Getting to know Gisborne (and its wine)
New Zealand is, as I may have mentioned once or twice before, ridiculously beautiful. Everywhere you turn, it looks like nature is just plain old showing off – oh you want a beach, here’s a perfectly untouched one I made earlier; or how about some scenery, just go round this corner and poof: will this epic postcard view do?
Last time we were in New Zealand, we spent only a little time in Gisborne, popping out to feed stingrays, and then running away driving around from place to place, bathing in mud, jumping off bridges, spotting whales and seals, drinking wine and being flabbergasted by the beauty of this little country at the edge of the world.
This trip however has been more of a family affair as we’ve spent two whole weeks in Jono’s home town of Gisborne, a small city of around 35,000 people which you may not have heard of, but, like the rest of New Zealand, has plenty to show off about.
This time the adventures were right on our doorstep. I got to experience some Maori culture in the form of school children doing seriously impressive traditional Kapa Haka performances. Jono gave me a tour of Gizzy by bike and I experienced the delightful combination of cake and yoghurt – don’t knock it till you’ve tried it.
With its palm trees and sunny weather, Gisborne already felt like a bit of a holiday town from the moment we arrived. But it was after going for a run down to the Waikanae beach and stopping to sit along the beach listening to the waves, that I was smitten. When a storm hit just after we arrived, it left the beach strewn with branches, and even the occasional tree on its side, which just made it even more ruggedly beautiful.
#Iwokeuplikethis
Gisborne used to hold claim to being the world’s first city to see the sunrise, but that claim was taken by Samoa’s capital Apia in 2011 when they decided to skip a day to align their dates with New Zealand and Australia. However, Gizzy can still hold on to its title of world’s most easterly vineyard, being one of New Zealand’s ten main wine growing regions. Heading out to the Gisborne Wine Centre one sunny weekend day we got to try a selection of the wines, many of which can only be found in and around the region.
Just as I developed a new found fondness for London and Krakow with Jono by my side, he seems to have picked up a renewed soft spot for his home town. There was talk of possibly even going back to live there one day, something that could become even more of a reality if Gisborne won the Gigatown bid, a competition which would see the winning town receive access to speedy (1 gigabit per second) internet. That view right there would make for a pretty choice* view from a remote office, don’t you think?
We’re going to be spending a little more time in Gisborne in a few weeks after our visit to Oz, when hopefully spring will be in full bloom and I can go nuts taking pictures of flowers.
*Choice = kiwi-ism for good/nice
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