Countryside

We've been anticipating a drive south of Auckland in the Springtime. The hills there are beautiful all year, but we knew Spring would be even better! We could have taken a picture at every turn in the road - be glad this is all we have to bore you with!

A little stream was running in this meadow, and cattle and sheep on the hillsides.

The shadows allow you to see some of the terracing on the steeper hillsides.

A big stand of evergreens on the higher hillsides behind these hills.

A trip south of Auckland wouldn't be complete without a stop in Pokeno. This pictures includes about half the downtown of this little village. Anyone who has ever traveled south of Auckland knows about Pokeno. The place only exists to sell fish and chips (take aways) and ice cream. The brand name is Tip Top, as you can see in the blue and white signs. The sidewalks were so full of people we had to stand in the street to wait in line. There was even a wedding party stopped there on the way back to Auckland from the Temple. The ice cream's not Blue Bell, but it's the best we've tasted since!

And this is the two-fisted ice cream lover. Actually, he's holding mine too. But he does love his ice cream!