2025 October - Going around in circles

The first 4 days of October we were still having fun times with Max and Flynn staying with us at Waihi Beach, then on Sunday the 5th after cleaning up Sue & Pete's restful bach I started on my laxatives in preparation for my scheduled routine colonoscopy the next day and we headed for the Riverside Camp in Whakatane where we have stayed quite a few times. The colonoscopy is not something you normally want to talk about but it was certainly a low light of the week with the laxatives working as they should but the vomiting of bile all night long with no sleep was more than memorable. I was so dehydrated, ill and "spaced out" in the morning that I had to ring the hospital who told me to still come in. I felt like an old, wizened woman sitting in the waiting room vomiting into my ice cream container and not being able to think clearly. Pretty soon though I was hooked up to a drip, given sedatives and fentanyl  and after a while they were able to proceed with the procedure, the results of which weren't too much to worry about fortunately. However I think it took me a couple of weeks to recover from the dehydration with continuing nauseousness, headaches and then the onset of a bad bout of hay fever which ultimately turned into a type of flu and a lot of coughing. What a sad sack!! Seems terrible to have a moan when I'm actually so fit and healthy compared to a lot of people for which I'm very grateful!

I still managed to get to my echo cardiogram in Tauranga with Jonathon Tisch who is always delightful and chatty and the results there were good also with nothing having worsened. We spent that night at the Tauranga Tourist Park before heading back to Whakatane to catch up with friends and see the dentist to get my broken tooth fixed, an appointment I made months ago. We spent the Thursday night in the Freedom Camping site at West End Ohope, a beautiful spot right by the beach, where there are only meant to be 6 vans parked but in the morning there were 13 vans squashed in with all the little sliders with the young overseas tourists squashed into any gaps. Another reminder to us that we should just leave these free parks for the poor young travellers so after that it was back to the Riverside Camp for us. On Saturday I managed to have a good catch-up at Cafe Coco with my fellow book club members whom I keep in touch with while travelling managing to read most of the monthly books and give my feedback on the books by email - such a nerd but I do miss meeting up with them all. That night we had a nice dinner with our friends, Anne and Dave, at Global Thai but after that I didn't do much socialising at all as my cold, sinusitis and snotty cough had taken over which meant I had to reschedule my dentist & hygienist appointments for the following week. Unfortunately I was still no better so we decided that we just had to move on as we could have been waiting around for a long time and we wanted to be spending the time before Christmas up North. I made another appointment for later December - just hoping I can last until then. My cough continued on for 3 or 4 weeks so it was a wise decision. We watched the movie, Prime Minister, which we both enjoyed and Len did a spot of fishing before we moved on to the NZMCA Park at Welcome Bay, Tauranga. 

Pilot Bay, Mount Maunganui

D,L,T & J

I tried making muffins again but once more they burnt on top as the gas oven just seems to work at one temperature. There's a waiting list for things like these to be fixed so we'll just get it looked at after Christmas and cope with what we've got til then. I was still trying to keep away from people but we did have a good catch up with my daughter, Sandra, who has just returned from a much-needed 6 week holiday seeing Jack in London and spending time in Europe and we also had an outdoor lunch with our friends, Jan & Doug, at the Omokoroa Domain where we camped for a couple of nights. The following day we walked with Jan to see the amazing godwits around the harbour's edge and also cycled with her on a circular route around to Plummer's Point and back around the golf course. My cough was starting to improve so on the Tuesday 21st, after a little walk up to Crapps Reserve from the Domain we had lunch at the Omokoroa Tavern with Jan & Doug, Margaret & Tony, Peter and Patrick, parking that night at the lovely, quiet Waitui Reserve on the water's edge in Te Puna with only one other van there. There's just a short, but picturesque walk around the Estuary edge which we did, walking back along the road before picking up Madi for an enjoyable lunch at Mocha N More in Papamoa. Then it was back to the NZMCA Park for a couple of nights - talk about going in circles - where our neighbours were a couple from Taupo whose caravan unhitched on the road not long after they set off - luckily no-one was injured coming towards them - and then, on arrival, they found that they had somehow lost their skylight on the way! Len was able to give them some tape to secure a piece of tarp over the gap to help keep their bed dry as it rained that night! Whilst there it was good to get out and play golf at Renner Park.

The action

The medal ceremony

Labour weekend arrived and so on Friday it was off to Hamilton for my grandson, Max's, 3 day water polo tournament. It was good to get the washing done at the Hamilton City Holiday Park and actually get it out on a clothes line for a change instead of into a drier. We were lucky enough to have Dave pick us up and  drop us back to the campground each day to save us trying to find somewhere to park. Max's team had a great first day with 3 wins, but then 3 losses on the second day and a final day with a loss and then a win so they did pretty well overall coming about 6th or 7th out of 16 in their division. It's a great sport to watch and is Max's favourite out of football, basketball and water polo. On Saturday night we all had a nice dinner together at an Indian restaurant around the corner from Waterworld.

It was pretty noisy at the camp while it was daylight as all the Otago water polo competitors were staying there but they were quiet once darkness fell. The couple in their caravan opposite us, Graeme & Lynne Butler, from Whitianga I think, were also there to watch their granddaughter play water polo for one of the Tauranga teams and they joined us for a drink on Sunday night.

Len had entered a 3 day Vet's golf tournament at Ngaruawahia so after the water polo finished on Monday it was off to the golf club for us to join the other golf playing campers for 4 nights. The weather wasn't the best with intermittent rain and wind the first 2 days but more settled on the Thursday fortunately.  Len came about middle of the field and won a $40 New World voucher which I must remember to use next time I go! Whilst Len was playing golf I walked 5 km, each way, along the wonderful 3 metre wide concreted cycle path which runs from Ngaruawahia to Cambridge, into town to pick up my meds and was pleased to feel that I was getting my energy back at last. There is a very new fresh-looking large housing development right next to the golf course.

Perry Cycle Bridge

Trish in the right gear

Friday was nice and sunny and before leaving the golf course we cycled along the great path and over a couple of bridges to the amazing Cinnamon Cafe, which has a hospitable & friendly owner, in St Andrews, just before you get to Hamilton. After getting back to base it was time to move on and good to join Len for 9 holes of golf at Huntly where we have played and stayed before. The golf was pretty good and we were the only ones staying so it was a quiet night.