Family ties - Day 5 (Dec 15)

We visited Waitomo glowworm caves today. As I was the driver for the campervan, I got to go for free (promotion from the campervan company). Hannah had visited the glowworm caves before, and she decided to stay in the van to read. 

Mom had an initial fright because the caves was so dark that she found it hard to adjust her eyesight! She was holding on to me for her life! We took out time on the tour, taking the steps carefully as she adjusted her eyes to the darkness. Verdict - Meow Lan said "Nature is indeed very interesting", Mom asked " Are those glowing worms in the caves real? Are they just lights set up by the tour?" :) Nephews were just enjoying themselves.

After the glowworm cave tour, we tour a quick walk around the reserve and explore some of the shallow caves with the nephews. They enjoyed themselves although my mom and Meow Lan were a bit nervous about them climbing around the rocks. Mom had to rest a couple of times during the walk. I sat around with my mom while Hannah brought Meow Lan and the nephews to explore a couple of places.

Tomorrow we (Hannah, , Meow Lan, and nephews) are doing the Tongariro Crossing, thus we spend the night in a DOC campsite (no flushing toilet, no power, no running water!). It was definitely an experience for my family. 

Day 5 - Finding the campervan a bit too small for the family :)

Family ties - Day 4 (Dec 14)

Today is the first day of the road trip! Hannah and I had planned the road trip up to the most minute detail, but we knew that we had to do some major changes the moment we started driving.

We had spend a lot of time waiting for nephews and my mom to move along, going to the toilets etc etc. We also had to re-think the meals because there were special considerations to accommodate the nephews preferences! So, the first day ended up with just shopping for grocery and driving to the campervan campsite near Waitomo. Hannah and I decided the REAL road trip starts tomorrow :)

Day 4 - Getting there :P

Family ties - Day 3 (Dec 13)

We were busy preparing for the upcoming road trip and did not take any photos. My sister, nephews and mom went shopping along Queens Street, Auckland city while Hannah and I had to drop the dogs off at Creature Comfort (dog boarding kennel). Mom had heard from her friends that the NZ abalone was cheap and good, and she was so determined to get some - making Meow Lan walked with her for a couple of blocks to search for it. Unfortunately, the famous NZ abalone remained elusive :)

Day 3 - Good :)