#27 All about nothing

A week of . . . . . . . (doing nothing) . . . . . . . then:

Monday morning 10:30 taxi to Napier airport, flight to Auckland (1hr) - wait - flight to Bangkok (11hrs) - wait - flight to London (12 hrs), take an hour to get through passport control as only 5 immigration officers for 10 plane loads of passengers (how mad is that?), bus from Heathrow to Gatwick (1.5 hrs) - wait - flight to Barcelona (1.5 hrs), bus to city (1hr) - wait - metro to Tom's - wait - walk to watch football in bar filled with Argentinean supporters of Villareal (our opponents). We drew but are through to Champions League Cup Final (!)

After two days, non stop : Bed.

#26 Six days round the East Cape

Ka Mate, Ka Mate,
Ka Ora, Ka Ora,
A Hupane, Ka-Hupane,
WHITI TE RA!
HI!

As we are in New Zealand, me and Ken have put on our loin cloths, had our bodies tattooed and undergone tongue enlargements in order to perform the Haka as a prelude to our round the East Cape bike ride. Somehow the pics got deleted, so you’ll just have to imagine it!

Chanting over, we load bikes into car and drive for three hours to Gisborne where the car is left with one of Ken’s mates. Ken gets on his very old and decrepit yellow Rock Hopper and I’ve borrowed a Specialized Stumpjumper from the local bike shop and fitted it with slicks as the route should be all tarmac.

We start off on our six day, 500k trip and immediately stop at kilometre seven for coffee and carrot cake. This all seems pretty easy, I might even enjoy this! Cake digested we head off on route 2 through rich farm lands; orchards, soft fruit farms, vineyards, maize fields – an abundance of all sorts of food. The first 50k is dead flat, then a nice sharp climb which I flew up, down the other side and then a long steady rise to our stage end at a pub in Matawai.

However, a little way into this last 20k I got hunger knock, big time. Hungry, light headed, cramps, knackered. It got cold and started to rain. Ken came up and gave me a banana as he rode by, and I grovelled on, fortunately not too far to the tavern where we scoffed huge plates of steak and chips with fried eggs on top. Much better now, thank you.









Stage 2 to oPOTiki
This was supposed to be an easy day. The road continued to climb from the pub till we reached its summit at 725m then it was all downhill through the stunningly beautiful 50k long Waiutami gorge. I couldn’t get comfortable. Still tired from yesterday I was suffering saddle soreness. I was up and down all over the bike trying to get ride easily. Moaning and groaning (not always silently) we inched down to Opotiki.

The scenery, however, was spectacular. Riding on a mainly smooth, gently curving, mostly downhill road next to the Waiutami river. The sides of the gorge, rising steeply either side, were covered with trees, gorse, grass and various other types of vegetation of the green variety. There was very little traffic, some cars, more often huge American Mac trucks pulling equally huge trailers filled up with even bigger tree trunks. Logging is a very big industry round here. We got to Opotiki, then continued another 7k up highway 35 to Tirohaunga Motor Camp.












Stage 3 Opotiki to Te Keha
Relatively short day, 3 hours 45 min, average speed 17kph. One ‘orrible hill. Mostly riding by the sea and as its Easter, very little traffic. I have noticed that riding here is harder than in Europe - the road surface is not a nice smooth tarmac but big stones buried in asphalt. Once again the scenery is spectacular. Bays and coves, big empty beaches with nobody about. Anywhere in Europe the beacheslike these would be banged out with day trippers but here they are deserted (see pic of deserted beach).











Stage 4 Te Keha to Hicks Bay.
Even more spectacular riding round the coast, more beautiful bays, more quiet coves, more sand, more sky and even less people. We stopped for coffee at Pacific Coast Macadamias (www.macanuts.co.nz) . They serve macadamia products; macadamia fruit cake, macadamia apricot cake, macadamia short cake, macadamia cookies, snack bars (with macadamias), macadamias in honey, macadamias on their own - in fact they are nuts! about macadamias. The final 30k of the ride went inland, and we up & down and up & down until arriving at Hicks Bay and another nice hill up to the Hicks Bay Motel.











