Sunday, March 18: A quiet day and then an evening at the Tauranga Theatre Organ Society Concert. They have a huge Wurlitzer organ built in the early 1900s. The organiist was Chris Powell...well known in the UK and a reasonably frequent visitor to NZ. Thoroughly enjoyable. Monday, March 19: The wind and rain have returned with a vengeance. Flooding and gale force winds are predicted and have forced the cancellation of our planned trip to Coromandel...we'll save it for next time. Everywhere we go people apologise to us for the terrible weather! We went with Audrey to the Tauranga Spinners, Weavers and Woolcrafters guild meeting. I watched a demonstration of felting wool and think I might give it a try. In the afternoon we visited Audrey's friend Christine who is a felting artrist. Her work is fantastic. Tuesday, March 20: A little bit of antiquing between the raindrops, lunch with friends, Skype conversations with friends and family at home, and reading. Buzz got out Audrey's hammer and cracked the macadamia nuts against the curb! Wednesday, March 21: My mom's birthday. In her honor, I called my sister and brother and went shopping! Went to the Tauranga Fish Market (again) for a fish and chips lunch - the best we have had in NZ - and bought some salmon for dinner. Spent the rest of a very stormy day reading. Thursday, March 22: After a very stormy night...lots of debris in the road from high winds and some people without power, the sun has appeared. We spent the day with Audrey and her PROBUS group on a mystery bus trip. We stopped first at TECTpark, a park which has recently been developed for recreation between Tauranga and Rotorua. The offerings include walking trails, motorcycle and ORV trails,horseriding trails, a shooting range, and a ropes and wires course called the Adrenalin Forest. We were supposed to have a talk by the park ranger, but he didn't show up; so we just drove through the park. We went on to Mamaku Blueberries for a tour and lunch. They make everything from blueberry juice and jam to wine and soap. It was interesting, and the lunch was delicious, but I was a bit put off as the owner began telling anecdotes about the restorative powers of blueberry juice and what the daily dose should be! The highlight of the day was a stop at Wingspan, a raptor center. At this center they treat injured raptors to be released back into the wild as well as breed falcons to increase the population. We had an opportunity to see the falcons and owls being cared for and to watch two young trainers work with their birds. Buzz donned a glove, and I have a photo of one of the falcons sitting on his hand. The New Zealand Falcon is found only here, and is endangered. Friday, 23 March: The sun was shining as we left Tauranga, but we had a foggy drive through the Kaimai mountains. We brought Audrey to her son Grant's home in Kohimarama, Auckland, and after a lovely lunch with Grant, Rosemary, Audrey and a view of sailboats on the sea, we headed north. We made a quick stop at Red Beach for a cuppa with Jim and Helen and to get some groceries and then drove on to Parakai. Parakai is a geothermal area, and the motel, aptly named the Parakai Geothermal Motel, has a provate thermal pool with each unit. We settled in, had dinner and soaked in the soothing, hot mineral water in the evening. Saturday 24 March: Another sunny day. We drove out on the peninsula in search of the beach at South Head. Unfortunately, the access is either through private property or along a road with deep ruts through a paddock. We went, instead, to Shelly Beach...which is. As we drove into the parking area at the beach, I realized I had been here with Laura when she and I had our NZ trip together. It brought back lovely memories of that special trip. We stopped at MacNuts..another spot Laura and I visited...and bought more macadamias in the shell. Buzz will have to find another hammer to crack them! A stop at the Helensville Library to check email and finish this week's blog, and we are on our way north for the last week of this holiday.