The picture in the heading above has a special significance for Cindy and me. We both have totally fallen in love with the pohutukawa -- otherwise known down here as the Kiwi Christmas Tree. Here a pohutukawa's lovely red flowers have begun to shed their petals, creating a beautiful red ground cover along the banks of the Tawatahi River. One of the first sights that greeted us when we arrived in Raglan was a long row of these stately trees lining the banks of the river. It helped to cement Raglan in our minds as one of our favorite places in New Zealand.

We found Raglan to be one of the most endearing places we've visited so far in New Zealand. A sort of cross between Venice Beach and small-town Maine, its laid-back charm and beach culture really appealed to us. On any day, you'd find residents skate-boarding down the main street of the town, with visitors and citizens kicking back at the local coffee shop, and kayakers paddling by on their way out to see the pancake rocks on the far side of Whaingaroa Harbor. It's a surfer's paradise, with four separate surf beaches, and a beach-goer's paradise, with beautiful black sand beaches going on seemingly endlessly. We were there for three months, exploring the sights in the immediate area, venturing down to the big city of Hamilton, and on one memorable occasion, heading over to Matamata for a visit to Hobbiton!

This lovely walking bridge links the town center to the playground and sports park. At high tide . . .

. . . the bridge is a great place for a daring leap into the waters below!

There's an enormous amount of waterfront in Raglan. This part of the Tawatahi River is lined with pohutukawa trees, whose green leaves and red flowers provide lovely shade.

The harbor is a great place for kayaking, with intriguing rock formations (called "pancake rocks") and lots of small inlets to explore.

It's a great way to spend a sunny day, and a quick paddle back to town for lunch!

The beaches go on for miles, with grassy dunes lining the shore and providing excellent spots for sunning and picnicking.

Raglan is acclaimed as a surf spot, with multiple surfing venues strung along the coast, such as Ngarunui, with its beach breaks . . .

. . . and Whale Bay, with enormous point breaks where surfers who are good and/or lucky can ride a wave for over a kilometer!

Sunset over the Tawatahi estuary, out on the Tasman Sea. Almost directly west is Canberra.

We loved these cheeky little kingfishers. They'd hang out on telephone lines or tree limbs then dart out over the water for a nice catch!

Bridal Veil Falls plunges 55 meters down a basalt cliff in the Waikato region near Raglan.

Its Maori name -- Waireinga -- means "Dancing Waters". You'd never know it was there if you drove by; it's a deep pocket surrounded by pasture and woods, with the Pakoka River, it's source, whispering quietly through.

The Waikato River, on the other hand, makes its presence known! Seen here from the Hakarimata Track, northeast of Raglan, the mighty Waikato is nearing the end of its 264-mile sojourn from Lake Taupo to the Tasman Sea.

Hamilton is the 4th-largest city in New Zealand; we found it quite beautiful! Hamilton Gardens is by far the most diverse and intriguing botanical garden we've seen in our travels.

This massive garden complex is truly unique.

It comprises (at present) 27 separate gardens in 5 different Collections -- Paradise, Productive, Fantasy, Cultivar, and Landscape.

They're arranged in a sort of wheel-and-hub set up, with different squares having multiple gateways to different gardens.

We delightedly capered from gateway to gateway, garden to garden, captivated by the diversity, creativity, and beauty.

The Surrealist Garden, one of the newest, can really get bizarre . . .

From trippy optical illusions . . .

. . . to bizarre alien plants that move their tentacle-like limbs in disturbing fashion.

One's explorations can lead in all sorts of odd directions. For example, the Modernist garden with Warhol tributes and kitschy objets d'arte leads into . . .

. . . the Chinoiserie, with traditional Chinese gardening techniques.

The Blue Spring, in Putaruru about an hour and a half from Raglan, is a truly enthralling sight.

The water in this stream springs from the Mamaku Plateau, where it takes around 100 years to filter through.

The result is water so pure it produces this extraordinary blue color despite the water being completely clear. The walkway beside the stream allows for a serene and contemplative walk.

