Coastal ride
The northwest coast of the South Island is stunningly beautiful. It was an easy drive and I advanced fast. At first the landscape was surprisingly dry. Hills with yellow gras fields, all dry and mowed down by the countless sheep… only a couple of trees or smaller forests. Then: wine country. Vineries galore and endless […] Read More
Art, wind & politics
Art, wind and politics would sum it up for me. Wellington is a nice town, the setting on the harbor is amazing…. the town itself reminds me of Seattle or Portland in the US… same style of houses, the street art, the slightly artsy, alternative feel. On Friday I went up to the Botanical Garden […] Read More
Shaky grounds
My neighborhood is called Mount Victoria, after the highest peak in the city. I wanted to hike up there to get that famed 360 degree view over the city and the harbor, luckily a bus line went half way up – the rest of it was tough enough. On top, I was reward with a […] Read More
Thermal
It was a long day in the car. I underestimated the time it would all take, even if I only drove about 225 kilometers. Most of it was on tiny, windy beach-mountain-beach roads that took forever. I also did not factor in how much time I would actually like to spend in various spots, so […] Read More
Rangitoto hike
Finally got my act together and set the alarm clock to 9 am. So I would make the Rangitoto Ferry at 10.30. The weather looked ok, warm, with lots of clouds, maybe not the worst to hike up a volcano. The Ferry took half an hour and let us ashore at Ragitoto‘s Ferry Terminal. I […] Read More
Miscellaneous
Ticked a few things off my list today. I went to the Japanese Tourist office to get my voucher for the train ticket trough Japan from a super lovely agent. She was sooo polite…! I’ll be in for a treat in Japan. I also got a number of brochures and maps… I seriously have to […] Read More
New friends (and food)
I recently met up with Clint and his friend Nina in Grand Central in Ponsonby for an after-work beer. Ginger fusion, actually, something they had on the table and I joined in, not tasting the alcohol in it until it was too late…. Clint is a Pacific Islander through and through, coming from the biggest […] Read More
Harbor walk
The weekend was really quiet… I first wanted to go out and party a bit, but in the end… Friday it seems I was too early, all the places I went to were still empty… And I ended up watching Modern Family and eating chips. Bad! Saturday I went up on the tower, and I […] Read More
Devonport
My host Harvey gave me a number of insider tips for my stroll around Devonport. I took the ferry in the morning, crossing the harbor in less than 15 minutes, and arrived on the opposite site, in Devonport, a small suburb of Auckland, located on the North shore of the harbor, at the southern end of a peninsula. […] Read More
Waitemata sunset
Still feeling a bit beat up by my cold, I did a stroll on Monday evening down to the harbor to some of the small beaches that are located along Waitemata Harbor, Home Bay and Herne Bay reserves. I saw so many people jogging. that seems to be the thing to keep Kiwis fit… Two guys came […] Read More