Taupo is ... well, Taupo!

It promotes itself as 'The Great Lake' and as at 'the centre of it all'. It is both these and more.
It is without doubt a glorious spot beside an impressive lake - a huge expanse of water.

While the lake doesn't have the scenic grandeur of, say Lake Manapouri or Lake Tekapo, it is nonetheless accessible, close to alpine activities in winter, and a magnet with those who like their activities water-based.

Interestingly, there is a noticeable absence of tour-groups - especially the mass presence of Korean, Chinese or Japanese tourists one encounters in Rotorua. The two centres clearly target different market segments - Rotorua looks to the Asian tour-group market and shows them the Maori and geothermal attractions; while Taupo appeals to the domestic family and foreign freedom holidaymakers interested in activity- and especially water-based attractions, or just lazing by the lake.

So we spent a week there in early January. The lake is the centre-piece, so we walked alongside it each day while others played above or around or in it.

The shore lends itself to swimming as many of the swimming spots are 'naturally heated'

As the days wind down into evening the lake and surrounds can provide a stunning vista.

Unfortunately, not everythings goes according to plan, and occasionally there are blackspots in the idyll.

We didn't just stay by the Lake. Desiree went to the hot pools, and we went to see an historic site at Opepe, an Historic and Scenic Reserve. Although the historic elements aren't particularly well preserved, it is a very pleasant walk through some typical native forest with its dense undergrowth and towering canopy trees.

After a couple of days on our own, Jayne & Nicky joined us.

I didn't visit the pub, but I did have a wander about - the 'circus' was a riot of vibrant colours.

Later in the week we took a day trip to Rotorua to visit Desiree's sister Adrienne and her daughter Tania - actually it was to visit Tania's new son Ben, and to see Tania & Colin's idyllic lakeside location. More water, food, leavened with a little primal excitement!

Tania & Colin have a lovely dog - a husky called Flossy.

She is a lovely friendly and quiet dog. But during the course of the afternoon she became increasingly agitated and interested in something up a tree at the water's edge. Now, I know dogs don't climb trees, but Flossy was doing her best!

It turns out a dumb possum had climbed the tree, which activity sparked Flossy's excitement. As we became aware of what was happening, the possum made a break for safety - fat chance! Flossy apprehended it, released it when told to, so that the possum could be shot. After it's fur was retrieved (it's fetching $NZ110 a kilo at present), Flossy was allowed to munch on the bones, which she did under the watchful eye of a nosy magpie!

The final act of the week was to say farewell to the swans and ducks on the foreshore as we headed homewards.

A Kiwi Christmas

We have just removed the Christmas Tree - it lay on the lawn for a day, unadorned, dry, a pale washed-out parody of it's earlier self. It had served its purpose and was about to be discarded and disposed of.

Christmas for our family is inextricably tied up with tinsel and pine-scent, twinkle and needles, a 'real' tree with an angel on top.

That's the inside christmas; the decorations, the gifts, the family gatherings, the food and drink. Christmas just wouldn't be Christmas without each of these elements, and we have developed rituals and rules around them.

The girls and I choose the tree each year. The girls decorate it, although I put the lights onto it - generally before the other decorations. (Craig has now taken on that role.) We also visit the Kirks Christmas shop each year and the girls choose a decoration each. They therefore each have a collection of decorations already for when they begin their 'own' christmases away from home.

The gifts appear piled around the foot of the tree, all named and beautifully wrapped, awaiting christmas morning.

The last to be added are the stockings left by 'Santa Claus' - three individulalised stockings made by my mother when the girls were young, and as much a part of the ritual as any other. They are opened/emptied first on Christmas morning. Which has it's own special rhythm. Generally, Desiree and I are awake, or at least out of bed first. As the girls have got older they have stayed in bed longer, perhaps stretching out the suspense.

Once all are assembled and in place, the youngest has the job of distributing the gifts. Always one at a time, so we all know who has got what, and can appreciate the gifts.

And after the debris has been cleared, there is a hiatus, while we gear up for the next phase. That may be a visit to another branch of the family, or a visit by them to us, and the preparation of the food - turkey, chicken, pork, roast vegetables, desserts, whatever we have decided for that year. And so the day stretches out towards evening.

But I started this with the Christmas Tree. The centrepiece of the 'inside' Christmas.

But the Christmas season - holidays, warm weather, visits, gifts, relaxation, reminiscing - are, for me inextricably linked to another tree.

The pohutukawa is the quintessential 'kiwi' christmas tree, as much a part of the ritualised christmas as the 'inside' pine tree.

Its glorious cloak of scarlet-red flowers festooned on the spreading branches and in full bloom obscuring the deep-green leaves, symbolised the arrival of the summer holidays, just as it's carpet of red, fallen flowers represent the need to clear the drains in readiness for the inevitable summer downpours.

It means summer by the beach, lazy days of indolence, travelling to new places, holidaying temporarily elsewhere. Family time. Relaxation. A chance to pause and draw breath, without planning for the year ahead. Precious time of our own - no-one saying you must be at work tomorrow.

If the incessant scraping and repetitious chirruping of cicadas is the soundtrack of a kiwi summer, pohutukawa trees in full bloom are the visual backdrop - the diorama before which we act out our rituals of holidays and outdoor living.

But, oddly, in our part of New Zealand, pohutukawa are not endemic, they are introduced. Native to this area are the northern rata, close in appearance, and flowering at the same time of year. But they are NOT pohutukawa, and never will be.

Councils may require public plantings of the rata and eschew the pohutukawa, but the popular mind will still insist, as I do, that summer in New Zealand means pohutukawas.

Long may they bloom!

Sometimes I worry ...

About my family.

I mean, I have always been left alone to watch sport, and to follow the fourtunes of teams like The Breakers, the Black Caps, the Silver Ferns or All Blacks.

Now, however, the family have become sports-mad. I remember with Sarah and Desiree, when it came to a choice between netball and (finger)nails, the nails won, hands down if you see what I mean! But now ...

So here's Sarah training for tennis,



and for 10-pin bowling



and for ski-jumping.



No - sorry! That's actually Sarah choosing the colour of her costume.

Ski-jumping takes concentration.



One of life's hard lessons - sometimes the results of your endeavours aren't quite what you wished for.



Sarah has always been well-balanced girl - here's the evidence!



Desiree got into the swing of things as well!



But Craig currently holds the 10-pin bowling record!

We survived it

We came, we wrapped, we opened, we ate, we drank, we slept (soon).

And if we're lucky, we'll live to tell the tale on the morrow.

In the meantime, have a look at a few of the photos I took.

Nighty night!