Just a winter's day on the beach...

Our first weekend in the new place.  Saturday was a bit soggy and we spent the day going around the Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT), and picking up a 'loaner' sofa from Martin (friend of a friend who we've mentioned before) so now not only do we have a place to eat our dinner, but we even have a place to lounge on afterwards.

Today however, it was blue skies and warm breezes.  After breakfast we walked around the corner to a little 'hidden' beach under the cliffs - Ladies' Bay.  By pure fluke we coincided with low tide and were able to explore right around to Gentlemen's Bay around the corner and on to which ever bays came next (need to find a 'real' map of the place, but the equivalent of the OS maps doesn't seem to exist out here).  We'd only popped out as something to do to keep the kids amused while we woke up and thought up a real plan for the day, but ended up spending the entire morning exploring caves, rock pools, shells, sand, drift wood and scaring off one lonely nudist (he beat a hasty retreat when he saw us coming).  The rocks around there are a very soft sandstone, so some of the erosion patterns are really interesting, especially in the low winter's sun, some photos of all that here (although not the nudist!).

Anyway - we're still slightly in awe of living right in the midst of a major city, and yet finding ourselves able to walk out the door and be on such amazing beaches in about a minute.