Started off the last day of the year with an exploratory walk around our new neighbourhood. Within a ten minute walk from the house, we were down by the river that flows through town. Although we were on the edge of the houses and only a minute from the road, we suddenly found ourselves in a tropical jungle!
On the way back home, we took respite in our local cafe, which has slow service, but good coffee and a very comfy sofa on which we perused the days papers.
After a relaxing late lunch, we drove west to Manu Beach near Raglan. On the way, we got stopped and breathalysed by a police road check. It was almost funny as the officer assumed that I knew what to do with the breatherlyser (they're different to the UK) and I assumed he'd issue some clear instructions! After a bit of a funny exchange in which I probably seemed pretty drunk as I didn't understand the simple instructions of counting one to five, the policeman luckily found the situation as amusing as we did (especially once I'd tested negative!) and sent us crazy Brits on our way.
It was overcast and quite windy. The area with the super long waves wasn't working so we moved back along the coast to the next beach where there were plenty of waves. Not the clean lines like the first day, but enough to christen the new board properly. Clare was soon flying down every wave, but as they were a bit unpredictable, and it took me a while to work out how best to balance on the new board (which is much smaller than the one I have in Wales). After a fair share of misses, falls and tumbles, I was finally in the right place at the right time and picked up a long glassy ride for the first time on the little beauty! As I took off I could hear Clare whooping!
We surfed into the evening and after taking a shower, (we were parked in a very surfer friendly car park!) watched the clouds building on the horizon from the cliff top, while we had a snack.
Little did we know it, but the best bit was still to come. We drove into Raglan to try and get a celebratory drink and found that the main street had been closed off for some sort of procession, but we'd just missed it. A funky cafe called 'The Shack' in the hub of the town was open though so we ducked straight in and were seated in comfy seats in a quiet corner. We opted there and then to get stuck into a New Year's Eve meal as the menu looked really good and best of all, all the dishes were designed for sharing - just our style! Drinks with fried, breaded olives were first up, while we checked out the menu. Sirlon steak, smoked mash and asparagus came next, then chocolate, pudding, mini Creme brûlée then finally coffee to finish! A real taste sensation, with great service and maximum comfort after a long surf on the last day of the year!
After a stroll through the town to help with some digestion, we drove back to Cambridge and arrived back at the pad just in time to see the new year in with a glass of chilled New Zealand white wine! (It felt strange that out friends and family were only just waking up on New Year's Eve morning though!)
What a corker of a day and a fantastic finish to a jam packed 2014! A year that started for us in skiing on Mt Etna in Sicily and has seen us skiing in Morzine, surfing and climbing in Portugal, climbing in Sardinia, mountaineering and climbing in Switzerland, snorkelling in Corsica, climbing in Italy and now ending here in New Zealand! It's been quite a mountain lifestyle of 'climb, surf and ski around the world in style' which is all set to continue into 2015 and beyond!
Living life to the full. X
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