Travel, elephants and birthdays

Well it has been an interesting and busy month of September! While it is really only 2 events, a 2 week holiday to Thailand and Daniel's birthday, the time has flown by and the combination of time zones and daylight saving starting has meant a bit of that time flew by while we were sleeping.

Travelling Thai style

Checking out the markets in Chiang Mai

At the beginning of the month we left a very wet and cold Kaikoura to drove down to an even colder Christchurch in order to be up at 2am for our flights to Thailand.  The heat of Thailand after the cold of New Zealand took some getting used to and Daniel even asked 'Do they have a heater on'  as we left Bangkok airport ;).  It was a great holiday though and an awesome learning experience for both of the kids.  By the end of the trip we were able to take an hour and a half 3rd class (no air con) train trip without a murmur of a complaint .... well apart from when a monk was intent on stroking Daniel's hair and trying to set him up with another child travelling!!  In fact Daniel and his hair were a definite favourite of many a Thai adult .... I think we could of earned a pretty penny if we had stood somewhere for photos. ;)

This pretty much sums up us trying to get a family photo!

Trying another Thai mode of transport!

The big request when we left New Zealand was too visit some elephants in the wild.  While this is a little tricky without going into the jungle for days on end we did manage to book a half day trip where we were able to feed, walk and wash the elephants.  These elephants had been returned to the hilltribe village where they were from (couldn't quite get an answer about how they got there in the first place) after being leased out to other companies for tourists to ride on.  I think that if we had just feed them and left Daniel would have been well pleased as it was a little too remote and jungle like in the village for himself .... Jasmine on the other hand would of happily lived there I think. ;) Hopefully he'll remember it fondly later.

Walking with the elephants

Feeding the elephants

It was such a different experience that we really did need the two weeks for themselves to adjust.  The heat, the new smells, the noise, the language, the food, the animals and the traffic was all an eye opener for them and it was great seeing their inquisitiveness and openness about it all.  They soon had their favourites in the market stalls and were able to say hello and thank you in Thai by the time we went.  It was great also for Liam and I to re-discover some places we had been before and discover new places in Thailand.  We ended up (accidentally that is) staying in the same guest house and the same room in Chiang Mai as we stayed in 13 years ago! The kids thought that was really awesome.  The highlight of the trip though would have to be a stay in Phrae (in the North East) where we were given the whole place to look after when we asked to stay.  The owner was just about to leave for a trip and so let us use her whole house for a couple of days .... it was a great experience as it was a traditional wooden Thai house with no air con and a sprawling garden where the kids could collect their own mango to eat for breakfast.  The whole of Phrae was like this, trusting, helpful and friendly, and it was such a breath of fresh air to be off the tourist trail.  It really did feel like we were seeing the 'real'  Thailand or at least how it was before all the farang started bombarding through.

Train travel

Our traditional Thai house for a few days

Once back in NZ we had planned to spend Daniel's birthday weekend over on the West Coast but unfortunately the weather closed the roads on the Friday we were to leave which meant that we had to stay put.  I think it may have been a blessing in disguise though as in the end Kaikoura put on a fantastically hot and sunny weekend while the coast had rain.  Since we still have the postponed 'party' over on the coast ahead of us we had a relaxed day around the bus before heading out to tea at the Pier hotel ... as requested by himself.  So now are parked up in a paddock with the sunshine coming in, enjoying the extended daylight and slowly getting back into a rhythm after 3 weeks of excitement.

Himself with his pooh zum zum cake

Back on the farm

Hope this finds you all well until next time.

Arohanui
Y

An Early August Update

Finally it feels like Spring is touching out lives on the bus ... it gives me a whole new burst of energy which is why I'm getting onto the August update now ;)  The days are getting longer and the days, though not always the evening or mornings, are getting warmer. The calves are increasing here on the farm and themselves are loving being outside more. Life is so much better with a bit of sunshine!!

