I feel blessed to have had the opportunity to visit one of the most beautiful countries in the world, New Zealand. From its stunning coastlines and breathtaking landscapes to its movie-making magic, unique wildlife and compelling culture, my experience has left me with a deep desire to return.
I only spent one week in Kiwi country, and two of those days I fell ill with my first ever kidney stone—I am so glad that doctors in New Zealand make house calls…or in this case, hotel calls. Shortly thereafter, I suffered a bout of some sort of bacterial infection in my stomach. Alas, I healed just in time for the return trip home.
My favorite part about visiting New Zealand for the Society of American Travel Writers convention was the day-trip via train from Wellington to the small village of Greytown. It’s about an hour ride northeast of Wellington and has a population just over 2,000.
Yeah, sure there’s lots to see and do in Wellington including the “Lord of the Rings” tour, museums and Gardens, but visiting the small inland town of Greytown was inviting with its small village charm…and it also satisfied my wine and chocolate cravings.
GREYTOWN
After hopping off the train, I headed for downtown. Greytown’s Main Street is lined with Victorian style cottages, boutique shops, historic trees, cafes, quaint hotels and a unique chocolate shop. I can see why it’s been called “the prettiest town” on the North Island.
Visitors should stop by the top heritage attraction in town, the Cobblestones Museum to discover Greytown’s history. Due to time constraints I did not tour the museum. Gotta save time for the wine and chocolates.
SCHOC CHOCOLATES
Not far from the museum sits my favorite place in Greytown… Schoc Chocolates. Step into this small-cottage shop to awaken your senses with smells of not only chocolate, but also saliva-inducing wafts of spices, flowers and mixtures of some 60+ flavors of hand-made chocolates that you could have never imagined…like the popular lime chili chocolate. It has a little kick to it, but it’s delicious. Hot chili flakes and lime are infused into the chocolate.
You will also find flavors like pink peppercorn, lemon and cracked pepper, strawberry and black pepper, sweet basil, geranium flowers, curry, lavender, and coffee with walnuts…just to name a few. And if that’s not enough, they also make chocolates infused with whiskey, rum, brandy, and tequila, along with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wines.
These unique blends of chocolate are the creations of owner Murray Langham, who calls himself a Chocologist. He opened the store in 2002 and has since been devising the tasty chocolate creations from scratch using cocoa beans to make the base chocolate.
Schoc Chocolates is a must-visit for any chocolate lover. You can order online, but you’ll pay about $37.00 (US) dollars for shipping…it’s well worth it.
WINE TASTING
I also visited a wine shop and tasted a variety of New Zealand wines from Chardonnay, Pinot Gris and Riesling to Viognier, Syrah and Pinot Noir. Greytown is a must-stop on the wine trail.
KAHIKATEA GARDENS & FARM
After a delicious sandwich at a local deli I hopped on a bus headed for the Kahikatea Gardens where tour groups can pet and cuddle with the friendly farm animals, tour the gardens with fruit orchards and nut trees, or just relax. The garden and farm boasts native trees that are hundreds of years old. In fact, the farm is named after the 900 year-old Kahikatea tree in the garden.
The gardens are filled with roses, azaleas, camellias (Alabama’s State Flower), walnut, hazel and chestnut trees, and lemon trees. You’ll see so many more flowers like lilies, hydrangeas and Kowhai depending on the season. Chutney and jams are made with the produce from the farm and are available for sale in the small onsite shop.
Visitors can get up close and personal with sheep, alpacas, donkeys and miniature horses. They are cute and hard to resist.
The gardens and tours are only available for groups and are $25 or $20 depending on the size of the group.
Planning a trip to New Zealand? Make sure you visit Greytown along the way. Who couldn’t use a little chocolate, wine and cuddling? And besides that, New Zealand is one of the biggest success stories in controlling the spread of COVID-19. That tells me they have their act together and you can feel safe visiting. Only thing is—they may not want us outsiders coming in to mess things up, at least until we can get a handle on the virus.
Everyday Edith 