Glacier Experience on Fox Glacier

Melbourne, Australia. We are at an internet/cafe and they are playing that Travis song (the one about the rain) and it reminds me of a James song (sort of the jangly guitars and the singer’s voice); and, of course, James songs always remind me of England. We...

Rafting in Queenstown

Queenstown, NZ Queestown is rightly called “the adrenaline capital of the world”. There is just about every type of activity here involving, air, water, and land in some death-defying combination. They have: 4×4 trips, dirt bike trips, horse treking,...

Te Anau and the New Zealand Southern Alps

Te Anau, New Zealand. Ahh…cool, crisp mountain air, a beautiful lake, and a small tourist town too small to be annoying; this is Te Anau. We drove yesterday from Waihola (about 45 minutes outside of Dunedin). We had stayed over night at a B&B called Ivy...

Dunedin and Beach Boulders

Dunedin, New Zealand This is one of the most Southerly cities in the world, although you wouldn’t necessarily know it as it is about 63 F outside (19 or so C). As the name suggests, this town was settled by Scottish settlers and their influence is obvious: heavy...

Crossing to the South Island and On to Christchurch

Christchurch, New Zealand. We made it across the Cook Strait this morning all in one piece (or, two separate pieces). We got up at the crack of dawn (6am) in order to catch the 8am ferry from Wellington to Picton (which is on the south island). As we drove our car...

Napier – Art Deco City and NZ Stereotypes

Napier, New Zealand We are now in Napier, “the Art Deco city”. The city was completely destroyed by a 7.8 earthquake in the 1920s and entirely rebuilt in the Art Deco style that was popular at the time. The city reminds me quite a bit of San Francisco, as...