Himself helping with calf feeding

Enjoying the sunshine at the farm

The month began with us heading up Mt Fyffe again for a wee tramp. It was certainly was a good way to warm up quickly on a frosty morning that is for sure as the track is very steep all the way.  Herself had the idea to go up to the lookout so that she could take a few photos for a local photo competition which gives you 48 hours (over a nominated weekend) to capture local images.  She took some amazing shots and entered 2 in the Junior section. The thing I love most about small towns is being able to get stuff done without a wait and within a day we had the images printed and mounted!  The longest part of the process was waiting until the last weekend of the month for the judging.  It was worth the wait though as she received highly commended award for her 'Sheep Circle'  photo.

We have been making the most of our weekends on the bus lately.  Each Saturday we wake, eat, pack up, empty the grey tank and fill the water tank then head off somewhere.  Sometimes it is for the night and sometimes just for the day but either way it has been a great break and very restorative especially when themselves are happily entertained on the beach for hours on end. Mostly we have ventured South, as the state highway north of Kaikoura is still closed, or just parked up around town.

The road south

Parked up near Oaro

Himself jnr. has begun Judo here so our weekly routine has got a little busier in the afternoons. He is absolutely loving it!  He was quick to pick up a bit of Japanese too, that is spoken in class, and by the third session surprized everyone, including me, by being able to fluently count to 10 in Japanese for the stretch section of the class.  I think herself is a bit worried as his skill base increases and improves but I think it will be a while before he is more than a white belt ;)

Ready for Judo

The warmer days have also given themselves plenty of sunshine to quietly whittle outside.  We recently invested in a knife for them each to add to their whittling kit (a peeler and 3 shaping tools we got online) and I have really noticed the difference it has made.  It was a special thrill to see them so engrossed in working their wood and an even bigger one when I was presented with a tekoteko from each of them for my birthday.  I've even been having a go and can see how addictive it can be!

Birthday Cake leftovers for morning tea

My whittled presents

Well that is it for now as the sunshine and my book are calling.

Hope this finds you warm, happy and healthy.

Arohanui
Y

July update from the Fay family

Well it seems this month we have actually been out of the bus more than we have been in it!!  After leaving the ferry (where I wrote the last update) on arrival in the South Island we began our trip in earnest to get down to Rotherham in time for the All Blacks kick off (Liam's schedule). So far so good it seemed.

In Christchurch looking up to Kaikoura

The bus on its way to be repaired

Despite a bit of of a temperature shock on crossing South all was going well until we ventured out of the Lewis pass and there was a huge vibrating noise right under where the dog sits! At first I have to admit that I thought the dog was having some kind of seizure .... until I heard the engine die and Liam say a few expletives. Thankfully we were able to find a spot to (kind of safely) get off the road which was in cell phone coverage.  Unfortunately though the AA operator had no idea where we were and even told us there was no SH 70 (which it looks like is technically correct) even though we were 9 km from a sign that said SH70 to Rotherham.  Once the mystery as to our location was solved it seemed that no tow truck was able to come to us ........ nothing to do with the All Blacks playing I'm sure - not!!!

Helping Nan's neighbour with the cows

  

Anyway thankfully we had our roadside cover and could get the bus towed down to Christchurch to our mechanic there.  What initially looked like a fairly simple issue of the driveshaft coming off, which would take a week to sort, turned into a major job as when the driveshaft came loose it had ripped a big hole in the gearbox, severed the handbrake cable and crimped the fuel line.  The diagnoses?? Three weeks in the workshop :(.

After a week with Nan enjoying the fireside we headed up to Hanmer Springs for Jasmine's Guide camp only to be part of the big snow storm, much to themselves delight. They both had a great time playing in the snow ... Jasmine with the guides at camp and Daniel with Rex in our campground.  Daniel also managed to get hooked on geocaching after finding a geocache while exploring and rock climbing.  It was great seeing his enthusiasm for solving the clues and hunting another out.  I think we will be doing a bit more of this in the near future.

Herself on STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) camp

Enjoying the sun before the snow arrived

Woo hoo .... SNOW!!

The giant snowball roller

The final week of our 'off the bus'  time we spent in Christchurch visiting playgrounds, doing a bit of family history, making movies and checking out the city library along with a lot of Masterchef Australia watching after themselves got a bit hooked at Nan's. As the weekend approached though we found ourselves facing another weather bomb (rain this time) as Liam collected our newly fixed and COF'd bus and we made our way out of the big smoke ..... thankfully the rain eased the further north we drove and with SH1 open all the way up to Kaikoura we made it in good time with only a stop for lunch.

