Past winter solstice

We are in Napier. I is friggin' cold and today (Wednesday), I am wearing longjohns, top and bottom. First time for the bottoms since it's really quite temperate in New Zealand.
Rotorua was interesting. Is is an old volcanic area that is still, in a sense, active. There is an enourmous amount of geothermal activity going on all aver the town. People have fenced areas in their backyards, with steam coming up. The streets have steam creeping through the bricks and pavings. It's cool here, so you really see it in the morning. The place is crawling with black swans! Apparently, they can be quite nasty and one is warned against feeding them.
We went to a Hangi (a Maori village feast thing) in Rotorua on our last night there. It was way out of town, going by bus, and on top of a hill in the forest. Very magic but cold. We were at the welcoming, with the dancers (not dressed for the cold, so extra impressive) doing the eyes and tongue as warning. Lots of singing and telling of tales.
I did not have the long john bottoms on and when we stood outside after the dinner as he explained cooking in a fire pit (demo was a fake), I wished we were near a real fire pit for the warmth.
The food was fine with roast lamb, chicken and fish. Kumaru potatoes and dessert was Pavlova!

The bus ride to Napier was crazy! up, down, curve left, twist right, and at an angle. We even saw mount_________ can't remember right now, after lake Taupo, that was covered with snow.
The ski season just kicked off there and down in the south, where they are having very wintry weather.
The cold is here because it is a high pressure. This means beautiful skies have been our company for the last week, apparently, very unusual.

We have been cooking for ourselves in the mornings. I've got Nina appreciating oatmeal!
I should say oatmeal, again, as we had that all the years of growing up. That and a boiled egg.

The gannet colony is off somewhere, as I knew they would be, so bird watching is limited to the birds in town. I have seen a lot of the hawks that are native to NZ.

The hostel we are in here in Napier is right by the sea. Our room faces the sea too. Not a lovely room, but the beds are great and the comforters are warm. I sleep well after days outside in the fresh air.
The kitchens in the facilities are great. Things like four gas stoves to work with, umpteen sinks and tons of dishes.
I've read a bunch of books on the road. A Rohinton Mistry, which I finished before leaving Auckland, a bunch of short stories called "Women of Influence" by a Saskatchewan writer, while in Rotorua, (how it got there is probably a good story too) and a Louis L'Amour now here in Napier. That one may end up coming with me, since I won't finish it before tomorrow.
We turned in early last night, since during our walk out, looking for a nice bar to sit in and have a Scrumpy (NZ alcoholic cider), the town was a ghost town. NO ONE ABOUT! Even the bars were with two or four patrons. Very sad winter scene.
The views, which are spectacular, make up for the cold. The light is amazing! I'm up to about 600 pictures so far.