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Australia & New Zealand
  • Nitamarie and Brian Azman
  • Nitamarie and Brian Azman

Australia & New Zealand

Our Dream Bucket List Trip Meer informatie
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  • Het begin van de reis
    16 oktober 2023
  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    No room in the bathroom for toiletries....pull in the ironing board!!!1Anniversary gift from our hotel!22

    Bondi Beach

    19 oktober 2023, Australië ⋅ ⛅ 63 °F

    We spent today touring by Hop-On-Hop-Off bus. Still managed 5 miles of walking. We played in the sand and water of Bondi Beach. Had drinks and lunch at a rooftop bar. Finished up with meeting the rest of our small group and dinner of Spatchcock and King Prawns. Now enjoying a paddle of beers at the Sydney Brewery, which is located in our hotel. When we arrived back in our room, the hotel had placed bubbles and chocolate with a note saying Happy Anniversary!!! Very nice.Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    Kangaroo Skewers!Opera House from the Harbor Bridge2Aussie tour group, getting ready to explore The RocksPURPLE STEPS!

    Sydney Opera House and The Rocks

    20 oktober 2023, Australië ⋅ 🌙 68 °F

    We took a private tour of the Sydney Opera House. It was so cool. There are 6 individual performance venues under those roofs. The entire roof of the shells are individual tiles!

    After that, we toured the area near the Opera House, Called "The Rocks." Lots of history there. It was the first settled area and populated by prisoners brought over by boat. It is called The Rocks as the entire area is limestone, and it had to be carved out.

    From there, we walked across the harbor bridge and got some more great views.

    We ate Kangaroo for lunch and Barramundi fish for dinner!    Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    Joey in the pouch!Kookaburra Bird!Sarus CraneSouthern Cassowary

    Native Animal Refuge

    21 oktober 2023, Australië ⋅ ☀️ 72 °F

    Part 1: Morning. What a day! Started with a trip to Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park. A small native animal refuge. Lots of interacting with the animals!!! We got to pet and feed koalas, kangaroos, wombats, goats, birds, ... we were giant kids!!!Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    Bug SliderBeef CheeksCuttlefish StripsMet some new mates drinking local beers!!

    Harry's pies on wheels.

    21 oktober 2023, Australië ⋅ 🌬 75 °F

    Part 2: FOOD. We went out of our way to get a traditional Aussie Meat Pie. Tiger Pie-beef pie topped with potato mash, pea mash and gravy!!! YUMMM. Then, another location for Bug Sliders, Cuttle Fish strips, Beef Cheeks, and Aussie Wine. So good. Brian wandered into craft brewery territory and hung out with the locals for the afternoon.Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    Nitamarie with our resident Marine BiologistNitamarie, Peggy, Debbie and Brian on the catamaran. Our tour leader, Sandy, taking the picDressed in our diving suits. Suits were mostly for sun protection.1

    Great Barrier Reef

    23 oktober 2023, Australië ⋅ ☀️ 75 °F

    OMG!!! SO COOL! We took a catamaran out to two different points on the reef. Both were so amazing. I was surrounded by schools of small fish as well as a school of giant Humpnose Parrotfish. I saw sea cucumbers, starfish, living coral... and I found Nemo as well as his relatives!. I was the last one out of the water and spent a total of 3 hours snorkeling. We took a submersible to look at the reef. But it was better to just be in the water!. We topped off the day with dinner on the water. I ordered the Yabbies! Yummy, and ate amazing FRESH calamari and more kangaroo.

    Tomorrow is the rainforest!    Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    Welcoming CeremonyWedding Rocks! Couple would get married here, then spend the night.

    Mossman Gorge

    24 oktober 2023, Australië ⋅ ☀️ 82 °F

    We headed out to the rainforest today. We had a wonderful walking tour with a native tour guide. He performed a paper bark burning ritual to welcome us to the forest. We identified native plants and their uses. Visited the wedding rocks. And had waddleseed tea and a scone-type muffin called Damper. Very interesting!Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
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    Wildlife Habitat in Port Douglas.

    24 oktober 2023, Australië ⋅ ☀️ 82 °F

    Apparently, Nitamarie is very appealing to the birds of Australia! The animals , especially the birds, are very friendly. One of the black cockatoos decided she was his bestie! He settled on her shoulder and they walked around together for a while. Then we got to hold a koala for a minute for a photo.

    From there, we entered another section where she was adopted by another beautiful bird. This one claimed her with his mating dance!!! He bit Brian for getting too close! The kangaroos here were a lot more outgoing than our first refuge. It was a short, but enjoyable trip with the animals!    Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    1Maori guideThe distant peaks resemble the knuckles off a fist, and are a reminder to home to the Maori1Brian holding the ceremonial stoneOur NZ tour group!

