Author archive
3 September 2011
The heart of Christchurch is one of few places in New Zealand that looks old … this is a fairly young country compared to, say, Europe. The city centre had a good collection of buildings that made New Zealand look like it had some architectural history. Unfortunately a lot of this was destroyed in the […]
3 September 2011
The TranzAlpine rail journey from Christchurch to Greymouth is regarded as one of the world’s great train journeys because of its scenic beauty. Having lived in Christchurch as a student and not done the trip, I thought it would be fitting to do it and see some friends in Christchurch as well. After all, it […]
24 August 2011
We lose a day flying home due to the international dateline and landed at 0530 on 24 August 2011. It has been a wonderful three months for me, in the most uncanny mix of destinations. As I add up the bills, I realise that the total cost of fares, accommodation and food will come to less […]
22 August 2011
The long journey It’s a big day today as we embark on our long journey home. We travel from Isla Mujeres (by boat) to Cancun to take our 1210 Continental Airlines flight to Houston then Los Angeles, then finally to Auckland. That’s about 24h from the first flight to the last. Connection hassles Arriving at […]
21 August 2011
Above: Colour of the water looks good but it wasn’t a good day. We had planned on doing two dives today with Seahawk Divers. But as a sweetener for our failed sighting of whale-sharks yesterday, they offered either a repeat excursion or a complimentary dive. When we turned up in the morning, the weather was still […]
20 August 2011
Above: Not a very successful day. Swimming or snorkelling with the whale-sharks is one of the most highly-rated adventures in Isla Mujeres. We reported at 0800 to Sea Hawk dive centre and as soon as they had a confirmed location for the sharks (by radio from a spotter craft), we set off. It was a 40km […]
19 August 2011
Having had a good run with the ADO buses in Mexico, we were rather surprised that our final ride, from Merida to Cancun was 2 hours later than the scheduled time of 0925. The bus had originated in Mexico City some 24 hours ago and it must have had various delays along the way. We […]
18 August 2011
Many travellers try to do everything themselves. I take a balanced approach … today’s excursion to Chichen Itza cost MXP350 (NZD35) which sounds expensive. It would have cost MXP240 do it by public transport. The difference is easily justified by the inclusions (eg. big buffet lunch, good guide, transport to a swimming hole) and of […]
17 August 2011
We arrived in Merida late yesterday afternoon after an all-day bus ride from Villahermosa, departing at 0750 and getting here at 1625. There isn’t actually that much to see in Merida itself but the atmosphere is lovely. We devoted the day to relaxing and absorbing the ambience. We took a peek at the cathedral and […]
15 August 2011
Villahermosa isn’t a touristy place but more of an oil city. It is quite nice to be in a place where locals are being themselves … actually none of our previous cities are dominated by tourism, but this is even less touristy. Because it is less touristy, we had trouble changing money at the bank. They […]