Tauranga, New Zealand - Kiwis and Hobbits

New Zealand Kiwis

Now that we are in New Zealand and in port for seven days in a row, the days are extremely busy and blog posts may begin to lag a bit.  After two and a half wonderful days in sunny Auckland and definitely not enough time to accomplish what we wanted, we reluctantly set sail on Thursday but realized we were heading for another favorite port, Tauranga.

Most people who don’t travel to Australia and New Zealand may not be familiar with Tauranga but if you ever purchase kiwi fruit¸ there is a good chance it was shipped out of the port of Tauranga from a building we could see from our verandah.  We have heard conflicting statements, but I believe I am correct in saying that Tauranga is the third busiest port in New Zealand overall, busiest port for exports because of the kiwi and Auckland is the busiest port for imports.  Tauranga is located on the Bay of Plenty, so named because of the rich agriculture, thriving settlements, and friendly Maori (natives) that lived there.  “Tauranga” has a population of somewhat over 100,000 people and means “resting place for canoes” in Maori.  Furthermore, it has the reputation for being one of the sunniest places in New Zealand (which makes sense to us as Tauranga and Napier which we visit next, were the two sunny days when we were in New Zealand in 2009.

We had been met by our New Zealand friends, Brian and Margaret, in 2009 who picked us up in Napier and returned us to the ship  in Tauranga.  On the return to the ship, we had stopped at a large kiwi farm and gift shop  near Tauranga called “Kiwi 360”.  As a Hobbit enthusiast, Barb had chosen an excursion which took people to see where the movie was filmed and I had planned a day where I would perhaps go out to Kiwi 360 again, but the logistics seemed complicated enough as I would need to take two buses, and making sure I had times correct in every case.  So at the last minute, I elected to do a ship excursion called “Kiwifruit and Tauranga Sights”.

After I was seated on the bus, another man got on and was seated next to me. He was a Canadian from Winnipeg who had taught high school math for 30 years and was traveling solo as his wife had passed away four years ago.  I noticed that he put his right leg up on the arm of unoccupied seat ahead of him. It was then that he explained that he had fallen on the gangway getting off the ship as he tried to take a picture of the port.  I could tell he was uncomfortable but was trying to make the best of the situation.  He had skinned his knee but that didn’t hurt, but he had turned his ankle and that was beginning to swell.  He did all the activities but after the last one, I asked how he was doing; he admitted it was “a challenge”.  Things like that happen so fast after a momentary lapse!  It reminded me of my tumble when I visited Niagara Falls last summer and Barb’s sprained ankle in Peru with the Lincoln-Way teachers’ travel group in 2008.  I do hope this won’t pose a major problem for him as our journey continues.

Our stop at Kiwi 360 in the village of Te Puke included a drive into the orchards where we learned the process of growing, harvesting, and marketing kiwifruit.  I never knew, for example, that there are male and female vines.  Only the female vines produce fruit so they have about 20% male vines and 80% female.  The large orchards also keep bees to cross pollinate.  Vines are very low and one needs to stoop when walking under the kiwi vines.  Since we are into late summer in the Southern Hemisphere, the fruit is ripening and will be harvested between April 1 and June 15. Those approximate ten weeks require temporaries to be hired.  Workers are recruited from Indonesia and several other nearby countries to assist in getting the crops to market.  Someone inquired as to what happened if they just stayed.  Good question from an American, reflecting on our experiences in our country.  But the matter of fact response was that it wouldn’t happen because the foreign temporaries are very tightly regulated and the person would never be invited back if they tried to overstay there visit.  End of story.  Why didn’t this solution ever occur to certain American politicians?

In addition to the green kiwi, which represents about 80% of the kiwi crop, there is also a golden kiwi with, appropriately, a gold colored fruit that is sweeter.  Most kiwi in the American market is the green kiwi.  After some scones, coffee, tea, or kiwijuice (I chose the juice), and a chance to browse the large gift shop, we were on our way, much more informed about a fruit which most of us just take for granted.

