it because as the tide was coming in it began to get worse... slowly but surely...

Kerry was now on shore and Mum was in shallow water but me and Dad hadn't given up yet... but that as well came to a halt as I kept getting smashed around but I always enjoyed that but this time it was different because having seen Kerry being wiped out I was aware of the circumstances. "I paused for a second I stared back at the sky line of crumbling, crushing, crashing waves and suddenly as if from out of the sky a massive wave came tossing and turning and eventually finish with a smash over my head so that no sunlight was visible. I heard a faint noise of Mum shouting to Dad over the noise of the wave. My head soon popped up again and all was fine"

Ewen

Russell - Kerry

2010-02-06T18:53:00.005+13:00

Sorry that I haven't written for a while...

Russell is truly amazing! Situated in the centre of the glorious Bay of Islands, in Northland New Zealand. THe heat is unbelievable! It is absolutely boiling around here! Our jumpers have been in the cupboard since we unpacked here!
We're staying in an A-frame house, that has been vacated just yesterday (Friday) by Dr. Sara Ralph, that M+D are working for. Her son Tommy is still around, but he lives in the basement and comes and goes through the back door so we never know when he's around.
School in Russell started on Feb 2nd after the summer holidays. We visited before school started to look aaround and get an 'enrolment pack'. The principal, Mr. Fuller, teaches Ewen's class (Room 6 Years 6/7) with Mr. Ballew, a temporary teacher from Montana, USA. Room 4 (the best) is my room. Our class is made up of Year 8 and half of year 7, and taught by the awesome Miss Pausma. We have a few daily routines that are different to Scotland's...
The Average Morning in Room 4:
0900: Miss P tells Theresa to ring the school bell for the start of school.
1st thing: Karakia (Maori prayer), Mihi (Maori welcome), Song and Roll Call ( in Maori). All done by pupils chosen randomly from a list by Miss P.
0930: Swimming in the (frrreeezzzinng) school pool. It's annoyingly shallow (about 75cm deep..).
I do not enjoy the swimming at all. The pool is about 3/4 metres deep(75cm)at the deep end and about -20 degrees celsius. The hour swimming lesson drags.
At morning play or Interval, and lunch, we have to wear school hats. On them they say 'Kororareka - Russell School' Kororareka is Maori for Russell and means the 'hell-hole of the pacific'. It was named in the time of the Treaty of Waitangi and the fighting with the British for Maori rights. Its not a hell-hole now!
WOW there is so much i have to write about. I will have to do it over two sessions!
Ok, where was I? Yeah, school. I've made friends already; Helena, Sarah, Grace and Anita and Abi.

Moving on, we continued the tradition started last time in NZ; to go somewhere special every Friday after school. We decided on taking the ferry to Paihia and finding a 'real fruit ice cream and frozen yogurt' place. As we wandered along the wharf (jetty), early, we saw some boys and girls from school swimming in the sea and jumping off the wharf. It was obviously a Friday-after-school thing to do, so I am going to try that out next week.

Today, the 6th of Feb, was Waitangi Day. Exactly 70 years ago today, the Treaty of Waitangi was signed by both the Maori and the British. It is celebrated all over New Zealand, as it symbolised peace with Maoris and white people. We were real lucky. Russell is very close to Waitangi itself, where the treaty was signed.
Waitangi was mega busy, with marquees up and Maori canoes (wakas) out. It was great to be there, because there was much atmosphere, but there wasn't much to do except watch the Maori guys in the wakas and wander around the marquees.

We returned to the house to a slice of banana cake, with yum caramel icing. Oh, yeah! Mum made the cake yesterday because we had so many bananas. I made the mice icing! It's fab!

That's pretty much everything, but cut short slightly.
Goodnight! Well, good morning to those of you in Britain (where its 8am)!

Kerry. x

Russell- "home" at last!

2010-02-06T14:36:00.007+13:00

Russell Russell is an historic town (village?) in the middle of the bay of Islands. Although it is still on the mainland, the only way to it is via an hour on a nauseating twisty turny back road- or by ferry. So in real terms, it is an island. And it’s where we are going to be living, schooling and working for the next 2 months. The house sits up a very steep hill, overlooking the rest of the town. The kids could probably jump into their classrooms if they could get a long enough run up. It’s not a big place- our house, school, work, shops, and nearest beach are all within about 500yards of each other. From the deck you get a beautiful view of the sun setting over historic Waitangi, with the yachts/ liners sitting in the bay. We are house sharing for some of the time with the outgoing doctor and her 2 sons Tommy (early 20s) and Peter (18). They seem pretty chilled so I think it will be fine. Naturally, we arrived just in time for a holiday weekend, so we spent 24hrs over on the West Coast at Opononi with the Birch family doing , amongst other things, Dune Boarding. If you catch the right tide (we did) you can slide down huge, steep dunes on body boards and then plane out into the sea. The kids thought it was Awesome! – a recurring theme. Opononi was a nowhere place you could have easily driven through, but it reminded us of simple pleasures- great scenery, laid back atmosphere and a good plate of fush n chups by the waters edge as the sun set. Back here in Russell, there are at least 3 good beaches within 5 minutes, all facing different directions and offering different degrees of calm/surf. There’s not a huge network of trails on the doorstep, but what there is takes you up (very steeply) hill tops or down (very steeply) to hidden coves. Inevitably, our thoughts now turn to work, and with some apprehension. We haven’t used 95% of our brain for the last 2 months and there’s always the concern of some atrophy setting in…. More realistically, we are apprehensive of dealing with a very different computer system/ results/ referral/ patient expectations/ Maori cultural expectations/ staff / kettle. However, no amount of looking at mock patients on the computer will replace just getting stuck in and seeing a few real patients. The practice is quiet (so far!) but impressively well equipped. Ian Birch is the other part time doctor here- we worked with him in Christchurch all those years ago. Although we are only sharing 5 half days work, the sting in the tail is the 1 in 2 on call. Um…

Heading North

2010-02-06T14:29:00.003+13:00

Moving North- Simon

We flew up to Auckland and were met by Bob Cooper of Northland Rural GP consortium who had been supporting us sorting out our paperwork for work. He provided us with a huge v6 Holden Estate that was perfect to hoon around in. Unfortunately it was only to get us up to Russell where it was swapped for the GP locum standard issue rent a wreck. We had a few work related chores to sort out, but were still able to explore Auckland and its environs.
We stayed in leafy Mt Eden, just around the corner from Nicola and Chris Coombe and there kids Francesca and George. Unfortunately they were still on holiday, but we did manage to catch up with them for a Barbie before we left. With little persuasion, we went to a 20-20 cricket match with Chris and George. Amazingly it finished a draw, and as it was a semifinal they had an eliminator over. How dramatic!!
Ewen raced round getting lots of autographs of unknown cricketers and probably a few cleaners too.
We took a trip out to Waiheke Island which was a lovely island retreat just ½ hour form central Auckland. Vineyards, Cafes, beaches. We also took a trip west to the rugged Piha beach where the youth world surf championships were being held. Impressive seeing kids from Japan Ecuador etc etc being mangled by some wicked surf. Meanwhile, we splashed around being knocked about by knee high waves. We spent another interesting day at Auckland Museum which was well worth it. The Maori Cultural show was typical Kiwiana, with plenty of chat between the dancing and the haka.
Eventually we had to head north, but not without revisiting Waiwera water park, and Kerry’s nemesis, Bobs Mistake.: a slide with a big drop off at the end. Of course she was up to it this time. We stopped off at Mangawai Heads, a lovely surprise to us with a great café and a wonderful surf beach. Then it was back on the road and North again – to Russell.

The Tale of Two Kayaking trips Helen

2010-01-29T18:06:00.006+13:00

Queenstown being the activity centre of NZ we felt duty bound to do an ‘adventure activity while we were there. After much deliberation we had opted for a Funyaking trip – let me explain…..

