Category: A Tale of Two Countries
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New Zealand Reflections
We began our journey in Australia, the oldest subcontinent on Earth, so distant from evolution elsewhere that its only native non-human mammals are marsupials. The aboriginal people have been there for over 30,000 years. New Zealand is young (and still growing with every earthquake). It’s landscape can be starkly beautiful,…
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Return to Auckland and Home
There was a strong wind blowing into the Paihia harbor yesterday morning but we were able to sit at our usual table for a breakfast of fried eggs for Dawn and probably my last Bennie (eggs benedict). The wind was blowing so hard that the restaurant to the left was…
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Dolphins
When we arrived in Paihia, we knew we were in a place that liked dolpins because this is the wooden sculpture in the center of the town: The weather report for the next day predicted rain in the morning, so we called the sailboat tour operator to make sure that…
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Reflections on the Drive to Paihia
As we left Auckland with the end of our adventure in sight, Dawn asked the question “What was your favorite part of our trip?” We mentally began to relive the last two months and compared notes on what stood out in our memories. Rather than events, what really came up…
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Auckland
The end of our grand adventure is coming into sight. We will fly to LA from Auckland next week. Auckland is the home of one third of the people in NZ, over 1.6 million. It has the largest Polynesian population in the world. Like most places in NZ, it is…
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Rotorua At Thanksgiving
We added our next destination to our schedule because our daughter said it was the best place to have a Maori experience. We have been lots of places with tourist attractions promising a Maori experience, but the one in Rotorua, the Tamaki Maori Village, was the first and is still…
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Napier -Art Deco
When we were planning this adventure, we told the travel agent we had no interest in wine tours. Other than being halfway to Rotorua, when we arrived in Napier in the Hawke’s Bay wine region, we were not sure why the travel agent sent us here because the only activity…
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Wellington
Wellington is on the southwest shore of Wellington harbor, a huge body of water at the south end of the south island surrounded by hills over 900 feet high on all sides. It’s water has excellent depths. The harbor’s entrance is almost one mile wide, making it the perfect escape…
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The Interislander
This was our last day in the south island. We left Nelson early to allow us time to enjoy the scenic route to Picton. We could have retraced our journey down Highways 6 and 1 through wine country, a distance of about 60 miles from Havelock to Picton. Although the…
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Nelson
We had not planned to begin the three and a half hour drive to Nelson at 2:30pm but that is when the Whale Watch buses discharged us at the parking lot. We did not regret changing our plans to make the attempt at a great sperm whale encounter. Dawn got…
Ginger Without Borders 