I posted that we were going on an impromptu road trip to New Plymouth – and then completely forgot to update when we got back!
First of all, the weather was PERFECT for a trip up the coast! We were able to see Mt. Taranaki in its full beauty and had a lovely view of the ocean. We stopped along the way for some photo opportunities, as well as to visit a cemetery… because who doesn’t drive along and say “OOOOOH, OLD CEMETERY! LET’S VISIT!”. The cemetery was the final resting place of 12 sailors who drowned when their boat – the Lizzie Bell – capsized off the Taranaki coast (if you want to read more about it, click here!).
I’ve often posted about the calming effect the ocean has on me, and it is fair to say I was extremely happy, calm & relaxed as we drove along the coast! On top of that, I also love mountains… needless to say being flanked on one side by the ocean and on the other side by Mt. Taranaki meant I was in a very happy place, mentally & emotionally.
Our first stop [after driving about 15 minutes in the wrong direction…] was Pouakai Zoo. There were plenty of animals to look at, including two white tigers and two lions! The kids loved having the chance to hand feed some of the animals (um, not the tigers or lions), admittedly so did the adults!
The next stop was the New Plymouth waterfront. We walked, we talked, we ate, the kids played… and the weather was gorgeous. Perfect for spending a couple of hours getting some of that glorious sea air!
When we left the waterfront it was too early for dinner, so we drove around and showed Mathilde & the kids some of the sights of New Plymouth – our second favourite city starting with ‘N’!
Dinner. Oh dinner. HELLO LONESTAR!
Not a lot more really needs to be said. Lonestar have ribs. And they are awesome. And we ate until we were stuffed. The kids were all given a free t-shirt for doing a colouring in competition, and because Mathilde helped Aidan, she too got a t-shirt!
Then it was time for home. Surprisingly, the kids didn’t fall asleep until we were at least an hour into our (2 hour) trip… I sure wish I had their energy!
We were close to home when suddenly the moon was right in front of us; huge, golden and overwhelmingly beautiful. Yeap, we had a pretty awesome view of the super moon!!! It was interesting to see how big it was up in the hills and then how small it seemed once we were home and back at (close to) sea level.
The trip was definitely a success and I am glad we were able to share another one of our special places with the kids, who were incredibly well behaved. I would actually go as far as to say I enjoyed taking four kids on a road trip… something I never thought I would say.
Emma Knits 