On April 2, 2010 we drove from Ngunguru to Auckland to drop our rental car off and meet Karen and Jennifer Wrigley. Remember that it was Karen and Jennifer with their father; David, that we met on the Kepler track back in February. At the end of the hike, they invited us to contact them when we were in the Auckand area. Karen said to stay as long or as short as we wanted and later told us; after we stayed over a week, that we didn't have to take what she said so literally......ah, family and friends, that's what we do best...get comfortable and have really long good-byes - I wouldn't want it any other way!!! We had such a great visit and the Wrigley's are amazing. We were picked up in a Jag (remember all the clobber that we have) and were treated like royalty ever since.
That night we had dinner with the family; David, Marilyn, Karen, Jen and their one brother; Gareth. Their other brother; Andrew and his wife; Jenny and their three children; Katherine, Sophie and Amy, could not make it for dinner, but we would meet them another time. It was alot of fun for sure. The pastries that Delia and I picked up in a bakery in Matakana were not a great hit, but made for a few laughs at our expense. The next day we took a 15 to 20 min ferry ride across to Rangitoto with Karen, Jen, Gareth and Jen's 15 year old mentee; Nina. Rangitoto is a 600 year old live volcano. 
We climbed to the top and looked over all of Auckland and the other islands around. That night we went out to dinner at Hallertau in Riverhead. Overall, just a nice relaxing day of sightseeing and visiting.On April 4th we had another relaxing day. We headed to Piha Beach which is a famous beach near Auckland.
The surf is known to be dangerous, but there are surfers that attempt their fate frequently and subsequently, the Coast Guards perform quite a few rescues. As we walked and played a bit of soccer along the beach, we watched some of these surfers. I know that surfing can be alot of fun, but it really is alot of waiting around for that perfect wave. It is not my thing, but the beach is stunning and I can see the attraction to surfing once you do get to ride the wave. We had a bite to eat and a drink at a cafe on the beach with friends of Karen's that we met. Finished off the day with pizza with the family.Right from the very beginning, when Delia and I started to plan our Around the World adventure, as well as all the time during our trip; making a side trip to one of the islands off New Zealand, was an option. Either the Cook Islands, Fiji or Tahiti. Unfortunately, with all the reading and asking around that we did, nothing really enticed us to want to go. There was some political and weather unrest in the islands, but basically staying in New Zealand was just more attractive then going to a resort or any other type of touristy thing on the islands. Besides, although going to the islands while we were already in NZ would be cheaper than going there from Toronto, it was still pricey. We still had not completed the north part of the north island so even though we hummed and hawed over the 5 months that we were away, it really wasn't a hard decision to make in the end. And to make the decision even sweeter; with a bit of persuasion, Jen Wrigley agreed to take a week off work and take us on a road trip to the north part of the north island. And let me tell you, this was a true road trip in every way......in Kiwi style!!! It was a blast! ......hmmmmm......I think this deserves a blog entry of its own........
hi girls you still arounf
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