Back On Deck

So, my 3+ week holiday with old mate Gavin and his wife Linda concluded a couple of days ago and I am now (unfortunately) back in the real world of work and Auckland rush hour traffic 😒 We had a great time with them, and I took a few (ahem) pictures, which should help boost my profile with both the New Zealand and Cook Islands tourist boards!

The visit was split into distinct parts - Thurs 26 Sept till Tues 1 Oct in Auckland - then 7-8 days in Rarotonga (Cook Islands) - then 3-4 days back in Auckland, 4 days down in Christchurch in the S Island, then the last week or so back in Auckland again.

I will try to split the photos up into bite sized packages and intersperse them with some wargaming content too!

Here is the first batch:

First day we drove down to the seaside town of Raglan (named after guess who, I presume!)

Fish n chips at a "chipper" on the wharf - delish!

Its a proper fishing village with real working boats

Drove a few miles out of town to the Bridal Veil Falls

Bridal Veil Falls is a plunge waterfall located along the Pakoka River in the Waikato area of New Zealand. The waterfall is 55 m high and has over time caused the formation of a large pool at the base of the waterfall. The falls are in the 217 ha Wairēinga Scenic Reserve with tawa-dominated forest

Day Two saw us on Auckland's North Shore, checking out the Royal New Zealand Navy

A War Memorial in Devonport township

And the RNZN Museum

On 17 February 1873, Aucklanders awoke to the alarming news that a Russian warship had entered Waitematā Harbour undetected and landed troops.

For many readers, this seemed to confirm their worst fears. Anglo-Russian conflicts during the 19th century prompted many New Zealanders to view the Russians as potential aggressors. In the aftermath of the Crimean War of the 1850s, unannounced visits to the South Pacific by Russian warships created alarm in New Zealand.

David Luckie, the editor of the Daily Southern Cross, was concerned about this threat and published a hoax report of a Russian invasion of Auckland by the ironclad cruiser Kaskowiski – ‘cask of whisky’. Despite an asterisk in the story’s headline referring to a date almost three months in the future, gullible Aucklanders were alarmed to read that marines from the Kaskowiski had seized gold and taken the mayor, Philip Philips, hostage.

A full-blown Russian scare in 1885 that grew out of Anglo–Russian rivalry in Afghanistan led to the building of fortifications to protect New Zealand’s coastal cities from attack from the sea.

The REALLY interesting thing about this, as explained to us by the young Scottish guy on the front desk at the museum when he found out Gavin, Linda and I were from Montrose, is this:

David Luckie (Mitchell was added later) was born in Montrose, Forfarshire, Scotland, on 5 October 1827, the son of Thomas Luckie, a merchant, and his wife, Mary Mitchell. He was educated there and worked in a mercantile office and as a law clerk before working for a number of newspapers. At Ashton under Lyne, Lancashire, on 23 April 1861, he married Fanny Clara Dickinson.

Shortly after being offered the editorship of the Arbroath Guide Luckie emigrated to New Zealand to become editor and part proprietor, with William Nation, of the Colonist newspaper in Nelson. He, his wife and their infant son arrived in Nelson on the Electra from London on 30 March 1863. His first editorial appeared on 31 March. As editor he was noted for the 'stinging lash of his invective and sarcasm'. He achieved national prominence in 1866 for his part in apprehending the four men found guilty of the Maungatapu murders; Luckie had chaired a meeting to raise money for a search for the missing party. He reported the court proceedings and published an Illustrated narrative of the dreadful murders on the Maungatapu mountain (1866).

There is more, but I think that is enough - if you want to read the rest, just Google him like I did! A small world though, innit?!

Being a navy museum, there were lots of nice ship models

A couple of old colonial era buildings - I think the one above was occupied by WRNS during WWII

Day Three - off on our traditional drive around the Coromandel peninsula - all our visitors get treated to this!

The two girls!

Where we ate lunch

Drive back to Pukekohe

Crossing the River Thames - New Zealand style.

Day Four - out and about in Auckland

The Botanical Gardens

One Tree Hill Domain (made famous by U2 - and no longer sporting its one tree!)

If you look closely, you might see a pheasant

End of Part One!