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An expected journey

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July 7th 2013
We awoke in the morning to the news that The British and Irish Lions had triumphed in Sydney. We immediately celebrated with a lie-in. As todays activity had already been booked in advance, we were off to The Shire. We met the tour bus at “The Shires Rest Area”, a bespoke gift shop on the edge of a farm. In 2003, when scouting for locations for Hobbitton, Peter Jackson stumbled across a sh ... read more

Oceania » New Zealand » North Island » Matamata

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The Polynesian Maori reached New Zealand in about A.D. 800. In 1840, their chieftains entered into a compact with Britain, the Treaty of Waitangi, in which they ceded sovereignty to Queen Victoria while retaining territorial rights. In that same year... ... read more