For the past few days, every time I put a location into Google maps, I’d get this warning…

And if you are unfortunate, you’ll get this warning…

This example was for a trip from Gisborne to Napier – the one we took just before the storm hit. Gabrielle has passed. Gisborne is still completely isolated so it is an extreme case, but the flood waters are still causing problems all over. Yesterday our path was blocked when a road was closed due to flooding, even though Google thought it was still open. Fortunately a friendly local told us to follow her, and led us to one of the bridges that was still open. When you see the rivers, you understand why it is a problem.

And today we had more rain. Not like earlier in the week, but still. Fortunately Martinborough is in wine country, so we did what one does in wine country, even if it isn’t raining.

As always, there is lots of interesting vegetation, though this one isn’t native to New Zealand. This is a Cork Oak tree, and this picture is a closeup of the bark.

We also spent some time wandering around Martinborough, which is a pretty little town built around a square that is reminiscent of Sonoma.

And after a couple of wine tastings, it’s time to relax, since we’ve had more than enough excitement over the past few days. Tomorrow we are off to Wellington for the final stretch of our visit.