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Palm City

Well, the count down begins as we inch closer to our date to begin our vacation. We have a lot of work and organizing to get done before January 29th when we leave on our 35 day journey.

This journal will be a good way to share our journey with all of our friends and family who might what to see what we are up to! Stay posted as we prepare....

Let the fun begin!

Okay, journal... humm? I think we are putting our need to organize and think about what we should pack or get ready for our monthlong plus trip on the back burner right now! \240I think the push will start January 28th right before we leave. I’ll keep you posted 👍.

Becoming familiar with the journal app... thought that would be a good idea before we leave town. Tell me what you think, I don’t want to bore you with stuff you may not be interested in.

One of our stops will be in Dunedin New Zealand, and our plan is to visit local breweries in the area - along with other points of interest. Some of you may know that we had a home in Dunedin Florida for a few years, which is also home to Dunedin Brew! So, we made a visit to them last night to purchase t-shirts to give to the NZ Brewery. Mathew, who helped us not only got us the t-shirts, but prepared a beer for us to take to them, with the understanding that we bring him a beer in return. We are going to make every effort to make sure this beer makes it to NZ, but if we get too thirsty we may need to drink it ourselves - don’t want it to spoil or go flat!

Ready, set, go!

We’ve planned, packed and repacked and there’s no turning back now. The dogs will be well taken care of thanks to Joyce and Nick!

Heading to Huston, then Tokyo and finally Singapore. We will spend a brief overnight and then head to Thailand. Let the fun begin!

Flying for 23 hours is no fun! All of our connections went like clock work, but trying to sleep in a plane, even though your seat will go flat, is not a bed! Plus with the time change(s) this certainly throws your body into a revolt of some sort - it wants SLEEP!😴😴😴

Brief overnight in Singapore before leaving for Chaign Mai Thailand. Arrived at out hotel - Shangra La for lunch then off to see a well known temple Wat Doi Suthep high in the mountains overlooking the city. This temple is famous for the ledged of the white elephant, which we will see tomorrow. Very interesting culture and rituals

We also made a brief visit to a Jade factory where they carve and make jewelry our of jade, mined mostly in this area.

Tonight we headed off for dinner at a cultural center where we enjoyed a tradional Thai dinner and were entertained a Northern Thai dance performance. A full day, accompanied by lots of pictures! Here are a few...

Well, another amazing day in Thailand. We headed off this morning to Mae Sa Elephant Camp were we saw trained elephants that did different tasks. We were amazed at how gentle they were for being such big animals. These guys “performed” such things as playing soccer, painting pictures, hauling wood and stacking it and more. It was very enjoyable and amazing.

Then we headed off to see the Hill Tribe Village which the individuals normally \240live in the upper north west of Thailand, but for tourism purposes have a camp set up near the elephant camp. They are famous for their \240production of highly skilled embroidery, especially hemp, creating some very beautiful pieces. The village also shows how they live in and amongst nature, cultivating their crops including rice. The most interesting tribe was the “Long-neck Karen Tribe” whose women wear numerous rings around their elongated necks. The rings are made of brass and weight down the collar bones to make the neck look longer. The purpose was originally to protect their necks if attacked by a lion, now days it is because they believe it looks beautiful - See for your self!

Tomorrow is another travel day and then onto the ship. We have met a lot of nice people along the way, truly a memorial journey!

Long-neck Karen Tribe women

Using wax to make the design for the batik runners

Elephant art

Quiet... he’s concentrating on the picture he’s painting

Feeding the elephants - look out they will give you a kiss

If its Sunday we must be in Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia. This is the first stop of 3 in Indonesia as we make our way to Australia.

Jakarta is a very bustling area with the motor bike as a main mode of transportation. We walked through the old town, very crowded with residents as they gather their food and vegetables for the day. Tim thought a lot of the street food looked good... Thanks, but not for me!