Stage 5 Hicks Bay to Tokomaru Bay
Those of you with a frail disposition, look away now.
(Winging Pom begins)
Horrible!
Hard, Ugly, Nasty, Difficult, Ugh.
Granny ring was engaged, after the first flat 10k, for four climbs of Himalayian proportions. These hills just went up and up and up (and sometimes a little bit down) and round every hidden bend was not the much needed summit but another (steeper) bit. Apparently we did over 1000m climbing in the first 40 of the 96 k stage. Madre Mia!

I was @#%* ed. I didn’t realise that carrying my spare kit in a back pack would be so much more uncomfortable than in a handlebar or saddle bag. Anyway, the weight on my back made the saddle even harder. I stopped half way and put on an extra pare of shorts which was a little more comforting in the end . . . . .
(Winging Pom ends).

Arrived at very nice b&b. Walked down the beach to local pub and ate fish and chips and drank a glass of beer - much better. Then we had convivial chat with four ladies from the Manakau Vets Cycling Club who were also riding our way (but on lovely carbon road bikes and with a back up car). We invited them back to our place for coffee and cake and managed to pursued them to take our bags for us on the last day to Gisborne. Hurray!









Stage 6 Tokomaru Bay to Gizy.
The ladies of the road took our stuff and sped off, we also rode at a respectable pace sans baggage in fact todays average speed lept from a normal 17 kph to 21 kph. 45k later met up with the racing ladies at Cottles Cafe in Tolaga Bay. I had a bowl of spicy fish chowder with my coffee - at 11am which was a bit strange.

Off for the final 40k to Gizy, we were overtaken by the ladies, who had stayed for some sightseeing in Tolaga. Their bikes could even freewheel downhill faster than us on our mountain bikes - so the moral of that story is . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . .and finally to Gisborne and a big ice cream - thank you Ken. Six days of biking, five very good and one a bit of a blur. We were very lucky having good weather, every day warm and sunny (except a bit of the first afternoon). Very little commercial traffic, as we did the most of the ride over the Easter holiday period and the East Cape is so sparsely populated anyway that regular traffic was light. All in all, good fun was had by all.

#25 Sally & Jenny

Sally and Jenny have come to visit us in Napier. They have been all over the South Island. Tuesday they go to Taramasomthing and then off to Fiji.

pictured: Sally, Katie and Jenny. No sorry, Jenny, Katie and Sally. No, on the right is Sally . . . er . . well, anyway, Ken's daughter, Katie is definitely in the middle!

#24 Too much wasabi in the sushi, boys?

#23 Xterra Rotorua

Ken had an assignment to commentate at an off road triathlon in Rotorua, put on by Frank Clark (pic above) and Roger Mortimer. I first met Frank about ten years ago when he was a triathlete racing on the Iron Tour in France. Now he is a full time race organiser putting on triathlons and duathlons around New Zealand. When we arrived it turned out that their regular photographer was not available and would I like to fill in? Well I thought I aught to show willing as I had free hotel and board for three days – so yes, OK.















One draw back – my cameras were in Spain. I borrowed Ken’s small digital and put a call into Tracey Brick and she managed to send over her Canon eos300, so I was in business. I must say it was a bit weird walking round without my macho, big lense cameras and more importantly my photographer’s jacket. This jacket is like a special uniform that lets everyone know you are a ‘real’ photographer. However, working under the duress of being jacketless I took a few snaps – quite like old triathlon reporting times, really (I told you I was going back in time).

I am now famous in New Zealand as I was on national tv for a microsecond when the event was shown on the evening’s sports report. And, next day the Sunday Star Times, NZ’s only national newspaper, used one of my pics and gave me a credit (maybe I should take this up as a living?). So, all in all, good fun was had by all.

#22 Chocks away, Biggles!

Monday 3 April
Played squash with Mudge, a mate of Ken’s (will be stiff tomorrow)

Sunday: weather changed, wet and wet. Sadly departed the Brick household and went to Mission Bay to catch up with Ken Maclaren who was commentating at local triathlon.











That done we went off to Auckland airport to fly to Napier. Ahh! The plane has propellers! Captain comes through wearing leather flying jacket, leather helmet, goggles, silk scarf and sporting gigantic handlebar moustache. Chocks away! And we are airborne. No bandits at 3 o’clock, Jerry must be having a day off. What Ho! As we landed in Napier, no prangs, tailspins or loop the loops. Everything in apple pie order.

