Amble into the Abel Tasman

My wonderful mother celebrates her birthday today, and what a glorious day it is! The sun is shining, the weather is hot; so, us and our good spirits took advantage of this and headed over to the Abel Tasman National Park for a little hike as a little birthday treat for my mum.

Good Morning Morri Street!

Ah Christmas. The time for giving, love and cheer. In our family, Christmas represents a time where we can love, give and cheer, but also argue, fall-out and cry. This morning we were all up early, rushing around to pick up ANOTHER sibling from the airport, and then venturing into Nelson to do some Christmas shopping. After about 3 fights, 1 cry, losing mum, getting NOWHERE with presents, we all agreed that we were in need of a feed.

Getting the Goods at Hopgood’s

Everybody has a certain special way they like to celebrate their birthday. For me, I like to toast my existence with good food, good drink, and good company! Now, you don’t turn 20 everyday, so I wanted to celebrate the big 2-0 at somewhere a little upscale, elegant, but also somewhere where I knew the food was going to be of an incredible standard. One place instantly came to mind regarding these criteria; Hopgood’s.

Olive This Place a Lot!

If you’ve been to Wellington, you know that Cuba Street is one of the best places to go if you are searching for somewhere to eat. This eclectic sand vibrant street is packed full of restaurants and cafes that cater for any diet, and fit any appetite. Along this street, tucked away in between a fruit market and alternative clothes shop is the beautiful café-come-restaurant, Olive. This restaurant is so special because it transitions so effortlessly between a relaxing daytime brunching spot to an elegant and refined, upscale restaurant.

Getting Classy at Coene’s

Got our fancy pants on and sauntered out to wellys famous Coene’s restaurant situated in the heart of the Oriental Bay. Our tummy’s were clamouring for a feed, and we knew that this place was well known for their amazing cuisine and breathless views of the bay. Making sure our hair was fixed and our outfits were presentable, we bit the bullet and engaged in a proper lady’s lunch.

Ooh La La, La Gourmandise

Hot sunny days are usually for the beach or the river, but for mum and I they mean a full day of retail therapy and a girls lunch out! Nelson is a boutique city that not only has beautiful independent stores perfect for Christmas shopping, but also has masses of enticing restaurants and cafes. Naturally we planned our shopping trip so we HAD to have lunch in town, so we stopped at our go-to favourite cafe; La Gourmandise. 

Marvelous Market Food

 

December is nearly upon us and we all know what that means…. CHRISTMAS! I love everything about Christmas; the decorations, the presents, spending time with family, and especially the food. I think we can all agree when I say the lead up to Christmas is one of the best parts of the holiday, as there are so many events and festivities that the community can get involved in to come together and share the love and celebrate Christmas.

Mot Cafe and Bike Co.

Good god it’s crazy just how much Christmas shopping can work up an appetite, every store I went into the hungrier I got from seeing all the festive treats and sweets! So, me being me, I persuaded mum to take us to a cafe for a little post-shop pick-me-up.

The Happiest Chippy?

Kaiteriteri has been spoiling us with beautiful weather recently, makes for a perfect location to enjoy evening nosh! Unfortunately there were no Chippie’s or Dairy’s open past 7pm at the beach, so we had to make a little pit stop along the way for our fish and chips fix. Luckily ‘The Happy Chippy’ had their doors wide open, and their chips certainly did live up to their name!

Kai at ‘Kai’

This beach is the gift that keeps on giving, and I cant get enough! Its one of the most beautiful places to relax and bathe, and its right on our doorstep. Popped over here for a Friday morning snack with mummy dearest (who also paid), and hit up our favourite beach side cafe that we knew as ‘the shoreline’, but has been renamed and revamped and now goes by the name of ‘Kai’, and boy do they offer some good Kai!