We made our way to a few of the Chinese Temples where people were worshiping - very interesting. Lots of red and gold as they prepare for the year of the dog for their New Year in a couple of weeks. Speaking of dogs - we saw none, lots of cats - no dogs. They say they ship them to Vietnam, where (yes) they eat them!

The weather was extremely hot - and thank goodness it was overcast otherwise I’m sure we would have melted!

Yummy? Frogs and crabs....

Chinese Temple...

Sea cucumber...

Well, yesterday was a stop in Semarang Indonesia - and we hit the monsoon weather system. Not only did we arrive late to our port, but there was multiple issues trying to get people off the ship to go on their tours. There was at least a foot of water when you stepped off the stairs, which were so steep that the crew was escorting the passengers one by one down the ramp! Needless to say, going out in the pouring rain, to go in and out of the bus did not interest us at all. We sat tight, watched a movie and visited with some friends learning new ways to open bottles, a new skill that might come in handy 🤓 - Joseph is quite the bar tender! All and all it was a nice quiet afternoon.

Tuesday February 6th \240is a sea day as we make our way to Bali. Did some wine tasting, listened to a lecture on the Sunni and the Shia in Southeast Asia - the next stop on this journey!

Lots of rain... earlier there was a “water fall” down the stairs! Oh, well - it is their rainy season - not like we don’t experience that at home!!

Bali... we were here for 2 days so soaked up a lot of information.

Different than the other Indonesia islands, Bali is Hindu. The family is an important unit and they all live together in a compound for life (upwards 20 to30 people in a home). Boys live with their parents, girls live in their husbands parents homes. They have their own temple within the home and pray very day - several times a day. They rely on the calendar and the moon to determine special dates - including important events such as getting married. Our guide said that they eat the same meal 3 times a day so it is easy on the mother or wife who prepares all.

We didn’t get a picture of the valcano, however it is still a great concern to the locals as tourism is a major part of their economy. We did not make it to the beaches, but rather opted to do more on the interior of the island. They grow rice and corn and raise pigs to eat. Overall the island is interesting, but what is disappointing is the trash. For a poor island, the trash on the alley ways is distracting.

The first night we went to a bird sanctuary that had number ours native birds. We then went to a tribal dinner and then they performed a Kecak Fire Dance - which was good, but Smokey! The other issue is it was in their native language so you couldn’t understand a word - they gave us the written interpretation, however I think some information was lost in translation!

Today, we headed off for a art & craft area (just up my alley) seeing silver jewelry making, Batik demonstration, Balinese artists and wood carving. Very interesting demonstrations and yes I did manage to spend a bit of money!

So long Bali, we are now heading out for our next port which we will walk and see the Komodo Drangons. The island only has a population of about 2,000 people. Should be interesting.

Sunrise Bali....

Michigan Colors - but he was beautiful

Performing batik on silk by hand. Wax with colors that they paint on by hand. Very beautiful, but expensive.

Another method of application onto the materials - Metal temples that have colored wax that is then imprinted on the material.

Tim’s shirt with a Batik drawing... It isn’t suppose to wash out - time will tell!

Dancers who participated in the fire dance in Bali

Temple or area’s to pray are found everywhere.

Komodo Indonesia is home to the Komodo Dragon. There are fewer than 300 of the protect species growing to 8 to 12 feet long and weighing upwards of 300 pounds. The ominous looking creature has sharp saw-like teeth that can manage to cover short distances very quickly. They are carnivores and the island is inhabited with deer, buffalo and pigs - so they have a good supply of food - eating about every 30 days. Their saliva contains numerous bacteria which is how they kill their victims and it is also deadly to humans.

We wondered through the national park on the look out for the dragons with guides accompanying us. We saw one - a female on the move then made our way to their watering hole, which we saw about six. The guides were keeping an eye on the groups to ensure they didn’t get too close. However, there is always one that doesn’t stay with their group. This one woman, oblivious to her souroundings and trying to catch up with her group crossed about 8 feet from the male dragon causing quite the commotion. She had no clue as to how close she was getting to the dragon. We all laughed and said that they weren’t hungry otherwise she would have been dinner!

