Killyrudden B&B – Tairua

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Trip Advisor really did us a favor by steering us to Killyrudden B&B, a three-story home perched on the top of a volcanic cone here in Tairua. Hosts Keith and Margaret have been serving up Kiwi-style hospitality here for ages — and Margaret's meticulous landscaping is a wonder to behold.

After tooling around the east coast beaches yesterday, we spent a delightful hour sitting in front of a crackling fire, sipping red wine, sampling local blue-veined cheeses, and chatting with Keith and Margaret.

When dinner time rolled around (Keith, knowing options would be limited, had already made us reservations at the only place in town that would be open!), I could barely drag myself off the comfy couch and pack myself into the car. (Jeri, I think, would almost rather have climbed directly into bed.)

But if we had gone to bed, we would have missed a jolly meal down at the Tairua Landing. Nothing remarkable here — the fried scallops were padded with bits of other seafood, I think — but the company was wonderful, my pint of ice-cold cider was delicious, and all of us laughed our heads off. Good thing we were the only people there, as other diners would surely have thought we were all off our rockers.

For dessert, we did get our first taste of what locals call "hokey pokey" — rich vanilla ice cream studded with bit of toffee. If you're in New Zealand, don't miss it; there's a reason it's a national favorite.

Today, it's off to Auckland, where, instead of feeling like we're headed to a B&B, we feel as though we're headed home to Eden Park. We've been spending a lot of time wondering what we can contribute to the barbecue to make it special. Interpretive dance is right out — but what *should* we bring? We'll solve the puzzle today, as we head back that way.

Meantime: pray for us. Yesterday, I did a pretty good job of driving "on the left," eliciting only a few "Eeeks!" from Clyde and only getting on the wrong side of the road one time (and only very briefly). Roads here on the Coromandel peninsula are very twisty and narrow, so we're all doing a lot of holding our breath … and, unless I miss my guess, we'll be getting back to Auckland during rush hour, which will present me with some new driving challenges, I think.

Perhaps a glass of wine before driving, to loosen me up? Oh — perhaps not.

Posted via web from Mark's posterous