Marlborough Winery Day

We visited 4 local wineries today. The Marlborough Region is world famous for it’s Sauvignon Blanc & Pinot Wines. At the first stop, we sampled 6 wines from Hunter’s family winery. We taxied to StBaca lagi
Drive to Marahau

We rented a car in Blenheim and drove, through the mountains, on the left side of the road, to Marahau, which is the gateway to Abel Tasman Park. The drive was beautiful, but a bit stressful as weBaca lagi
Sunday Market, Split Apple Rock

Today, we drove a half hour back towards Nelson to get some groceries & go to the Motueka Sunday Market. The blueberries at the market were especially good. After getting more groceries, we drove backBaca lagi
Abel Tasman - Onetahuti to Awaroa

This morning we walked to the Water Taxi depot where we climbed into the water taxi which was on a trailer. A tractor pulled us to the boat launch. It was raining pretty hard. The tide was low so heBaca lagi
Abel Tasman - Torrent Bay to Bark Bay

Today, we took the water taxi to Torrent Bay Beach & walked along the 7.5 km trail to Bark Bay Beach. It was a little more challenging terrain, but not a great deal. Abel Tasman trails are consideredBaca lagi
Marahau to Blueridge Ferry to Wellington

We woke up early this morning to drive back through the mountains to Picton to meet the ferry to take us, as foot passengers, to Wellington, on the North Island. We leave behind Pete, our wonderfulBaca lagi
Wellington Cable Car - Botanic Gardens

Today, we rode the 5 minute cable car up to the beginning of Wellington’s Botanic Gardens. We walked down to Lambton Quay and Cuba Street in downtown Wellington. We noticed many students on theBaca lagi
Te Papa Tongarewa Museum - Wellington

We waited out the rain this morning, then walked to the National Museum of New Zealand, the Te Papa Museum. We saw exhibits entitled Gallipoli : The Scale of Our War, Nature, Blood, Earth, Fire,Baca lagi
Wellington to Taihape

This morning, we rented a small, Nissan, SUV & drove to Taihape, which claims to be the “gumboot capital of the world.” The town holds an annual festival in April to celebrate Rural living &Baca lagi
Taihape to Taupo

We left Taihape at 8:30 am & drove two hours to Lake Taupo in the interior of the north island of New Zealand. We passed by some fairly tall mountains with snow on their peaks. We saw Mount Ruapehu,Baca lagi
Taupo to Bethlehem

We left our Airbnb in Taupo at around 9am & drove, north, to Tauranga, where we spent some time walking on the beach, near Mt Manganui. At 2, we made our way to our new “home away from home” in aBaca lagi
Mt Maunganui

This morning, we walked around Mt Maunganui. We took our time & enjoyed the 5km walk. Others were doing the more difficult “summit walk.” They say the view from the summit is spectacular. We’llBaca lagi
Te Puna Quarry, Glow Worm Kayak Tour

This morning, we drove a short distance to Te Puna Quarry Park, which was used as a rock quarry until 1979. In 1993, a group of local volunteers proposed that they could plant native & non nativeBaca lagi
Karangahake Gorge, Katikati, Papamoa

We drove just over an hour to reach Karangahake Gorge. We had planned on hiking one of two trails, which were both blocked off part way along. One trail had a “slip” of a large tree, while theBaca lagi
From Tauranga to Rotorua

This morning, we drove from our VRBO in Tauranga to Rotorua. We drove through a number of gorges, including Gopi Gorge. Rotorua has a population of 77000, which is about half of Tauranga. The road wasBaca lagi
Pasifika, Blue L, Mitai Maori Village

Another day, another scenic hike! But first, we attended the Pasifika Festival on the downtown beachfront of Rotorua, which is the most culturally diverse city in New Zealand. On the outside of theBaca lagi
Kerosene Creek, Redwood Forest

We drove a half hour to Kerosene Creek, where a hot spring & freshwater creek meet. When it isn’t raining, the temperature of the water is a comfortable 36C. There’s a 2m tall waterfall, as wellBaca lagi
Rotorua to Hamilton to Albany

This morning, we set off for our next destination which is Albany, a suburb of Auckland. We stopped in Hamilton to walk around their famous gardens for a couple of hours. As in most places in NewBaca lagi
Brown’s Bay & Long Bay Beach

We took it easy today, & drove to two different beaches close by. It was a little cool & threatened rain, so both beaches, right in Auckland’s city limits, were very quiet. We walked the full lengthBaca lagi
Ferry to Waiheke Island

We got up early this morning & dropped our rental car at the rental car depot at the Auckland Airport & took the SkyDrive bus to their depot in the Central Business District. We then had to walk withBaca lagi
Wineries & Onetangi Beach

This morning, we chatted with an Australian couple, & a couple from the UK. at our accommodation, during our continental breakfast. We made the decision to bus back to the ferry terminal & buy aBaca lagi
Palm Bay Beach, Wild, Ferry

Today, we ate breakfast & checked out of our accommodation on Waiheke Is. We left our backpacks & bused to Palm Beach for a few hours. We swam & soaked up more sun. We made a reservation back at WildBaca lagi
Auckland

We walked around today in the CBD today. We went down to the waterfront to look around, and did some window shopping on Queen Street.
Last Day in New Zealand

Today, we visited the Maritime Museum on the waterfront. New Zealand has a long maritime history which was well documented at this museum. Much of New Zealand’s history is tied to the Pacific ocean.Baca lagi
Pearl Harbor, Honolulu, Waikiki Beach

We were picked up at 6:30 at our hotel to tour the Pearl Harbor site, including the USS Arizona Memorial, & the USS Missouri. Some of the Arizona, which was bombed on Dec 7, 1941, is still visibleBaca lagi
Pengembara
Wow!! Beautiful.
PengembaraI bet the wine was delicious
Pengembara
Yummy! What a delicious-looking charcuterie board!
PengembaraThat sounds like a delicious day. If you have the option to try this fine wines is alcohol 🍷 drinking at day, the right choice 😉 Prost