To keep Kerry sweet we had opted for the later start – 0925 and a trip up the side of Lake wakatipu to Glenorchy at the head of the lake. All going well and after a brief stop we got all kitted up – anti sandfly wetsuits, bootees and spray jackets. The weather was a bit more dramatic today – showers moving up the lake and over the mountains and cloud hanging in all the valleys. The scenery was out of this world – the site of films such as Lord of the Rings – wolverine and Narnia – massive glaciated valleys with braided rivers and soaring mountains.

Stage 1 - A Jet boat rip up the lake with Dion our driver – archetypal jet boater – fisherman and large man’s man! Still he did the job – lots of 360 degree spins and wetness and generally whooping and yee haaing – very good fun…… I had wondered whether a trip up a braided river would be less exciting than through a gorge but I think it still ticked all the boxes and the kids loved it.

We then parked up on the banks for a picnic lunch – quite an organised slick affair with a well rehearsed safety brief thereafter. We were quite a large group and after being schooled we split into pairs and set of in our funyaks – basically inflatable Canadian Canoes – surprisingly easy to turn – I suspect would be a nightmare in windy conditions but good fun. There were areas which required a bit of technical ability and , just as I was thinking that these things were uncapsizable 2 went over! Still we managed to negotiate all of the rapids successfully and loved it. We had a side trip into a dramatic gorge with beautiful blue waters – no photos unfortunately as I forgot to pack the camera which is now working again after its little wash in Cave Stream. Maybe after that though it was better to be left at home!

In summary a great day and although pricy I would recommend it…..

Next day 8 hour drive to ChCh with a stop in hot pools in Tekapo – not much to add really….

We had then decided not to stay in Christchurch but to head to Akaroa as we had not been there last time with the kids. The drive over was fab with a blanket of cloud rolling over the crater rim and catching the sun with an otherwise cloudless sky….It was more beautiful than I remembered.

Akaroa sits on the Banks Peninsula in a great position and surrounded by beautiful hills. It is a bit twee and has lots of upmarket eateries but is a great place to stop. Our main activity here was a trip out penguin spotting. The Pohatu penguins marine reserve is over the hill on the Banks Peninsula walking track and is very difficult to get to . The whole day was the opposite of the well oiled Queenstown machine. We had phoned and there was a bit of ambiguity about whether it would be afternoon or morning…On the day we phoned at 0810 and were given a pick of 0845! Panic…Still we made it (well done kids) and over the way we went…On arrival we discovered that the guide had gone out with all the kayaks and would be sometime….so her niece took us to see some of the penguins moulting in boxes and then on a walk up the valley to a great waterfall which you cold walk behind. When we came back to the farm at the bottom, the kayakers were back but we were given a cup of tea and invited for lunch for having been messed about! Out on the kayaks and it was magical – only the 4 of us and Shireen, a slightly batty farmers wife with the most amazing enthusiasm for penguins. We saw several standing moulting on the rocks but also had some great times with a pod of dolphins who came and played around our boats for quite a while . the trip was rounded off with some seal lounging on the rocks and we all concluded that it was a great trip.

After lunch we stayed over there to play on the beach until a late-ish return…great day…….

Helen.

Wanaka and Queenstown - Simon

2010-01-18T22:07:00.005+13:00

Wanaka/ Queenstown

Well if heaven was on earth, it would have to be somewhere near here. Perhaps with a bit more ozone, but this place is great. Our enjoyment is probably highlighted by the fact we’ve come from a few days of cold, wet weather to blisteringly hot blue skies.

Needless to say, we’ve made the most of the good weather. Helen has mentioned our trip up Roy Peak- a lot bigger than it looks, but allowing fantastic views down onto Wanaka, and over to the Snowy Alps. And there’s a vineyard at the bottom!

We borrowed/hired mountain bikes and explored the lake side tracks, and swam in the lake. However all this was just a build up to the big event- the contact tri. The place was buzzing (ok, probably more interested in the international field of super fit endurance athletes doing the ironman the following day, but they had to watch us first!) We had entered team randfieldnz in the 3:9:3 race somewhat illegally- the minimum age was 11 so we had to add a year on to Ewen’s age as he was so keen. We figured an average age would definitely be fairer! Helen the swimmer, Simon the biker, Ewen the runner and , of course, Kerry the team photographer.
Helen was off first with a rather fetching pink swim cap on, into the maelstrom that was an open water race start. She held her own and exited the water looking somewhat pooped, but in a commendable place halfway down to field. She handed over to me, and I jumped on the bike for 5 laps of a twisty turny course through downtown Wanaka, ripping through the field. Ewen was so keen to get running he had to be sent back to get the dibber attached properly, but got into his easy style quickly. He had 2 laps to overtake a few more competitors, still saving himself for his trademark sprint down the final straight. Only when he crossed the finishing line was it announced that he was the first team home!! International success at such an (illegally) early age!! Wow!

Have you ever heard the phrase “after the lord mayors show”? Well, 2 hours later I slipped into the cool waters of lake Wanaka for my solo sprint triathlon. My Exit 15 minutes later, with only a couple of other stragglers behind me, set the scene for the rest of the race. There was little left in the legs for a further 10 laps of the bike course, where I was overtaken multiple times by the leaders. I crawled round the run , regaining some respect by overtaking a couple of one legged midgets, and home in 1hr 17months.
Talk about men and boys!! I felt comprehensively outclassed, though was pleased to hear later that there were quite a few age class international competitors. Also, I have amassed a list of excuses as long as my arm…
The best was yet to come. We had a long wait for the prize giving later that evening. But for all that hard work and training (not to mention the 1/2 hr getting Helen into the wetsuit) all we got was 3 tubs of suncream. But hold your horses, there was still the spot prizes to come, and lets face it that’s usually our best chance of winning something. And win we did. Kerry was the bemused recipient of a 6 month subscription to NZ triathlon magazine, and I was swooning having received a voucher for a top spec wet suit. Wow! It was all worthwhile!!

We were away from Wanaka the following morning as the Ironmen were showing us how to do it properly- and keep doing it for the best part of the day. I slipped out of town on my bike on a backroad to avoid being mistaken for a proper athlete. Unfortunately I had misread the smallprint on the map and the road I took, though more direct, took me over the highest road pass in NZ!! But what goes up has to come down, and I arrived at the bungy jumping bridge as Helen and the kids drove in. Having said that, Id gone down far enough, elastic or no elastic, so we watched a few bungy lemmings before finding a pleasant vineyard to pass a lazy lunchtime at. Now that’s what I call training!

I’ve always felt uncomfortable about Queenstown, and as such we’ve avoided it. However you cant fault its dramatic position. We spent a lovely early evening on the waterfront, playing Frisbee golf, and eating Fush n Chups. And after a day mooching around the gondola, whizzing down the luge, doing further research on the important “where is the best carrot cake in new Zealand” question, wandering around historic Arrowtown, and having a picnic and swim in lake Hayes, I’m beginning to be persuaded by Queenstown’s charms…

Wanaka Revisited

2010-01-18T21:35:00.004+13:00

So here we are, driving across desiccated McKenzie country and heading for Wanaka. As ever we have found it hard to resist booking a few days in our favourite spot as it really has everything – mountains lakes – heaps of outdoor loving people – good cafes and lots of activities. We had forgotten just how far that drive is and how, after driving through oodles of nothingness you hit upon a thriving little town with lots going on. As a general rule we have tried not to repeat previous successes but /Wanaka had to be an exception…..

Apart from the distance from anywhere else, there is really very little to fault about Wanaka. The Lake is huge and stretches it tentacles between soaring ranges of mountains. The outdoor opportunities are endless – mountain biking watersports climbing and skiing. This is all compounded as there is a big Iron man event on here at the weekend – 1000 international competitors doing 3.8k swim, 180 k bike and 42.2 k run. The place is teaming with competitors and a new sport has developed amongst the Randfield family of ‘spot the triathlete’ – generally ultra fit looking with very little hair eating vast quantities of food and drinking sports drinks. I think that this is the only competition that I am likely to win this week ( see later). The whole thing gives the place more of a buzz and the lake is teeming with wet suit clad swimmers limbering up.

