Dunedin

Thursday night we flew down to the deep south for 4 nights with the Roes. It had been 3 years since we last saw the kids, Alexander was the first to meet us at the airport & I hardly recognised him, I swear he was twice the height from when I saw him last!
They have an amazing 2 & half acre property high on the cliffs overlooking St Clair beach. It is just ocean as far as the eye can see.

Right next door is the ruins of Cargill's Castle, also offering spectacular views along the coast
On Friday night Rach had got us tickets to Roger Hall's 'Four Flat Whites in Italy'. It was a very enjoyable & entertaining play. Afterwards we called in at some friends of Rich & Rach for a glass of wine or two, making it home sometime after midnight.Saturday was a lovely day, so Rich decided that a spot of fishing was in order. We headed off to a beautiful spot on the Taieri River. Rich hadn't chosen to go for a swim in the above photo, he was freeing a hook which had got well & truly wedged between some rocks.The fish weren't biting, but it was a very pleasant way to while away a few hours. Eventually Will hooked a small brown trout, his first fish ever which was exciting. I had another small one get off my hook, & Rich had a big one get away.Back home & it was a fantastic roast chicken meal, with Will's fish as a starter. We also played a bit of poker, with Alexander putting his lego trucks & bulldozers to good use in collecting & storing his chips. After a tasting session of some of Rich's favourite local ales, followed by plenty of wine with dinner & beyond, we went to bed tired but happy after a brilliant day.Sunday night was a cocktail party for Rach's birthday, which was on the Monday. Things kicked off at around 3pm, & Rich ably assisted by Will at times, kept the cocktails flowing. Some of the guests had simpler tastes, preferring the speights... After an afternoon/evening of good food, beverages & company, we made it to bed in the wee small hours. Rich & I slightly later than the others after a couple of games of 500 for old times sake...On Monday we celebrated Rach's birthday with an alfresco lunch of mostly leftovers from the previous night. We then had an afternoon of backyard cricket & petanque (& bouncing for some!) before catching our late afternoon flight back to Wellington.

Today was a glorious day in the capital, so in the afternoon Will & I went for a drive around the Mirimar Peninsula, stopping for an icecream in Scorching Bay. We then continued all the way round to Lyall Bay, & had a very nice fish & chip dinner on the beach while watching the surfers who were out in force. Tomorrow we will drive up to Hamilton for Christmas with the family.