Marlene and I are heading for New Zealand, and as always,
we'd like you to join us.
We're planning to stay for a week or so in a seaside self
catering cottage on a northeastern peninsula of the North Island, Coromandel. It's
off the beaten tourist track, and we're hoping to get the feel of being a New
Zealander.
Then we'll be moving to the southern part of the South Island
around Queenstown. Fiordland is the beaten tourist track, and if we don't get
trampled, we hope to find serenity in scenic, Doubtful Sound. Doubtful Sound is
one the largest, yet a little more isolated and interesting fiords leading out
to the Tasman Sea .
We've almost completed our research, and it looks as though
the trip should be adventurous and maybe a little exciting.
New Zealand, earthquakes, volcanoes and hot springs are
often spoken of in the same breath. The islands are on a Pacific fault line, so
with some luck, we'll feel the earth move under our feet or feel the warmth of
hot springs bubbling up through the sand. Also as a result of the volcanic and tectonic
activity, New Zealand has lots of mountains. The ones around Fiordland are
apparently very scenic, though it rains 2 days out of 3. That reminds me, we
must pack our rain gear.
It appears as though cycling is popular, though since a long
term bike rental deal fell through, we have rental cars booked at both
location. On the positive side, a little car should be a more forgiving on the
uphill climbs.
In New Zealand, they drive on the left side of the road, so
in preparation, I've been visualizing driving around their roundabouts in the
clockwise direction.
Hiking is also popular, though they call it tramping, and their
trails, tracks. From our good memories of hiking in Switzerland, we're looking
forward to that.
One of the most common terms in New Zealand is the Kiwi. The
Kiwi is a flightless bird and a national symbol that's featured on logos, coats
of arms, and their currency. The Kiwi bird isn't much to look at, but neither
is our beaver. Regarding their currency, as we have the Loonie, they have the
Kiwi. Also, as we're called Canucks, they are Kiwis.
It's coming up to early Spring here in the northern
hemisphere, so it'll be moving on to Fall there.
Given all our planning, we still hope to find some
adventure. From our experience, the adventure will come from the unexpected, so
hopefully we haven't over planned, but instead, just set the stage.
Anyway, please keep your eyes open for future blog links,
and join us on our adventures down under. We look forward to having you along.
Click here for the Coromandel Peninsula story series:
http://travellingwithsteveandmarlene.blogspot.ca/2014/03/trip-starts-with-chaos.html
Click here for the Queenstown and more story series:
http://travellingwithsteveandmarlene.blogspot.ca/2014/03/packing-sense-of-humour-for-unexpected.html
Click here for the Coromandel Peninsula story series:
http://travellingwithsteveandmarlene.blogspot.ca/2014/03/trip-starts-with-chaos.html
Click here for the Queenstown and more story series:
http://travellingwithsteveandmarlene.blogspot.ca/2014/03/packing-sense-of-humour-for-unexpected.html