We are at sea today (Saturday) as we head to Darwin Australia - First of five stops before we get to Sidney.

Welcome to Komodo National Park...

Lady Komodo taking a walk - alone

Male Komodo taking it easy

The watering hole, they gather and relax

Komodo Island chain

Sunset as we head out to Darwin Australia

Sunday was Darwin Australia situated in the Northern Territory on the Timor Sea. Their population is around 120,000 making it the largest city in the northern area. Though this area has been through a great deal destruction - once during World War II when they were bombed by the Japanise and the other when they were struck with a cyclone. A major highway - the Stuart - runs north to south through Australia.

Today we toured the WWII museum that told of all the destruction. Wow, even though they evacuated a number of residents from the area, the loss of life was hudge. The area is a large coastline which makes it a major shipping port, and in the days of the war a sitting duck!

Now keep in mind we have been on the ship for 10 days now and in those 10 days we have had 2 medical emergencies. One, the first night the ship turned and headed back to Singapore and the person was helicopter off the ship back to Singapore. Tonight we got a head start to our next port, only to turn around due to a medical emergency and return the individual back to Darwin. A police boat came in from port to evacuate the patient.

Unfortunately, because we lost 8 hours returning to Darwin, we will not make it in time to our next port Cooktown (named after Captain Cook). Our Austraian friends said we are not missing much, so it might not be such a bad thing. \240So the next port is Cairns, diving and shorkling the Great Barrier Reef! Bad news, 3 sea days in a row! We’ll have to find something to do!

Wallabies all over the place...

WWII airplane museum - They also has a B52 Bomber which is Hudge!

Good by Darwin off our balcony - ready for dinner (Got to eat!)

This highway goes from Darwin to Melbourne....

This is in the Darwin Park which also has the ammunition Bunkers...

It’s all about the people you meet on a cruise. This has been exceptional meeting some great people along the way and here’s a few....

Jane and John are from the UK. They were on our Chang Mia trip. John was a ballroom dancer on cruise ships - dancing with all of the women who’s husbands didn’t want to dance. Both are widowed and currently not married to each other, their children don’t want them to remarry. Jane talks about how her kids don’t understand how lonely it can be to be single- but a great couple.

Pat and Betty are traveling with their daughter and son-in-law and are all from Arizona. They also were on our Chang Mia trip to Thailand. Pat and Betty are Amway dealers and ironically they know our friend Val’s parents who were also involved in Amway. Small world...

Then there is Rich and Marilee from Virginia also from our Thailand trip. Delightful couple, retired from working in the oil industry and traveled the world with his job.

And you can’t forget the Ausie guys Leon and Craig, which are a hoot. Leon describes Craig as his body guard - Craig is a former Australian FBI agent and finds what is happening in the US very questionable! He’s in his late 50’s and a stay at home dad. Leon, however is a retired pharmacist who developed a very successful probiotic which he sold the business for lots $$$$. Leon’s wife doesn’t like to travel, and Craig has free time on his hands so they go together.

Lynn is traveling with her 103 year old father and 90 year old step mother (bless her heart) and are from Melbourne. They just booked their next cruise in May 2018 for the Mediterranean. Lynn lost her husband a few years ago, and accompanies her father on the cruise each year. This is her third time with this itnerary, but dad is busy booking his next cruise next year. Sadly one of her daughters is addicted to drugs and currently in jail. She happy that her other children are successful and happy with their lives.

Dinner is interesting because you never know who you’ll be sitting with if you share a table. One night we sat with the former ambassador from Sweden who lived in China, Israel, and Russia. It was their first Regent cruise and his wife was not happy with it because the excursions are included at no extra cost so too many people go on the excursions - go figure?

