A seat at the table: WBC

On Thursday evening, we set out to have a sort of pre-Valentine’s Day dinner at WBC, a wonderful little restaurant … More

A walk on Waitangi Day

Today is Waitangi Day in New Zealand, the national day and the anniversary of the signing initial signing on 6 February 1840 of the Treaty of Waitangi. The Treaty of Waitangi was an agreement between the British crown and the Māori chiefs and is regarded as the founding document of the country. The day was first celebrated in 1934 and became a public holiday in 1974.

The sun was shining, with summer having returned for now at least, so we headed over to Zealandia, the wonderful urban sanctuary in Wellington.

This week’s small pleasures #477

Can you believe it is February already? January seems to have flown past.

This week’s small pleasures #476

I can’t really believe it is almost the end of January already and only 5 weeks until we head to the other side of the world. Before that, there is a lot going on from the theatre, to a visitor next month to a couple of dinners out.

This week’s small pleasures #473

As I type this, it is a glorious sunny summer day. We have been blessed with (mostly) good weather so … More

The year in food

2025 certainly offered up many wonderful eating experiences, starting with our trip up to Hawke’s Bay in January where we enjoyed lunch at Craggy Range Winery, and excellent food at fish restaurant Hunger Monger and Central Fire Station Bistro in Napier.

This week’s small pleasures #468

It is Monday evening. There were leftovers for dinner, the holidays are getting closer (and by holidays I mean 3 … More

Words on Wednesday: café life

Tucked away on Taranaki Street is August Eatery, a great place for lunch or coffee on any day of the week. The food could be said to be ‘Mediterranian inspired’, full of fresh herbs, strong flavours and interesting combinations. The building is part of the heritage listed Methodist church complex (you can see just a bit of the actual church in the featured image at the top of the post). On sunny days, you can sit outside on the pink stools and watch the world go by.

This week’s small pleasures #467

It is four weeks to go to the holidays! 15 more working days, since I don’t work on Wednesdays, until 3 weeks summer holiday. I can hardly wait. Meantime, it is important to find ways to switch off and relax, from just lying on the bed, eyes closed, listening to the birds or sitting in the garden just staring into space and watching the bees.

This week’s small pleasures #466

It has been a busy week at work, and then I got a really sore throat, meaning I took to my bed on Friday afternoon for a two hour nap. This seemed to do the trick, what with that and a weekend of sunshine. I am counting the days until I finish up for the summer holidays…

Anyway, the days are definitely getting warmer, and there is more sunshine too.