In this vein there is also a smaller triathlon on Friday – the standard sprint distance which Simon has entered and also a short one which, after much nagging, I have been persuaded to enter as a team with Ewen and Simon – doing the open water swim. It is only short but I needed to be persuaded as I have never done a competitive open water swim and although my swimming is better, I am still pretty slow. However a trial run tonight made me feel better and I realised that Si’s swimming wetsuit is a good foil against the 14 degrees temp in the Lake. Maybe someone thought I was a training ironman contestant but I somehow doubt it…

We have hit the ground running and had a quick nip up Mount Roy on Day 1 = the kids were great – I think they knew it was coming and accepted that that was what was going to happen. It is a fairly massive grunt of over 1000m to 1500 with great views but it was a bit relentless – especially on the way down. Still all were full of chat and it went well. Si ran off the top and along a ridge and hitched back to meet us but is hobbling badly today – I think his poor ol’ body is complaining a bit at the treatment..

We were invited to a great barbecue at John Wilson’s – the ICI network coming up trumps again. It was good fun although a bit adult orientated for the kids with some interesting guests – Chch gynaecologist and ex Coast to Coaster (S was happy), ex MD of Montana wines (tee total!), ex silver Fern captain, and others . John and his new wife were lovely and very generous .

Rather surprisingly NZ has been a bit of a WiFi black spot with very little access compared to Vietnam (wee, we have to pay here and we’re too tight fisted!) so our posts are a bit sporadic and are generally saved and posted en masse. We are having to hunt down internet cafes and to be honest it has been hard to make the time…

Caving - by Ewen

2010-01-16T17:26:00.001+13:00

Caving

On the 11th we were on our way to flock hill lodge in Arthurs pass, as we passed one of our favourite caves, we decided that we would go and find out if it was possible to go through without swimming. To check this, Dad would have to go by himself and see if the water level was up to it.
It was sunny while we were heaving our wetsuits on but here in New Zealand you can never predict what the weather will be like so that was our worry, that at any time extra water would come in and having done it we did not need any extra water!

The deepest part of the tunnel was right at the start so after we waited for Dad to come back in the warm heat of the sun beating onto our wetsuits we all held hands as we crossed the raging rapids running down from up stream. As we got into cave, our hearts were pounding with fear, soon it was up to my neck height and Dad was beginning to worry. It was a hard decision to continue shown by dad as he was gritting his teeth.

The decision finally came to a close and we made our way further into the cave. As we were doing so, clumsy Dad dropped his camera into dark waters. This was followed by some mutterings from Dad…

Lights on, camera gone, action!

We made our way through the darkness, deeper and deeper into the cave, deeper and deeper into the water…kersplash we heard the river beyond us. Wiggly and winding the cave went, slippy and loose, we could hear the noise of chattering teeth. Scared we were, every bone in my body was shivering, not just because of the cold wind blowing, we were shivering with fear…

Further and further into the cave we went, we were wondering if we had gone the wrong way but then a burst of excitement came as Mum told us to switch our lights off and their it was, the first sight of sunlight. As we saw more and more sunlight shining against the cold and murky water, we began to think that it was over, but think not, because there was still a big challenge ahead of us, stepping across a waterfall and climbing the final step of the way.

But we coped with it like any other part of the cave and soon it was over, and we were back in our little cosy car.

Nelson/ West Coast

2010-01-16T17:22:00.002+13:00

And Dad added on the 12/01/10..

Well., we’ve been here in New Zealand for 2 weeks now and have had plenty of adventures. Kerry and Ewen have kept us abreast of some of them, but I thought I’d fill in the gaps.
Dorren and Mike are great hosts and put up with us, off and on, for a week. From this base we revisited Motueka and some of our old haunts- the Jester House, Mot South School, Central Medical (and Colleen), and on to Alan and Lois’s who we used to work for , and where we used to stay. It was great to join the dots up of our old memories. Needless to say, the weather was fantastic. We visited Owen Bartlett pottery and bought some more of his stuff, which was very opportune as they then offered to post it , with a full box of our stuff, to Russell. Looking back , I have absolutely no idea how we’d fit another box of stuff in the car. We did some mundane shopping, bought new NZ sim cards for our phone. We were frequently reminded of the laid back nature of Kiwi life- shoeless people in the bank, cool cafes, people bending the rules to accommodate you and always asking where you’re from and about your trip, straight talking adverts (“ if you drink and drive you’re a bloody idiot”). The list could go on. It was good to be back. In fact, at one point ( I think mid way through a delicious scone at the Jester House) Kerry said that she wouldn’t mind if we emigrated, and Ewen has decided he’s going to live here when he’s older.
On New Years Day we fought through the traffic rushing to the beach in Nelson and on to Happy Valley to go on a 1.6km long zip wire. You did this in a four person ski lift, and reached speeds of over 80 kmh. If you have nightmares of chair lifts falling out of control, this was not the trip for you. In actual fact the sensation of speed was minimized by the height you were above the trees (very high). This was all packaged in a very Kiwi way- lots of banter,a few free goes for the kids and compulsory mythical Maori chat for the tourists.
We arranged a kayaking trip on the Abel Tasman for a few hours with Dorren and Mike. From Kaiteriteri, we paddled north past pristine sandy bays overlooked by exclusive baches to the iconic split apple rock. Here we landed, built sand castles, swam (pretty chilly) and explored caves. We then headed South , beyond Kaiteriteri to some caves and arches, although by this time the sea breeze was increasing ,as was the swell, and navigating rocky bits was tricky. Indeed, as we turned to return to Kai’teri, it was an all out slog to get back. Once again the kids coped with choice of activity with good humour and grim determination. And they earned a trip to Toad Hall, their favourite real ice cream shack in Mot.
We also spent a lot of time at Dorren and Mikes house. With a top trampoline, good sized swimming pool, spa pool, horses, dogs, cats, and views to die for- not to mention great company with Grace and Fynn full of smiles, it was difficult to drag our selves away. We did a bit of running around the local vineyards (look out for “Golden Hills” in the liquor store) and “helped” a bit with getting the hay bales in.

Once again , when we left Nelson , the clouds collected as we headed SW to Murchison and with some apprehension we set off on our hike to Lake Matiri Hut- see Kerry’s entry. Kerry forgets to mention that this wet trip was rewarded with a slap up lunch back in Murchison- the only response from hungry and guilty feeling parents. Then onward, westwards through the impressively heavy rain to the appropriately named Cape Foulwind, where it rained so hard you got soaked getting to the car, all of 5 metres away. Fortunately the following morning dawned clearer and we headed off to Charleston, once the centre of the New Zealand gold rush, now a sleepy hamlet , to go blackwater rafting. This is a wet version of caving. We were lucky to have Jacqui, our guide, to ourselves, and she kitted us up in heavy duty wet suits and off we set in to an impressive cave system. Someway in the joined a river, where we donned rubber rings , and then floated down this river, our way illuminated by only the light from the glowworms overhead. Magical. Equally impressive was exiting to caves to dense rainforest and a glimmer of blue sky- our first for a few days. We then proceeded to bob down some white water in our rings and , guess what, back to a café for a slap up lunch!
We drove further down the west coast, being reminded of how rugged it is with amazing views around each corner of the massive waves crashing against the cliffs. We popped in to see Bev and John then drove on up to Haupiri, to catch up with Murray and Gaye, Thomas and Euan, and new addition , Emma.

life on the west coast

2010-01-10T18:15:00.004+13:00

We unfortunately deleted the photos of Simon milking but I can testify that he was in there in close proximity to 600 cows' rear ends and their udders!!

Wharariki Beach

2010-01-10T10:52:00.006+13:00

Ewen

Today, on the morning of the 4th of January we were all ready for a lie in(apart from the boy who got up at 7:00 to go for a 30min run on a long lost in time rut) Yesterday, we had planned to go to one of the most spectacular beaches known to man and one of our highlights from our past. This happened. We did all the hard work of driving up there and dad having to cycle head first into the wind, and all that was left was to have the time of your life on a beach. Having said that, it was chucking it down with rain, but there were a few comments made which were “if it is raining their will be les people.” But we remembered Whaririki as a calm, aw/inspiring , deserted beach so even if it was raining or not we would still have half the beach to ourselves.

