Coming Up Close

Another mural from Taupo this week. Painted by artist Wongi Wilson this one for Graffiato was part of the Taupo Street Art Festival in 2018.   Wongi's interest in graffiti developed at a young age and for over 25 years he has watched the art form grow from virtual non-existence to a blossoming, pervasive creative influence across New Zealand. ​ Wongi has played a major role in transformation of graffiti art in Otautahi Christchurch and is synonymous with the rise of street art muralism in the city. From media coverage to featuring in documentaries and various publications as well as festivals, his murals have served to transform walls throughout the city and beyond. Btw is anyone else having issues with images not showing up on Blogger? It seems one minute photos etc are here and the next they're not. Hopefully it will sort itself out. Linking up with Mural Monday .

 I was in Totara North a few days ago and parked down on the path next to the bridge that leads from the main road to the turnoff into that town. As it was the "Blood Moon" this week the tide would've been extra full, usually we have king tides when the moon is full and as I was driving along the road the water was just about up on the tar seal. With alot of mangroves here it would be pretty good fishing I think. We are looking out on a bit of a grubby day this morning, typical Winter's day with loads of rain. I think it will be pyjamas and hibernating. Linking  up with Weekend Reflections and The Weekend Roundup .

Every Thursday I drive about 45 minutes out to Kaeo and last week I drove through alot of fog. You can't really see it through the main road where the shops are (above) but it was hanging over the mountains just before the town and on the way out at the end of this street. It's all because our Autumn days have been sunny but the nights are chilly.  Linking up with Skywatch Friday .

In 2012 the Focus Pahia Group came together to create this Mosaic seating area near the waterfront.  Organisers of the Mosaic Chair project had a vision:  that residents and visitors to Paihia would relax on their beautiful artwork while gazing out at nature’s beautiful artwork, The Bay of Islands. This project was our longest running and the one that attracted the largest number of volunteers. The mosaic chair was crafted by “hands-of-the-world” – passersby, often visiting town from overseas or other parts of New Zealand,  took part in laying the mosaic pieces!  In true phantom style sections of the mosaic were worked on at home and applied to the chair when ready. The wooden seating (wood slats left over from the Bay Belle project ) was designed and crafted off-site and installed just before the unveiling. Today, the mosaic chair is photographed and utilised daily, having place of pride on Paihia’s waterfront. Linking up with Our World Tuesday , Tuesday Travels , Through my lens , Tu

There are alot of cycle trails around the far north that are extremely popular. This mural on the back of a building in Kaikohe was painted in 2018 by artist Dallas August and blessed by local Kaumatua Ted Wihongi.  Linking up with Mural Monday .

While cleaning up some of my stored photos I found this shot that would've been taken about 8 years ago in Leigh, just out of Matakana. Fishing is a popular sport here in New Zealand and most people either use a tractor or a large vehicle to take their boat out into the water. As this photo was taken on a Winter's day I'm hoping the 2 fishermen caught some nice fish as it's the perfect season to be out on the water. Linking up with Weekend Reflections and The Weekend Roundup .

I just love Autumn, it's one of my favourite seasons and I was happy when I was able to snap these photos last week while visiting some friends.  It's not often we see these sorts of colours up here because people don't seem to like cleaning up the leaves after they fall off the tree but I think it's all so pretty.   While it's nearly hibernation time here, this week has been quite trying for me. Have you ever been around someone who you get along with most of the time but every now and again they seem to suck the positivity or happiness out of you? It does my head in. I ended up taking a day off work and spent the day at home with a good book and keeping an eye on one of our 3 cats.  One of our neighbours passed away about 6 weeks ago, her family asked if we would rehome her 2 cats and after we agreed they bought over some food for them. One of them is a manx and got quite ill so after a not so cheap vet visit she is back home and just about back to normal. Apparen

We were over in Russell last week on B's day off hoping to do a tour of the Pompallier Mission House but alas we were a bit late for the tour. History about this place is:  Built in 1842 it housed a printery where church texts were translated from Latin to te reo Māori, then printed and bound.  The property is just five minutes’ walk from the wharf at Russell, formerly known as Kororareka and infamous as the ‘hell-hole of the Pacific’ for its drunken and raucous behaviour. It was against this colourful backdrop that a group of French Marist Brothers – including Jean Baptiste Pompallier, after whom the property is named – arrived to set up a Catholic Mission in the settlement. Unfortunately we were a bit late by the time we got there and B had an appointment that afternoon so it will have to wait until another time. It looks very different to how it looks today (top photo) compared to this one taken in 1967. Edited to add: After searching for more information on the property I'v

There are literally murals all over Taupo and when we were there on holiday I spotted this painting on the side of a cabinet (we can't work out whether it's a phone cabinet or what) of 2 Trout swimming. If you don't know much about Taupo it's a freshwater lake that is well known for Trout fishing and apparently you need a licence to go fishing there.  Linking up with Mural Monday .

When I visited Kawakawa last Spring with my 2 adult children I noticed this street lamp sitting next to a mosaic brick wall near the end of town.  Apparently this one is a replica made by the Lions Club of the original 3 that use to sit along the main street in 1904. The acetylene gas was housed in the base and lit by the gas lighter.  Linking up with  T he Weekend Roundup  and Weekend Reflections .