Playing chess in Christchurch

A rainbow in between all the rain

So here we are back in Kaikoura, enjoying life albeit it slightly on the freezing side (outside that is).  Liam has been asked to work on a little longer than we thought so we have rented out a paddock for the duration.  It is a great spot under Mt Fyffe and even has a little shower block across the way for us to use. The kids are loving having a bit of freedom again to explore and run around and I'm enjoying being back home with everything rather than living out of bags!

Back in the bus

Our bedroom view

Completing Guide and Cub badge work while feasting on damper.

Walking the dogs ... Rex has been having a sleepover party! ;)

Until next month.

Arohanui
Y

Goodbye to the North and hello to the South

I'm trying to be very good so I'm writing this before July gets too much under way.  The past 5 weeks have flown by up in Kapiti and now we are on the ferry waiting to leave for the South Island again.  It seems that Liam will be busy for quite some time still on the recovery of the rail in Kaikoura which means that it will also be home for the next few months. Like I said the time up north has certainly gone faster than expected and after thinking that we would have so much time to do 'everything' we are leaving with some people unseen and many photos not taken as we made the most of the time we did have.

Playing on the beach

Our five weeks in Kapiti (the whole of June) was wonderful for so many reasons; catching up with friends, meeting new housebus people, catching up with homeschool friends, sleepovers, going to guides, getting badges at cubs along with campfires, seeing family and reconnecting with places we haven't seen for a while. While the kids and I stayed up in Kapiti for the whole time Liam had to travel between the islands working four days in Kaikoura and having a three day weekend with us in the bus while feeling the transition between the cold south and balmy Kapiti with each trip.  You really appreciate what a awesome climate Kapiti has when you come straight from the snowy south.

Hut building and hosting flat travellers

Look ... Nanny Beth caught the bus back to Kapiti

Daniel busy with his electrics ... it is becoming a full time job lately

Some Red Cross first aid

The best thing about the bus is being able to park up at friends!

The reason we ventured up and continued this crazy routine was twofold; one I had already booked in to teach some infant massage (which was so worth it!) and two Liam is the only one who can drive the bus to empty it each week.  On the second count though we will be remedy that soon as I have finally got my Class 2 Learners so I can begin learning how to drive our big green beast.  I did have one drive however Liam seemed more nervous than me on the narrow (but quiet) road I thought would be good.  I have to admit though that once I spied a tractor coming the opposite way I was quick to pull over and hand the wheel back over!! I do have to add that I did manage to change down and indicate while I pulled over so feeling just a wee bit smug over that ;)

Creating their own entertainment in Petone Working Men's Club!

Anyway I think the best way to summerize the month though, as always, is in photo form (the few that there are) so scroll back up if you don't feel like you've had your fill ...... a bit slack I know but hey if you want more information you know where we are .... virtually that is ;)

Until next month
Arohanui
Y

Crossing the Cook Strait

Well here we are back in our point of origin nearly 6 months after we headed off last year and the days have been flying past.  So much so that, as you see, this is a couple of weeks late ... it was a toss up whether to just combine the May and June updates or be good and write one for May.  Being good won and I thought I'd get this one done before the month is up at least :)

The bus parked up in Kaikoura ... it really is a great space to be

We have left the South Island for a while and are up in Kapiti for me to do something teaching of Infant Massage.  It has be wonderful getting to have two great groups of mum's and bubs to teach and the kids are enjoying catching up with friends ... but I digress as that is June and I'm meant to be catching you all up with May.  May was very eventful for us, which is probably why I keep thinking about the present good times, with Daniel having two trips to A & E for 2 different head injuries.  I'm almost at the point of buying some headgear for himself I can tell you!!!  The first incident was a stick to the head which was accidentally mis-aimed by his sister  ... the worst of it was that I was in the middle of taking a photo of the idyllic scene of siblings helping each other carry wood to create their dam when herself decided that firing the wood ahead would be easier than carrying it!  Luckily, though there was lots of blood, there was not much of a hole in the top of his head.

Happy, with the mentioned stick, before the crash came.

Fixing the dam once the head was feeling better.