In the end, we decided to go early in the morning, and that means no moaning, but their were a few ifs and buts about the weather on the 4th, but it turned out to be all right as we pulled open the curtains to find the gleaming sun rising upon the clouds to welcome us to a new day. It took some time to get everyone out of bed after a late night, but soon we hit the road to start something we didn’t finish 5 years ago.

It all came rushing back to us from our first step of the way to another trip to one of the most gobsmacking beaches, we got a warm welcome from the seals as they hurried over the sand. There was so much to do as nearly all the sand dunes were untouched. We did our family tradition of playing in the sand and running through the caves. All the caves came in different sizes, from small to big, from skinny to wide, every shape you could think of would have been there.

I know it is hard but every beach has to come to an end, even the biggest, even the best, we waved good bye and off we went.

Ewen

Lake Matiri Hut - The Epic Journey Never to be Repeated

2010-01-10T10:52:00.004+13:00

Kerry wrote on the 7th January:

It was planned that we would stay in a mountain hut on the night of the 6th. Which one? Mum and Dad were keen to walk up a ridge, but when they went to get tickets at the DOC (Department of Conservation), they said that it maybe wasn’t the best place to go, as there were weather warnings and we would have to carry loads of water. So, they suggested Lake Matiri Hut, as it was beside a river. No-one saw the flaw in the plan then.
We set off on a pretty warm day, nearing the end of the afternoon. The first sign of anything that might cause trouble was where we left the car. Compared to the rest of my worries later on that night, it was nothing. We set off, no idea what was going to happen. Puddles blocked our path, some were impossible to pass without getting your feet wet. Mum and Dad carried us over those parts.
Running water was always nearby, as we were on a river-side walk, but none of us imagined that we would become this close to it:
Before we had gone, Dad had sneaked a peek at someone else’s map. It had clearly stated that there was a river coming from the mountains and that we would have to make a huge detour to pass over it. Dad being Dad, refused to walk an extra 2km to cross the river, so Ewen and I had to take our shoes and socks off and walk through the river with Mum and Dad.
My legs were incredibly cold after that. They were numb for a while, too. My legs being cold made me cold all over, and soon I was shivering.
So where are we? I am soaking wet and shivering after splodging through mud and crossing a river with no bridge. Ughh. Just reminding myself of it has brought back shivers, and made me feel sorry for myself, for I did not know what was to come.
The rest of the actual walk was not dissimilar to the start, puddles and mud with the occasional carry.
Finally we reached Lake Matiri Hut after a long, hard walk to get there. I did lots of worrying about the problem that you don’t book the hut, so there might not be space for us there.
The hut was much smaller than I had imagined. Six people were already there, which made me more worried about space. There were only two mattresses left and they were cramped in the corner. What did we do to deserve this???
Our tea was packet soup (a mixture of ‘creamy vegetable’ and ‘chicken noodle’) and packet Thai chicken curry that was so spicy I couldn’t eat it all. After a short battle with the sandflies, Ewen and I retired to our sleeping quarters (squished in a corner on uncomfortable mats. The two mattresses were to be used by Mum and Dad on the floor). I got to sleep rather quickly, but along with the rest of my family, woke up around midnight to the sound of snores.
The snoring was so bad that none of us could get back to sleep. Mum was about to kick Dennis, the guy who was snoring, when he finally stopped. I rejoiced in silence, but it didn’t last long. Almost as soon as the snoring stopped, Ewen started extreme rustling in his sleeping bag.
I started sobbing later because I could no get to sleep. I know it sounds silly and weak of me, but trust me, if you were there, you would have felt the same way.
It rained in the night as well, which also added ‘What if the water has risen’ to my long list of worries. I was homesick for Scotland, even though that in hard to believe when you’re in New Zealand with the warm weather. Mum asked me the other day if I would mind moving to NZ, and I said that I would miss friends and family but there is something about Scotland that I miss more. I think it is because it is home to me. I would miss the minus temperatures and the Scottish traditions.
Anyway, finally I got to sleep after a few hours of sobbing and wishing I was home.
We woke later in the morning – about seven – to return to the car. Dad offered fresh milk to everyone because they had all brought fake milk. Weird. I could definitely not live on anything but fresh milk. Breakfast was a quick bowl of cereal and tea in a bottle (no cups). We were out of the hut first after a smooth and organised exit, to Dad’s pleasure.
The water level had not risen much but all the grass was wet, and I ended up being wetter than I was when I crossed the river the first time by the time I got there! On the way back I had no carries as I was just focused of getting back to the car, that I didn’t worry about getting wet and muddy.
So, that’s the story of ‘The Epic Journey Never to be Repeated’ aka ‘Lake Matiri Hut’ told by your all-time fave storyteller, Kerry Randfield.

New Zealand- New Year

2010-01-03T19:13:00.001+13:00

New Zealand New Year
Kerry wrote on the 2nd January 2010:

Here we are, finally in New Zealand! We have been staying with Dorren and Mike, friends of Mum and Dad that live near Nelson on the South Island. Last time we came, they had no kids, but Dorren was pregnant, this time they had a 4-year-old daughter Grace and a 2-year-old son Fynn.
Apparently their house had changed a lot too. Their garden was ‘much more mature’ as Mum put it, they had stables with horses, a fancy pool and a trampoline sunk in to the ground (for safety).
On our first night there, they held a barbeque with lots of their friends, some of which M+D (Mum and Dad) knew. We were fed like Kings and Queens that night, and now I come to think of it, we were fed like Kings and Queens every meal!

New Year
On New Years’ Eve, 31st December, we and another family were staying at Mike and Dorren’s. I was determined to stay up till midnight although it was proving difficult. Everyone but Fynn, Grace and Baby Caroline stayed up, and it was the first time for 7-year-old Sebastian. We had a team spa trip to the Jacuzzi and some of us went to the pool too. Instead of singing Auld Lang Syne, as we do in Scotland, we blew bubbles in the spa to the tune of Auld Lang Syne!
The pool was fantastically lit with purples, greens and blues and the music was turned up high. It was surprisingly warm, since it was 11:00 at night!
For the actual midnight celebration, we all had party poppers and the adults had champagne.

We took a trip down memory lane to Motueka, where we stayed last time. Our old school was exactly how we left it, but it was deserted because it was the summer holidays. Alan and Lois had half a school of children in their house. I think they have become the public swimming pool! Also, (this was probably another reason why all the people were around) one of their dogs’ puppies was sold.
Roxy, the little dog we looked after last time, was there too, but she was in a very bad mood and obviously didn’t remember us (I don’t blame her, it was half a decade ago!). She spent all her time growling and barking. That wasn’t the Roxy I remember!

Anyway, this morning we left Mike and Dorren’s place for Golden Bay. The drive was a long one, so we stopped for a break at a fishing place. M+D had heard about it from Mike and Dorren. Apparently you could catch a fish (“Easy!” said Dorren, “you could just put the rod in then you have caught one!”) then have it smoked for you. Only Ewen and I had a go. It took me a while to get used to the casting, but I got on well after that, I even got a nibble and almost caught one. Ewen got the first catch, though, and M+D said that we only needed one fish so I had to stop, without a catch. We went over to the ‘Smokehouse’ and Ewen and Mum chose flavours and Dad set off to cycle to Collingwood, Golden Bay, where we were to stay. In the end Ewen chose garlic and basil and Mum chose tandoori.
After a long wait the fish were finally ready. They smelt wonderful and fishy.
The only detour after that was a shopping trip for food for the next few days.

Our cottage here is nice, but a bit on the small side. Mind you, having said that I must admit that Ewen and I have a double bed each with electric blankets, so I can’t really complain!

WE had the fish for tea. It was wonderful. The tandoori was nicer than the garlic and basil but they were both still yummy.

Bye for now…
Kerry

Hong Kong -Ocean Park

2010-01-02T17:30:00.000+13:00

Hey! Kerry wrote on the 31st Dec:

HK is soooooooooo busy! It is jam-packed with people that seem to appear out of nowhere! A few days ago we went to Ocean Park. I'm sure that if you asked Mum , Dad or Ewen we'd all say different things about it.

