The weekend with pure hedonism

Hi,

What an amazing weekend.  It's hard to come back to the reality of the working week after a weekend like that.

Friday night we got a lift home from work by Ange and then we got ready for our weekend.

Saturday morning we were up early.  I got ready for my bike ride with Revolve to the Wairarapa.  I rode down to the station and waited for the others to arrive.  It was the first time I had been on the train to the Wairarapa and it was lovely.  Great views.  Easy.  $15 return for the day.

The route

At Masterton station, after the safety briefing.  I'm the one in the fluoro jacket!

Riding along - you can see my back on the left here.  Honest!  You can!

I absolutely loved it.  It was 59km and 17 women.  Such a lot of fun.  So well organised.  I can't wait to get out to another event run by them.  We met at Entice cafe in Masterton after a few hours (it didn't take us as long as we thought to finish the ride) and met Mike there.  Chatted away for a bit before Mike and I headed off to Wharekauhau.

What a place that was.  We should have gone straight there after the ride.  The place is amazing.  I have never been in such luxury.  Mike and I wandered around, completely in awe how the other half lives.  I took a few photos because I can't see myself staying anywhere like this again soon.

All ours - for tonight!

We had a bath before dinner.  Just because.  Well, I needed one after the ride anyway.  The bath was a massive one - the two of us fitted in easily.  There would be no pinning Mike in the bath for serious relationship discussions in that bath.  Our bath at home means we kinda wedge ourselves in.  Hahahah.  This one definitely lets you luxuriate in the space of it all.

Awesome bathroom!

The dinner was wonderful.  Canapes beforehand in the lounge and chatting amicably over drinks and then into the dining area for scrumptious food.  Mike had matched wine to each course.  Yep - lovely.  Braised pork belly.  Minestrone.  Sliced beef.  Orange sorbet.  Apple pudding.  Yep - all rather nice.  Except, perhaps, for the liver.  But I ate it with the other things and tried to imagine it as pate.  The food was all really tasty.  It lasted until 11pm.  Well worth lingering over, believe me.

Back to the rooms and had some cheese with Aidan, Janne, Sally and Andrew in the middle room (we all had adjoining rooms - ours one end, Sally and Andrew's the other, and Aidan and Janne in the middle) before collapsing into bed.  Well, I did wander around in my pyjamas for a while, enjoying the couch and fireplace.  What a heavenly bed too.  Mike had a coffee for dessert and stared at the ceiling until 2am!  I was out like a light.  Maybe he should have also cycled today and the coffee wouldn't have kept him awake.

The feet looking incredible in front of the fire

Up early to have another bath.  Why not?  The view from the bath was stunning.  Right out along the south coast.

We had breakfast (yes, lovely - I had poached eggs, bacon, mushrooms and potato, and lots of fresh sourdough bread and a lovely pot of Rooibos tea) and then played pool while others checked out.  I only just managed to beat Janne but Andrew easily beat me (and then he beat me and Janne!).

Off to Martinborough for lunch.  I convinced our car to take a detour to drive along the beach road - it wasn't hard.  Mike and Andrew were keen to take a look too.  No wind at all.  You might recognise the photos from a bike ride I did with Aidan in March.  We had the most perfect day then too - no wind then either.  Mind you, we had lovely sunshine back then.  It was a little overcast and the sun lacked the warmth that March offered.  But I heard from Leonie (the organiser of the Revolve bike ride on Saturday) that she tried to get down there one time on her bike and it was so windy another cyclist walking her bike had the wind pick up her bike and flap it around!  So they canned the trip down there - sensibly.  This coast must cop a huge lashing from wind.  The trees are all bent over out of shape.  If you were there on the wrong day, you'd know all about it.

Ocean Beach road

It is beautiful along that south coast

Into Martinborough to have lunch.  The Village Cafe (is that its name?) had the best iced coffee.  I might have to put that ahead of Joe's Garage.

Iced coffee at Village cafe in Martinborough and a photo bomb

Sally collapsed into giggles at her brother doing a photo bomb behind my iced coffee pose.  She is so cute!

Great food.  Yes, that is tomato, avocado and grilled haloumi.  Mmmmmmm...

A little wine tasting and then we reluctantly left to head home.  Dropped Sally and Andrew off and admired their garden (their gardeners have been around and the rose garden has had some attention!).  Then home to do the ironing.  Ooooohhh.  Work.  Reality bites.  And hard.

My ride in this morning was wet.  Mike is riding home with me tonight.  Up Ngaio Gorge!  Yeah - the long way (ish).

Have a wonderful week.

Love,
Angela