October 23rd, 2009

Friday October 23rd, 2009
We woke up this morning and said goodbye to Cveta who is continuing on her biking and hiking retreat. We checked out of the apartment and met up with Dawn's parents at their home. After some lunch and Dawn re-packing we set off to the airport. Shompoo and her two sons gave Mom and I a ride and Dawn and her husband Darrel went with Dawn's parents. We checked in and then were met by Sandra and Paul to say their goodbyes. We boarded the plane, without security, to Wellington. The view was, again, spectacular. We arrived in Wellington at 2:30pm, picked up the rental car, and took off to the New Zealand National Te Papa Museum. They had the largest squid preserved and educational information about how the New Zealand Islands were formed and about the native people, Maori. We drove to Dawn's sister's place in Martinborough and during the drive we drove up one of the huge mountains and then back down. Gail's daughter Thalia (13 yo) told me that she timed the drive once and it was 7 minutes up and 7 minutes down either way. When we got there, Gail's other daughter Melia (7 yo) was so excited that she could not even stand still. We also met her son Sergio (16yo) who was home for the weekend from boarding school. Gail made us a wonderful feast of organic chicken, 3 different types of potatoes, and different vegetables. Just what we needed. Then off to bed at the Edendale house down the street.
Cristin