Wonderful Takaka

This is our second full day here in Golden Bay - and tonight will be our third night. The luxury of a longer stay means we feel we can justify a planned day away from our usual hectic pace, and we hope to just lounge around relaxing and reading in the sun. Of course, the weather decides to challenge our plans by being damp and drizzly - though I have to admit, had today been sunny, I’d probably be tempted to take in some activity anyway! 

As it is, our planned trip into charmingly unique Takaka can still go ahead; what a fabulous place this town is! The scent of incense floats in the air and there’s a sense of a time warp here - as if free spirits crossed the Takaka Hill decades ago, liked what they saw and stayed in this sheltered nirvana. Art is everywhere; colours pop and you can still see a few aged hippies wandering the streets. 

We wander into Dancing Sands Distillery, enjoy a gin tasting and an impromptu tour with the owner who proudly shows us the gleaming copper and stainless steel stills as well as the remnants of early flavour experiments with dusty bottles labeled  ‘ banana’ and ‘kiwi’ for example. We decide on small bottles of the barrel aged and Wasabi gins - the latter a real discovery for someone who loathes and despises the green potion accompanying and defiling sushi. The gin is delicious - hot, but with none if that loathsome horseradish taste. 

We have lunch in Dangerous Kitchen - a cafe whose murals are as famous as its food - and I buy earrings made from recycled Dancing Sands bottles. Finally, we buy some cakes to take away to have that evening, and eventually drag ourselves away. I really love this little town. 

Back at our idyllic Bay Lodge, there’s a Hot Springs Spa - before the rain sets in; savouring of treats - home made cakes and liqueurs, and watching the watery sunset over the bay as night draws in. Eventuality we watch a New Zealand film - whale Rider, the DVD left in our room. Filip has recommended it and we really love it, the whale stranding tying in with out travels yesterday. What a truly glorious place this has been! 

My main today is the wonderful ‘Dangerous Kitchen’, with a collage extra of snippets from Takaka - including sections of Dangerous Kitchen’s fabulous mural - and one taken from The Bay Lodge as the sun goes down. 

Thanks so much for your generous response to yesterday’s entry!