I'm one of those people who always has my camera on hand, I managed to snap this one night while we were staying in Bayswater in Auckland. This is our very own harbour bridge all lit up. Enjoy Linking up with  Skywatch Friday .

In Devonport halfway up Mount Victoria is this cute little period house now named "The Michael King Writer's Centre".  Michael King was New Zealand’s most prominent writer of non-fiction. He had a great sense of humour, huge curiosity, and a scholar’s intensity, but always with a popular touch. His histories appealed, beyond any specialist audience, to the wider New Zealand public. This house can now be used by writers who need a quiet place to work.   Originally this house was known as "The signalman's house" though.  The first signalmen lived in a tent or a raupo hut on the top of Mt Victoria and later a house was built on the summit. The summit was fortified because of the Russian scare in the 1880s and it was eventually taken over by the Defence Department. In 1898 the Auckland Harbour Board decided to build a new house for the signalman on the current site, about half way down the southern slope of the mountain.  The first signalman started in 1842 and

  Another mural spotted in Kaikohe recently, this one was painted by Charles and Janine Williams named "Kaikohe Berries" with paint donated by the Kerikeri Colour Centre. They also regularly paint other murals around New Zealand including  one in I posted about in 2017  from Tauranga. This particular mural tells the story of the town which was named after the  Kohekohe fruit  that sustained people in times of hardship. The diamond background represents a bird's eye view of the maunga (mountain) Tokareireia or Kaikohe Hill.  Linking up with Mural Monday .

 In between Bayswater and Devonport in Auckland is the suburb of Belmont , which means "good view or hill" from a farm estate of the same name  that was subdivided in 1885. It's a popular area to live in due to a well known high school " Takapuna Grammar " being nearby. I snapped this street photo while we were in town briefly on our holiday when B popped into one of the shops in this photo. This week has been pretty full for me. I've ended up giving notice at the garden centre that I work weekends in. I've been working since I was 16 when I left high school and most of the jobs I've held have required me to work either a Saturday or a Sunday or both so I'd kind of like to see what having weekends off is like. I've decided to instead work 4 days during the week with my support work Tuesday to Friday instead which will mean a bit more money too. But I'm ready for change. Linking up with  The Weekend Roundup  and    Weekend Reflections .

This rather interesting memorial located in one corner of the Government Gardens in Rotorua caught my eye recently.  The original idea for this came from the Ohinemutu Native Patriotic Assocation in 1919. Later the Te Arawa Trust Board took over the project and still cares for the memorial today. The board hired sculptor William Henry Feldon to design it which he did alongside local iwi (tribes).  He then created the memrial with architect Edward La Trobe Hill overseeing the project. The statue of Rangitihi, at the bottom is a replication of the original which was vandalised in 1936 created by Rakei King in 2018. King George stands on the pedestal, below him is the star Rehua which is said to have guided the Arawa Waka (canoe) to New Zealand.  Under this section are a tier of panels which depict: King Edward VII, Queen Victoria, King George V, a white marble cross, a navy seaman, a red cross nurse holding a floral wreath, an army soldier in a mirrored stance to the seaman. Under anoth

  B introduced me to this place, tiny Opepe Cemetery just off the Napier Taupo highway where he said not many people knew about which is maintained by the Ministry for Culture and Heritage.  Opepe  was a settlement in New Zealand, a few miles southwest of  Taupo . It was the scene of an attack between European militia and Maori on 7 June 1869 in which nine members of the militia were killed.   The Opepe Maori settlement was at the intersection of two major pre-European walking tracks (Taupo- Napier  and  Urewera - Tokaanu ). It was the birthplace of the Maori leader  Te Rangitahau .  During  Te Kooti's War , in early June 1869  Te Kooti  and about 150 of his supporters moved towards  Lake Taupo  in the center of the North Island. At Opepe, just short of Taupo, they ran into party of fourteen Militia, who were camped in the abandoned village. Nine of the militia were killed with no loss to Te Kooti. One of the men, who was drying his uniform, escaped completely naked across rough co

On a recent stop in South Auckland, Bombay to be exact just off the motorway is a group of shops. This whole area has come a long way lately, it use to be only a farming area but now has a number of fast food outlets including this clothing shop named Made in Italy - Sallie Clough where this wee mural on the side is of 2 well dressed women, I'm guessing it's advertising her business and attempts to find out the artist have come back empty.  The Bombay Hills are between Auckland and Waikato close to Pukekohe. The region is named after the ship "Bombay" which first landed here bringing settlers originally called "Williamson's Clearing" in 1863. The ship itself was named after the Indian city of Bombay, now "Mumbai". Linking up with  Mural Monday .

On one of the drizzly rainy days we spent in Taupo recently we thought it would be a bit different to visit Aratiatia Dam   to see the gates open where water would flow through to the river below. At the top normally this boat and it's owner take people out for jetboating experiences, I've done that before in Queenstown and it's really not my thing. The huge gates had opening times of 10am, 12pm or 2pm, we chose the morning one. You can either stand on either side of this bridge and look over or walk down a designated track next to one end which is what I did. This shot was taken while standing on the bridge facing both the gates.  The name "Aratiatia" means "Stairway of Tia" after the legendary Maori explorer Tia who first arrived at the rapids and was fascinated by the tiered form.  This memorial stone says "This Kohatu is dedicated to the people of Ngati Tahu-Ngati Whaoa. Near the Aratiatia Rapids was the settlement 'Atahaka' one of the m