From Southern Hemisphere to Northern

We (my husband and I) have been back home for almost two weeks. Today for the first time, when I surfaced from sleep, I wasn't surprised to see snow outside my window instead of this:

I took the photo at our daughter's home on the North Island of New Zealand, where we stayed from the end of October (no Halloween!!!), all of November and most of December. Over the next few posts I'll be sharing some of my experiences in that breathtakingly beautiful part of the world.

Our daughter and her family live 'off the grid', on a windy road, almost at the crest of a hill. Every morning when I stepped out of our studio 'apartment', I looked down over the valley and across to the waters of the Bay of Plenty. It was quite something, living at bird level, and the skies too with their drifting clouds made for wonderful observation possibilities.

So I'll share some stories about what it's like to live off the grid. In the photo above you can see the solar panels which provide hot water. The electricity comes from another set on the roof of the main cottage.