We took a bus to Ocean Park. (Queue No. 1 - BUS TO OCEAN PARK) We arrived and bought tickets. (Queue No. 2 - TICKETS). Then, we were going to go on Turbo Snow Tubing, but decided against it after doing half the queueing. (Queue No. 3 - TURBO SNOW TUBING) We headed toward the escalator, but on our way we peeked into Magic Academy (No queue), where it was so bad that we didnt even stop, but walked staight out. We had learned a lesson - no queue = rubbish, big queue = good. Next, we finally found the entrance to the Raging River ride, but had to walk half way up the hill to get to the end of the queue. (Queue No. 4 - RAGING RIVER) Since it was about midday, mum and I went to get something to eat, while Ewen and Dad stayed in the queue. (Queue No. 5 - FAST FOOD) Bleugh. We returned to Dad and Ewen, that were still in the queue, and we all gobbled up our lunch. Finally, after about 45min wait, we went on the Raging River. I got soaked, and forgot to smile for the camera (oops). The Raging River seemed very short, but worth the long wait. Dragged in by the fact it had hardly any queue, we went on the Space Wheel next. (Queue No. 6 - SPACE WHEEL) We went in pairs - Ewen and Dad, me and Mum. The Wheel spins you round as it rises and falls. Falling out of the cabins, very dizzy, we climbed to the Mine Train ride. The queue (Queue No. 7 - MINE TRAIN) took about 45mins again, so Dad got us some popcorn to make it seem faster. The Mine Train was the first rollercoaster I had ever been on, so I was very nervous and excited. Lots of the time I thought "I'm sure that something is wrong. It cant be right to be this high up, tipping at 45 degrees." Once again, I did not smile for the camera. In the photo I actually looked bored. I was definetly not bored, though! I had enjoyed the ride so much, but it did make my mind up that I did not want to go on the Dragon (a ride that turns you upside-down) or the Abyss (I can't even talk about it it makes me feel sick.)

Next we headed up, to catch the 3:30 showing in the Ocean Theatre, because the Mine Train had made us want a break from rides. Dad and Ewen went off to look at the Sea Lions while Mum and I were meant to go and get seats at the Theatre. We walked slowly because it was still 3:15. We got there and waited a while longer for Dad and Ewen (that were queueing Queue No. 8 - Sea Lions (only dad and Ewen))

The theatre was packed. Even spaces on the steps to it were full of people and every spot (even on top of popcorn stands) that you could see at least an inch of pool, was taken, let alone the seats.

When Dad and Ewen came to us after a wee while, Mum was pretty stressed out.

So, the Ocean Theatre was a no-no that time. We went over to Atoll Reef as another attempt to see sealife. (Queue No. 9 - Atoll Reef)
Not surprisingly, Atoll Reef was really good but it was absolutely packed! The rays were huge! And they moved through the water so gracefully.

(Queue No. 10 - Cable Car) We half-queued for the cable car down the hill to see the pandas, but seeing how long the queue was, we decided against it. We went to the Ocean Theatre for the 5:00 showing. We went 30mins early so that we got a space and a chance (finally) to sit down. The show was amazing. Dolphins jumped and swam and it was just WOW!

(Queue No. 11 - Mine Train 2) Heading down the hill to the exit, we passed the Mine Train again. Ewen was desperate to have another go on it. I was not so keen, but was persuaded by Dad saying that if we didn't we'd have to go to the Aviary.
At the end of the ride I felt so sick. My picture in the booth was horrible. Everyone in the family was smiling apart from me. I looked slightly green and pulling a horrible face.
After a sickening second Mine Train, we went down the hill to the bus stop. (Queue No.12 - BUS) Bus back.

After a long and tiring day, I was very glad to return to the flat! Overall, Ocean Park was very good but there was a bit too much queueing for me!

Kerry

Hong Kong - Reflections from NZ

2010-01-01T19:09:00.001+13:00

Helen wrote on 1st Jan

Well we did Hong Kong. It was great staying at the gilchrists place as it gave us a bit of space and the option of down time although we never really seemed to do much resting! Armed with our Octopus cards we rode the buses, trams, underground and ferries and seemed to cover a lot of distance but only scratched the surface.

The tone was set on night one when we crossed on the Star ferry to Kowloon to see the light show and found it heaving - roads closed and a throng of folk strolling on the Avenue of the Satrs in and out of the shops. It was great to see but hard to get anywhere and we eventually staggered back much later than we thought we would.

Christmas Day was a relaxed affair with a slow start. the kids were great - they coped with precious little under the tree and the fact that they knew about most if it having been there when it was bought. Still we enjoyed opening gifts and lolling under the Christmas tree. Simon welched on our agreement and bought me a necklace so I felt suitably guilty..

Lunch was a fantastic affair at the Excelsior hotel - great recommendation Steph! - which was a buffet with fantastic food for all International flavours - sushi to spinach , turkey to mince pies and noodles, wobbly puddings to crepes. It was really interesting to see what choices people made. Simon rose to the challenges which we set but probably had a mince pie too far....

The next 2 days saw Ocean Park - I will let Kerry talk about that.....a boat trip to Lamma Island with a great sea food lunch and a trip up the Peak to admire the amazing skyiline.

All in all great place to visit - bubbling busy on the go and teaming with people. An amazing skyline and a a fantastic position around the harbour with a constant stream of ferries. I was a bit exhausted and it was probably the perfect antidote to NZ - roll on!

Christmas in Hong Kong

2009-12-27T04:02:00.000+13:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!!

LOVE

HELEN SIMON KERRY AND EWEN

Halong Bay/Hanoi

2009-12-26T03:38:00.000+13:00

Rather out of order but having just survived a family viewing of 'Bride Wars' ( surprisingly good) I feel compelled to post another entry.

After the washout of Hue - a damp but good-humoured wander around the imperial plaace followed by an extended cafe stop at a backpackers' retreat - we boarded the overnight train as Kerry told you. It was good and we arrived at 0410 to a lot of taxi hassle but simon held firm and we got to our hotel with little mishap and collapsed in bed.

Hanoi was not so decimated by war and retains a lot of its French colonial flavour - the Old Quarter is crowded and huddled together with lots of districts selling various different things - a street for tin boxes - another for shoes and a wild market which made me seriously consider vegetarianism. The freshly skinned frogs were definitely the low-light but they were one of many stomach churning experiences. Everywhere little stalls with tiny plastic chairs played host to groups of vietnamese scoffing freshly cooked conglomerations of 'things' with rleish. rather them than me!

Another Hanoi highlight - on our return was the Water Puppets - an ancient entertainment founded during times of flood and bascially puppetry on a pool of water. It is hard to explain and to be honest we are now used to more thrilling scenes but when you stop to think about how it is beng re created it is truly magical and incredibly skilful. Unlike some of the other productions we have been to, I found the music actually quite tuneful and definitely additive and the colours were fab. One of my highlights.

In between we did a trip to Halong Bay. Simon does go on about deep water soloing (climbing over water so that if you fall off you fall in) here and that we should have brought the climbing gear but it is truly fantastic. The rocky pillars rise majestically from the water and although it was a bit misty it was really dramatic. It has become a bit of a tourist thing to do but you can see why.

The journey was 4 hours fron Hanoi - kids into books - Ewen as never before and it passed easily. I have come to resent rather the obligatory stop at the large shop for a leg stretch - a bit like a service station with a massive marble/souvenir station attached - but it went.....

The boat was basic but comfortable and off we set. The most amazing thing was the food - several courses of fantastic sea food - fresh crab massive King Prawns - squid in all sorts of guises and clams. It just kept coming along with freshly cooked fish which tasted great - produced from the most unassuming kitchen. Felt rather overfed at the end of it!

We stopped off for a row around a fishing village and a kayak which was great - peaceful and quiet despite there being several other boats around. We all managed a quick dip - jumping in off the boat and enjoying the coolwater. Day 2 started with a trip around a cave - impressive but rather a well-trodden trail and a crusie back to Halong before getting back on the bus - another shopping stop then back to Hanoi.... Loved Halong Bay but would think that a middle day of sea kayaking would make it feel less rushed. The kids managed well with the food.

Farewell Hanoi and Vietnam.....

