Where To Find Heaven?

An American decided to write a book about famous churches around the world

So he bought a plane ticket and took a trip to Orlando, thinking that he
would start working his way across the USA from South to North

On his first day he was inside a church taking photographs when
 he noticed a Golden telephone mounted on the wall with a sign that read
$10,000 per call. The American being intrigued asked a
priest who was strolling by what the telephone was used for

The priest  replied that it was a direct line to Heaven and that for $10,000 you
could talk to God. The American thanked the priest and went on his way

Next stop was in Atlanta. There at a very large cathedral he saw the same
 looking golden telephone with the same sign under it. He wondered if this was
the same kind of telephone he saw in Orlando and asked
a nearby nun what its purpose was

She told him it was a direct line to Heaven and for $10,000
he could talk to God. O.K, thank you said the man

He then travelled all across America, Europe, England, Japan
Australia, in every church he saw the same looking golden telephone
with the same $US10,000 per call sign under it

He then travelled to New Zealand to see if New Zealand'ers
had the same phone. He arrived in Auckland in New Zealand and again
at the first church he entered there was the same looking golden
telephone but this time the sign under it read 40 cents per call

The American was surprised so he asked the priest about the sign.
'Father, I've travelled all over the world and I've seen this same golden
telephone in many churches. I'm told that it is a direct line to Heaven
but in all other places the price was $10,000 per call.
Why is it so cheap here?'

The priest smiled and answered 'You're in
New Zealand now, son. this is Heaven, so it's a local call'.
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A friend sent me this ditty about Heaven! I live in New Zealand so
think it's true. The photos - to 'prove' it - are from Craig Potten,
in my opinion one of New Zealand's best nature photographers.
Look online to find and buy these stunning posters.

People I Meet On The Road... No 3... The Couple From Oz...

This is Doreen and Bill...
I met them about three weeks ago
when I was parked at Tokerau Beach.
I was walking round to Coca Cola Lake to fill
some water bottles and stopped to talk to Doreen.
We chatted away until we both got too hot
to stand out in the sun any longer.
Doreen told me they live in Australia
and have a big house bus that they holiday in.
They also keep a small motor home here in
New Zealand. They come and visit their
family here once or twice a year
and when doing that take the opportunity
to escape into the fantastic New Zealand
wilderness and beaches.

I met up with them again at Rangiputa.
They had been exploring all the Karikari Peninsular
before driving down the hill to shelter from the easterly wind.
We spent some more time chatting...
Is it Ozzies or Kiwis that talk the most!
Anyway, I happened to mention that my grandson,
his wife and triplet daughters
- my great grand-daughters - live not far from the Gold Coast.
I couldn't remember the name of the suburb but asked where she
and Bill live... Well would you believe...
The live in the same suburb, just round the corner.
So an invitation to visit them...
And offers of sightseeing came my way.
I'm planning a trip early June for the girls 3rd birthday...
So Gold Coast... Here I come.
Do you believe in coincidences... Or God or the universe provides.
The people I meet on the road... And my friends ask me if I get lonely!

Weekend In Akaroa... A Little French Village

I came with a friend to Akaroa for the weekend
Akaroa - meaning 'Long Harbour' is a beautiful historical town...
Settled in the heart of an ancient volcano...
On Banks Peninsula in the South Island of New Zealand...
It has a tiny permanent population of only 700... More here.
The French were the first to arrive  here in 1838...
They bought land to establish a whaling port, returned to France to bring more people to live here...
But returned in 1840 to discover...
That Banks Peninsula had been claimed by the British... Read about it here.

This is the view from the  house where we are staying.
It's a cold Christchurch day...
Raining and ony 5 degrees...

The Akaroa Harbour... No boating activity today...
But it is the home to Hector Dolphins...
Endemic to New Zealand and one of the smallest and rarest
dolphins in the world.

We stopped on the way... To take photos...
Me being silly out in the rain and cold...
I have got gloves on... And no other cars in sight.

 
My friend who I came with... Indulging my sillyness...

The countryside and wet and mists were beautiful...

 

Akaroa is about 75km from Christchurch...

 

Over the hills...

 And into the town...

More photos of the village tomorrow... 

It's supposed to stop raining so I can go walking.

Walking... Over The Hills... And Through The Bush...

It was a lovely day... So off we went for a walk...
Raincoats... Definitely my tramping boots...
My stick I picked up on the way.
This is at the top of the 1st hill looking back at the camp area.
You can see my bus and my friends bus parked in the distance...
On some hard ground.
The ground is really wet and some places we walked were really slushy... Churned up by the cows.

Down the other side of the 1st hill.
This is typical New Zealand, Northland farmland.
Rather scrubby and poor grass and regenerating
back into scrub and bush.
It's part of this area of land owned by the people of NZ and farmed by the Department of Conservation.

The Gum (Eucalyptus) trees and Norfolk Pines as we
descend to another little beach...

It's a beautiful spot... Hidden away... Only accessible by foot or boat.

This is looking across the water of the Whangaruru Harbour to the, mostly holiday homes, at Ohawini Bay and Parorerahi Bay. Both are only accessible at low tide by either driving a 4 wheel drive vehicle over the rocks or walking from the Whangaruru Beachfront Motor Camp
at the end of Ohawini Rd.


Here is a better map... Hope you can see it.

Our walk continued past a clump of wild Arum Lillies. These grow wild in New Zealand, in the damp paddocks... They are prolific in Northland.
I heard recently that in England they are cultivated... Large and small sizes...Used in wedding bouquets... And very expensive!
Not here... And we associate them more with funerals!

