I have to begin this week with an admission of error, it seems I did not have the full story when I spoke of the price difference between gasoline and diesel in New Zealand. I have since learned that the pump price of gasoline includes road tax, but if you drive a diesel vehicle you must pay road tax separately (purchased in blocks of Km to be driven) and put the tax sticker on your windscreen. So once the road tax is factored in, the price difference between gasoline and diesel is much closer to the Canadian difference. See what happens when you don't have all the facts.
Something else that has caught my eye recently is the obsession by New Zealand national sports teams to put the word black in their team name. We have all heard of New Zealand's national rugby team, the All Blacks, and perhaps other teams just want to ride on the brand awareness, but it seems a bit excessive (or "over the top" as one would say down under). I have found the following team names, but there are likely others -
- All Blacks - rugby
- Diamond Blacks - baseball
- Ice Blacks - ice hockey
- Iron Blacks - American football
- Tall Blacks - basketball
- Wheel Blacks - wheelchair rugby
- Black Caps - cricket
- Black Ferns - women's rugby
- Black Fins - surf life saving
- Black Socks - softball
- Black Sticks - field hockey
Then there are those that get noticed by being the opposite -
- All Whites - soccer
- White Ferns - women's cricket
- White socks - women's softball
But now back to our trip.....
No new destinations this week, just final rides to some of our favourite biking destinations, & visiting friends and family. Last week I provided photos of the Zepplin Cafe in Clive, so this week, we have the garden / patio area at Snapper Cafe in Bay View, another great coffee stop.
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| Snapper Cafe |
While on the subject of food, we had one last dinner with cousins Maureen and Denzil on Wednesday night, and I just had to have an iconic New Zealand dish, the Kiwi Burger....a standard burger, with the addition of a fried egg and beetroot (note the healthy choice of salad rather than chips).
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| Kiwi Burger |
On Thursday we met our local friends Alan and Glenys for lunch, and then visited their house to check out their new kitchen. They live in a 100+ year old home, on the hill, with great views of ocean, hills and port. Alan is a retired builder and decided to redo the kitchen with a more old style, country-kitchen look. The photo below is the just-finished product....now he can move onto bathrooms.
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| Alan's Country Kitchen |
The forecasted rain never arrived so on Friday we did one last ride to Clive (battling a strong southerly wind), before returning the bikes to Maureen's garage in the late afternoon. We have really enjoyed being able to bike around the Napier area, which is the most bike-friendly city (nice and flat with lots of trails) that we have come across in our travels. Thanks again Maureen.
As our time in Napier draws to an end, so a new adventure begins. On Saturday I took the bus to Wellington, and on Sunday I drove Margaret and Tricia back to Napier, so that tomorrow we can set off on an 8-day mini-vacation. Hopefully I will find some new blog material along the way.
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