Back  in Tauranga, we were taken to a historic property known as “The Elms”.  It was an 1847 representation of a Georgian property which contains a Mission House made from New Zealand’s Kauri logs (Kuari trees are in the Redwood family and, if undisturbed can live about 2,000 years, a Chapel, and Library as well as an attractive, but simple lawn and garden.  The docents divided up our group into about 10 people to give a nice tour of the property before returning to the ship.

Since there was still time after our return to do so walking, I decided to do the 40 minute walk around Mt. Maunganui, an imposing volcanic mountain that rises from the flat land right near the pier.  Actually we were docked at the Port of Tauranga which is really in the Village of Mt. Maunganui.  Mt Maunganui (town) is a resort community with a couple of beautiful beaches on a peninsula so narrow that it is a short walk from one side to the other.  While Barb opted to do a bit of shopping, I began my trek around the base of the small “mountain”.  The walk was scenic as I observed the ship from many picturesque locations and could see swimmers and boaters in the water enjoying a glorious summer day, possibly the nicest February day I have experienced in terms of weather.  The dense foliage of the trees made for nice pictures framed by the trees. Sometimes I could look up to the summit and see the imposing peak other times, there were some of the many New Zealand sheep grazing along the mountain. 

Twice, friendly Kiwis (“Kiwi” with a capital “K” is nickname for New Zealanders initiated conversations.  Once I stopped while a lady composed a picture of her two friends or family members.  When she finished, the man thanked me for waiting and the lady taking the picture apologized.  Then he asked if I was on one of the cruise ships and inquired as to where we were going, where we had come from, and how long we would be gone.  They seemed pleased that Tauranga was included on a world voyage.  The others I spoke with were two women who asked basically the same questions and commented that the walk around the mountain was so pretty that they did it about once a week.  The walk took me much more than 40 minutes, but the scenery was so exquisite that in that respect, it ended too quickly as did our second stay in Tauranga!

As we made our way to the next port of Napier, our New Zealand, we passed White Island in the Bay of Plenty.  Our Auckland-born Canadian friend had told us that the volcano on the island had come to life and maybe it would put on a show for us as we made our way to Napier.  The captain made an announcement that we would pass about 9 PM, so we went out on deck to check out the action.  It was dark by then but could see dark plumes coming from the mountain but no lava or eruption.

CT

Bag End, home of Frodo & Bilbo Baggins

When I realized that there would be a shore excursion that took us to another Lord of the Rings (LotR) movie set, I told Chuck that while I knew he would not be interested, I really wanted to do it.  So while he went off and pursued his interests, I opted for the shore excursion that took me several miles inland to the Hobbiton Movie Set in Matamata. 

Our hour-long drive took us across a high mountain ridge and rural land that was dotted with sheep and cattle.  Our guide had spent five years running a cattle station until she and her husband moved to Tauranga so she was very experienced in what that entailed.  She explained that while New Zealand is known for its sheep, more and more people are finding that cattle are more lucrative so are gradually switching over.  No worries, though, as New Zealand still boasts nineteen breeds of sheep (merino being the most important for its soft wool). 

As we passed rolling fields of corn, we learned that this is not sweet corn but maize used as feed for livestock.  Even so, about 90% of the animals in New Zealand are grass-fed. 

In addition to the soft merino wool, New Zealand is known for its possum fur.  Possum was brought over from Australia, and was not a welcome introduction as possums are considered pests.  So the Kiwis made the most of it and found a good use for the possum.  They use the fur to make warm items, including clothing and blankets.  Clothing is extremely warm, but also extremely expensive!  She said that she took a nice warm possum fur sweater to a friend in Alberta, Canada, and it cost about $250 NZD, making it about $200 USD!  Later when I was browsing a store in Mt. Maunganui, I decided that the possum fur items available were well beyond my budget!  Needless to say, none of it will accompany me home!