Then there was the couple from Switzerland. He was involved in the mining industry. Very boystrus and a lot of fun....

Wade and Charlotte are from Oklahoma, he’s a retired banker. Fun couple, around our age.

To be continued....

Another sea day before we get to Cairns, where the Great Barrier Reef is. We have a reef pilot on board who is guiding the captain through the reef. There are channel markers you can see, and we are also seeing some land off to the port side.

The crew has done a good job trying to keep the passengers engaged with our additional day at sea. A few guys were trying to get the ship to have a pool party, but were out voted. Instead we are having a barbecue - which was good and wine tasting this afternoon. Wine tasting and cooking demonstration was just a few of this things to do! We are trying to take it easy... for our trip to the Great Barrier Reef!

View from the back of our room - very flat seas today!

Land side of Australia- inbetween the reef

And, here’s the reef... in the distance, thank goodness for the Reef Captain driving us through the Reef!

Just hanging out... Happy Valentine’s Day! Thanks to Pat for taking our photo!

Queensland area and Cairns is the home of the Great Barrier Reef, located in northeastern Australia. The port is very Beautiful sourounded by mountains. The Great Barrier Reef, is the largest living thing on Earth, and even visible from outer space. The 1,400 mile long ecosystem comprises thousands of reefs and hundreds of islands made of hundreds of types of hard and soft coral. It's home to countless species of colourful fish, molluscs and starfish, plus turtles, dolphins and sharks.

Our day at the reef was memorable with Tim doing a dive and me taking a snorkel hike with a guide. We indeed saw much of the coral heads and fish. An outgoing tide prevented us from having clear visibility until later in the afternoon when I took my snorkel.

But, the highlight of the day was our decision to take a helicopter back to the port. I got to sit next to the pilot so I had the best view of everything. The Reef was crystal clear, and the mountain ranges beautiful. Truly a great day!!

Our ride back to the port! Very cool...

The Reef from the sky, the pilot tried to give us the best view

Victoria Island...

Today we are in Townsville... The largest urban center north of the Sunshine Coast. Their port looked very industrial, only to find out that they export sugar and copper! I’m not sure where the sugar fields are, but a hudge export. It also is the home of the Museum of Tropical North Queensland - Reef Aquarium. The tour provided a view of fish and corals that we didn’t see yesterday, today. They also have a turtle hospital, which was quite interesting.

The weather though is taking the cake. They are having exceptional hot weather with temps in the 90’s. I’m hoping it cools down before Sydney, and we walk the bridge!

This guy was rescued and brought to the \240hospital as a youngster. Very friendly fellow!

The aquarium was very cool - lots of beautiful fish.They had the bigger fish and shark tank also, but the pictures didn’t turn out very well!

Another day at sea... on our way to Brisbane, the capital of Queensland. We passed time attending a lecture on trade routes and conflicts in this area. Later on we opted for a spectacular wine tasting at the Prime 7 restaurant on board. It was great, learning about the different wines and they were paired with foods that accented the flavors in the wine. Too much food and wine - we skipped dinner :)

Tonight was the traditional Crew Capers where members of the crew put on an entertainment show. It is always great because they many times do something traditional from their home country. Then they brought almost all of the staff on stage to recognize each category of staff and say their good-byes. I always say, if you don’t know some of the crew, you’ve been hiding in your cabin for the cruise.

New world - old world wines... Favorite - Opus One Mondoavi - interesting fact Italian wine maker joined with Mondavi to blend a wine (Luce Della Vita Frescobaldi) \240- which was actually very good!

Here’s to you...

Crew farewell

Today’s port is Brisbane... which is the state capital of the state of Queensland. It is also known as the major surf area in Australia, though today beaches are closed due to high surf - remnants of Cyclone Gita. Overlook of the city is very metropolitan and very clean.