The next trip to A and E in Kaikoura was a little more dramatic and came after a lovely Mother's day lunch.  The poor wee thing in his eagerness to get back to his morse code key, after tapping out 'Hi Mummy' and coming to tell us, ran out of the bus door and straight into the locker door which had been left open.  The force of the blow split his forehead open, bruised his nose and lip then threw him back onto the stones where he cut the back of his head.  It was a huge shock for all of us!! Why do heads bleed so much??  Anyway, after thinking he had got his eye, Liam and I were very relieved to see that it was his head. It was another quick trip down to the hospital for them to assess the whole thing, glue his head together and give him some pain relief.  Poor wee thing was very tender for a long time and even now little bumps feel much bigger than they should.  Accidents aside he is really getting interested in electronics and has been buying all sorts of things from the dump shop in Kaikoura to be able to pull apart and make new things with.  Getting the morse code key to make a noise was a big highlight for him and now he is been working on getting a homemade radio to go.  It is great to see him tinkering away, experimenting and solving problems as they come up.

Himself with his morse code key before the next big crash.

Hospital visit aside we made a couple of quick trips down to Christchurch to see Nan which was really nice.  Being parked up in Kaikoura for 9 weeks straight was certainly giving me itchy feet and a grumpy head!!  Thankfully as soon as the bus got going I could feel the smile return to my face and a weight lift of my heart ... clearly I am a born wanderer - I'll save less complementary ways of describing my life-style to your imagination ;).  Then of course there was the trip up here at the end of the month. The trip down to Christchurch and up to Picton is certainly much longer with the State Highway closed so it was a 2 day trip for us to get to the ferry rather than the usual 2 hour trip it would have been last year.  It did mean that we got to stay at the Rotherham Hotel again which himself was more than happy about and also to see a few sight on the way like the Maruia Falls.  It is great being able to rock up somewhere and have everything you need with you.

Maruia Falls

Snow on a weekend trip down to Nan's

Herself has also been busy, thankfully not visiting hospital, going to the local Guides each week and completing a load of badges for her Aotearoa Guides.  She also found some material in the local second hand shop and decided to make herself a dress.  I was so impressed at her determination to get it done!  She made a pattern, cut it all out, hand-stitched the edges and then hand stitched it all together.  It was a 2 day project and I could see just how proud she was of herself too which was the best thing about it.  She has worn it quite a few times since and been enjoying the fruits of her labours.

Busy hand sewing her dress

The finished product

Well that will have to be it for now as the tea is waiting for me to serve it up so we can get Daniel to cubs.  The only thing left to say is a brief comment about starting winter in the bus ....before coming up to Kapiti we had a few cold, frosty mornings so it has been great having a bit of warmth up here.  Liam has been having to acclimatize weekly as he works in Kaikoura weekdays and joins us over the weekend.  Not sure how we will cope once we get back down south come July but that will be another story in a few months time!  Until then I hope this finds you all happy, healthy and injury free.

Arohanui
Y

April in Kaikoura

What a beautiful April we have had in Kaikoura.  Sure there has been a bit of rain and wind at times however on the whole there have been far more glorious days of sunshine. The kids have been loving exploring the paddocks here and getting out and about and I've been enjoying a bit of peace and quiet while they are off the bus ;)

The rhythm of life definately changes a bit when you are in one spot for a while.  We are not feeling such the tourist or holiday maker rather a temporary local.  I have begun to be recognized and greeted in the supermarket and we have been included in a few local groups which has been great.  The days are much slower paced too when there are not all the sight-seeing attractions luring you in.

This month we have also been on a couple of big day tramps with the kids and enjoyed the company of locals in the great outdoors.  We also joined in with the local Anzac Day parade which was by far the best I have been to, it may have been the horses that pushed it over for me though ;)

Here are a few photos from the month that was.

Playing in the rain puddles

Rainy day fun making card houses

Our once a week mission to go empty the tanks in the bus

Daniel tramping on Mt Fyffe

Herself up Mt Fyffe

Half way up Mt Fyffe

Kaikoura Tramping Club .... including the Fay Family

Tramping up the Jordan Valley, along the Hope fault 

Waiting for the Anzac Day parade to begin

Another tooth gone and another visit from the tooth fairy.

Arohanui
Y