Sacred Heart ( for Valentine's Day!)

What a delightful day, 25c and a gentle breeze. A Valentine's card was waiting for me on the doorstep, how did that happen! We went to Liga Bay for a swim which was glorious, lingered and dried a bit and then went on to Tata beach for another! By this time it was lunchtime and we came back to Pohara where I had an excellent salad and garlic bread and Himself had a mighty burger plus some amazing chips! We hung our togs up to dry and went in to Takaka, mainly to look at purchasing a new wedding ring for Himself. Today seemed appropriate. We liked the look of some rather gorgeous gold and silver amalamated rings but none were the right size. However the jeweller himself is in town tomorrow so we might consult him. I then went to check out the tattooist for I am sort of hankering after one. The tattooist is a tiny, well inked Frenchwoman, the only snag being you can't swim for 10 days afterwards. That won't work! I could go for the last day here but it might be uncomfortable on an already challenging journey. To be considered. We then had fresh fruit ice creams from the Wholefood Café, it took ages as each is made individually but we're scrumptious.
I had boysenberry, blackcurrant and mint, and himself had mango, ginger and turmeric!
What is very noticeable here is what a fantastic place it is to bring up children but it's also pretty good for oldies! The elders all look madly fit and are to be seen cycling, swimming, walking, kayaking, walking their dogs, drinking coffee and generally living life to the max.
We also took in a bit of culture and visited the art gallery and museum, and, spurred on my my book from the library, Nelson's Historic Country Churches ( who could resist) I went into a couple. This is the Catholic church dedicated to the Sacred Heart ( spotted within). It was built in 1868 and cost £200 . It was extended I918 and clad in marble. Sadly we couldn't go In but I much admired the mighty palm tree next to it.