Helen

Communism??

2009-12-25T16:32:00.000+13:00

Well that was Vietnam. We have come to Hong Kong and I am dding this on christmas Day, ensconsed on the gilchrists computer while my kids have some well-earned down time. I seem to be missing the perpetulat honking of horns and chaotic traffic which somehow seems to function although everybody comed from every direction. the advice on road crossing was ' just go straight - don't stop. the motorbikes will avoid you if you don't stop but may hit you if you do' Requires a degree of faith!

Being in a reflective mode I thought I would pass on some thoughts about our time there in general so this may be a bit of a dull post.

Before we went my perception of vietnam was very much coloured by the past. although I do not actively remember the war with the americans I do remember Vietnamese boat people and also probably mixed it with things that I had read about communism in Cambodia under Pol Pot; the Killing fields etc.

Vietnam is very much a Communist country - one party control and no sings of any challenge to communist rule. However you would hardly believe it as a tourist ( from my conception of what a communist country would be like). There is a thriving economy - loads of building - a lot of it infrastructure instigated by Government with road building etc. Luxury tourism is on the rise - loda of tours and fancy hotels and an openness to the benefits of foreign visitors who bring their US dollars with them.

At the same time, we were told that their is no personal taxation - just business and property taxes but an individaul must pay for education and health. makes me scratch my head a bit about my understanding of communism....

Still it has bee a great place to visit. I have loved the food and the people. the kids have generally been very open to new experiences and have taken it all in their strides - a bit of occasional wingeing but very little in reality. they have both faced up to some fairly significant culinary challenges well and extended their tastes admirably. I was quite relieved to come to Hong Kong myself so I can imagine how they feel.....

Helen

Hue

2009-12-20T20:16:00.000+13:00

Simon wrote on the 20th:

A couple of quieter days have passed, dictated by the weather - a near typhoon in central Vietnam and travelling necessities. We got a private taxi from Hoi An north. We stopped off at the Marble Mountains- a group of outcrops sitting above the paddy fields and china beach. They have great religious significance, and have more than there fair share of buddhist pagodas but now seem to be covered in hawkers trying to get your dollars. The view would have been spectacular if it wasnt for horizontal rain- made us feel like home, and the jumpers came on for the first time. The itinerary was ammended according to the weather and we made steady progress north, ending up in Hue.

In Hue it was raining hard so persistantly we stayed put in our second rate hotel watching crap telly and reading.

The weather was marginally better the next day- more like Scottish rain than a monsoon- so we donned jackets and set off the explore the citadel and the emperor's palace. Soon NABOB syndrome (see Kerry's posting from Siem Reap) swept through the ranks and we were watching the rain from a friendly cafe . Whilst all this was going on, another story was unfolding- the saga of our train tickets. Without ruining the suspense, alls well that ends well and we now find ourselves in Hanoi. We have spent the morning looking around the old quarter, absorbing the constant bustle of life in every nook and cranny. Highlights were the live frogs being peeled and some strange looking traditional medicines.
We now look forward to an overnight trip on a junk in Halong Bay, and onwards to Hong Kong and New Zealand.
Simon

Train - Tickets and Journey

2009-12-20T20:01:00.000+13:00

6 o'clock here, as we are GMT+7. The weather here is rubbish. Rain is everywhere and someplaces are flooded. Mum and Dad say the rain here is worse than it ever gets in Scotland!

Train Tickets to Hanoi...

Yesterday, as we were told to do, we stopped off at the Travel Agent on our way to the hotel. We sent Dad to pick up our tickets for the overnight train to Hanoi. He came back after a while and told us the people knew nothing about us coming. Oh. Our driver for the day was Thon and he went with dad to help translate for him.

Thon and Dad came back to the car a wee while later, still with no tickets. They said that someone should be round at our hotel at half eight the next morning to drop them off.

So that was that for that day, and we went to our hotel the Duy Tan ***, where Miss Miserable gave us our keys.

The next day, nothing came at eight thirty. A man in reception helped us with phoning and asking for them. And since this kind of phoning and asking and expecting-at-a-certain-time-when-they-don't-come sort of thing happened all day. The next day, however, we were told that we could go to pick them up 10 minutes before the train was due to leave. Not unreasonably, Mum and Dad were quite abit worried that this wouldn't work out. They spent the day fretting over what they thought was going to happen and alternative flights and bus journeys.
When we were back in the hotel around midday, we finally got tickets. We didn't have a clue who had given them or brought them to the hotel.
Even when we had tickets, Mum and Dad (especially Mum) were worried about whether the tickets were suggesting we had seats or a private cabin. We couldn't askk at reception because they were busy with a wedding and clearing up.

Anyway, it turns out that we had a private cabin. Phew!

The Journey was 13 hours. We occupied ourselves in different ways...

I (with the help of Mum and Ewen) finished my puzzle game on my gameboy.
Dad listened to his iPod, snoozing.
Ewen and Mum played amini game of a family game 'The Intro Game - Humming'. (One person listens to iPod and hums the start of the song while the other person has to guess which song it is.)
THE INTRO GAME - DUET was played. Me + Dad vs. Mum and Ewen. I would have liked to say it was a draw, but sadly, they won. It was very entertaining, watching Mum, trying very hard to listen to the song, humming along looking upwards, and Ewwn next to her, making very weird faces and being very enthusiastic.
Our tea was Pringles in a piece of no-really-french French bread and Oreos. We ate it in silence (almost-not-really-not-at-all) listening to the group next door to us dancing the conga up and down the narrow corridor.
I got a very good night sleep, but I think some others in my family did not.

Gotta go! Bye!

Kerry x

P.S. Hanoi is dryer than Hue, as it hasn't rained at all today (apart from the light spitting in the very early morning), but it is colder.

HOI AN

2009-12-19T00:35:00.000+13:00

Kerry:

Hello! Theres not much to write about as Dad and Ewen have said it all. (Ewen wrote his first ever post yesterday and we haven't been able to drag him away from it since.) I am enjoying our trip so far. I got a late birthday pressie today! :D I got a dress made for me. I won't go on about it, but I got to choose colours and it has silk lining and stuff. (Sorry, my English isn't up to scratch...). It's white till about the belly then blue layers to the knee.

Anyway, today. I didn't read Dad's entry thoroughly, so sorry if i repeat some things.

Here is the timetable for the day...

07:15 - Wake early (I hated that part).

07:35 - Breakfast. Yum! lots of pancakes and bacon for me! Amazing breakfast.

08:00 - Ready at reception to start cycle tour. Reception said it was 08:30 they came. (What! I could've had an extra 30 mins in bed!)

08:30 - Start cycle tour. Got bikes and helmets ready, and set off.

The tour was great (if you like cycling)! Our guide, Spider (long story) took us around the outskirts of Hoi An to see the local area and the locals' lifestyles. We got a free tea/coffee/drink during it, but they put loads of sugar in my milk (which was already UHT), so I didn't have much.

. About 12:30 - Return to hotel after a long muddy bike trip, all pretty exhausted (well, I was).

After that - CHILL! Mum, Dad and Ewen went for a swim the freezing hotel pool.

14:00 - Catch the shuttle bus into town for another delicious lunch at a favourite the Cargo Club. My huge bacon and cream cheese baguette was enough to fill me up for a while!

15:15 - Mum had persuaded us to go to a traditional music show at a workshop down the road from the cafe. The live music was accompanied by some melodramatic dancers and a spokeswoman that couldn't pronounce 'gentlemen'. Overall it was definetely worth going to. Dad and Ewen trailed around a shop umming and ahhing about a buddha statue.

About 15:45 'till 16:45 - Trailing around shops, mainly. My dress was to be ready by 16:15 but we had to wait a while for the dress to arrive. It was absolutely stunning! I tried it on, though they still had to put some final detail to the hems on. I love it! Ewen and Dad got new shoes - some cool black comverses for Ewen and some new work shoes for Dad.

17:15 - Caught bus back to the hotel with two new pairs of shoes and no dress. :(

19:00 - After coming back and hanging about for a while, my dress came! The lady said she would deliver it at seven, and I guess she was telling the truth!

