Bill Carol

In our previous blog entry, it was impossible to describe Doubtful Sound: the usual adjectives (looming...; majestic...; towering...; mystical...) all seemed cheesy when applied to what we saw there on an overnight boatride. And it was a bit tough to point our van away from Fjordland too-- but we had only ten days to go and a vast chunk of the South Island yet to explore. The next two days were spent at the edge of the Southern Alps in two dazzling towns, Arrowtown and Wanaka, both outliers of the tourist-frenzied Queenstown. Here, at last, was the long-promised fall color-- shimmering gold willows and poplars against lakes, rivers and towering bush-covered mountains. Along the roadside at Lake Wanaka, we stumbled into one of those serendipitous treasures: a huge outdoor display of perhaps 100 huge (6'X ... read more

We had heard the refrain over and over from North Islanders: "If you think the North Island is beautiful, the South Island is gonna knock your socks off!" So, as we made 6-hour trip by ferry from Wellington (last stop on the North Island) then 3 hours more by coastal train to Christchurch, we were eager to see what awaited us in the wilder, more remote South Island. The first trick was to settle into the rented campervan that was waiting for us. The van, a 2-berth diesel VW with standard transmission, is not one of those behemoth motor homes folks drive in the states, but it is quite herky and longer than we had hoped. Nonetheless, it is cleverly outfitted with all the needed gear: gas stove, small fridge, sink, toilet/shower and a table ... read more

After some cloudy days on winding, narrow roads, we rejoiced to settle into our second timeshare week, this one at Paihia, "the gateway" to the lovely northern coastal area noted for sparkling sea and deserted islands. Various Kiwis have warned us that Paihia is "touristy." Well, it is, by NZ standards. But New Zealanders just don't know how to truly junk up the natural world with crass commercialism. This has proven to be a wonderful base for day trips, and with a full, spiffy kitchen, we are back to savoring Bill's cooking! To prepare us for that, we drove a short distance to Kerikeri to a farmers' market, a large, festive affair not unlike our favorite outdoor market in Seattle. In addition to lots of locally-grown produce, we came home with some local wine, fresh ... read more

Heading toward the sunny north-eastern coast aptly named Bay of Plenty, we stopped at the Agrodome to visit a huge organic farm and see a sheep show----yup, a sheep show. It involved 19 kinds of sheep, a demonstration of shearing and a great demo of a sheepdog rounding up a small herd and pushing them through a series of paddocks. Then we motored on to make a pre-arranged visit to a childhood friend of Lex Voorhees (from our UU church- Lex and our Kiwi host Robert are both Dutchborn and spent part of their childhood in a Japanese Concentration Camp during WWII in Indonesia. Their families had been settlers in Indonesia.) The visit near Tauranga was another warm and extended exchange that ended in a dinner and a grand evening. Robert's son even helped us work ... read more

We are sending this Pictures edition to go with an earlier written entry. We are still trying to figure out the blog process. Bear with us!... read more