Reluctantly we left Paihia and Carolyn and Martin, but stopped at TheWaitangi Treaty Grounds for the morning. It is the place where the Waitango Treaty was signed between the various Maori Tribes and the British Government. From what I can understand this gave the Maoris control of their land and possessions and in return Britain protected them. In reality it was a trade agreement to keep the islands British and out of the hands of the French, but of course it is a lot more completed than that. Also more importantly, the Maoris are a warrior race, they would not have surrendered sovierenty of their lands to the Britain without a bloody fight, and unlike the Aboriginal people, they might possibly have won. It has made me want to find out more when I get back.
We saw the most wonderful meeting house and a cultural display with a Maori greeting, it scared me! Great fun had by all.
We bumped into Carolyn and Martin at the site and had coffee before saying the final goodbye.
From there we drove across to the West Coast, the lovely scenery changed along with the weather, and it rained on the way. We were heading for Opononi by the sea, and found a small camp overlooking some monumental sand dunes. I quite fancied doing some dune surfing.
The sun came out when we arrived, although it was really windy, and we decided to go for a walk. Well for once our luck was in. The sky got darker and darker, and heavens let loose just as we were able to dive into the nearest building for shelter. Luckily it was the village pub, and we just had to stay until the deluge stopped.
What a night, lashing rain and high winds, the camper rocked all night.... no comments required :0) to the point I thought it might tip over, and we were a bit worried about the tree we were parked under. But luckily we survived.
Please meet the camp lawn mowers.
Yes you are right Harriet, we met this French couple a while ago, who told us that they were pulled up by the police and told off the going too slowly. The road rules here are if you get more than about 4/5 cars behind you, you should pull over and let them pass. won't rant on about the drivers over here yet, I will leave it till another time.
We spent a few silly hours with the map, coming up with place names that sound best in a geordie accent. Here are but a few: KawaKawa, Ruakaka, Tangowahini, MataMata and Waitoki. hehe
Also the longest place name so far in NZ is Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateapokaiwhenuakitanatahu
We also changed continent briefly when we went through Bombay and the Khyber Pass
Bye for now
See, told you! :)
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