13,000 KM later,,,


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Oceania » New Zealand » North Island » Auckland
March 2nd 2006
Published: March 4th 2006
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Welcome from Aukland! We had a stay in Vancouver of a couple nights at the Westin Grand courtesy of a deal Vicki picked up in Whistler. Quite a nice hotel but it seems the more expensive the room the more they nickle and dime you over the little things. We had a great little visit with Tony and got to see the Olympic closing ceremony festivities downtown. We got delayed for a couple hours leaving Vancouver when they discovered a window malfunction that couldn't be fixed, but after that everything was brilliant. Surprising how well our 13 hr flight from LAX to AUK went, our hats off to NZ Air! We arrived in Aukland at 7:30 am picked up our gear and spent the next 3 hrs setting up our bikes. In that time we had the pleasure of meeting an old traveler from Austria who had just finished a bike tour of the south island himself. Not sure if his story was encouraging or intimidating but he was about 70 yrs old on a $130 bike. We also met a man from New Mexico who just arrived for the NZ Ironman at Lake Taupo, so we had two well wishers with some friendly advice right from the start. Once our bikes were assembled we debated as to the wisdom of us trying to cycle in the city to the nearest camping area. Seeing as neither of us had been on our bikes fully loaded and the fact that traffic is on the left here with different rules and those bloody traffic circles. None the less we made it safely to our camping area, which turned out to be in the corner of a "paddock" full of sheep. Camp was set up and we had a wonderfull first night in NZ. I'll leave you with some advice, don't underestimate the strength of the NZ sun! After our half-hour bike ride my arms looked like crab legs. Till later


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4th March 2006

Hello
Looks like things are going well. Nice to see you guys are doing fine. Well maybe not Brett. Dude don't they sell sunscreen or you to macho for a little a lotion?
7th March 2006

I wish u the best
I tried calling to say good bye, sorry i missed you. I wish you only the best on your adventure together. Hey Brett, your arms inspired me to finally paint my basement red. He!He! Love ya guys.
8th March 2006

Sleeping with Sheep
Sorry it took so long to reply. Looks like you are having fun. Nice pictures. Is that the first time you ever slept with sheep or just the first time you are admitting to it. We are pitting into Swift Current for a month - less one good guy. Have fun. Catch you later. Oh yeah - Hi Vickie!!
8th March 2006

This is great!
Hi guys., Pam told me yesterday about this site. I never did get to see your pictures from last time Fred so I think this is really good. Have a safe trip....keep in touch. Love you!!!
10th March 2006

comment on 13,000 later
fantastic pictures; almost feel like we are there, too! It's a great idea having this travel blog; good way to stay in touch and see some of what you are experiencing. Some of the scenery reminds me of the Lord of the Rings background. Take care. Talk to you soon!
11th March 2006

happy to hear from you
Glad to hear travel went well, I 'm pumped for both of you. It's always amazing to hear about how many people you can meet in a short time, and that have some good tips or just want to talk. Have fun,enjoy the scenary, especially on those days, when you legs want to quit and you think "are we there yet", remember you could be still biking in FLAT Weyburn!

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