At first I wasn’t even sure whether I wanted to write this post. In past years I’ve reflected on adventures in Italy, Croatia, Greece, Mexico and Australia. How could 2020, a year where I didn’t leave New Zealand’s shores, compare? And I wrestled with whether it was right to celebrate my domestic adventures, when so many readers are in lockdown in the depths of winter.
But I’ve written one of these posts every year for eight years now, and I love looking back on the year. A year of travelling domestically has meant exploring some awesome corners of my beautiful country. Plus New Zealand’s lockdown was tough, and we’re by no means out of the woods, with the spectre of community transmission and another strict lockdown constantly hanging over us. I think it’s worth celebrating the adventures we did have in 2020, in what has been an unsettling and tricky year for all. So here they are!
Festive February
We were only home for one weekend in February, which was grueling at the time but worth it looking back! We started with Adam and Tarini’s colourful fun wedding in Martinborough.
Then we had the awesome Splore Festival, which I’m convinced is New Zealand’s answer to Glastonbury. Highlights this year were dancing to Tiki Taane with my friend Kate and her little boy, Kae Tempest’s beautiful set making people weep, and the gypsy swing of Parov Stelar.
This was the third weekend in February, and we’d started to hear more about this new coronavirus. It still felt pretty far away, but I distinctly remember thinking… I guess Splore will be safe to go to? And oh man I’m so glad we did, with so many other concerts following cancelled.
Lucky last was Alice and Cam’s beautiful wedding at Lake Tarawera. A stunning setting overlooking the lake, and a dance floor that I barely left all night!
Lockdown sunrises
Not an adventure, I accept, but getting up for sunrise most mornings was one of the things that kept me sane in the four week strict lockdown which NZ spent much of March and April in. We were restricted to our houses, with a “bubble” of the people we lived with the only people we were allowed to see (unless you lived by yourself, in which case you could expand your “bubble”). But we were allowed a neighbourhood walk, and I took full advantage – running or walking around Takapuna to start my day. And almost always, a beautiful sunrise to greet me.
Awhitu Peninsula and Kariotahi
Once it was safe to do so, we splurged on a winter getaway at Castaways Resort. Just an hour south of Auckland, we spent a long weekend watching the waves roll in to the black sand beach below from the comfort of our cliffside lodge. When we got the urge to explore, we headed up the Awhitu Peninsula where we checked out the gorgeous Manukau Heads lighthouse. It was so relaxing and a treat after spending a very long time at our flat!
A Girls’ Weekend in Mangawhai
I spent a weekend at Mangawhai with a wonderful group of ladies, many of whom are now fantastic mamas as well. Sans kids (and partners) we laughed, ate amazing nibbles, sorted our lives out, watched Naked Attraction, and blew ourselves away at Mangawhai Heads. It was an absolute tonic and a brilliant weekend.
And then we were back to lockdown…
Fortunately the next lockdown was shorter and not as strict… it was still tough though, particularly as it was longer in Auckland. Less of an adventure and more of an endurance test.
“Ski” trip to Taupō
I switched work teams in July, initially a slightly stressful move, but I knew for sure I was on to a good thing when we headed down to Taupō for a team weekend in September. The mountain was closed, not a huge disappointment for me with my history of breakages/general damage on the snow. And instead we went white-water rafting on the gorgeous Tongariro River!
Taking on Taranaki
Labour Weekend is at the end of October, a public/bank holiday that symbolises the real start of spring for me. We took a few extra days and headed down to New Plymouth, thus managing to tick off one of the travel plans I had made for 2020!
The highlight could have been the Pouakai Tarns walk which, on a good day, provides stunning views of Mount Taranaki in these reflective pools. As you can see, we did not have a good day, weather-wise.
But it was still fun and, given I do love tramping (the NZ term for hiking), a great way to spend a few hours. I’ll be back one day for those mountain views though!
Truly, our highlight was the food – New Plymouth has great quirky cafes and we enjoyed everything from sushi to brunch classics to fish and chips on the beach. But a second highlight was our trip out to Elephant Rock and the Three Sisters, stunning rock formations about an hour north of the city.
Return to Christchurch
My birthday wish was a trip to Christchurch to see Kate, Alex, Nicole, and Kate’s beautiful new baby girl. We paddled at Sumner, cruised to the Tannery, and hung out in the sunshine – bliss!
Now the Kiwi summer is in full swing, and as you read this I’ll be relaxing in the North at a beach with my friends, having partied in 2021 at a music festival. Truly, I appreciate so much the freedoms we now have in New Zealand. 2020 has been tough, and I know it’s still tough for New Zealanders to get home with limited flights and space in our mandatory isolation spaces – which is so hard to hear. I can’t wait for the vaccine to be standard issue and everyone to be able to get to where they need to be.
Normally this is the part where I’d make extravagant travel plans and wishes for the year ahead. Pacific Islands, Asia, further afield? But I find it hard to believe everything will return to normal so quickly. Even if it does, the downside of living on a remote island nation is that I expect it will be seriously pricey to fly anywhere. So instead I’m hoping for more domestic adventures – the Tongariro Crossing for one, and more time in Wellington for another. As soon as travel to Sydney opens, Joe and I will be hopping across the ditch to visit his niece and family. Other than that… we’ll have to wait and see!
Have you made any travel plans for 2021?
