Lisa playing here lovely 1830s Erard harp after giving me a much-needed lesson!
Thursday, 10 May 2007
Tuesday, 8 May 2007
Journey's End?
Well, this leg of my holiday is beginning to draw to its end... :-( I head off for Australia on the 19th May (and will be back in the uk on the 27th June). In the meantime, I'm giving a two day bookbinding class this weekend for my Palmerston North friends and their friends. Very much on the fly - I have no teaching notes with me and not much basic equipment either! Still, sometimes the best stuff comes out of the least. I think I'll start it off with a cookery lesson anyway: how to make your own flour and water paste!
Tuesday 8th May
Catching up with my e-mails whilst stopping in Taupo. Beautiful sunny day, the water on the lake sparkling like so many diamonds... On my way to Napier to re-visit my friends Roger and Ros, who have a beautiful 1920s villa up on the hill overlooking the port. Excellent hosts the4se two!
Oh, I forgot to mention the Waitomo Caves. A two-hour walk through spectacular limestone caves with glow-worm colonies here and there. Part of the subterranean walk took us above a group of black-water rafters. Made me quite glad I decided NOT to take that particular trip: the underwater river is very turbulent and you get absolutely soaked! Simon, you'd have LOVED it!!!
Last Sunday was one of the less brilliant days as I drove from New Plymouth all round the west coast bulge of Mt Taranaki in driving rain. Could'nt even see the mountain!
Oh, I forgot to mention the Waitomo Caves. A two-hour walk through spectacular limestone caves with glow-worm colonies here and there. Part of the subterranean walk took us above a group of black-water rafters. Made me quite glad I decided NOT to take that particular trip: the underwater river is very turbulent and you get absolutely soaked! Simon, you'd have LOVED it!!!
Last Sunday was one of the less brilliant days as I drove from New Plymouth all round the west coast bulge of Mt Taranaki in driving rain. Could'nt even see the mountain!
I think I'm in love...
Well, there was always the danger of the 'L' word creeping in somewhere down the line, but I thought I'd successfully dodged it so far...
Until I drove into Raglan that is. I was only going to have a cup of coffee and a wander round, but I got hooked by the magic of the place and stayed all day and on into the next... A wonderful mix of very creative shops and extremely friendly people. They manage to serve tourism without actually being 'touristy'. It helps that the countryside roundabout is the 'lumpy bumpy' stuff I like.
Strange, but everywhere I've been that I feel I really like the area, there's been goats around... Perhaps someone's trying to tell me something... lol!
From Raglan I drove down to the Bridal Veil Falls - a spectacular waterfall that just shoots over the edge of the hill, exactly like a bridal veil hanging up. Then I followed a sign to Kawhai (my next destination) to find it dissolved into a dirt track. By which time I was too far along my journey to turn back. It was one of the roughest roads I've yet been on, but also one of the most beautiful, skirting round an inland bay through native bush. Distant views of hills and the odd flock of black swans ...
Until I drove into Raglan that is. I was only going to have a cup of coffee and a wander round, but I got hooked by the magic of the place and stayed all day and on into the next... A wonderful mix of very creative shops and extremely friendly people. They manage to serve tourism without actually being 'touristy'. It helps that the countryside roundabout is the 'lumpy bumpy' stuff I like.
Strange, but everywhere I've been that I feel I really like the area, there's been goats around... Perhaps someone's trying to tell me something... lol!
From Raglan I drove down to the Bridal Veil Falls - a spectacular waterfall that just shoots over the edge of the hill, exactly like a bridal veil hanging up. Then I followed a sign to Kawhai (my next destination) to find it dissolved into a dirt track. By which time I was too far along my journey to turn back. It was one of the roughest roads I've yet been on, but also one of the most beautiful, skirting round an inland bay through native bush. Distant views of hills and the odd flock of black swans ...
Hamilton
Bit of a grim drive down thru Aukland to Hamilton, esp when it started to POUR with rain. And I mean pour!
Why Hamilton? Well, a lovely harpist called Lisa had offered to give me a harp lesson! My first in about nine months... I was a little concerned that my technique might have slipped a bit, but it seems it's not too bad. All thanks to the redoubtable Dorothy back in Hereford!
Have to say it was really grand to get my hands on a 'big' harp again: my little one is fine and lovely, but there's just more to play with on a bigger instrument! We finished the lesson with Lisa playing me some music on her beautiful 1830s Erard pedal harp. A beautiful, full sound from an instrument that's only 20-something Kg!
Why Hamilton? Well, a lovely harpist called Lisa had offered to give me a harp lesson! My first in about nine months... I was a little concerned that my technique might have slipped a bit, but it seems it's not too bad. All thanks to the redoubtable Dorothy back in Hereford!
Have to say it was really grand to get my hands on a 'big' harp again: my little one is fine and lovely, but there's just more to play with on a bigger instrument! We finished the lesson with Lisa playing me some music on her beautiful 1830s Erard pedal harp. A beautiful, full sound from an instrument that's only 20-something Kg!
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