Home on the farm

Jo-Ann in an olive orchard
near our farm stay.

Teaching Year 4 in 2008 Jo-Ann met Taylor and her lovely family who were originally from Nelson in NZ.  At the time Taylor's mum Sarah invited us to come and stay with them if we decided to go to NZ.  We decided to take the family up on there kind offer when we finally got to go on this trip.


To our delight the family lives on a property which they share with Sarah's mum and dad who helped build their house and the adjoining art studio. Sarah produces her unique art of doll making and country craft in the studio and at the rear in a small flat where we stayed.

Got our teapot!

The flat itself was not finished and we had to share the house bathroom, but this just added to the experience making us feel very much at home.  From this base we made day visits to nearby Nelson and to Mapau a little village at the mouth of an estuary.  

Nelson was a wonderful regional town which on the day we visited was holding its market day in the car park behind the shop fronts of the main street.  What a feast of sight and sound this was with all manner of the usual market fair mixed in with some unusual and unique art works and crafts.

Some of Sarah's art.

Mapau is the place to go to get great 
fish and chips or a more exotic seafood dish if you prefer.  But it also has a couple of very nice home wares
shops selling  high end products.  We bought a lovely teapot but could have bought much more.


Thank you to Sarah and her family for welcoming us into her home and making us feel so welcome.