19:20 approx. - Dinner time! We weren't too keen on going back to town, as we had spent so much of our time there. So, we went down to the hotel restaurant and had a peek at the menu. We liked what we saw, and decided to stay for tea. Tea was YUM YUM especially my creme brulee! After tea, we came here, the bar, where there is internet access.

Sorry for my entry being this brief and possibly for repeating info!

Bye! Kerry x

HCM City

2009-12-18T23:37:00.000+13:00

Simon wrote on 18th december:
Ewen summarises the excursion to the Viet Cong strong hold of Cu Chi to the north of Saigon well. It was interesting to see the whole war (the "American war") story form a Vietnamese perspective, including a 1960s black and white propaganda video extolling the virtues of the child soldier. Even our moderate guide was telling us they still learn to handle a gun in school. I was unsure if this was part of the historical perspective, but when I asked her why, she said she wasn't sure but then added " in case we go to war again".

We were ready to leave Saigon by the end of our stay there. You could ask would we Miss Saigon? Probably not. The following Good Morning, Vietnam was busy as always as we rushed to the airport. However, once again we were impressed by the organisation of the country and the flight to Danang went smoothly, There's no sense of Apocalypse, Now. The Quiet American in the airport had a Scent of Green Papaya, but that's another story, or film, or whatever...

We flew into Danang to get some R&R in Hoi An, an ancient town based on the silk trade, for which it had a world reputation. It's full of backpacker cafes and hotels, banana museli and ... backpackers, but charming all the same. Lots of old houses and shrines. Surrounded by padi fields and folk ploughing the fields with oxen and setting the fish traps as they probably have done for centuries. Some of the old folk looked like they'd done it personally for centuries. The younger generation mostly work the tourists, but all with good humour. Its a pleasure to be with these people, especiually when you consider wehat the western world has dished out to them in the last couple of centuries. "Spider" took us on a morning cycle tour today around the countryside. Once again every inch of the countryside is cultivated.Quite tough going on single speed heavy bikes in th mud, but Kerry and Ewen did well.

We are staying in a forgetable but pleasant 4* hotel with a sizeable pool which has been a nice diversion. In 5 minutes I'll be bobbing around in it once again. Sipping my birthday pina colada in the pool side bar. Not.

The Birthday Boy

Viet kong

2009-12-18T14:18:00.000+13:00

Ewen writes...

16th Dec: Today is our last day in Ho Chi Min and we all agreed to go to the tunnels where the Vietkong hid from the Americans in the 1960s. As we all know, the Vietnamies weren't rich and had little to eat, but that was vital to their plan. They had the tunnels made so small that the wealthy Americans would have got stuck if they went any where near them. There were loads of entrances to this highly thought out plan, they had their Ventilation holes disguised as termite
hills and last but definatly not least... their traps.

Most of them would have injured you badly if not killed you. There were see-saw traps which would swing over if you stood on one side or the other and fall down a hole while being stabbed in the back and be stuck down there. There were window, souvenier, rolling, bamboo and door traps.

All of them were deadly and lots of the enemies died from them. When it was safe, everyone went down to fight and lay down lots of mines to stop their heavily armed tanks geting close to their base. But still with this amazing plan that they had thought out over and over again (instead of the Americans just coming thinking that the Vietnamies will surender) they still lost more fighters than the Americans.

Lots of people died from illness and snakebites as well as being stuck in the tunnels when bombs hit the rooves and they came crumbling down.
But the Vietnamies intelligence was unmatched...

Ewen, Vietnamese War Correspondant

2009-12-16T23:22:00.000+13:00

Angkor Wat at sunset

A picture from the Royal Palace in Phnom Penh

Who looks most like Lara Croft?

Mekong river Trip

homestay

2009-12-16T22:23:00.000+13:00

Ewen

Today is the 15th of December and we've just spent a day in a very kind lady's home. Acting as a Vietnamese wasn't the easiest thing, first we got on the bus at around 6 45 in the morning and headed for a luxurious lunch. On the way there we stopped off at a few destinations like the floating- market, Brick factory and the Nursery garden were they grow all kinds of tropical fruits like Rose apple, Jack fruit and Grape fruits. The rose apple tasted just like a pear.

When we all thought it was time for lunch, we headed in a little rowing boat to are next destination
were we all agreed that we got a bit over fed (apart from dad) with our 5 course meal.Later on
in the two days we had at the homestay we realised that a 5 course meal was easily beaten by
a whopping 7 course meal but even that couldn't impress dad! After we finished our filling lunch we were stuffed (well obviously) we went over to the homestay.

None of us expected are homestay to be anything like it was. Their was around 16 Hammocks all to gether but for Kerry's relief their were only two other people sharing the house. We organised to
go for a cycling tour which Kerry declined.This trip gave us a short and small idea what the place looked like .When we got back we found Kerry napping in the hammock, it was shortly tea time
after I tried but failed to get dad to come for a run with me. The Vietnamese people had a small or even no breakfast and had a huge lunch which shocked me.

On the morning of the 15th we unfortunately we had no lie in today either, which annoyed most if all
the family. After our breakfast we got back on the boat and went to the floating Market and then home, back in the bus for 4 15 before we were back and watching TV.

Going out so saying goodbye...

Ewen

2009-12-16T03:43:00.000+13:00

Ho Chi Minh City / Saigon

Templed out we eventually left Siam Reap . The temples were spectacular but the area covered was huge. We scratched the surface. (despite what Kerry would have you believe.)

With some sadness we left Cambodia - chaotic but organised friendly and easy traveling. Very set up for the tourist and managing the explosion in tourist numbers relatively well. The infrastructure was good and we felt very un hassled.

Ho Chi Minh - well everyone still calls it Saigon. Huge efficient and SO busy. Cars and motorbikes everywhere and the same no rules but no accidents driving from what I can see. Roundabouts are a complete free for all but you basically set off and head straight and hope for the best! The trip in from the airport was nose to tail all the way but this is s different kettle of fish to Cambodia - skyscrapers and smart shops - more money around and much more developped.

Night 1 - nice hotel and noodles in a street market which I was very impressed with - the kids are defiitely striking out!

We then embarked on a 2 day home stay trip to the Mekong delta - but more on that anon as I am feeling sleepy...Another early start in the morning....

Siem Reap / Temples of Angkor

2009-12-12T21:28:00.000+13:00

Hi! We are in Siem Reap now, which apparenty is known for Angkor Wat, a well-preserved temple that is nearby. I have NABTS very badly and I suspect it will be worse by the time we leave for Saigon tomorrow. NABTS is Not Another Blinking Temple Syndrome. We have been trailing around ancient temples for day s and I am quite bored of it now (OK, very bored!). Im not one for temples, obviously. They are all very similar in my opinion, just a building that is very old with carvings in it, but when I said this to Mum she said "If you actually pay attention and look carefully, they are all very different."

Anyway, apaart from temples, I've had an OK time here. Its much cooler and greener that Phnom Penh. We went to the market last night and (as usual) we lost Ewen and Mum got stressed out because of the hassle and there being nowhere to try clothes on. Oh well.

Yesterday, too, before we went to the markert, Ewen and I got a 'fish massage'. It wasn't really a massage. We dangled our totsies into a giant fish tank and the fed the fish our dead skin. I know, it does sound gross but as long as I didn't look at the fish between my toes, i was fine. It was actually quite tickly. Tonight Mum and Dad are going to get one, and I am definetley going to take my camera to capture the looks on their faces at the start!

I have to go, as I can only get 15mins on the computer free, here. Bye!

