A Special Edition...Back in Nelson and YEP, We’re Getting Married!

Sunset at Kat and Jeff's...the first place we called home in NZ

Most of you have probably already heard our very exciting news…yes, we got engaged in Nelson! However, before we go into the proposal story, here’s what we were up to prior to the big event…

We arrived in Nelson and headed to the CBD for a dinner out with the old flatties. It was great, catching up, telling them all about our adventures in the North Island and hearing what they’d been up to since getting hitched themselves. Dinner turned into drinks back at Kat and Jeff’s, the first place John and I ever lived in NZ (besides the shed). We turned in at who knows what time and awoke to a beautiful day and a classic kiwi breaky. Poached eggs on toast with beans in tomato sauce…a job well done chef Jeff.

After breakfast, we headed out for our first adventure of the day, dune buggy riding out in the wop wop’s (boonies). It was a blast, John drove and I held on for dear life as we tore through the tracks. Wish we could’ve taken a video, but here are the before and after shots.

 What else would you do after tearing through the mud and dirt in a dune buggy other than go wine tasting…so we did. Neudorf winery (Kylie, the Sauv Blanc we had at the Boatshed) produces some of the most amazing wines in the Nelson region. Very quaint with a welcoming and relaxing vibe, Jeff and Kat met us out there and we had a bottle of their Pinot Gris in the grassy courtyard among the vines. Olives, Neudorf cheese, fantastic olive oil, bread, biscuits, apples and strawberries, OH MY, just made the experience that much better.

Afterward we weren’t quite ready to pack it in, so we headed to Mapua for some Golden Bear beers. Not a terrible day at all and the best was yet to come. We had a BBQ at Kat and Jeff’s that night with some of their mates and we dined on some of the Scotch Fillet (Ribeye) that was stashed away from the wedding cow. As you all can probably guess, John was ear to ear excited…I took a photo for your enjoyment. We were up until the wee hours of the night (we think) and went to bed with fond memories of good vino, beer and mostly, amazing steak.

Saturday we had plans to meet with some of our mates from Nelson down at Founders Park for some beers. After a leisurely morning and another amazing breakfast (American style) in which Kat and Jeff’s new flatmate commented “I’ve never even seen anything like that”…we were off to Founders. After enjoying some beers, chatting with our friends for one last time and enjoying talking shop with the brewery owner who we became good friends with, it was time to head back to Kat and Jeff’s for our last night in town.

As we left the park, John began to walk off the path toward some Dahlia flowers. Of course, I asked, what are you doing…. “I want to show you something”, he said “let’s pick a flower”. I chose the flower and he was insistent on picking it himself, at which time he got down on one knee told me how much he loved me and asked me to marry him. He tied the flower around my ring finger and of course, I said yes to spend the rest of my life with him.

We spent the rest of the evening celebrating with Kat and Jeff, making sushi and feeling very excited for what the future holds.

Of all the adventures in NZ thus far, our time back in Nelson was by far our favorite. We headed off early the next morning down to the rugged west coast. Can’t wait to share with you the next blog and what we’ve been up to (besides being engaged!!)

Love from NZ,

John and Shannon