CALLING AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND

[piqaboo]

We'd bring ribs, if the customs folk would let us pack that much dry ice....

[dai bread]

I find myself taking almost as much interest in this trip as the Tenors. I am resisting the temptation to plan it for them, knowing that Piq has been here before and knows her way around.

[dai bread]

We'd bring ribs, if the customs folk would let us pack that much dry ice....

No problems with dry ice. Ribs will go well on the Agriculture section's barbecue though. It's nice of you to think of our Border Security staff.

[piqaboo]

Yeah.
Its that whole meat thing.

Feel free to plan our trip!
We'll keep what looks good and 'forget' the rest!

My last trip was planned by a nice man from Anaheim who was working in the "i" office in Christchurch when we walked in to ask questions. His suggested itinerary sounded so good, we followed 95% of it!

[Schmeelkie]

SOOOO JEALOUS!!!!

Want to take the family down-under and NZ someday. Bella at least needs to be a bit older - in my long-range planning I was thinking when she's more like 10 (and Pumpkin would be 13). If my sister-in-law's family is still in Paupa New Guinea we could go see them too...

On our honeymoon to Ireland we didn't really have any plans - landed in Dublin and were leaving from Limerick, so had to get to the other side some way. Were thinking of going south and curving around the southern end and looping back north to Limerick, but travelers at our first B&B (they had been coming over from the states every year for about 15 years or so) convinced us to go straight across and visit the Connemara area and go south from there, dipping past Limerick to Dingle peninsula. Turned out great - all the B&B's they recommended that we could get into were the best ones of the trip. The most spontaneous trip I ever took - I'm a real planner. but probably one of the most fun... Have to get back there sometime soon too!

[piqaboo]

Altoid's new passport came this week. There's a 'no smiling' rule for the picture.
We know she was giddy excited but in her compliance she managed to look downright sad.

I nearly cried because they didnt return her old passport, with her pic at 8 months and the stamps from England and Ireland (we had to ask specially to have her passport stamped).


A couple more domestic tasks on tight timelines, then I can focus on planning the trip at last!
Current rough outline: N Island 7-10 days, S Island rest of the trip
Land aukland, get stuff done, see Kelly Tarltons, meet Dai for breaky next day or dinner that night or whatever works for him and his. Drive north to bay of rocks or whatever its called.
Wander back south by way of rotarua, volcano. Attend a hangi. incubate selves in hotspring if one available. Tour muddy village, eat hot-spring cooked corn for slight extra fee. Wellington. hoping for an Agricultural show so herself can see a sheep shearing. Its a rotten time of year to denude a sheep, tho.
Drop car, ferry over to Picton. Get car. Abel Tasman National Park. Head toward the Fox and other glaciers. See if this one place I stayed is still in business and try to stay there one night. Te Anau and the glow worm caves, and the terrifying bus-in-tunnel tour of hyrdoelectric generation. Hope to stay in same place as my last visit (heated thru water pipes in floors. SO nice to have warm feet at least once on the trip).
Queenstown - steamboat tour maybe. Kiwi at the bird park, yes. (Looked like a big furry rock last time I saw it. Finaly teh keeper came in a woke it up!)
South end of the island - not yet thunk of.
Dunedin and penguins. and more penguins.

At some point, fly back to north island from christchurch (drink beer), and catch a flight home.

Scattered thru out = shopping, eating, finding places to play. (and laundry. )

[dai bread]

I do like your new name for the Bay of Islands, Piq. Bay of Rocks. It rocks!

Several motels in Rotorua have hot pools available, or there's the Polynesian Spa, which is a bit expensive for me so I never went there.

I think you'll have more chance of seeing sheep shorn at the Agridome in Rotorua than in Wellington.

Dunedin has Olveston, something of a Stately Home that you might find interesting, though I think you have bigger and better in California. Olveston is nice, though. Dunedin also has Larnach's Castle, another Stately Home. Not one that I liked when I went there many years ago, but a lot has been done since then and it would be worth a visit. Then there is the Portobello Aquarium which I think I mentioned earlier.

Did I mention Auckland's Rainforest Express? It's a little tramway run by the water company, and is a very interesting ride to a storage dam and back through rainforest, so called because it's usually raining there.

Also, if you want to meet me in Auckland rather than Cambridge, I'll need dates. It's a 2-hour drive from here to there, and can be longer if the motorway's jammed, as it often is.

[piqaboo]

Thanks for all teh info.
I'm making a nice file with all your suggestions, which are greatly appreciated.

Lemme look up Cambridge - might be in our general direction of travel.
Yes, there will be dates, and even times.
But not for a week or two yet.

[Nicole Marie]

SOOOO JEALOUS!!!!

