Matakana

Fortified with dawn’s early Korean fried chicken after our Eta Aquarids viewing, we took advantage of being in the area to visit the well-known Matakana Market.

We parked at the entrance to the village, overlooking a pretty little park, which was crowned with these impressive public toilets. The north of New Zealand seems to have kind of a thing for its toilets.

The market really is cute, although I didn’t really get good pictures. We ended up buying more vegetables than we needed. Not because the prices were so good, but because everyone there was actually an extra from the Lord of the Rings movies. Well not actually but OMG… they could have been. We couldn’t bear to leave. The wizened little hobbit man selling apples. Elf honey girl. A knife sharpener with a long beard and a leather apron daydreaming of the day when his people will recover the Arkenstone from Smaug.