Blogs from Hilltop, Taupo, North Island, New Zealand, Oceania - page 2

I think we’ve had you all waiting long enough! We are camping along New Zealand now and moving along nicely (and quickly). Time is just flying by. We flew into Auckland after some minor mishaps at the airport. They wouldn’t let Cody board since he was a Martin and they don’t allow Martins into New Zealand. So Kailey and I ditched him and ran for it. We arrived in New Zealand safely. SYKE!! We all got to New Zealand just fine. Cody did actually have some difficulty with his working visa but was able to board with us girls. We arrived in Auckland early Thursday morning. We thought our flight might include some small refreshments that could serve as dinner (free of charge) but it didn’t. Our stomachs were protesting something huge by the time ... read more

Hey Everyone! I hope this blog works better than the last... It has been such a long time since I wrote, I don't even know where we left off, so I am going to give you the latest and greatest and then more randomness. First of all, it's Thanksgiving for you all right now, so HAPPY THANKSGIVING! Hope you ate good meals for Mary Kathryn and I because our "Thanksgiving dinner" was interesting to say the least. We had a campsite out by a beautiful river, The Wairakei River, which is Huka Falls is on. The falls are just amazing. Our Thanksgiving dinner was not so amazing. We made do, however. We even found another American to share some food with! About the Ole Miss game: Mary Kathryn and I were able to "watch" the Ole ... read more

Hey folks, Only got 19 mins left on the internet so must be quick and sorry for any spelling mistakes. Well we picked up our campervan of good times on Monday and we've had a blast. It's quite a small little thing but its got character and its great fun. Jezza has been doing lots of driving and is now quite a pro, which is great for me because I get to look at all the scenery. Our first night, we had problems with our gas (cooking gas silly) so we had to go into the bush and find fire wood to cook our food. We had a delcious meal of sausage baps - yummy!! We've been staying in proper campsites and are surrounded by other crazy camping folk. We've also stayed in holiday parks which ... read more

Polly: We left Becky & Tom's for the second time on Monday morning and headed south. We got to Waitomo just after lunch and visited the glowworm caves. No cameras are allowed inside the caves so unfortunately Ross only managed to get a few pics before he got sprung by another group's guide. I think the flash was a bit of a give-away. You walk down into caves which are full of stalagmites & stalagtites, then take a short boat ride on an underground river. When they switch the lights off, the cave ceiling is illuminated with thousands of flourescent dots, kind of like a starry night, but a bit greener. When the lights were turned back-on again, you could just make out fine silk-like string hanging from the ceiling. They use these to catch their ... read more

The next island Leaving Nelson behind us, we drove the Queens Charlotte Drive into the Malborough Sounds. In Kaikura, one of our main goals on this journey, we managed to see whales! 2 Sperm Whales and a couple of albatrosses. On an ocean drive back to Picton more Fur seals crossed our way. We took the interisland ferry to the north island, where we arrived exhausted in Wellington. Wellington offered us an awesome view on the scenic ocean drive. Furthermore we saw the "beehive" parlament and the civic sqare. The wonderful museum of art, history and natural science - Te Papa - was really good to visit. check out the Kiwi pictures if you haven't seen any yet! 300 km further north we stopped at Napier, the Art Deco city. All the houses are really impressive ... read more