Want to take the family down-under and NZ someday. Bella at least needs to be a bit older - in my long-range planning I was thinking when she's more like 10 (and Pumpkin would be 13). If my sister-in-law's family is still in Paupa New Guinea we could go see them too...

On our honeymoon to Ireland we didn't really have any plans - landed in Dublin and were leaving from Limerick, so had to get to the other side some way. Were thinking of going south and curving around the southern end and looping back north to Limerick, but travelers at our first B&B (they had been coming over from the states every year for about 15 years or so) convinced us to go straight across and visit the Connemara area and go south from there, dipping past Limerick to Dingle peninsula. Turned out great - all the B&B's they recommended that we could get into were the best ones of the trip. The most spontaneous trip I ever took - I'm a real planner. but probably one of the most fun... Have to get back there sometime soon too!

I did the same thing with Ireland... Don't plan! I lived in Ireland for almost a year. Sure I had more time to do and see things then on a short vacation, but what I found was the people are so amazing and helpful. I would head to a town or area I wanted to see and when I landed there any time I was in a pub (which was a lot) I'd ask a local what they suggested. They gave me great ideas and things to see that I would never have found in a tourist guide. Then I'd up and move to the next town to see something there. Only in Ireland can you do this - thanks to the amazing people and how friendly they are can you get great advice. Plus Dublin alone is the best city and sooo much to see. You could just do a vacation on Dublin by herself. Public transportation is not too bad from area to area, that's how I got around. The only time I rented a car was when I wanted to go see something completely out of the way. (PS - For those who have not been - Don't bring up politics or religion when in Ireland unless you are ready to break up a fight or be the center of one.)

To the Tenor Family - Have fun in NZ! Sounds like you will have a great vacation! Take lots of pictures... we all want to see them when you come back!

[dai bread]

Thanks for all teh info.
I'm making a nice file with all your suggestions, which are greatly appreciated.

Lemme look up Cambridge - might be in our general direction of travel.
Yes, there will be dates, and even times.
But not for a week or two yet.

Cambridge is in your direction of travel as you go to Rotorua. It is possible to avoid it, by going down Highway 3 via Waitomo and its caves, but the normal route to Rotorua is Highway 1. Waitomo is only about 20 minutes drive from here anyway.

[piqaboo]

Dont Plan is a lot of fun, especially in small countries.
I like to map out the 'we'll feel awful if we miss xx" things, so that they're covered, and then free form within that framework.

For example, whether one wants to see Milford Sound or not, one should go, because one will spend many more hours over a lifetime, explaining why one didnt.
(and it is lovely).

[piqaboo]

Waitomo are the more famous glowworm caves, yes?
I havent seen them. Maybe we'll go there and if its wonderful, we'll consider a repeat experience at Te Anau.
Agrodome - Rotorua - check. Thanks!

[dai bread]

Waitomo caves are most definitely more famous than Te Anau, but I don't want to knock the latter. I've been there and been impressed, particularly by the fact that you don't have to keep quiet. The Te Anau cave has a rushing stream in it, and it's noisy. Waitomo has a slow-moving pool in it, and it's quiet. If there's a noise, the lights go out. The glow-worms in Te Anau couldn't care less about noise.

The Waitomo glow-worm cave is generally considered wonderful. There are other caves there too, but they're more your regular stalactite and stalagmite things. Worth a visit if you have the time. There's also black-water rafting, for people who are not claustrophobic or afraid of the dark.

[OperaTenor]

DB, when we get drunk together, will there be a convenient place to pass out?

It's the important questions, you know...

[dai bread]

I have 2 spare bedrooms, O.T. One has a queen-sized bed, the other a single.

[analog]

Have fun folks.

Isn't NZ where that motorcycle fellow, portrayed in "World's Fastest Indian", lived?
I think i'd have to make it by his old haunts......
a.

[OperaTenor]

I have 2 spare bedrooms, O.T. One has a queen-sized bed, the other a single.

I may be big, but I'm no queen....

[dai bread]

You're not single either, O.T.

And yes, analog, Bert Munro lived in Invercargill, which is the southernmost town of any size in this country. Have you seen the movie?

[analog]

And yes, analog, Bert Munro lived in Invercargill, which is the southernmost town of any size in this country. Have you seen the movie?

indeed i've seen the movie , it is delightful...
why it got so little fanfare i cannot figure.
I bought several DVD's to give to my retired friends. Found it has wide appeal.

In fact i do actually remember when he set that record, it was mentioned in Popular Science magazine that "..a highly modified 1926(i think) Indian motorcycle" had set a world speed record.

And my first motorcycle bore an Indian nameplate though it was actually a Royal Enfield - they imported and sold them here as Indians for a few years, in mid fifties.

a.

[jamiebk]

A wonderful movie! Watched it a couple of times. Old guys rule....