We spent out last, happy days in New Zealand staying with my old university housemate Sarah and her family. Sarah and Nathan moved to New Zealand three years ago with their children James (7) and Niamh (5). While I was very sad to lose her, I have to admit it was a pretty good decision by them because New Zealand is awesome. Nathan is second-in-command chef at a super-posh hotel called the Langham. It means he's on good money for a chefs and brings home some in...

Last Tuesday we drove back down from the Bay of Islands towards Auckland. On the way we saw Kauri trees. The word kauri sounds like the welsh word for giant - "cawr" - and, while I don't think there's much shared heritage between the Welsh and the Polynesians, it is an interesting coincidence... Kauri trees are absolutely enormous. They're awesome, in the original sense of the word. The one in this photo is Tane Mahuta - the tallest known kauri tree in New Zeal...

Simon's despatch: The great trek to Piahia for tall ship sailing in the bay of islands. On the 25th we spent most of the day driving up north from the coromandel all the way to the bay of islands, via Auckland, a community renovated botanical quarry and the most ornate public toilets you'll ever see (they even get their own brown tourist sign on the highway). All this travelling was for one reason - to fulfil a boyhood dream of mine and crew a proper tall shi...

After white water rafting at Rotorua, we had a lovely day learning a bit more about Maori culture at Te Puia. We learnt that they have a geyser which shoots up to 15m, how to make uncomfortable dresses out of flax and that twenty-something Maori men don't enjoy performing love songs as much as they enjoy performing the Hakka. It was a good day! And then we came to white island. I was really looking forward to this one as it's a boat ride out to an active volcano...

Simon's despatch: Rotarua rafting. After all the excitement of the previous days gales we decided that white water rafting was the best way to let our adrenal glands recover. It was down the river Kiatuna - Kia being mauri for food and tuna being mauri for fish. Our guide gleefully explained once we'd already started rafting down the river that this was because the mauri thought anyone canoeing down this river would become fish food! In her infinite wisdom Be...