The muddy track continued...

Up and over the next hill... Can you see the collection of bee hives?
There were lots of bees... Buzzing around collecting the honey from the Manuka blossoms...
The trees are in flower now. This is the beautiful sought after honey with healing properties...
Internally and for wounds and burns.

And into the bush...
This very unique New Zealand bush is a collection of wild NZ natives.
It's very hard to describe to people who don't live in NZ
 just what 'Bush' is...
But here are some pictures.
I love it and the various damp smells.
It's early spring time so lots of things are in flower...

Shadows and sunlight...

Me... In my raincoat... Boots... And stick!

These are Tree Ferns, or in NZ known as Punga.
In Northland they are very common in any damp bushy places...
They like lots of rain that's why they thrive up here.
A few years ago we had a major drought and lots of them died.
It was very sad to see the dead trunks with no leaves sticking up all through the bush...
But they have regenerated now and are as prolific as ever.
The NZ fern leaf is the symbol for the NZ Rugby All Blacks and other sports teams.

This is a new Punga leaf or fern growing. It is called a 'Koru'
meaning 'New Life'

Here it is unfolding...

This is a tiny plant the grows on the ground... I haven't managed to identify it yet!
If you can I would love to know what it is.

This is Hangehange or Maori Privet... It was used by early Maori as a flavouring, tied around bundles of food before placing them in the Hangi (Maori oven in the ground) to cook.
Also used medicinally for skin diseases and when the bark is pulped it produces a black dye.
Again it is prolific in its natural habitat and has the tiniest most insignificant flowers that produce an amazing strong perfume that permeates the bush.

This is Rangiora... I have picked a leaf to show you the underside...
The holes in the leaves are made by large, hairy caterpillars known as 'Woolly Bears'.
The large soft, velvety leaves have earned the tree it's popular  European name, 'Bushman's Toilet Paper'...
But it's equally handy for those trampers less well equipped, as the bright underside of the leaves can be used as notepaper!
The Maori used the leaves for wrapping 'Hangi' meals...  applying to wounds and ulcers...
And the gum, collected by making cuts in the bark, for chewing and to scent perfumes and hair oil...
By mixing it with seed oil or pigeon fat.

This is a small Manuka Tree.... Commonly known as 'Tea Tree'.
Captain Cook and his  crew brewed Manuka leaves to make tea...
And Makuka  beer is fairly well known.
The leaf contains 'Leptospermone', an insecticide... And the essential oil is an excellent perfume for many things including soap making.
I always have a bottle of the essential oil, I use it for cuts or wounds as an antiseptic and when I give myself a pedicure I soak my feet in warm water with a few drops. I love the smell.
I also rub it round my fingernails.
The Maori used the bark for waterproof containers, and a waterproof layer for roofing and coats/capes.
The straight poles were used for battens and rafters in 'whare' (house) building,
 bird spear shafts and paddles.
The gum was used for scenting hair and the flexible seedlings for making crayfish (lobster) traps.



This is Puawananga - 'Flower of Learning' or native Clematis.
It was intrduced to Britain in 1840 for its beautiful showy flowers and has remained something of a collectors item ever since. It is grown under glass to protect it from the cold winters there.
A plant grown in Massachusetts, USA, is recorded as bearing 7000 flowers open at one time.
Here in NZ it grows wild in the bush, climbing its forest support with the use of touch sensitive leaf stalks.
When the leaf makes contact with a branch or other object it coils itself firmly round the support, thus making an anchor for the next leg of its assent.
The flowers produce a very pale nectar loved by the bees.

And the Kawakawa... Very popular with the Wood Pigeon and Brown Loop Caterpillars.
The leaves contain  a substance useful for pest and insect control... When dampened and smoked it interferes with their metamorphoses.
The caterpillar is immune to this!
It's medicinal uses... chew the leaves for toothache, it acts like cloves.
The green spikes - fruit - you can see turn orange in the summer and can be eaten.
The leaves can be made into tea...Very good for chests and colds...
And spinners have found that the branches and leaves will dye wool lime green with a chrome mordant, or bluish-green with copper.


And... Out of the bush onto the top of the hill...
Looking back at where we have walked from...
And below looking down the other side to little coastal bays.
There is another walk down there... For another day!



We followed the fence line down the hill to the gate...
 
This is the view back to where we walked to...
And so we completed the loop and back home again.

An Unbelievable Contrast...

Living in the small country of New Zealand I have experienced a certain amount of fascination as I have looked at these pictures...
Of the most crowded cities in the world.
I was born in New Zealand... With a current popuation of about 4.5 million... And have always lived here.
I have travelled in the UK, Ireland, Europe and The Carribean.
The only Asian country I have been to is Japan.
When we live and grow up in a certain place we become familiar with the culture of that place...
Including the culture of the personal space we feel comforable with. 
The comparison of these crowded cities...
Each with their own fascinations and cuture...
Is such a contrast to some of the places I have parked at
and spent time at recently.

This is where I am parked now... For the weekend.
It's a cool blustery day and hardly another person in sight.

 

This is Tauranga Bay... A most beautiful spot and good for fishing.
I spent a week here last summer...
A very popular spot... And by New Zealand standards...
Crowded with motor homes, caravans and tents in the summer.

 

The beach at Uretiti... part of it is a designated Naturist beach.
It's a great place and not far from the DoC camp where I park for weeks at a time...
Summer and winter

 

This is the Avon River in Christchurch...
Not far from the CBD...
But after the earthquakes there...
Again nobody about.

 

Traffic of a different kind...
A BlowKart racing along the beach at Ramp Road.