Back to Ken’s place, am sending this blog report via modem connection – could I be going back in time? - Let me think - (as I spark up a ciggie).

#21 Culture! Shock!

We went into town to visit the theatre and sample a bowl of noodles. Both very good and entertaining. The play was Doubt the story of a mother superior, head of a religious school, and her obsession with driving out a priest who she suspects to be 'interfering' with one of the boys. But - here is the punchline - we find that, at the end, she has . . . . Doubts! Heavy, man.

The noodles by Wagamama a Japanese noodle restaurant. Nice food, interesting decor, service a little bit patchy.

Recently have seen Capote, quite liked that. Munich, not so much. I'm re-reading On the Road by Jack Kerouac and I'm digging it ;-)

#20 Tourist stuff

Got up at 6:45, crawled into tv room, watched Champions League match, Arsenal v Juventus. Exceptionally exciting game, we won 2-0 (grin).

Tracey took me for a drive round the sights of Auckland. Went to the Viaduct and saw the new development of hotels, cafes and apartments, all built since the America's Cup.

GB Prime Minister, Mr & Mrs Tony Blair, were also visiting Auckland. I gave them a wave as we drove by their yacht where they were enjoying cocktails (I don't think he saw me).

Then to Lunn's famous greengrocer to buy tarragon for tonight's dish. Into Cornwall Park and up to the scenic point on top of 'One Tree Hill', which is, in fact, now 'No Tree Hill' as the solitary tree had been hacked down in some sort of political protest.

Back over the bridge to Milford and Chicken Tarragon for dinner.
(this pic from google images)

#19 Chef Carbo Load

When we had 220 magazine I occasionally wrote a column under the title of 'Chef Carbo Load' - now I'm in the Brick's kitchen cooking each evening (and thoroughly enjoying it).

So far they have sampled; Friday Hot & Sour Prawns, Saturday Captains chicken (thats with cashew nuts, ginger and sutanans), Sunday Thai fish (with some Keffir lime leaves from a neighbour across the road), Monday Salmon wrapped in Ham with lentils, Tuesday various Vegetable Curry dishes (chick pea, chana dhal, mixed vegetable and bought in from local Indian; onion bahjies and nan bread) and tomorrow should be the JL signature dish, Chicken Tarragon. Thinks . . . . . . maybe I should go into business . . . . ?

#18 Barnet

Sunday
Rain, rain and more rain. In fact its the tail end of Cyclone Larry that wooshed down the east coast of Oz chasing Sally & Jenny.

Matt, being an orthopaedic surgeon, was deputed to cut my hair.
(careful with that axe Eugene!)

#17 Kayaking on Friday

Out with Matt in his tandem sea kayak, 40 minute paddle across to Rangitoto island. On with the running shoes and a very slow jog up to the top of volcano, about 30 minutes, Matt very patient and waits for me to keep up. Then back down singletrack to the kayak and paddle back home, bit wet and choppy on the way back. Skinned my knuckles on the spray cover each stroke so obviously didn't have the right technique. Now aching in places I didn't know I had.

#16 The Bricks

We met the Bricks when they came to stay at our house about 12 years ago.

Matt was world duathlon champion and he came to race a duathlon we were organising.
As you see the Matt and Tracey have been busy since we first met them (they had no children then).

#15 On the Road Again

Thursday
Arrived Auckland, had a pot of honey confiscated by nice customs man but made it through with jar of curry sauce left over from my Bali do. Took two bus rides and made it to Matt and Tracey Brick's house to stay for the next few days.


Wednesday
Bangcock to Auckland. Eleven hour flight but slept most of the way curled up on two seats with feet over arm rest on the third.

Tuesday
To the airport via a Japanese restaurant for raw stuff.
Thai air to Bangkok. On arrival walked over to Amari Airport Hotel and found that the cheapest room was $280 (down from $380 mind you)so took advice an ended up at Asia Airport Hotel (15 min away by shuttle) at a very reasonable 16,000 bhat - more or less 32 euros. I wasn't the only occupant of my room as at 5 am was awaken by itchy sensation and discovered march of v small ants across bed headboard. Spent rest of night on floor on a pile of cushions. Still they had a nice swimming pool where I spent the next morning doing a few laps.