But, today we headed out of the city to Mount Tamborine for a 4 wheel drive experience. The vehicular were not what we expected - 4 wheel drive 15 passenger Mercades van - but it was a great day. After 4 wheel driving to get up to Mount Tromborne - we hiked through a rain forest to a waterfall. Then a barbecue for lunch and we learned to throw a boomerang. Looks easy but, I think that Jenny & Woody, who are familiar with ultimate frisbee, would have a better chance of throwing it better. I also didn’t realize that there were left handed - right handed boomerangs. Tim tried, but I’m sure there is a knack to perfecting your throw! All and all, great day seeing the countryside, which included kangaroos just hanging out!

Heading onto Sydney tonight - with a warning from the Captain to expect rough seas... Hang on!

A little hiding hole for a poisonous spider that comes out at night!

Tramborine waterfall...

Stop for tea...

Time for wine tasting

Boomerang training... Watch out it may get you!

Good-bye Brisbane, the Pilot is on board to guide us out of the river!

Well, today is our last day at sea as we make our way to Sydney. There are a number of guests that are staying on, but also a majority that are leaving. As I said before, we’ve met some pretty incredible people that truly have left a mark in our minds.

Our seas are rough - with 8 to 10 foot swells last night... so rough the pilot did not get off the ship due to the dangerous transfer.

Rather than packing we are visiting with those who are leaving, including a nice person from Australia - Lynn. She bought me a little token yesterday while in Brisbane and we hope to meet up again. Her son just recently moved to Colorado, so she will be traveling to the US this fall.

Lunch today included the traditional ice carving...

Tomorrow, is the Sydney Bridge walk with Val and Jay. According to the captain we may see some “liquid sunshine” - but it will still be fun and memorable!

It is a bird...

We did it!

A 360 degree view, 1,390 stairs, 440 feet high and 1,650 feet long... and the view from the top spectator. Today we are in Sydney and with little to do we opted to take the climb on the largest single arch span bridge in the world. After a great cruise up Sydney harbor early this morning we hopped in a taxi to pick up our friends Val and Jay who are joining the cruise to New Zealand, we made our way to the Sydney Harbor Bridge. What a beautiful day with temps in the low 70’s wind about 20 - 25 miles per hour so breezy at the top! The Bridge Staff are extremely organized, from the fashionable jumpsuits, to latches all over to secure everything possible! Sorry no cameras except the one held by Holly our guide. We were able to see the city and feel the vibration of traffic and the sway of the bridge - all too cool.

Sydney Harbor Bridge... Pretty spectacular

Sydney Harbor... Sydney Harbor is very pretty with its rock bluffs as you come it.

Well, time to move on to Melbourne, with another sea day before our arrival. After our 5 AM wake up call today - I think we will sleep in! Still Rocky due to Gita which is giving the seas an extra rock.

Sea day... new passengers on board so it is different not to see familiar faces. Surprisingly though over 100 passengers are a carry over from our original cruise.

Good news is, there is another wine tasing... Not so good news Cyclone Gita has hit New Zealand and with that our seas the next few days are going to be rough. So rough that we are spending only 1 day in Melbourne rather than an overnight and an overnight in Dunedin. We will miss Eadn Australia which is one place we wanted to hit. The other issue is now our 3 days at sea between Edna and New Zealand will now be 4... Oh well, I guess I would rather have a memorable cruise with good things rather than a memorable cruise with bad memories! I am sure we will be able to find something to do!!!!

Melbourne is the capital city of the state of Victoria Australia, the second most popular city after Sydney. We were suppose to have 2 days at Sydney, but because of the cyclone we will only be here one day and miss Eden. The Captain feels that it would be best to head out to New Zealand instead.

Today we headed out to see the city before we go on our excursion this afternoon. The city is almost “New York” like, but very clean, few homeless and kind people. There are beautiful old buildings nestled in amount the new buildings. The river runs right through the city and there is a lovely park that runs along side. Of course we found a pub to have a craft beer at named James Squire, the first in the country of Australia.

