Chapter Eighteen

WHERE do I begin ? With an apology, I hear you say, justifiably.

Let us, therefore, tender heartfelt regret for not keeping you informed with an up-to-date account of our travels and experiences since leaving South America. Our absence from the keyboard was and is regretted. No excuses. To all who have been avidly following our adventures, and who have now waited in vain for almost a month, we tender sincere apologies. It will not happen again. Promise.

Our journey from Santiago in Chile to Auckland, by far the biggest city in New Zealand -but not the capital - took twelve and a half hours, all of it in total darkness. It was a long time to be in a plane on a non-stop journey, but it is by no means the longest commercial non-stop flight in the world. It falls a long way short of some other long commercial flights in the world, some of which take 15, 16 or even 17 hours of non-stop flying to complete their journey. In 2004, a Singapore Airlines plane took 18 hours and 40 minutes to complete the 16,600 km (10, 314 mile) trip from Newwark in New Jersey, just outside New York, to Singapore in South-East Asia. But the fatigue element, plus the possibility of suffering Deep Vein Thrombosis, a life-threatening condition, make such long-haul flights unpopular and wearisome. They are not for the very young or old.

Some people, however, prefer to get from A to B in a non-stop fashion, irrespective of how long it takes, rather than be on a series of inter-connecting flights which could take 30 hours and more, span three continents, and leave one in a state of utter exhaustion, if not psychiatric meltdown, upon their completion. Such trips can lead to a complete collapse of our circadian rhythms - the body clocks which each of us has, and which tell us when to sleep, rest, eat or be active.

We took off from Santiago at 11 pm on Sunday, November 2 and because we 'lost' a day when we crossed the International Date Line which runs the middle of the Pacific, landed in NZ at 5 a.m. on Tuesday, November 4. Lady Bracknell would not have approved.

At the Airport to meet and greet us was generous Tom Birdsall, husband of Sheila McCabe who for those who do not know Sheila, is the niece of Olive Troughton. It was not easy for him since Tom had his left leg encased in a plaster cast after undergoing a recent operation to correct an old leg injury. Although he uses two crutches to aid his mobility, the fact that he drives an automatic Ford Falcon car means he is highly mobile on four wheels, the left leg not being required for declutching purposes. After introducing us to Rosie, their great big American Bull Dog and family pet, we headed to Sheila, Tom and Bridie's home. Bridie is the beautiful 13 year old daughter of Sheila, and the soul of sensitivity and good manners.

Their beautiful hillside home was to be our base for the next month. Our host family could not have been more generous to us. We were the recipients of the best of food and alcohol, invitations to their friends' homes for dinner and Tom provided us with the free use of the family's third car, a Toyota Hiace, for the duration of our stay.

Sheila is a Trustee of the Ronald McDonald House, a charity which provides accommodation for families of seriously ill children. This year Sheila organised a NZ$ 75 a head al fresco lunch to raise funds for this charity and previously made over NZ$ 9,000 for this worthy cause. This year she was hoping to come near double that figure. She kindly invited Trish to the "Ladies Who Lunch" function, as the occasion is known. NZ's top chef, Peter Thornley, cooked the lunch. All the food and drink was sponsored by various companies and friends. An open air auction was held in the beautiful gardens, an Irish band provided the music, the Ulster flag flew proudly in the breeze, and the sun shone warmly and brightly on the specially invited 70-plus guests. A small army of male helpers, husbands of some of the women, served the ladies while Bridie brought along some of her school friends who, in turn, became wine and champagne waitresses for the afternoon. It was a very relaxed, cheerful and exceptionally friendly occasion.

Trish, who was without a dress of any description following her four months in South America, went into the Newmarket area of Auckland to buy herself a gorgeous ensemble for the occasion. We also decided to put up two one-litre bottles of the best Irish whisky for auction - one Jameson from the South and the other, Bushmills from the North. They were the first item to be auctioned and, to our surprise, made NZ$ 207 for Sheila's charity.

