Oohoo from Timaru

Wow, we never imagined Timaru could turn out to be one of our favourite places. For the past couple of weeks we’ve been house sitting in a very beautiful, comfortable and warm home here in Timaru looking after these cuddly brothers, and we’ll be here until mid September.

Last year we had the opportunity to house sit and travel around New Zealand’s South Island. We thought we had most of the island covered, and wanted to spend a few months this year moving around the North Island. But then out of the blue we were invited to stay in Timaru for 6 weeks, to care for Louis and Marcel and to look after the owners’ lovely home.

We’re so thrilled and grateful to be here, to stay in this wonderful place with the chance to really explore and get to know the area. As we’ve found so many times, the pleasure of traveling slow and house sitting is all about taking our time to find our way around and to “live like a local”.

Smack in the middle of Winter when parts of New Zealand are being battered by snow storms and power outages, here we are in Timaru, enjoying crisp frosty mornings followed by glorious sunshiny days. Though just to break it up a bit we did have a day of snow last week which was a real treat for us, hailing from the sub-tropics.

Our home is a 10 minute walk to town which takes us through parkland and foreshore boardwalks around Caroline Bay, and each morning when we go out in search of coffee we always find new surprises.

Much of the parkland has been reclaimed from the bay and is beautifully designed and landscaped as a place for people.

The spaces are dotted with sculptures, fitness machines, fountains and gardens. As the paths wind their way through children’s play equipment, a skate park and even a bird aviary, we encounter a memorial walkway to reflect on the tragedies of war.

Once we reach the top of the town cliffs the views across Caroline Bay to the snow covered mountains just take our breath away. Our iPhone cameras can’t take in the sights as well as our eyes which is a shame, but we will always remember these views.

Many great coastal walks take us to beautiful places, like around the bay to other beaches.

The owners of our house sit home have excellent taste and their home is beautifully decorated with really interesting and quirky touches.

One great thing that house sitting provides is the use of the kitchen, and this home is very well provisioned. Self-catering while traveling is very important to us, being able to buy our food locally and cook great meals means we feel healthy, connected and very much at-home.  So, last week Dave requested steak & kidney pie!