We spent last evening catching up with my cousin Brian and his wife Bev, in Katikati. “Big Brian”, he was always known in my family, and my brother was known as “Little Brian”. It rained, and rained, then rained some more in the town where kiwifruit and avocados are grown in orchards everywhere.
The rain hadn’t stopped this morning so it was a matter of packing up in all that wet stuff. Then we were on the road again, with our first stop at Paeroa. Way back in 1904, the fizzy drink known as Lemon and Paeroa (or L & P for short) was created here, using water from a local spring. The spring water was well known for it’s therapeutic properties, and the soft drink became a hit. The Big Bottle was erected in 1969 to celebrate L & P, advertised as “World Famous in New Zealand”.
We drove on to Hamilton and stopped down at the very pretty Lake Rotoroa to stretch our legs. A posse of ducks and pukekos came waddling over looking ever hopeful for a free meal. The lake bed is ringed with reeds which offer plenty of nesting spaces for the water birds to safety raise their chicks. This lovely park is an asset to the city and the grounds are planted with native trees such as totara, rimu, kowhai and kahikatea.
Pukeko at Lake Rotoroa, Hamilton
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