Last week was the perfect time for a short trip, a mini-holiday, a spring getaway. It was a week sandwiched between the end of school holidays, and a long weekend due to today’s public holiday, Labour Day. A week when few were travelling, when restaurants and hotels and roads were relatively empty, and when there was a day to be celebrated. So we decided to escape to a foodie destination about four hours up the road from us.
It started well, overnighting with our friends who live on the way in their olive grove in a nearby little wine village. The weather wasn’t conducive to sitting on their porch drinking wine watching the pheasants and hen and less-welcome rabbits scampering about their property, as the sun sets behind their olive trees. But it was perfect for a cosy evening in, drinking good wine (champers for me and Peony) and eating good food. The next morning we left, after a leisurely coffee down the road in their favourite cafe, heading northeast.
The drive isn’t as interesting as it is to go north – there are no volcanoes, but there are mountains, and lots and lots of traditional New Zealand farmland. At this time of year it was a delight, because the grass – which dries out in their hot summers – was lush and green, dotted with sheep and newborn lambs. I don’t realise I miss seeing the lambs until I leave the city any time between August and October, but the country girl who fed so many lambs when I was at school is still hidden somewhere deep within me. The Ruahine ranges to the left of us are now scattered with wind farms, but I quite like the elegance of windmills, so don’t mind them. And a few of the higher mountains even had scatterings of snow. We stop to stretch our legs and get some fresh air, have a bite of lunch, and a rummage through a second-hand shop we like. It has so much that looks familiar – all the crockery and crystal that the previous generation loved and used but is now discarded. I’m rarely a buyer, but love seeing these old items waiting for a new home. There were even bags of pre-used buttons, which pleased me to see, rather than paying $17 for four at the local Spotlight, which is what I had to do recently.
We eventually arrived in Hawke’s Bay. We’ve been here quite often, though not for a few years now. This time we decided to stay in the smallest of the three towns that are all within 25 minutes of each other. We’ve usually stayed in Napier, the main centre, where there are hotels and motels on either of the two beaches that flank the town. But this time we chose Havelock North, a village that has always looked nice when we’ve driven through it. There’s a new boutique hotel right in the centre, and it was perfect for us.
The village was surrounded with apple tree orchards by the dozen, all beautifully still in blossom, though I apologise that I never insisted on stopping for a photo. There was a relatively new wine bar/restaurant we tried out which had gnocchi that were just like soft little pillows, so light they might have floated away (and delicious mushroom arancini, and fresh asparagus with an almond sauce, et al). The following day we drove to the nearby Te Mata Peak, not so much for the exercise, though there was a team of sports players who had jogged up and were finding the last 100 metres or so quite hard, but for the 360o view. We looked down on the vineyard we had booked for dinner the next night, and marvelled (again) at how green everything looked. The region doesn’t have too many natural attractions, but this is one.
No, the attractions in this region, whilst they come from the land, are exotic interlopers. There are vineyards for miles. The best are on the Gimblett Gravels or the Bridge Pa triangle, but even in close to Havelock North there is one of NZ’s top wine producers. So of course, over the next two days we visited a few of the vineyards, and spent more money than we should have stocking up our wine cupboard! We ate a delicious lunch in the garden of the oldest vineyard in New Zealand, where monks had planted vines back in 1851, and on the special-occasion night, indulged in a degustation menu at the well-regarded restaurant of yet another vineyard. On our last day, we discovered an elegant cellar door outlet/wine bar at the back of our hotel for pre-dinner drinks, where we will definitely return. And an added treat, for one day at least, were the warm summer temperatures that have not yet made an appearance back in the cooler climes back at home.
In between eating and drinking at wine bars and vineyards, we followed up some recommendations from friends, including a fun cafe and art gallery that had a large sculpture garden, a figgery to purchase some fig balsamic that my friends had recommended and some other fig products, checked out the beaches, and window-shopped (despite being tempted by some very nice handbags and wallets) in the shops in the village. And on the way home, we stopped in at a wildlife reserve, to say hi to some friendly kaka (even though we have them at home) and rare takahe.
A short break is a good break. It always leaves me wanting more.
Lovely lovely lovely! Thank you for taking us on your trip!
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For as many figs as I have consumed in my lifetime, I have never considered the word “figgery.” I love it. And the photos are BEAUTIFUL. I’m ready for my wine now.
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