A trip up north (Part 2)

While we were in Napier, we got acquainted with Don and Liz's pet mantises. These are very cute little creatures, but as they are kept confined in tanks it's up to Don to catch flies with which to feed them. I couldn't help but feel sorry for the flies as they buzzed around inside the tanks, inches from something intent on eating them and with no hope of escape. And I was quite revolted when one mantis caught a fly by the wings and then began to eat it from the tail end up. It may just be a fly, but it was still horrible to watch it struggle to free itself while its abdomen was being eaten away.
Having said that, they were certainly interesting to watch when they weren't eating - like little green aliens. I don't think we could keep them as pets - I wouldn't be willing to feed them live prey, and if we let them out they themselves would probably become live prey for our chickens - but they're very photogenic.

Wine tasting in Napier

Although we enjoyed our night in the cells, we decided that the location of the jail at the top of a hill wasn't going to be fun after doing an afternoon wine tour today, so we moved down to near the waterfront for a second night in Picton spent in Archie's Bunker hostel ($52 for a double room). This hostel has excellent facilities, including a large DVD library and a pool table, as well as very knowledgeable and helpful staff, and I would happily come back here again.

Having chucked our stuff into our small but comfortable double room, we headed to the shore for a picnic breakfast before going back to Archie's at lunchtime for our wine tour. We booked this with the Grape Escape, who do small groups (there were 10 people on our minibus) and charge $55 for the afternoon. We had a lovely, relaxed afternoon, driving from vineyard to vineyard, tasting all kinds of different reds, whites, and roses, and getting to know the other people on the bus. Skry and I spent most of our time chatting to an older Dutch couple, and to a young American girl. The rest of the group was all English, I think. After visiting four vineyards we stopped to enjoy a bottle of red and some crackers and cheese, relaxing in the shade of some trees, before hitting our last venue and then heading home. Although I tasted some lovely wines today, and definitely have a better idea of what to look out for in future, I didn't buy anything because the boot of a car is no place to store it. Oh well, we probably got our $55 worth in tastes anyway!

A night in Napier Prison

After such a bad start to our visit to the North Island, we were glad to find that Napier is a very pleasant town. After the whole town was flattened in an earthquake, the buildings were all re-built in Art Deco style, and there are tall palm trees lining the streets. The whole effect is very unusual and pretty to find in this country, and it doesn't really feel like anywhere else we've seen in New Zealand. The sea is a beautiful turquoise colour, the sun is shining, and we finally had smiles on our faces again. After consulting our various guide books, we decided to stay in a hostel rather than camp 3km outside the city at the nearest campsite, so Skry chose the destination for our first night - Napier Prison. This cost us $54 for a double bed in an otherwise empty four-bed cell (we were guaranteed the room to ourselves) with a toilet cubicle and sink in one corner. The jail was still in use up until very recently, early 90s if I remember rightly, and it certainly looks like it still has a lot of the original features. Our door was a huge clanking metal one with a grill in the top half, although we did have a curtain for privacy. All the rooms had signs over the doors, like Parole Board, Psychiatric Ward, Conjugal Visitation, and the kitchen still looked like an industrial sort of kitchen that could cook for many people at once. It wasn't the most luxurious place I've ever stayed, but it was certainly different.

After finding our bearings, we wandered into town to get some dinner, and ended up at the Mongolian Barbecue. This is a sort of self-service place - you choose a bowl of meat or tofu, then add whatever sauces and spices you want, and whatever vegetables, before it is all tossed together onto a vast hotplate and then scooped back into your bowl. I had chicken in sweet soy (wok oil, sesame oil, plum sauce, hoi sin sauce, garlic, and ginger), with noodles, carrots, baby sweetcorn, and onions, along with a big glass of lemonade and an icecream cone, for $15. Pretty good value.