Articles from this Category
11 April 2009
Getting to Kangaroo Island The time difference (Auckland vs Adelaide) worked in our favour when it came to waking up early for our 0620 pickup. We were collected by bus for the drive to Cape Jervis, a journey of nearly 2h, where we would connect to the ferry to Kangaroo Island, the self-proclaimed Galapagos of […]
10 April 2009
Upon arrival, we hopped on to the public bus to the city but didn’t have small notes. The kind driver wanted to conserve his change so gave the both of us free rides. This is the way New Zealand used to be!!! I love it!!! We stayed at the Mercure Grosvernor in the city centre, […]
28 February 2009
Above: This copy of the Cardona hotel in Auckland didn’t conceal a garden behind. Today is officially the last day of summer. Tomorrow it will be autumn, and Marie will hop on the plane home after a two month visit. Who knows where and when we will meet again! We commiserated the twin-event at the […]
22 February 2009
We had breakfast where Jo and the Navy Band was playing, then headed out to Mission Estate, a winery that is often the venue for summer concerts by famous stars. Lionel Richie was coming to sing in a week. But as it turned out a week from today, it became the venue’s first ever cancellation due […]
21 February 2009
We flew down to the Art Deco Weekend in Napier today. Napier is the (self-proclaimed?) Art Deco capital of the world because it was rebuilt in the style of that era after being levelled by an earthquake 1931. Like Nelson, it has known for good weather and a seaside setting. Oh, I want to move here […]
7 February 2009
We did a circuit around the region today, heading north to Arrowtown, Cardrona and Wanaka. Arrowtown is an old mining town that has been kept in the style of the period … to the extent possible I guess. It was home to the first Chinese in New Zealand who came to work in the gold […]
6 February 2009
My Boeing 737 plane to Queenstown taxied towards the runway … being seated at the last row, I saw that a cabin crew member was standing outside the open loo. Rather strange at this late stage of the taxi. As it turned out, she was helping her chundering colleague. The plane turned back to the […]
25 January 2009
After a leisurely wake-up and breakfast, we headed out west to Pupu springs … reputedly to have the clearest water in the world! The clarity is explained by the filtration through layers of rock. Quite an irony considering its name, but officially its name is Te Waikoropupū Springs. This was followed by some swimming at Kaiteriteri […]
24 January 2009
Nelson is the Sunshine capital of New Zealand, recording the highest sunshine hours per year. Well, that’s arguable as nearby Blenheim hotly contest that title. After lunch and a nap, Marie and I walked on the long and broad Tahunanui Beach near the airport. Gorgeous … makes me want to move here. We collected Kim […]
17 November 2008
I was pleased to see the back of Aden and its humidity … give me the cool dry highland … I love Sana’a at 7000 ft. On the road from Aden back to Sana’a it was interesting to see how men should pee in Yemen. Well, I had known this before but had somehow forgotten. The […]