    Auckland New Zealand

    26 oktober 2023, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ 🌬 68 °F

    We got to our hotel in Auckland around 2 am this morning! (That will be our longest travel day until we come home.) It is overcast and windy.

    We had an amazing walk about with an elder from the indigenous people here in Auckland, the Maori. He did a traditional welcome, taught us some native language, and explained their beliefs and traditions. It was really amazing. Very inspiring.

    We then visited the ANZAC war monument.

    Dinner at Neptune's on the water. There was quite a build-up to this spectacular NZ ice cream...and it was just 'another crappy cup of vanilla'...    Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    Auckland is somewhere in the background!
    Wine TastingWine Tasting group photoDave and Jeannie

    Waiheke Island

    27 oktober 2023, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ 🌧 59 °F

    Today, we took a ferry to Waiheke Island. I think i remember that it is the 3rd biggest island of NZ... it was a pretty rainy, foggy, overcast day. But that did not mean it wasn't beautiful. (It is an expensive place for real estate! ) We visited a very nice vineyard and winery. Tasted a few wines and ate a lovely shared plate of finger foods. Beautiful mosaic work done by the owner as a reminder of his home in Barcelona. From there, we went to Allpress, an olive orchard, olive oil press, and producer. Tasted some great oils and honey.

    After returning to Auckland, we went out with our new friends, Dave and Jeannie, and bar hopped!! Beer for Dave and Brian, wine for Nitamarie, and Coke Zero for Jeannie...(she may never fall asleep!)

    Todays interesting food... White Bait Fritter...

     Tomorrow, we are off to Rotorua...so excited for this! Love to all!    Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    Hamilton Gardens
    Floor is actually flat!Egyptian gardenBrian walking to the door.Brian at the door!1Corrugated steel buildings in Tirau1

    Rotorua day 1

    28 oktober 2023, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F

    We got on a bus and drove from Auckland to Rotorua. Beautiful country. Cows, lamb, horses!! Along the way, we stopped at Hamilton Gardens. A beautiful collection of themed gardens. Everything here is in early spring, so it's very beautiful! The best was the Surrealism Garden...it had moving trees, oversized items, and just fun. The Egyptian Garden was a very close second.

    From there, we stopped at a Kiwi Hatchery. A kiwi is a flightless bird about the size of a chicken. They are nocturnal and close to extinct, so we only got to see the ones being medically checked. The size of egg they lay is crazy big!! Equivalent to a human birthing a 34 pound baby! No thanks!

    Dinner and drinks at the hotel. We are gearing up for tomorrow, when we will watch the New Zealand All Blacks rugby team compete for the World Cup!!! Our tour leader is VERY excited!    Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    All Blacks & Springboks in a scrum
    Unfortunately, NZ was on the losing endGroup watching (note our tour leader, Michael, standing in the back)

    All Blacks Rugby World Cup Finals!!!

    29 oktober 2023, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ⛅ 46 °F

    We were in an Irish Pub at 7:30 am this morning to cheer on the New Zealand Rugby team battle for the World Cup. A very big deal! Our tour leader Michael is plays in a league with one of the national team players!! Unfortunately they lost, but it was fun!!

    The New Zealand tradition is to perform a Haka, a war dance that shows tribal pride and welcome to strangers, before each match.

    After the match, we continued our way to experience the Day in the Life of the Maori people. We will perform our own welcome to our greeters. Wish us luck.    Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    Hangi PitHangi PitLunch served in a traditional basket

    Day in the life of a Ngati Manawa Commu

    29 oktober 2023, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☁️ 59 °F

    After seeing the All Blacks rugby team get defeated (by the referees, of course), we headed about an hour outside of Rotorua to Murupara, home of a landlocked Maori tribe. We were greeted with many prayers and customs.

    We performed our song we practiced...imagine singing a child's song in a foreign language! It was fun. We were then greeted with the traditional nose touch and hand shake.

    The Maori cooked us a traditional hangi meal. Meat and vegetables are placed on a pit lined with white hot stone. It is covered with cloth layers followed by a mound of dirt. We all ate family style together. We learned the Haka done by the rugby team and the story behind it. We played a traditional game and song. They very sincerely welcomed us into their community and family.

    We spent the evening on our own and went into town for dinner. Tomorrow it is Hobbiton Day!!!!    Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger

    Dinner with a local family!