James Squire menu... Very good, though we only shared one but they got some on the ship for our crossing!

Riverside and city center at lunch - very cool area!

Then this afternoon we headed off to see the kangaroos and koalas at dusk. We had a wonderful enthusiastic guide Emily that has a passion for her job. We went to You Yang National Park first where we saw the koalas in the wild... sneaking up on them as to not scare them. There are very few left in the wild - they eat eucalyptus which is very poisonous and has no nutrious value. They sleep about 20 hours a day. We met Pat, below, who is a male about 5 years old. Very laid back and let our group observe him as he showed off for us. Interestingly enough the guides have named the koalas and can tell the difference between them by their nose. Each nose has a unique pattern - kind of lik a finger print?

Then we moved on toBig Rock National Park to observe the “gangs” of kangaroos. There were probably about 40 of them feeding - which they like to do at dusk. Very interesting creatures that can over populate an area. Yes, they are similar to deer where people shoot and eat them. They had some on the ship - Tim and Jay tried it and thought it tasted good... Not me!

This guy was staring at us...

Back to the ship right before leaving the port at 10 PM and looking forward to (ugh) 4 days at sea to get to Dunedin New Zealand, where we will spend 2 days instead of 1. Hopefully our crossing will be uneventful. \240

Day at sea has been uneventful - so far. Lecture was on Australia, New Zealand and their history and similarities or differences compared to the US. Lunch provided burger heaven with beef, pork, tuna and turkey - great with a little local beers! However, the longer we sat there the more rocky it got!!!!! Hang on to your hat the worst is yet to come!

Onto the “meet your neighbor” night - hopefully they are as nice and interesting as the last!

Yes another sea day... its beginning to be a bit like ground hog day. The seas are very rough, to the point where it is difficult to walk down the halls. The upper deck for walking is closed as are the lower decks.

They have two guest lecturers on board. The one of interest is the on speaking about Australia and New Zealand.

Tonight was dinner at Prime 7 - the well known on the cruise for their steaks and wonderful food... here’s a sample of our meal!

Veal chop....

Fresh berries...

Cruising the Tasman Sea heading tomorrow to the Fjords of Milford Sound. We are hoping that the weather clears so that the smooth sailing. This afternoon the weathe is improving - at least it’s not raining and the sky is brightening (it’s the little things). We went to the movie this afternoon Darkest Hour - which was good! Then up for the local beer before getting ready to ... eat again!!

What a site to wake up to this morning... Milford Sound!

The Sound is on the west coast of the South Island of Milford Sound. There is something spectacular around every corner. We read that the sound was carved by the glaciers durning the ice age. The cliffs rise more than 3,250 feet above the dark waters. There are multiple waterfalls that add to its beauty.

There is a resort and landing strip on a small spot of land in the sound. We spent about 3 hours in the Sound and then headed back out to the somewhat rough seas. And, our stop wasn’t without an issue, another medical evacuation from the ship. They lowered a life boat, moved the patient out, and took him to the little island where he could be medically evacuated to Dunedin.

Tomorrow is Dunedin where we will spend an overnight. The next 6 days are all in New Zealand before our trip comes to a close on March 6th.

Milford Sound and There goes the life boat...

Tuesday and Wednesday (27 & 29) was Dunedin New Zealand the second largest city in the South Island of New Zealand. The area was settled by the English and Scotch, who found Australia’s humid and hot climate too much for farming.

Dunedin is surrounded by the harbor and hills and is more developed by manufacturing and education than the next city we will visit Akaroa. Due to all of our schedule changes with the cyclone we had two days in Dunedin.

First day, we traveled to the Larnach Castle that we nestled in the hills. The original family were into banking in the 1800’s and after multiple children decided to build the house. It took over 12 years to complete the build, but the interior, particularly the detailed wood carved ceilings, banisters, paneling was interesting. The grounds have a large beautiful garden that overlooks the bluff. The original owners let the house go and it sat empty for sometime before the now owner bought it and refurbished it to its original condition today.

