Parksville, BC to Nelson, New Zealand (2020-01-28)

As we will be taking two international trips this year, we have a lot of climate change penance to do, so we began our trip to New Zealand by walking into Parksville, and taking the bus to Nanaimo, to connect with Marlene's mother.  There is no public bus to Duke Point ferry terminal, so the three of us took a taxi to the ferry.

Once safely on the mainland, we spent two nights with our daughter Heather and family, before flying out on Thursday night.  This was our first flight on a 787, which seemed to have more leg room than the 777, so a positive start to the trip.  The flight was uneventful, getting us to Auckland just before 5 am local time on Saturday.

On arrival in New Zealand, the first hurdle is clearing passport control, which is achieved by inserting your passport into a scanner, answering three pertinent questions, and being photographed, all of which must be completed in order to open the electronic gate and let you pass into the baggage hall.  We let Marlene's mother go through first, with Marlene leaning over her shoulder to help.  They answered the first question with a yes, and the second question with a yes, after which they were presented with a "do not enter" symbol on the screen, and were instructed to see an agent.  In hindsight we believe that in answering the second question with a yes, Marlene pressed the button a little after her mother did, by which time the machine had already moved on to the third question (which we did not see), which was "have you ever been incarcerated for more than 12 months?".  It was the yes response to this question that resulted in Fredda being refused entry.  So Fredda had to see an agent, who admonished her for not reading the questions properly, and she was allowed entry.

As we had some time in hand before our flight to Nelson, we spent a while showing Fredda how to get to and from the inter-terminal bus, and to international departures, as she will be making the connection by herself when she returns to Canada at the end of February.  We even had time for a date & pumpkin scone and a coffee in the domestic terminal, after walking in the balmy 18 degree air from the international terminal.

Nelson was very much as we remembered it from previous visits, and after dropping our luggage at our home for the next 3 weeks, we headed to the Saturday Farmers' Market to stock up on fresh fruit and vegetables, after which we were ready for a break.  So we walked across the street to the Red Café and enjoyed a light lunch and a drink.

Although fortified by the lunch, Fredda was ready for some downtime, so we took her home and Marlene and I headed back into town to stock up on groceries.  After a quick dinner, we were all ready for an early night.

Just before midnight I was awakened by the building shaking, but it stopped within about 15 seconds, and I was quickly asleep again.  The next day I read of an earthquake in Turkey, which brought my night time experience back to the forefront of my mind.  I checked the GeoNet website and learned that there was a magnitude 5.4 quake at 11:45 pm, centered about 50 km north of Nelson.  Marlene and Fredda didn't feel a thing, so they must have been tired!

Sunday was a recovery day, but we managed to walk into town for coffee and a scone at the Suter Café, but that was about all we could manage in the 30 degree heat.

By Monday we were feeling somewhat normal, and we left Fredda to explore the Queen's Gardens, and Marlene & I set off on a walk up the river path.  We set an alert on my phone for 45 minutes, so that could do an hour and a half round trip.  The path was very much as we remembered it, and we walked as far as the golf course, before being saved by the bell, and headed back to town.

River Walk

When we were in Nelson with Fredda and her late husband about six years ago, one house backing onto the river path was giving away plums from their very large plum tree, and so we collected several bags full over the course of a week.  Nick was so impressed with the plums that he took several plum stones home, dried them, and planted then in pots.  One of the resulting trees is now growing in our back yard, and produced its first fruit last summer.  We are looking forward to it producing plums like its New Zealand parent, and maybe we will get a bag or two while we are in Nelson, as they are looking fairly ripe.

Our Favourite Plum Tree

Every good walk deserves a reward, so after rescuing Fredda from Queen's Gardens, we headed to Melrose House, one of the stately homes from Nelson's early days, and now home to the number one rated café in Nelson (according to Trip Advisor).

Fredda at Melrose House

We sat on the verandah, under an umbrella, and enjoyed a beautifully presented coffee and scone.  It is easy to see why it is the number one rated café in Nelson.

Scone and Latte at Melrose House

On Monday night we had the first disappointment of our visit to Nelson.  On past visits we had enjoyed dinner and a drink at the Sprig and Fern pub on Milton Street.  The pub does not serve food, but in the past you could order food at Milton Takeaways next door, and have it delivered to your table at the pub.  In a previous post I have praised this symbiotic relationship, so I was surprised when the server at Milton Takeaways told me that they can no longer deliver food to the pub as the new pub owners do not allow it.  So we finished our drinks, and then took dinner home to eat at the kitchen table.  We will have to find a new favourite place to dine out.

This morning we turned Fredda loose, heading to the Japanese Garden, which is just a few blocks from where we are staying, and Marlene and I set off on our first hill walk, a loop which would bring us down very close to the Japanese Garden, after about an hour and a quarter of walking, with 560 feet of elevation gain.  It is a ridge walk, with spectacular views of Nelson, the harbour, and Tasman Bay beyond.

Nelson Harbour From The Ridge

In the photo above, you might be able to see where we are staying.  We are in the front flat of a block of three, over the road from a large area of sports fields, close to the harbour.  If you draw an imaginary line from the top of the tallest evergreen in the photo, to the pavilion (toilet block) in the sports field (middle right of the photo), the line will pass over a rectangular building, with an orange-coloured roof.  That is our home for the next three weeks.  Downtown is beyond the left side of the photo, and about 1.5 km away.

Marlene Among The Blue Gum Trees

This afternoon we are taking it easy, as tomorrow we might go a little further afield.