So it turns out my mother has a first cousin that lives in Havleock North, a beautiful little town in the heart of Hawkes Bay wine country.  Apparently only "my side" of the family calls him Danny, which he hates.  Anyways, we had a super killer time.  We had dinner at a winery down the street from them, and in the morning they stuffed us full of breakfast and gave us a tour of the town. 

Dan's wife Judy was hilarious and a lot of fun to hang out with.  I guess the three bottles of wine we polished off at dinner didn't hurt the jovial vibe.  It was a bit like hanging out with Sharon Osbourne and Jeffrey Tambor.  Hopefully we'll get a chance to see them next time they visit the states!