Our time in NZ was almost up. Next stop the Cook Islands. As a warming up for our final beach bumming days in the Pacific we figured it was a good idea to go to Lake Tekapo for some R&R. Lake Tekapo is famous for its intense blue colored water, caused by certain sediments in [...]
Southern Scenic Route
Instead of telling you how stunning the Southern Scenic Route is, I’ll just convince you by showing it. Opening shot of the first LOTR, The Fellowship of the Ring (Anduin River) Colac Bay Waipapa Point Slope Point Curio Bay The living kebab train Nugget Point Taieri Mouth More photos of the Southern Scenic Route: http://www.flickr.com/photos/the_dude_in/sets/72157623461667048/ [...]
Sounds like… Fiordland NP
After Queenstown we drove to Te Anau, a small township on the edge of Fiordland National Park. This national park is renowned for, and I quote, its jagged misty peaks, glistening lakes and an air of forbidding remoteness. Its also home to Milford and Doubtful Sounds. According to our guidebook the road which leads from [...]
Queenstown & Wanaka
Queenstown is a little bubbly Kiwi city full of backpackers and outdoor options. You can go bungee jumping, para gliding, hang gliding, jetboating, rafting, hiking, mountain biking, and on it goes. In the face of so many adventurous options John and I did what we do best. We went on a shopping spree instead Which [...]
Aitutaki hit by cyclone Pat – still alive and kicking
B4 I left The Netherlands I was making jokes with friends, family and colleagues about me probably ending up in a cyclone on the Cook Islands. This to top off my string of experiences ranging from being caught in between the Guatemalan army and rebels, earthquakes in Peru, peasant riots in Bolivia, almost getting hit [...]
A wicked West Coast cruise
I’m having a bit of a post-post-depression, so I am not in the mood for any long posts today Not to worry, I’ll nevertheless give you a quick rundown of our wicked West Coast cruise. We went looking for seals at Cape Foulwind, near Westport. There usually are around 20-200 fur seals there. I spotted [...]
Marlboro(ugh) – unfiltered
You probably all know Marlboro, the cigarette brand. Well, the Marlborough I’m posting about doesn’t kill you, but definitely is addictive and can make you smell I’m of course talking about both the Marlborough Wine Trail and the Marlborough Sounds. The first is an area around Blenheim and Renwick a bit north of Kaikoura and [...]
How to backpack in STYLE
No introductions necessary
Marine Miracles in Kaikoura
After a short drive, 2.5 hours, from Christchurch to Kaikoura we were ready to be amazed by the marine life miracles that have made Kaikoura a must have on the Southern Island loop. Our first day there we went whale watching, our second day swimming with dolphins. Both were an open ocean experience. So we [...]
Shopping Singapore, Crazy Christchurch
There are a couple of things to remember when traveling with John. One of them is that forgetting or losing stuff is at the order of the day, or night for that matter. So when John checked in at Schiphol airport he very conveniently forgot to put his wallet in his carry-on luggage. Therefor when we arrived in [...]