#14 Bali Days

Me, Dominique and Curry



Monday
Had massage, read book, ate food.
Evening we had ‘Farewell to me and Welcome to Bob and Fiona’ meal at Kitut’s Global restaurant.Toum, Lawar, Urutan, Babi Kecap,Pork Rib Soup, Rice, Sambal.

Sunday
We all trooped over to Dominique’s hotel and I took over the kitchen and cooked Prawn Hot and Sour Curry, Spinach Dhal and Rice for 11 people.
Easy :-)

This evening went with Robin and Dianna to local village to see new computer room for the children that they have subsidized. We were entertained by the villagers and had more food -phew.

Saturday
Christened Snowy’s barbi, he bought 10kg of really huge prawns – v delicious.

Friday
Off to town for the day, bought loads of stuff to make more hot & sour curry, picked up Snowy’s niece and husband (Fiona and Bob) from airport.

#13 Lazy Days

Thursday
Lazy day, pic Jamie, Me, Snowy, Wendy.
(by the way; visit to dentist for cleaning and polishing the other day, cost = 30 euros).

WednesdayAnother lazy day.
Went round to Jamie & Wendy’s and cooked up a huge wok full of Hot & Sour sauce ready to make a prawn curry on Sunday. Watched Kill Bill 1. Nada mas.

Dental appointment at 2:30 - Post#12

Tuesday
Went to Denpasar and had teeth cleaned. Now have gleeming gnashers!

Monday
Trying to track down spices to make Garam Masala curry sauce. Went with Wayan (Snowy’s gardener) on back of motorbike to his village, then into local jungle to track down cardamom. Yes, it was a cardamom tree but sadly seedless. Then back for demonstration of how to make coconut oil. (Bash up coconuts, grate, dilute, squeeze, boil, skim, boil some more, etc etc).

Sunday
We bowled over to Ubud to catch up with Professor Kung (he of the Michi Inn) and had a convivial lunch together with a couple of American alternative medicine people who were passing through.. Managed to get away without having a scalp massage or having to hug any trees.

Watched footy at midnight, Arsenal won, Liverpool didn’t.

Me looking a bit non plussed at a Duran fruit.
It tastes like . . . . . . fried onions (and thats being polite!)

#11 Friday – Cooking Day

Spent most of yesterday afternoon, after dropping Sally and Jenny at the airport, shopping for sweet sherry for my Chicken Tarragon recipe. Disaster! No sherry in Bali!

Friday afternoon we went to Jamie and Wendy’s place and they give me their kitchen. I cooked my Chicken Tarragon thanks to some dessert wine I found in Snowy’s wine cellar with just a touch of (secret ingredient :-) Everyone seemed to like it - or maybe it was the 2 litre bottle of red wine we consumed that made everything rosy.

Saturday Cycling
Woke up feeling very fragile (see reference to 2 litres of wine).

Dominique has organized a trip from Gajah Minah hotel where he has a bunch of mountain bikes. We load into his van (me, Snowy, Jamie, Wendy and Dominique) and drive up into the mountains. Then we ride back down a little lane/track to Gajah Minah. Very beautiful scenery, no traffic, few houses, not many people except bright faced children calling out “hello” - but quite a lot of barking, snappy dogs.

#10 Bali Week One

Thursday
We are taking Sally & Jenny to the airport so that they can continue their circumnavigation of the globe. I’m staying on a couple more weeks. More news when next near an internet café.

Wednesday
Breakfast; mango, papaya, bananas and very black Bali coffee.
A little later I’m on the Bale (a small open platform with a thatched roof out in the garden). I’m lying on my stomach, squinting through half closed eyes at the bright blue surf falling on to the black sand beach. Cool trance music is seeping out of the hidden speakers.
A local Balinese lady is giving me a massage. . . . . . Aaaaah . . . . . . :-)

Tuesday
Round and about where we are (and because it’s the rainy season) there is an abundance of vegetation, flowers, vegetables, fruits (had a papaya straight off the tree for breakfast) and animals. Some of these animals are not content to roam around in the nature provided for them but like to come indoors for a visit, or even take up permanent residence. We have a biggish gecko that lives behind the toilet cistern and another in our bedroom behind the wardrobe or in the ceiling. It makes an odd frog like croak at various times of the day but apart from that he/she is no bother. Last time I was here I was sitting out on the Bale quietly minding my own business when this effing great snake glided by. Since then I have been very careful where I tread.

