Dunedin, NZ
The Kiwi Roadtrip continues!
At long last we finally come to it. Our grail, our Mecca, our El Dorado, our own little land of Canaan in New Zealand, if you will. (yeah, we’re still reading the Bible.)
The culmination of our quest, the living beating heart of our journey (well this part anyway), the Vegas of our Great Kiwi Roadtrip…
Castle Kiwi
(Aka Larnach Castle)
There remained but one final obstacle to overcome, one last trial to endure before the castle would indeed be ours as the very land itself conspired to bar our path…
After our adventures in fortified shrubbery circumvention we found a ‘curious and curiouser’ sight indeed.
It appears somewhere along the way here we drove down a rabbit hole and mistook it for just another New Zealand interstate. (In our defense, they are about the same size)
And found ourselves in the gardens of Wonderland.
Alice in Wonderland
Cheshire Cat
Of course, Mother promptly gravitated to the place that seemed the most natural to her
The Queen of Hearts Throne
And hey, we got to learn something about the national symbols of New Zealand, so it was educational.
After escaping the confines of wonderland / dragging Mother from her new throne before she found a playing card big enough to wield a halberd to command, we finally and at long last gained the castle. Which was a cool place, if you’re into castles with histories including titanic rises to fabulous wealth and glory followed by suicide of family patriarchs due to in house Oedipus Rex complications.
Seriously. Like a soap opera up in there.
Also, it has a killer view.
[fgallery id=4 w=450 h=385 t=0 title=”Larnach Castle”]
All in all, nice place. Glad we saw it.
It’s pretty, it’s quirky, it’s a freaking castle in New Zealand!
Alright, get in the car kiddos, now we drive back to Auckland.
For more on Larnach Castle check out their website at http://www.larnachcastle.co.nz/
And if fortifications with interesting histories are your thing, be sure to add The Alamo and Battle Fortress: South Pacific to your travels!
Greg and Tiffany are traveling around the world on sailing yachts and keep a video blog of their (mis)adventures. If sailing to Tahiti on a 44 ft sailboat, 3-day delays for wine tastings, getting pooped on by seagulls, opening coconuts with dull machetes, sailing past tornadoes and ukulele Christmas carols are for you, then check them out at www.CoastGuardCouple.com!
NZ sounds like a really interesting place!
It is indeed!
It’s fun to be the queen!!!!!
like we said, at least we got you out of there before you found a giant playing card to be your enforcer… 😉
I love looking at these pictures and reading the blog. It brings a very bright spot to a dull day. thank you again for all you both did to make that a fantastic trip and memory.
Mom