After lunch, we headed off to the Penguin Hospital and nature reserve. We got to see the Yellow-eyed Penguins that were being cared for in the hospital. Then we trucked to the ocean and found some living in the wild. Cold winds were blowing off the ocean in hopes we would site some heading back in from hunting for the meal for the day. There are only about 1000 of this type of penguins left, which is why the sanctuary was set up. Great cause!

Another penguin was picking on this guy and he got a bloody eye!

Day 2 we headed off for our craft beer tour. Speight’s is the first brewery in southern New Zealand established in 1876. Obviously it has gone through many generations of change over the years and after a major earthquake they were forced to do much renovation. Today the plant is very modern and only employs about 20 people compared to the 100 in days past. The guide there liked our T-shirts from Dunedin Brew in Dunedin Florida... He said he had one like what we had! We toured, tasted and ate... great day.

Welcome to Akaroa, a cute little town which has a unique French influence. Akaroa is a new port after Christchurch was leveled by a major earthquake. They have multiple quakes in New Zealand on a routine basis just like California. \240The area is surrounded by craggy volcanic landforms and scenic coastline.

Today we ventured out into the back country and the views are undiscribable! The roads are not made for a lot of traffic and as the bus made its way around the hairpin curves to get us to Waimakariri Gorge for a day of lots of fun.

Meet Pat (the name I gave him), the welcoming committee to Walmart Apline Ranch! Once we got through what is called the Southern Alps, our two adventures were a jet boat ride up the gorge and a 4 wheel trip through the back country. Oh my, the views of the rock that lines the river were just unbelievable. The boat was fast, fun and wet but worth the ride!!

Jet Boats - Hang onto your hat... it’s the 360 degree turns that will get you wet!

This is the Pinnacle that was in Lord of the Rings, which was filmed in New Zealand.

Then off for some 4 Wheeling - where we got to see more of those spectacular views... Beautiful country - well worth the trip to see the countryside! The river looked cloudy because of resent rains in the area.

Great day in Wellington New Zealand! Today our travel agents group - Virtuoso, sponsored a tour of Wellington. Wellington is the capital city of New Zealand, cultural center and recently dubbed “the coolest little capital in the world”. It is nestled between a neat harbor and the bush clad hills. We started the day with a trip through the city to Mount Victoria where you had a 360 degree view of the city.

We then went to the Botanical Gardens which is located in the Lady Norwood Rose Gardents. The roses were at the end of their beauty so it was rather a disappointment - though they had green houses filled with multiple plants. They also had a Chinese Gardent with waterfall.

Then on to a view of the “Beehive” which houses country officials and in the same area Parliament.

Next stop the “Te Papa” museum of New Zealand which contains the history of New Zealand, including the geological formation up to today. There was also information on the indigenous culture of the Maori population - which was quite interesting. The Maori population has, in many ways, incorporated into todays world and actually has members that are active in politics.

Last but not least, we couldn’t miss a meal so we were hosted at Boulocott street bistro who provided a wonderful traditional NZ lunch! The Victorian House was built in 1876 and originally known as the Pimmer House. Situated in the middle of the city, it is on the National Historic Registry so can not be modified or torn down. Great people, food and good time!

And

Today we stopped in Napier New Zealand, located in Hawks Bay. Napier is known as the largest wool centre in the Southern Hemisphere and has the primary export seaport in northeastern New Zealand. They are a major export is of apples, pears, and stone fruit. Although, Napier has become known for its large production of grapes and wine production. The amount of timber that we have seen in all of the ports in New Zealand is unbelievable. Truckload after truckload, acres of timber on the ports, Napier was only the first port that we actually saw the timber cut into lumber. Even though we saw a lot going out, they assured us that for every tree they cut down, they plant two. \240Most of it ships to China, United States and Japan.

