Coast to Coast- New Zealand style- pics to come later

So with a lot of persistence and not much planning, Jenny, Max, and I set out on our coast to coast trip this morning. Jenny was supposed to wake me for the sunrise this morning, but it was cloudy, so she let me sleep in. No worries though, I am going to wake up tomorrow morning and hope that it is not raining here- although it is forecasted to do just that- in the morning and afternoon. Jenny and family had a portrait at 10 am and we hit the road by 11:15 am. I drove for the first 2 hours and Jenny drove the last two. The trip was pleasant. It was cool to see so much of the land and how it changed. The first part was relatively flat, but when we turned off toward Welcome Bay and then Hamilton, it became very mountainous. I was going about 30 on these switch-backs up and then down the mountains. It was a pretty view, but cloudy in the distance. Then, we hit the rain storm that we had been seeing. It was intense for about 15 minutes, but never became blinding-the way it does in Alabama. But, I know it has the potential for that. We got through it and through Hamilton and then there was only 40 minutes out to the coast. By that time, Max woke up, so we took a little stop on the road and I got out and explored, while Jenny took care of him. The hills in the west of New Zealand are sharp. They rise and fall quickly. They are green with just a tiny bit of rock exposed. About 7kms out from Raglan (the coast), we saw a sign for Bridal Veil Falls. We scheduled our check in time very late at our motel, so I asked Jenny if we could stop. The falls were only 14kms away. So, we went on a little side trip. The scenery changed so drastically. The hills were less extreme and where the road cut through the hills the clay was as red as any dirt I have every seen in Alabama. It was a startling, but beautiful landscape. There were also pukekos all over the fields, and you know I loved that. When we got there, Jenny bundled up Max and we walked the 10 minutes down to the falls. There was a small river, but it did not look like much and the foliage was palmy, moist, and either black, brown or green in varying colors. There was a sign that said top of the falls to the left- a one-minute walk-and middle or bottom of the falls to the right- a five to ten minute walk. So, we went to the top. The wind was blowing hard. When we got to the top of the falls, I was shocked to see the source of the waterfall was right there. I could have reached out and touched it. It was an amazing 55-meter drop to the bottom of the fall and the water was just gushing. It was powerful and the wind was creating mist off the falls. Then, we decided to walk down to the mid-way point, but it was 135 steps down. We went to the midway point. The cliff face must have been limestone and it looked like it had been carved with sharp claw marks that must have been made by the water over time. The bottom pool was still feet below us, but it started to rain and Jenny had the baby. So we quickly started to head back. Unfortunately, the rain was faster. By the time I made the 15-20 minute walk back to the car my thighs, butt, feet and even my rain jacket was dripping wet. Jenny and the baby were not much better. We piled back into the car in all of our damp glory and headed on to Raglan. We cruised through the town and then found the motel. It was a nice place. It is right on the canal. There are several palm trees, since it is the Palm Beach Motel. The room is nice. It is a living room with an extra bed and a couch, a private room with a queen bed and a baby cot, a kitchenette and bathroom. If this was a real apartment, I think I could live here. Then, we went back to town and had the biggest most bacon and cheese filled burger I have ever had in my life! It was delicious after not having meat for so long. I also had a coke and fries. The whole meal must have been 700 calories! I was ridiculously stuffed after. We came back here and Jenny stretched me for a door decoration for my classroom that she is designing for me. That was a whole funny experience. We were cracking jokes and laughing about this and that. Now, I am sitting here listening to the rain and watching Erin Brokovich. I think we are planning a nice breakfast, some shopping, and if the weather is nice a walk in a sculpture garden outside of Hamilton.