    30 oktober 2023, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☁️ 55 °F

    We were hosted by a local Maori family tonight. What a delight, inspiration, and blessing!! These native people are so proud, so confident, so welcoming, and so giving. Their children are right there by their side. Besides the food being incredible, their entertainment is amazing as well.

    Tomorrow, we head for the south Island to Christchurch. Hoping for better weather!    Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    "Decorations" outside our room
    ...and on the bus!Air New Zealand, note silver fern on back of planeBar at our hotel. VERY appropriate for our Halloween party!

    Christchurch

    31 oktober 2023, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ 🌬 59 °F

    We left the North Island and flew to the South Island. We took a propeller plane from Rotorua Airport. There was basically no security as you could walk in and out of the airport at will.

    Anyway, we are now in Christchurch, the largest city on the South Island. We have beautiful green fields on one side and the Alps on the left side. It was a really windy and drizzly day, but we still walked the town. It was devastated by two earthquakes in 2010 and 2011. Rebuilding is going slow. The waterway through town had eels that just hung out by the edge of the sidewalk waiting to be fed. Creepy!!

    Our tour leader put me in charge of the Halloween party. So I wore my Jack-o-Lantern shirt as did one other person on the tour. Brian and I walked out of our room to find Halloween caution tape up over our door. The tour bus was also strung up with streamers. I instructed the group that we would be doing a trick or treat (white elephant). Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves! We started by having to guess the Halloween themed word on your back. Then, onto gift exchange. It went very well, and there were lots of funny tricks as well as treats!

    Tomorrow is life on a sheep farm and maybe ziplining!    Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    You're never far away from ocean or the mountains in New Zealand
    You'd hold the black alpaca, then the white one would cozy up for a picture!Unless someone boxed out the white alpaca!1sorting sheepAvon River from the punting boatEelsCory, owner of Smoke 'n' Barrel was a great host!

    Canterbury sheep farm!

    1 november 2023, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ⛅ 66 °F

    What a fun day. We got to sleep in. Then, we took a bus into the area of Canterbury to a sheep farm. We were able to learn about the types of dogs used and trained for sheep herding. Then we got to watch them work. We then got to play with a few alpacas and take a few photos....the white one is a real ham!. We watched the farmer shear a sheep and even got to help a bit!. Brian was the sheep sorting worker of the day. He managed the right sort. Then they served us an amazing herders' lunch and let us wander around and meet the rest of the animals. We then headed back to Christchurch.

    We had time to take a punt on the Avon River. A punt is the pole used to push a flat bottom boat on a shallow river that has a slow current. This is the only place besides England that has this ability, per our punt pushing captain. It was so peaceful and beautiful. The river is full of eels that are like well trained fish that are used to being fed.

    We were on our own for dinner so 8 of us took an Uber to eat at Smoke 'n' Barrel, a restaurant owned and operated by Cory Blackburn, the nephew of our Noblesville friend Dave Purcell. He took great care of us at the restaurant and even delivered our food personally! A big board of smoked ribs, brisket, lamb, beef cheeks, and veggies. Sooooo good! Really fun day. Long bus ride tomorrow heading to Dunedin.    Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    Oamaru
    Moeraki Boulders!

    Oamaru and Moeraki Boulders

    2 november 2023, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☁️ 57 °F

    Today, we left Christchurch to travel by bus to Dunedin. We stopped for lunch and explored Oamaru. This is an old Victorian area known for its white limestone buildings. It is also known for the seals that hang out on its rocky shores and the place where the blue penguins come home at night to eat and hang out.

    Onward to the Moeraki Boulders. These are fascinating! Almost perfectly round and naturally made. Very cool to see and interesting to read about.
    We made it to Dunedin in time for dinner and laundry!!! There is a washer and dryer in every room. On a 23-day trip, this is a really exciting feature!!!    Meer informatie

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  • Nitamarie and Brian AzmanAustralia & New ZealandReiziger
    View driving up to Larnach Castle
    View from the top of the castle1Front of Larnach CastleGroup Pic, with 2 Brians!This does not do justice to how steep the street really isWe made it!

    Larnach Castle and Baldwin Street

    3 november 2023, Nieuw-Zeeland ⋅ ☁️ 52 °F

    We are halfway through Day 19! Today, we started with a drive around the Oamaru peninisula to the only castle in NZ. Very pretty castle with spectacular views. We stopped at Saint Clair Beach and watched some surfers.

    Then to Baldwin Street. Why??? Because it is the steepest street in the world. And we walked up to the top..

    Why?? Because it was there! We spent a bit of time at a railroad museum and now out on our own.

    Next: see what we find in Dunedin NZ.!😉    Meer informatie

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