Well,
all good things come to an end, and we've come to the end of our stay
in Steve and Eileen's apartment. It has been an amazingly normal week
– the girls have enjoyed watching the television when they want (Oh,
what a joy to see Matthew Kelly presenting 'Stars in Your Eyes' last
night...) and we've all relaxed. But now we've had to squeeze everything
back into our rucksacks (we'd actually hung some clothes up in the wardrobe!)
and roll up all our clothes again (rolling is the easiest way to keep
clothes crease-free in a rucksack).
We've
also enjoyed the pool downstairs, the two beaches across the road (harbourside
or Oceanside) and the view from the apartment balcony. Although this
apartment hasn't cost us anything, you’d normally pay around NZ$160
a night for a one-bedroom apartment in the summer, so it would have
been out of our budget. However, converting it into the English equivalent,
£64 a night for a modern apartment in a stylish seaside resort in high
season, shows the value that New Zealand can offer if you're holidaying
here. (Coming to New Zealand,
click
here for the details!)