I'm guessing you've all realized by now that I'm not posting any pictures on this blog. I've found the download time is brutal on the Flickr site I'm already using and dont want to have to do it again here. If anyone reading this blog wants to check out the pictures, please send me a note (you can add comments or messages on this blog I believe) and I can send you an evite to the Flickr page. As you can see from the location on this entry, we are now in Thailand. I'm getting close to being caught up in [View Full Entry]

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Of course today is a stunning day which also increases the bitterness of the weather we had at the park yesterday. I keep thinking we should try driving back down there but you just never know what the weather would be like there. It changes really fast. So we kept to our schedule and checked out of the motel then head off to town for brekkie and to figure out where we were going to stay there. As we left town we stopped at Craters of the Moon, total tourist trap to check out thermal stuff but decided against it and [View Full Entry]

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We got lucky the day we checked out as the weather was great and it gave us the chance to go back into Napier and redo some of the photos that looked as grey as the day yesterday. We both agreed that Napier would be the perfect retirement town but with over 40 wineries around to spice things up a bit. Mission accomplished and we were on the road to Taupo, only a couple hours away. Our route there was on the Thermal Explorer Hwy and as we turned onto it we had the perfect beginning to a road trip. The [View Full Entry]

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Made our way through the streets of Wellington for the route to Napier. Great double laned highway that we came one car away from being nailed in a radar trap. We were to see the major difference between the North and South Island as we made the day's road trip. Here, you pass through a town every 10 minutes and everything slows down but in the South, you pass through a town every hour. At this rate, it would take us forever to get to Napier. I started to long for the wide open pastures and mountains. There was intermitten rain [View Full Entry]

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Set out early from Christchurch as the drive to Picton was 4 hours and we were to catch the 2:25 ferry. It was a foggy morning but there seemed to be a chance that the sun could come out later on. It was quiet in the city but not for long as the Anzac ceremonies (it is a Rememberance Day for Gallipoli and possibly WW1-2?) start early. As we drove H1, more traffic seemed to appear with more people taking advantage of the day off to hits the lakes rather than the assemblies. The sun started to shine for a short [View Full Entry]

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Had our free continental brekkie before checking out which wasnt much to talk about, but hey, it was free! Had a lousy sleep that night due to the loudmouths staying up til 1am yelling at each other. Dont people realize how loud they talk??!! We left Kaikoura on a sunny day which would have been nice to have while we were staying there, but may have motivated us to do more than the nothing we had planned on doing. Took some last minute pics and then headed down H1 towards Christchurch. The road took us immediately along the coast which was [View Full Entry]

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What a suprise, another early wakeup........at least it was abit quieter last night. Made brekkie and packed up for check out. It was a beautiful morning and I couldnt help being abit bitter as this weather would have been nice to have yesterday. On the other hand, we have a long day of driving and clear skies are a blessing. Left Franz Joseph at 10am sharp with a full tank of gas. We were heading north to Greymouth then a sharp turn straight to the East Coast. Soon we were driving next to Lake Mapouriki and I noticed how clear and [View Full Entry]

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Checked out of our room and head to an internet cafe to book our next two nights in Franz Joseph (alittle behind on booking a room). Hit the road and took the West Coast turn off out of Wanaka on another lucky blue morning. This route took us through the flat wide bottom of a valley and passed by a golf course that I caught Kerry gazing at longingly. We reached Lake Hawea which was as clear as glass as there was no wind in the air today. Climbing hills with the lake at our feet, the far side of the [View Full Entry]

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Today our plan was to head to Mt. Aspiring Park and take one of the walks we had read about. By the time we hit the road, the clouds had lifted and we had another beautiful day. After a quick stop at the New World market for snacks for the walk and groceries for dinner tonight, we started the drive out of town along Lake Wanaka. Quite close by is Glendu Bay where we stopped at a campsite to take some photos. Such a calm day on the water and the view of the mountains was great. Back on route and [View Full Entry]

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We left Queenstown on another bright blue day and headed towards Wanaka. We drove past the turnoff so we could go see the famous A.J Hackett bungy jump (one of the original bungy spots). It was really busy there with lots of tour buses in the parking lot. Went to the lookout point hoping to see someone take the plunge ($150 a jump!). I noticed another vantage point so off I went to check it out. The river below was the Kawaru River and the bridge used for the jump was the historic Kawaru Suspension Bridge. LOTR GEEK FACT: This river [View Full Entry]

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