Angkor Wat

2009-12-12T21:01:00.000+13:00

Its now the 12th december and weve been in Siem Reap, gateway to the ancient ruins of Angkor Wat for 3 long days. Siem Reap is a bustling metropolis on the up, now a standard part of the backpackers world tour. As such it has all the mod cons, all sorts of food- khymer and western, happy hours, wifi access and of course the famous Dr Fish foot massage. For this you pay your $3 US (all transactions are started in US with change given in Cambodian Riels) and sit with your feet in a vat of gummy toothless pirhanas (ok ,I doubt theyre pirhanas) who then proceed to descale your feet .Nicer than it might sound...
Down the road lies Angkor Wat, part of a huge metropolis of ancient cities built between 900 and 1200ad. And the scale realy does need clarifying- There are dozens of temples scattered around this area, of which Angkor Wat is the picture postcard/ biscuit tin lid best preserved. Angkor Wat itself is huge, with a massive moat surrounding, long processional causeways and walls within walls. Other ruins have finer carving, some have amazing bas reliefs depicting ancient stories- a sort of stonework bayeux tapestry, and just as old. Others are overgrown with huge trees with massive root systems that are now supporting the ruins. These give you youre Tintin in cambodia moments, or Lara Croft if youre <20yrs old.
The only way to see these ruins is to hire a driver for the day. Ewen has become quite attached to Ho, our tuktuk driver. Today , much to his disbelief, we abandoned Ho and took a Taxi to some more distant ruins. On todays trip we walked into the hills to fine carvings within a river bed. Quite magical. However it remains swelteringly hot- a bit more than the 0 degrees we here youre enjoying back at home.

Simon

Impressions of Phnom Penh

2009-12-09T23:15:00.001+13:00

Having recovered from my jet lag, I feeel slightly more reflective and have a few other observations on my time in Phnom Penh.

Basically a big hot Asian city with a feel of bustle and activity. We actually have not been hassled overly and I have found it reasonably enjoyable. It is obviously growing massivley and shaking of its past. The traffic is immensly disorganised but only probably works because people are quite considerate drivers - multiple tuk tuks and motorbikes often going the wrong way and cutting across lanes of traffic but it seems to flow.

Some of the roads and pavements are well maintained but litter and the smell of rubbish is never far away.

The people have been generally friendly and helpful. Often a passing bloke will be dragged in to help the women n shops translate. Haggling is compulsory (much to Ewen's embarrassment)

The food has been great - lots of choices and great flavours. I haven't dared to dry the fried insects which are sold in great piles in the markets as they don't look too appetising but we have found some fab places.

Today Simon and I separately visited Tuol Sleng - an ex-primary school, used by the kKhmer Rouge as a torture facility 1976-1978. It has now been turned into a museum - all very sad and does make you wonder about the potential evil in humanity but i had a couple of positive thoughts afterwards.

Firstly this is very recent history and the country ( or capital at least ) is unrecognisable from such devastastation in a relatively short time.

Secondly I was impressed by the cambodians attitude to it. It has been turned into a museum which openly examines the atrocities with a 'never again'attitude and does not shy away from the gory bits of its history.

Having said all of that I am ready to move on. 7 am bus tomorrow to Siem Reap. 6 hours on the bus could be grim but has to be done.

Impressions of Phnom Penh

2009-12-09T23:15:00.000+13:00

Still Phnom Penh

2009-12-09T22:33:00.000+13:00

MY 12th BIRTHDAY!

Today I got to organise our agenda (within reason) since it was my birthday.

We had a lie in - that was badly needed by all the family- before breakfast at the hotel bar. The passion fruit juice looked like frogspawn, so I didn't go anywhere near it. Apart from that, breakast was pretty good.

The tuk tuks were again in usage. To Wat Phnom, a temple on a hill in the city centre. Our priority was to go elephant riding around the base. (that was dad and his guidebook-reading) At first dad wouldn't accept $15, so we explored to temple while we were there. People tried to sell birds to us. The guidebook (dad) says that the birds are trained to come back, so they can re-sell them again and agian. After looking round all there was to look around in the temple, dad asked me again if I really wanted to ride on an elephant. I would've said no, but mum said it was a good laugh so I said yes. I don't regret it at all. Ewen and I went on. It was very fun. but a bit unstable as there was not too much protection. The elephant's name was Sambo.

Our personal tuk tuk man (he followed us) took us then to the Phnom Penh water park, which I have to say was a bit of a disappointment. It was outside, which was OK, and the changing rooms were infested with ants. The water was murky with bugs in it with no means of filtering. The slides were filtered, though and were the only place we swam in. We had loads of fun sliding down the slides linked together and racing eachother.

We returned to the hotel and that's where I am now!

8th December - Phnom Penh

2009-12-09T02:49:00.000+13:00

It seems like ages since our last post and I have finally a window of opportunity to update.

After being thoroughly overfed by Mum and Dad in Southampton with a fab Christmas dinner we set off to LHR for our flight on Sunday evening - thanks Dad for braving the M3/M25. All was really very uneventful as far as long haul fights go - lots of movie watching a little bit of sleep and a couple of wobbly puddings - no complaints really. Air New Zealand were good and we arrived on time in Hong Kong - cloudy and a bit dull - no view to speak of...

Steve - Simon's school mate met us from the plane and we spent he evening with them in their flat in HK. Great to catch up - too much wine with jet lag and packing on the agenda but you only live once.

We also touched base with John and Steph whose flat we will be in when we return to HK.

After precious little sleep we were up at 6 and off back to the airport in torrential rain . The timing seemed good - better to come back when HK had its weather sorted out!

Again a very uneventful flight to Phnom Penh which was remarkably efficient in a small airport lots of bureaucracy sort of way. Boy was it hot.

To avoid minute details on the events of the day we are now in our hotel - the Kabiki - v central v comfortable with great pool. We managed a trip to the Royal Palace, trip to the market (too late it turned out) supermarket sweep for Kerry's birthday and a couple of very nice meals. It has been a pleasant if slightly hectic starting day.

No phtotos as I haven't got that far with the technology and bed is calling.
H

Southampton, England

2009-12-06T00:21:00.000+13:00

We are in England now, after flying down at 7:00 this morning from Edinburgh to Bournemouth. Tomorrow, we will be flying from London to Hong Kong. I'm looking forwrd to it!

Kerry x

Packing

2009-11-29T07:46:00.000+13:00

We are very excited about going. The house is a state, though, because we're only halfway through packing. All mum-and-dad talk about is flights and luggsage and stuff like that.
Kerry x

Our Itinerary

2009-11-29T06:29:00.000+13:00

Dec 5 Edin –Bournemouth ryanair 6604
Bill and Jo’s wfmadden@btinternet.com

Dec 6/7 LHR-HK NZ038
Steve Hall’s happyhalls@netvigator.com

Dec 8 HK-Phnom Penh KA206
www.thekabiki.com 855 23222290
Dec 10 overland to Siem Reap/ Ankor Wat
www.auberge-mont-royal.com

Dec 13 Siem Reap-Saigon VN9883
itinerary by handspan www.handspan.com 13/12 Overnight in Ho Chi Minh14/12 Mekong Homestay15/12 Return to Ho Chi Minh16/12 Cu chi tunnels17/12 Half day in city and fly to Danang on to Hoi An overnight in Hoi An18/12Hoi An cycling tour 19/12 Travel to Hue.20/12 Day in Hue Overnight train to Hanoi21/12 Hanoi22/12 Halong Bay Cruise23/12 Return to Hanoi

Dec 24 Hanoi- HK VN790
Jonathon and Steph Gilchrist gilchjs@yahoo.co.uk 0085225121533
2a Shetland Braemar heights, 7 Wai Tsui Crescent, Braemar Hill, North Point, HK

Dec 28/9 HK-Auckland NZ038
Dec 29 Auck-Nelson NZ 8367
Mike and Dorren’s dorrenkirkaldy@hotmail.com 035445445
Jan 9-10 Murray and Gaye’s mgcoates@ocron.net.nz
Jan 12-15 staying at Wanaka , Panorama Court

Jan 22 Chch- Auckland Quantas4954
Chris and Nicolas? chris.coombe@xtra.co.nz

Feb 1-April 1 working Russell medical services PO Box 36 Russell. tel 094037690 or via rachelbirch@maxnet.co.nz our home address will be 4 Ashby St PO Box 233 Russell NZ 09 4038307
(Feb 10 Auck – Chch NZ531 Coast to Coast Race Feb 14 Chch- Auck NZ510)

April 03 AUCK- LA NZ036 no plans as yet
April 15/16 LA-LHR NZ002

We still hope to be accessing our own email when possible on our travels.