As we passed a primary school, our guide explained that children in New Zealand may start school at age 5, but must be in school when they turn 6.  Most parents start their children at 5, and the children can be enrolled the day after their 5^th birthday.  I couldn’t help but think of my mom and my cousin Sharon, both formerly kindergarten teachers, and wonder how they would have enjoyed the revolving door of new students at such a young age!  I can’t even begin to imagine it!

As we arrived at the Alexander farm, a 1250-acre sheep farm that became the site of the Hobbiton movie set, it was very evident that this was a working farm.  One of the family members was working with the sheep despite the hundreds of tourists pulling up in motor coaches or private cars! 

Back in 1998 when LotR director Peter Jackson was searching for filming sites, they were looking for a location that had gently rolling hills and a lake as well as one that had few buildings, roads, and interfering power lines.  When they spotted the Alexander farm, they made a call on the family.  At the time they were watching a major sporting match (rugby?) between New Zealand and Australia, and fortunately for the callers, it was halftime.  Had it been while the game was being played they probably would have been unceremoniously brushed aside! 

When they heard that their farm was being considered as a filming site for Hobbiton, they said fine, and they were given the right to visit the filming site whenever they wanted.  Not being familiar with Tolkien’s work, when they arrived at the site, they were a little apprehensive.  Who were all these little people with chubby bellies and hairy feet running around their farm?  They had no clue what a hobbit was!  However, after the tremendous success of the movie, apparently they are now experts, knowing every page, every line, every scene!  And of course they are raking in the money! 

To build the set, New Line Cinema brought in the New Zealand Army, who constructed about a mile of road into the site as well as grading and reconstructing the land to make it look like a hobbit village.  Filming was so strictly guarded that the area above Hobbiton was a no-fly zone for all except filming personnel.  If someone either accidentally or intentionally flew over the site, they were greeted upon landing, all cameras were confiscated, and a hefty fine was issued. 

It was amazing to see the extreme detail that the film company went to in order to insure authenticity. As we took our two-hour stroll through the set, we saw the 37 hobbit holes constructed of untreated timber, ply, and polystyrene for the set, as well as garden after garden of flowers and vegetables.  (Hobbits love to garden!)  There was clothing on the lines outside many of the hobbit holes, small ladders leaned against the buildings, chimneys poking above the ground, wheelbarrows and garden supplies aplenty, and of course the ever-present brightly-colored round doors with the knobs in the very center. One 26-ton gnarled old oak tree had been taken from nearby Matamata, cut apart and numbered, then put together like a jigsaw puzzle.  Artificial leaves were brought in from Taiwan and put on the tree one by one! Street signs pointing to Bagshot Row, East Farthing, and other landmarks were strategically placed.  It was really exciting to stop in front of Bag End, home of Bilbo and Frodo Baggins, as well as the large home of Sam & Rosie Gamgee that became the final shot in the last movie of the trilogy, Return of the King. Sam enters the gate, greets his family, says, “Well, I’m back,” and passes through the bright yellow door.  End of movie.  End of trilogy.   

We stopped for pictures at the Party Tree, a well-known Hobbiton landmark, and crossed the stone bridge that isn’t really stone at all but made of timber, ply, and polystyrene, passing by the little mill before heading to the Green Dragon for drinks.  There were four drinks available, special recipes created specifically for guests who visit Hobbiton, and I opted for ginger beer (which really isn’t beer at all but a little like ginger ale) and a delicious muffin of raspberries and chocolate.  Yum!   

Unlike the LotR tour I took in Wellington in 2009, this time the movie set was pretty much intact.  The tour in 2009 took us to sites that had been totally dismantled and we had to use vivid imaginations to visualize the scenes.  This time we had no need to imagine what was there.  We could see it, and everyone was thrilled to see such an integral part of this iconic movie’s history! 

BT