Not sure if you remember but one of our multiple flight changes from United was the cancellation of our flight from Auckland. Not a reschedule,…
After a couple of months in beautiful New Zealand, there are a few things we learned and would like to share with everyone. In short,…
Left Napier early morning for our 5+hr drive back to Auckland. The route takes us on many of the same roads we have traveled during…
No trip would be complete without first trying some of the local wines. Hawke’s Bay is a fairly well known as it is the second…
Just under 2hrs drive from Napier is Great Lake Taupo. We’re heading there today to see the ancient Maori carvings and maybe enjoy a little…
Originating in Paris just before WW1, Art Deco style was an attempt to visually enhance the appearance of objects through the use of symmetrical, geometric…
On 03 February 1931, Napier was hit by a devastating earthquake measuring 7.8 on the Richter scale and lasting for 2 ½ minutes. Most of…
So we drove for another hour or so from Lake Rotorua to get to Waitomo and the famous glow worm caves. This is a major…
After driving here for more than a month, I’ve come to realize that there are a few things drivers should know before committing to being…
Ended our time in Ahipara and bid goodbye to Helen and a wonderful home. We really enjoyed our time here and the views were magnificent,…
The Cape Reinga lighthouse is our destination today, and while on the way, we hope to find 90 Mile Beach. The lighthouse is what we…
Arrived in Auckland after our 10hr flight from Bangkok. Uneventful but I will say, Thai Airways is a very nice airline. The staff is attentive,…
Up early to make our 6:30am flight on Jetstar airlines to Auckland. Nice airline, similar to Southwest or Frontier offering discounted flights and pay-for-everything service….
Apparently, while driving to Akaroa I was a little on the fast side. Today, 16 Apr 2017 I received an “infringement” notice from the rental…
Ingrid, the lady who we rented a home from in Nelson, said we should try to visit Akaroa once we reach Christchurch. It’s only about…
On February 22, 2011 at 12:15pm, an earthquake measuring 6.3 on the Richter scale, struck Christchurch. The center was 10km (6 miles) outside of town…
Had another good breakfast with Allan and Keri and said goodbye to our digs in Oamaru. The drive to Christchurch should take us about 2hrs…
Finally caught a fish in New Zealand and wouldn’t you know it, it started raining! Took the long way home….. Fun graffiti on the restroom…
Had a good breakfast with Allan and Keri and had an interesting conversation about “Obamacare”, my favorite subject. Usual fare, toast, bacon, yogurt, and Allan’s…
One of Collette’s finds in Oamaru area were the Moeraki Boulders. These unusual rocks are round, like giant marbles, with some type of crystal/mineral deposit…
What the hell is Steampunk? Well, from what we can tell, it is art and design that combines things totally unrelated into a statement. What…
Made it back from the Sound, as we Kiwi’s call it, and headed for Oamaru, our next stop on the NZCWT (New Zealand Country Wide…
We booked an overnight fjord trip on the Southern Secret to cruise through Doubtful Sound. The boat is smaller than your typical luxury liners, Ed…
Sorry for not posting more about our trip. Hotel internet service is in the dark ages, unbelievably slow and downloading one picture takes almost 20…
As we said earlier, the countryside is a mix of mountains and rolling hills with a few crops, mostly stock feed, and some animals. The…
Finished up our time in Queenstown now off to Te Anau (pronounced, “Tay Aanoe”) and a day trip to Bluff. Te Anau was chosen because…
Although Queenstown wasn’t on our original itinerary, once here, there were tons of things to do. But first, find an ATM! Queenstown is a college…
Back in the day Arrowtown was a little more than a hunting ground for local tribes. That all changed when in 1862 that precious little…
Looks like yea ole blog is going to have to wait a bit. Seems our faithful computer is on the down and out and won’t…
Just a quick video of our Shotover Jetboat ride. Amazing rush to say the least. Check out the short video. I’ll send an email out…
I know what you’re thinking, me too. Why do you have to wait so long for wineries to open? 11am can seem like all day…
Made it to our apartment in Queenstown, finally. Raining a little so we decided to hang out, play games (dice, cards, stretch) and have a…
One of the dangers of having an internet savvy wife is the risk of her finding something like the Wild Foods Festival, and buying tickets….
In Maori the words mean, “to take / carry joy”, that is unless they are said as one word, Harihari which means, “ambulance”. Not sure…
Not sure how but I forgot one of our stops on the way to Franz Josef, the Pancake Rocks. This geological oddity is just up…
Beautiful day today so we decided to hike up to the glacier’s edge. Not too many people and the hike was really easy, along a…
Pretty easy drive even though it took the better of 6hrs. Roads here, yes it’s the roads again, are deceiving. Because of all the curves,…
Finally! The wine country!!!! Rained today so we thought that would be a good time to have a few drinks and drive on these NZ…
So, everyone here said, “You must go to Abel Tasman Park. It’s beautiful!”. So, why not. Packed some sandwiches, drinks and jumped into the Kiwimobile……off…
Sunday morning and just about on NZ time. Good evenings rest so we decided to take a drive to Mapau (pronounced, “Ma-Poe”) and see what…
It’s Saturday and off to the Farmer’s Market. After one of Collette’s famous breakfasts, drove down to the city center for a stroll and maybe…
Well, in spite of all the attempts by United Airlines to make this trip memorable in the wrong ways, we arrived in New Zealand and…
So after about 8 months of planning, changing the plan, replanning, changing the replan, we’re finally close to getting on with our adventure. New Zealand…
So after many months of researching homes, flights, tours, transportation, etc. we’re finally ready to move on to the pre-packing stage. Seems like this process…