Tour Days 64-74 – My plan for this holiday revolved around two cruises which included a cruise from San Diego, California to Auckland, New Zealand aboard Holland America’s ms Noordam and then a cruise from Singapore aboard Holland America’s ms Westerdam that made four ports of call in Vietnam as well as an overnight stop in Shanghai, China. To fill that eight–week interlude (26 NOV 2023–17 JAN 2024), I planned to visit friends as well as travel a bit in New Zealand and Australia and find some land tours of, perhaps, Tasmania, Indonesia or Philippines. I spotted a 29–day (Bangkok to Bangkok) land tour of southeast Asia that included Thailand, Laos, Vietnam and Cambodia that fit perfectly into my time slot. A long, complicated Vietnam “tourist visa saga” led me to abort the four–country, 29–day land ... read more

DISCLAIMER: Bill Gates decided to remove the “ability to capture a still photo from a movie” tool during his latest “update,” so you’re missing out on some tremendous scenic shots of the train trip. Thanks again, Bill! PHOTO NOTE: After finishing the verbiage for this blog, I uploaded the photos just as I always do. All that appeared where the photo belonged was the file name of the photo. Closer examination revealed, “We hope you enjoy the new version of Photo Upload! If you experience any problems, report them here.” Yes, I did and yes, I did. Hopefully this will all self-remedy soon. Tour Day 57-60, Cairns, Australia – Part 1 Kuranda Scenic Railway and Skyrail Rainforest Cableway As I noted in my last blog, I arrived at Amaroo at Trinity Beach (Trinity Beach is a ... read more

Tour Day 54, Bay of Islands, Russell, New Zealand Day 7, Saturday, December 2, 2023 – Ninety Mile Beach and Cape Reinga Tour Ninety Mile Beach is on the western coast of the far north of the North Island of New Zealand. The beach is actually 88 kilometres long. Its southern end is close to the headland of Tauroa Point, to the west of Ahipara Bay, near Kaitaia. This 88-mile stretch of coastline features sand dunes & cruising tours via 4-wheel drive vehicles. Somewhere in the translation, 90 (almost) kilometers beach became 90–mile beach. Eighty–eight kilometers actually is 54.68 miles. Paul and I took the passenger ferry to Paihia to catch the tour “bus.” Right off the bat, the driver/tour guide emphasized that the “bus” was not at all a bus, but rather a TRUCK. Indeed, ... read more

Tour Day 52, Bay of Islands, Russell, New Zealand Day 5, Thursday, November 30, 2023 – The Hole in the Rock Cruise actually begins in Paihia, New Zealand but makes a stop in Russell to maximize the number of paying customers on board. It was quite windy, making it a little cool for an Arizonan standing on the bow, so I moved back and forth between the protected cabin and the open bow. A young lady from Switzerland stationed herself on the bow and never faltered. Disgusting! She deserves to sleep on the ground and luxuriate in a hostel so she can shower periodically! There’s not much to say so I’ll let the photos do the talking.... read more

Tour Day 49, Auckland, New Zealand Day 2, Monday, November 27, 2023 – I knew China was a difficult country for travelers. I had started an application a couple months before the cruise began, but I abandoned the process when I learned that folks arriving on ship need to visit a Chinese Embassy to complete the application process. The closet embassy to Mesa AZ – Los Angeles; but alas, there is an embassy in Auckland. Problem solved – NOT. I went to the doctor’s appointment. His diagnosis was bronchitis, and I was given a prescription for an antibiotic. After procuring the antibiotic, we stopped by the Chinese embassy only to find it closed, contrary to the web site hours of operation. Nothing else really exciting to scribe about. Tour Day 50, Auckland, New Zealand Day 3, ... read more