All of New Zealand suffers from earth quakes on a somewhat daily basis. Many of the areas have been leveled, like Churchchrist two years ago. Napier and Hawks Bay last earth quake was in 1931, which leveled this town. Rebuilt it looks very family friendly with multiple parks and gathering areas, small city life, and people that are very proud of their area.

We traveled through the city and had the opportunity to visit two different winery’s. One, Moana Park is a vegan winery on beautiful grounds. Wine was good - but not like we are use to. The next was Mission Winery which is located on a beautiful acreage with an old house with a lot of history. This house, was cut into 4 or 5 sections and moved from town to its current location in the early 1900’s. Again the wine was so-so, but well worth the stop just to see the grounds!

The weather could not have been more perfect to sit outside and enjoy the wine!

Mission Winery...

Overlooking the vineyard

This area is into antique cars... my ride back to the ship... No!

Our other stop was at Te Mata Peak - also known as The Sleeping Giant. First the ride up the mountain - we had to be escorted up to the top because it is only a one lane road. Once up there, great views from every location. The area has multiple hiking paths, mountain biking and (YES) hang gliding. Great views...

Today is Tauranga, which is a major city of the western Bay of Plenty on the east coast of the north island. This is a major resort site with its famous beaches. The Tauranga (which translates into a sheltered anchorage) comes from the Maori - the Eastern Polynesian group who settled New Zealand. The Maori, unlike the Aboriginies in Australia, the Maori are very active in their community.

Today we headed out to the Te Puia Theremal Reserve which contains over 500 hot springs. There is “mud” bubbling and geysers that shoot off at various times of the day. The pools are scalding so you want to make sure you stay away. The only bad thing is the sulfur smell that you can smell in the town. The guide said that it takes about 5 years to get use to the smell.

Stay away... Be careful

Devils Cave... Their name not mine

Beyond the fence is the mud pot

Ah, the last port! We opted not to go kayaking today but rather to take it easy as I had to start packing for home. Today we are in the Bay of Islands - considered to be the birthplace of “Modern New Zealand”. The area is best known for the signing of the Waitangi - establishing British rule and granting the native inhabitants equal status. The area is compromised of multiple little islands that must be accessed by boat. We took the tender to Waitangi and went into town to explore. We found a farmers market which included local crafters and other items. Then made our way to the Paihia School Road Track which is a 1 mile \240track up to the look out on top of the mountain. This was a good hike (we needed it) through thick lush tree covered paths up to the look out.

What do you think - pretty cool! After visiting with a few locals up at the top, we made our way down. After such a great exercise.... we had to stop for a local beer!

Great area, lots of nice people and it seems like a lot to see...

Local dock - they must catch fish!

But the day is not complete without the goodbyes to those we met. We exchanged our information with a few people and hope to see some again. It was amazing how you could connect with some and everyone had a story!

D-Day... Time to leave the ship and head home. We arrived in Auckland the largest city in New Zealand, which we will fly home from here. Our flight is not until 7:30 so we had the opportunity to take a tour of the city before we left.

Auckland is a very diverse community with the largest population of Polynesian community here. We took a ride to the top of the city to the Michael Joseph Savage Memorial Park that gives you a 360 degree view of the city.

Can’t beat the views from here!

Then off to the Tamaki Paenga Hira War Memorial Museum which contained a large war exhibit that went from World War I through the Korean War. It highlighted New Zealand’s participation in the war... very interesting. The museum also included some information on the volcanic and earthquake issues that plague the area.

Last stop before we head to the airport - lunch (after all it’s been a while since we had a meal)! Today, we were on our own and Val and Jay suggested Chinese. We were lucky to find a local that could give us a few good recommendations - and we found a good one.

On to the airport for our trip home - should arrive in Los Angeles at 10:30 AM March 6th - better known as ground hog day since we are leaving on the 6th from NZ! Hope to land in West Palm Beach around 11:30 and by then I’m sure we will be dog tired!!

All good things must come to an end!