But the real surprise came towards the end of the auction when a beautiful one-carat plus single stone diamond white gold ring came under the hammer. The central diamond was mounted on a four-claw setting, supported by two shoulders containing five smaller diamonds each. Total diamond size came to more than 1.2 carats. The whole thing looked stunning.

Two women bid for it. The auction began with an opening bid of NZ$ 1,000. Quickly, the bids went back and forth between the two women. There were gasps of excitement from those present. A number of the guests gathered close to one of the women to offer their support and encouragement. The second bidder discreetly sat in the background. Not easy to see. Eventually, the dazzling ring was knocked down to the first lady. A round of applause broke out. She was the subject of hugs, kisses and congratulations. Even her husband, who was one of the helpers on the day, was the subject of warm best wishes.

That husband is pleased to tell you that his wife, Patricia, was the 'First Woman' and won the diamond ring at the auction. She was then, and still is, thrilled to bits with the purchase. She says it will perfectly match her wedding ring back in Ireland. The husband is still receiving unsolicited tenderness and gratitude from his wife !!!! Some fellas have all the luck.

Sheila, too, achieved tremendous success with the news that her fund-raising on this occasion alone realised more than NZ$20,000. Well done, Sheila.

New Zealand, or as the Maoris called it, Land of the Long White Cloud, is a beautiful clean country. It's population is 4.25 million compared with 4.4 million in the Republic of Ireland. But the land mass is twice as large and the climate in Summer (right now) is warmer than in Ireland. Trish says: much warmer.

New Zealanders are affectionately known as Kiwis. The word Kiwi is derived from the name of a small bird which is native to New Zealand and is now an endangered species, although protective measures have been put in place. A picture of this flightless bird, some of you will recall, featured on the lid of a steel polish box which contained, of course, Kiwi shoe polish. The bird itself is about the size of a chicken. But the word also gives its name to the hairy-skinned green fruit with which you all will be familiar.

One day when driving on the North Island we came to a little village outside the town of Russell. To our surprise, a huge roadside sign read: "Cead Mile Failte''. The same words were contained in the villages's coat of arms. Many cities have streets called after Dublin and in Wanganui, there is even a Dublin Street Bridge. There is a town called Shannon north of Wanganui.

We, of course, watched, the rugby matches between Ireland and Munster with the All Blacks in Sheila and Tom's house on the slopes of Mount Hobson. Ireland disappointed but Munster did not. We were both proud to have Munster blood running in our veins. As you all know, Munster came within three minutes and, if memory does not deceive me, two points of winning that game.

For most of the month of November we travelled around the North Island, including a visit to Waiheke Island, off the coast of Auckland where Sheila and Tom have a cliff-side holiday home. With the loan of Tom's van, and the purchase of an inflatable double mattress, and our sleeping bags from the mountains in South America, we travelled around most of the top half of the country. Eventualy, it was time to head down south and after staying a night each with two couples, friends of Sheila and Tom's, it was time to visit Trish's cousin, Sarah (Sadie) her husband Tom O'Brien and their children, Jodie and Eoin.

We easily found their home on the shores of Brown Bay, about 24 kms (16 miles) outside down-town Wellington, and sat down to a beautifully prepared barbecue and copious quantities of refreshment. It was a Friday evening, the end of the week, and all was well with the world. Trish was delighted to be re-united with her cousin. It had been over thirty years since they last met. But you would never have guessed it from the warmth of the greeting and the conversations that followed. It was as if they were only resuming a conversation they had to cut short yesterday. Tom and Tony, both Munster men, got on like old friends.

After three beautiful days with the O'Briens, it was time to be on our way. The South Island beckoned. It involved booking ourselves and the van on the four hour ferry from Wellington on the North Island to Picton on the South Island.

What a beautiful journey, as our ship wound its way through the calm sea waters and picturesque coastline to our destination, Trish all the time showing me her ring !

More to follow........................SOON