The birdlife in New Zealand is truly diverse and intriguing. We've been captivated by the variety of birdcalls, avian behaviors, and plumage of the original inhabitants of the islands. At the Otorohanga Native Bird Park, we had the privilege to witness live kiwis. Although we weren't allowed to photograph them, it was a pleasure to see them in their (artificially created) nocturnal setting.

While at the park, we saw many other feathered friends, like the kea, the endangered mountain parrot endemic to the South Island . . .

The ruru or Morepork (named for its call), a lovely little brown owl found throughout New Zealand and Tasmania . . .

. . . and the delightful kakariki, the red-capped parakeet native to the islands.

The climb up Mount Karioi, not far from Raglan, is daunting (we didn't make it all the way . . . ) but utterly stunning, with sweeping vistas of the west coast of the island.

Arachnocampa luminosa, the New Zealand glowworm, is ubiquitous throughout the islands. It's a "fungus gnat", whose larvae produce bioluminescence. They like dank, dark places, like caves, where their light attracts insects for dining. We went to the Waitomo Caves just south of Raglan. The worms are like a universe of stars in the darkness overhead. Truly awe-inspiring! Unfortunately, we weren't allowed to take pictures, so this is a stock photo. They're almost worth the trip to New Zealand all by themselves!

Morrinsville is a small town just east of Hamilton. It's a lovely little town nestled in the green countryside, home of a booming dairy industry. Other than milk, Morrinsville is know in New Zealand for two things. First, it's the hometown of Jacinda Ardern (who used to work at the Golden Kiwi) . . .

. . . second, it loves its cows. So much that there are statues sprinkled all around the city . . .

. . . 61 of them to be precise, like this one, titled "Rotamoo", and representing the town's Rotary club. We spent an afternoon chasing down a bunch of them! If you want to see them all, go to this site: http://herdofcowsmorrinsville.co.nz/cows/.

Hobbiton

This is actually one of the primary reasons we wanted to come to New Zealand in the first place. When you've read the Tolkien books over 50 times, as one of us has, you become a little obsessed . . . So, while in Raglan, we made the hour and a half drive east to Matamata, where we spent a couple of days while we explored The Shire.

Matamata is another of New Zealand's very charming towns. Up until about 1999, it was primarily famous as horse breeding and training country . . .

. . . but about that time, native son Peter Jackson discovered the Alexander farm, about 6 miles outside of Matamata, and proclaimed it "a slice of ancient England." Construction of The Shire began shortly thereafter.

If you've read the books or seen the movies, you get the immediate feeling you've been transported to Middle Earth.

Bag End and the Party Tree look like Bilbo and Frodo just stepped out for a walk before beginning preparations for their combined 144th birthday!

Work began on the Hobbiton site in 1999. The New Zealand army built a a mile-long road into the site!

The original site was not built to last. The hobbit holes were mostly facades. A lot was torn down after the first 3 movies were produced.

Then, in 2010, Jackson began preparations for the Hobbit movies. At the request of the Alexanders, Jackson agreed to make the construction more permanent.

Hobbiton now consists of 44 hobbit holes, most of which are fronts while the insides are dirt rooms sheathed with plywood. Hobbiton staff maintain the facades, the gardens and grass, and the paths around the property.

The entirety of Hobbiton comprises 14 acres.

The door colors indicate the size of the construction. The hobbit holes were build to 3 different scales: hobbit, dwarf, and human. Blue doors are built to human scale.

Although humans can squeeze into some of the other holes . . .

Guided tours commenced in 2002. In 2012, the Green Dragon Inn was built on the site.

The Green Dragon is a fully functional lodge and restaurant. Hobbit meals are served during evening tours (we partook -- awesome!). The Inn hosts events including weddings.

The Green Dragon definitely gives on a sense of hobbit hominess!

A trip to The Shire is a step through a magic portal to a different, faerie world where magic rings, dwarves, trolls, and elves still dwell. What a delightful, enchanting visit it was!