We set out last Thursday morning for a bach in Russell. Please let me begin by explaining that a bach is what a small vacation home was originally called in New Zealand and it was a shortened version of "bachelor pad". It usually consisted of one or two rooms and was quite rustic, so I'm told. Today, the bachs we've stayed in and visited have ranged from beautiful and luxurious too reminiscent of the origins of the term. I booked our batch for the long holiday weekend and it was definitely more true to the original meaning. What we lacked in luxury, we made up for with a beautiful beach, good company and excellent restaurants in a quaint little town.
It rained a bit while we were there but we took that opportunity and the holiday (Waitangi Day) to visit the Waitangi Treaty grounds and learn a bit more about the place that we have been calling home. We were able to see the sites, let the boys run a little on sacred ground and watch a traditional performance. A successful rain out day to say the least.
Finally, Saturday was beautiful and we took full advantage of our surroundings. Played in the surf and sand and finished our time off with pizza in town. Sunday we were back on the road and in Auckland early enough for a nice dinner on the grill and swim in the ocean. Great weekend!
Click on the links above to learn more about Russell (the hellhole of the Pacific) and Waitangi. Take a look at the photos below to see one one-hundredth of the beauty we experienced over the weekend (don't mind the fact that AJ4 doesn't show up here, he was present). Visit New Zealand and enjoy it all yourself!
Cheers!
