Auckland Diwali Festival

Diwali or Deepavali (row of lamps) is an ancient Indian festival that is celebrated throughout India and in Indian communities around the world.  This was the first time we'd been to the Auckland festival, and what a treat it was (even with the weather bomb).

There was a heap of delicious food stalls with gorgeous vegetarian offerings and different Indian sweets.  We had onion bahji (my all time favourite), samosas, pakoras, dahl thingees (whatever they were they were yum!) and some mango laksa to cool the mouth after the heat of the spice.

Rows of food stalls up Queen Street

And OMG The Bling!  
If I had smaller hands my arms would be rattling with the sounds of multiple bangles tinkling away whilst I typed.  Instead my thumb knuckles are slightly sore from trying to push the beautiful sparkly things on to my chunky wrists.  
I wonder if there is a hand and wrist diet I could do??

Aotea Square & the main stage

On the main stage there were singers when we first arrived and then came the fabulous dancers, unfortunately I couldn't get close enough to get a good photo, so this is  'general ambiance' in between squally showers

A Mulitcultural Festival and Crafty Day

Today I had a craft stall at the Buddhas Day Multicultural Festival at the temple in Botany Downs.

My sister convinced me it was a good way to use up some of our fabric squares whilst getting some good karma (all proceeds to the temple).  So off I went with a bag full of squares, needles, scissors, felt and brooch backs.

We made $85 (which wasn't too bad for gold coin donations) whilst teaching loads of people how to make fabric flower brooches (the majority of them kids, which aggravated my child allergies).

A lot of the parents told me how they had had to learn basic sewing at school and they thought it was great we were teaching the kids because they don't learn the basics any more. I wonder why these parents aren't showing them?
 
The day also including eating some gorgeous vegetarian food, making paper fish and my favourite; a Chinese knot dragon fly - I feel a renewed urge to learn macramé :-) 

I also feel like I need a weekend to recover!

Out and About

A couple of weeks ago we popped up to Matakana for a weekend.  It has a pretty good Saturday farmers market and just out of town there is a craft market too.

It's been a few years since I was at Matakana and it's moved from sleepy country village on the way to the beach at Omaha to popping visitor destination.

 St Andrews church by the craft market. Reminded me we live on a Pacific Island

 I'm a sucker for a tree tunnel

Brisk winter walk along the beach at Orewa

Etsy Bloggers Carnival!

Yep possibly the worst team member around, I've finally got around to get into the blog carnival - and I even offered to host one in May - wonder if the organisation of it will do my head in? :-)

So this months blog carnival is this:

The first Public Library (in the US) opened on April 9th, 1833 in New Hampshire
1) What fond memories do you have of your public library and reading?
2) Peterborough is the town where the first library opened. What's your town known for? Show us around!

I thought I do number 2 - and living in between 2 towns and in the middle of nowhere I found it a bit tough - should I talk about Pokeno Sausages and the enormous ice-creams that everyone who travels over the Bombay Hills stops for? 

Or should I talk about Mercer cheese?   

And just up the road is Bombay well known for it's posh restaurant Bracu and Simonvich Olive estate 

Or should I share pictures of cows? (what I see from my windows)

Then I thought I'd do fond memories of my library and found myself 2 hours later still on google maps going up and down the main street of my home town in England on some kind of enormous trip back into my teens! 

And so here we are - in the middle of fab food country!

Mercer cheese has won awards

And pokeno bacon make the bestest sausages for local New Zealand pork

A Taste of Rural New Zealand
As you travel south from Auckland, friendly country villages along State Highway One welcome travellers with tempting food options, local produce and craft stores.
Bombay is home to New Zealand's largest olive estate, producing award-winning olive oil skin care products and an excellent restaurant.
Pokeno is a favourite stop known for its generous servings of icecream, its locally produced bacon and sausages and friendly country village atmosphere.
Mercer, beside the Waikato with its Dutch cheese shop is a 'must do' in any itinerary.

 Enjoy having a click on the links and seeing my part of new Zealand :-)