1
Oakville

Flew to Vancouver

2
North Vancouver

Arrived in Vancouver on December 18th for Scotty’s successful surgery.

Andrea and I went to a choir concert and to the Nutcraker when we weren’t with Scotty.

3
North Vancouver

Family Christmas at Chez Barr’s

4
North Vancouver
5
Capilano River

Capilano Suspension Bridge’sβ€”

Festival of Lights

6
VanDusen Botanical Garden

Fun times in the rain at the Gardens!

7
Lower Lonsdale

First sunset of 2020. Bring it on!

8
Vancouver

Our travels to Australia

Vancouver to Sydney doesn’t seem to have any land in between

9
Sydney
10
Sydney

Made it. One plane and 15 hours. No smoke in Sydney today. Many people here on holidays and fleeing the fires. God bless them!!

Resting by the pool today and then the \240tours start tomorrow.

11
Sydney

A view from The Four Seasons pool. Love it here.

12
Sydney

As is tradition ... this is a \240picture of

Randy’s first beer in a new country!!

13
Sydney

Opera house and harbour bridge from a boat cruise.

Beautiful Sydney. Every corner of the streets are more historical and more interesting!!

The bush fires are all around us in Sydney. Mainly south and west. We have seen Salvation Army tents and stations for the β€˜Fireies’ and signs saying thank you to them.

The volunteer fire departments are not subsidized by the Australia government. In fact, disaster relief is paid by each state.

They need support- as does the Salvation Army Australia.

Constant haze here in Sydney. But it’s smoke from fires.

Friends told us this walk was brutal. They went when it was 38 degrees celsius.

The Opera House.

Touring it tomorrow.

Australians have simple names for everything. The is β€˜Harbour Bridge’

14
Scenic World

Went up to the Blue Mountains today.

They have had some recent bush fires. Hazy today but no smell of smoke.

Misty and cool. Just what the β€˜fireies’ wanted!

Three Sisters

Beautiful ferns.

Old train tracks for the coal miners

Randy and a train car with coal.

Two Cable car 🚠 \240rides and a train ride to view Scenic World. The coal mines in the Blue Mountains.

15
Sydney

Toured the Sydney Opera House and said goodbye to Sydney.

16
Sydney

Dining at Bennalong Restaurant in the Sydney Opera House.

Last night in Sydney.

Amazing and delicious restaurant.

17
You Yangs Regional Park

Visited You Yangs National Park. They research koalas. And then visited a park and saw some kangaroos in the wild.

La Luvia. Born on this park

Mommy Roo and her Joey

15 year old Pat.

An Emu

Brett. Out outback guide.

18
Melbourne

A tour of Melbourne. A pretty little city.

At Patrick’s Cathedral

Cricket Stadium.

Our ship.

19
Phillip Island

Wallabee

Rainy day. Which the koalas love. They were licking the water from the tree. Rare occurrences. But because of drought they need to drink the water from the rain.

Phillip Island natural park.

Seas were too rough to go over to the island with hundreds of seals.

Mama koala. In her retirement village/ natural sanctuary. They continually plant trees for them. Their favourite trees!!

20
Gunns Plains Caves

Burnie Tasmania

Beautiful agricultural fields.

Tasmanian Devil. His jaw is as strong as a grey white shark.

100 000 000 year old caves in Burnie.

21
Milford Sound

Disembarked the ship for two days and one night in the Milford Sound fiords.

Arrived in Queenstown for the night. Took gondola up to top of mountain.

Lake Wakatipu. Queenstown. NZ.

22
Dunedin

Vineyards

Rent a Scooter.

Glacial rivers

Sheep sheering at Walter Peak in \240Queenstown

Bungee jumping bridge at Kawarau bungee jumping centre.

Prettiest train station in Dunedin

Yes. Milton New Zealand

Cute homes in Arrowtown. They can’t renovated or torn down and the town is not allowing anymore building. Cutest little town around \240the Goldd Rush of the 1800s

23
Waimakariri River

Jet \240boating on the river.

Jet boating

4 wheeling to this sheep β€˜station’

Llama

Train bridge built in early 1900s

24
Wellington

One location site.

Creators of Lord of the Rings and many other movies.

Capital of New Zealand. On the southern portion of the North Island

Hiked through the β€˜forest in the middle of town’ where portions of the movie was made.

They have all of the movie making manufacturing needs in a couple blocks in the small town of Miramar

Same β€˜cave’ as the movie. \240See the trees in the background?

Look familiar?

25
Napier

Napier

A trip to Cape Kidnappers Station to see the scenery and the Gannets

26
Tauranga

They get a haircut Once a year.

Kiwis grow on a vine like grapes

Kiwis

Sheep shearing

Grass skirts that they make

Geyser

Picture of a Kiwi

Maori people, orginal settlers of New Zealand, wood working

This tree is over 500 years old.

27
Bay of Islands

Tall ship

Last dinner with our friends Carol and Sam and Jackie and Bruce.

Disembarking tomorrow in Auckland.

Little cruise to β€˜Hole in the Rock

28
Auckland

Skyline of New Zealand

Sky Tower

Views from the Sky Tower

View of the Sky Tower.

Beautiful and vibrant waterfront in Auckland

29
Waiheke Island

Sunset skyline of Auckland

Olive oil

The ferry that brought us to the island

Amazing vineyards and wines being produced on this island with the perfect climate.

A fun day of touring on waiheke island