More visits to expat neighbours. One very chi chi residence had a 15m pool, so I got in and swam a bit. Then on to another couple (Jamie & Wendy – he flies helicopters and she does law) they are building a house on their bit of beach and we swigged white wine as the sun went down.

Very much later that night, at 03:45 I got up and me and Snowy watched Barcelona v Chelsea. The next day/night/morning? it will be Arsenal v Real Madrid, much as I would like to watch that match, I might just give it a miss.

Monday
An American couple who live near Snowy are benefactors of a children’s gamelan orchestra and they arranged for their houseboy to take us over to see them practise. The children, aged from 7 to 10 were really having fun playing their various bamboo and metal percussion instruments; genders, cymbals, gongs. They play with a repetitive, hypnotic beat, 5 to an octave, not like western 8 to an octave. We went away smiling.

















Sally & Jenny sit-in with the band

Sunday
We first met Professor Kung when he visited Regine, a neighbour of ours in Spain. She mentioned she had a Bali man coming to visit, so we invited them to our house for some home cooking. Afterwards he invited us to stay with him whenever we were in Bali (as you do) so here we are!

More wet weather (it is the rainy season) so we skipped a tour of Ubud and went back for lunch at Dominique’s hotel, the Garjah Mina. Dominique was the chap we met in town the first day for G&T’s. He has a furniture business in town and a v nice hotel just down the beach from Snowy.

UbudBali is part of Indonesia but unlike the rest of Moslem Indonesia it is mainly Hindu. This particular day was a special religious day for the blessing of mechanical appliances. Our car had to go away and be blessed and came back with nice palm decorations on the grill.

Then off on a scenic drive up through the rice fields and over to Ubud, a town famous for its artistic heritage (and lots of tourists). We were going to stay at the hotel of a man we met in Spain called Michi Inn – the hotel that is, not the man - his name is Professor Kung. When we arrived we found he wasn’t there. He had had to go off to Japan, or Bangkok, or Singapore to see a dentist, or somewhere else, nobody was quite sure. Anyway we had a convivial stay, I swam in his pool, and we were served a nice dinner. We found out that the hotel was officially closed which explained why we were the only guests.

His real name is Roger and he lives in this shack











Drove into the local village of Basra and bought a pair of nice leather sandals (70,000 rupiah / 7 euros). It’s the custom to go bare-foot indoors in Bali, as you have to constantly slip in and out of footwear, sandals are easier.

I first met Snowy when we were both 11 years old and starting senior school. On the first day we were made to sit at our new desks in alphabetical order, Lillie next to Linbird. We became firm friends for the next 5 years, but then lost contact. 45 years later we chanced on each other when looking at our old school’s web site. We exchanged mails and I ended up visiting Bali and he then came to us in Spain a year or so later. This is my third visit.

Thursday
Forgot to mention that we had a few beers when we got back to Snowy’s last night.

Snowy lives in a bamboo hut in a coconut grove that slopes down to the beach. We stay in the guesthouse, a block building of two bedrooms and bathroom, also on his land under the coconuts.

We didn’t do much today – walked on the beach. Then it rained a lot and in the evening we ate chili prawns at a local restaurant.

#9 Flying (v boring)

Tuesday, bus to Heathrow, plane to Bangkok, connection delayed :-( finally arrived Bali, late wednesday afternoon (local time).

Met at the airport by my old school chum 'Snowy' and we went to vist our mate Dominique for several gin and tonics. Then on to a roadside caf for "sate gambin" (spicy goat) before meeting Sally and Jenny back at the airport.

They flew in from Singapore (part of their round the world trip). More cocktails on the way home before pitching up at Snowy's. 2 Melatonin tablets to reset the body clock and then 11 hours sleap.

#8 Monday

Swindon to London by train, got off at Paddington and walked down to Porchester Road Baths and swam 2000 meters.
Then over to stay the night with John Lunt and in the evening Jasmin and Mick came over and we had a Thai take-away (just to get ready for a month's asian food).