Home!

We made it back to Philadelphia this afternoon after a stopover for one night in San Francisco. We were even able to meet Scott's sister, Heather, for lunch while in town. It was like a continuation of our "tour". Heather works at LucasArts in SF and on the way back to her office from the restaurant, she gave us a quick tour of the grounds including the famed "Yoda Statue". We can't wait to get the full blown tour when we move out there in a couple weeks!

I thought I'd end this trip and blog on an ironic note. I blogged about the royal treatment we got at the Auckland airport--premium check-in and access to Air New Zealand's lounge. As part of this, our checked luggage was labeled with "Priority Handling" tags. When we arrived in San Francisco yesterday, our bags were the last ones to roll off the plane. How funny is that!

That's it for this trip...
Cheers and Happy Travels!

This is the Life!

I'm writing from the Air New Zealand Premier Lounge at the Auckland airport. I traveled a lot with work last year. That plus our vacation travel added up to Gold Status in the "Star Alliance"--Air New Zealand is a member. That Gold status is the key to entrance to the lap of luxury (maybe I exaggerate a bit). Just imagine...comfy couches, cappuccino machines, a full breakfast spread with hot and cold items, free beer and wine if you can stomach that at 6 am (we certainly can't...). They even have fancy soap and lotion in the bathrooms. I could get used to this! I can't wait to see what Sydney Airport has to offer--we have a 6 hour layover there before heading back to SF.

Celebrating the Foods of New Zealand

In a stroke of luck, we arrived in Auckland just in time for the city's Food and Wine Festival. We decided to stroll down to the harbourfront today to check it out and enjoyed sampling various foods (mostly cured meats and cheeses). This got me to thinking about our favorite "food finds" on this trip. Scott and I love perusing foreign supermarkets and restaurant menus for interesting items that we can't get at home. Here are our top 5 picks for this vacation:

5. the "Flat White"
A flat white is like a cappuccino without the foam. You can get a flat white and a multitude of other espresso drinks anywhere in New Zealand. We even picked one up at the lone convenient store/truck stop in Lumsden (seemingly the only commercial enterprise in the exceedingly small town).

4. Chocolate Fish
Cadbury makes pink marshmallows coated with Dairy Milk chocolate in the shape of a fish. Yum…plus healthier than regular solid chocolate.

3. Roasted Chickpeas
I found these in a small supermarket in Queenstown. They are crunchy and salty like peanuts but much lower in fat and calories and REALLY high in fiber.

2. Kumara
We weren't sure what this was when we first came across it. We learned, however, that kumara is a kind of sweet potato. It's excellent in salads, in French fry form ("wedges") and mixed with pumpkin as "balls" covered in peanut sauce or as a hummus dip.

1. Ginger Kisses
Envision two semi-circles of gingery, cakey goodness with cream in the middle. Need I say more?

Days in the Dark

The rains continued in Rotorua. However, we enjoyed a traditional Maori Hangi feast and performance despite the bad weather. The hangi meal is prepared by burying the food in a pit with hot rocks and water. The meats, veggies, and even dessert prepared in this manner was delicious. Yesterday, our last day in Rotorua, was gray and rainy--another wash-out. We were luckier than those further north though. There were reports of torrential rains and serious flooding north of Auckland. For us, the wetness just put a damper on any outdoor fun. Scott and I were able to explore the Hell's Gate Geothermal Park and Spa although we were soaked after the 1.5 km hike through the park. Scott isn't a big fan of spas but I was interested in steeping in the hot mud and sulphur baths and trying a Maori massage. It was a unique and relaxing experience but, as you might imagine, the pools were pretty odorous and the smell does linger. My raincoat, bathing suit, and some of my clothes still reek of the spa in Rotorua.
We departed from Rotorua early this morning for the Waitomo Caves. We had booked the Black Labyrinth caving expedition. This is a great way to see New Zealand's famous glow worms and explore some of the awesome underground structures. We learned from my earlier blog entries in Queenstown that I'm moderately afraid of heights (you'll recall that I wimped out on bungy jumping). We learned today that Scott is a tad claustrophobic. We got suited up in our wetsuits and outfitted with inner tubes for the float down the in-cave river. The combination of the prolonged darkness and confined space was a bit intimidating so Scott decided to wait for me back at the tour company headquarters. I proceeded onward with the rest of the group and after climbing over uneven rocks in waist deep water and "jumping" over a small underground waterfall (you basically stand backwards with the inner tube over your backside and LEAP into the water) I was rewarded with a spectacular glow worm show. It was like watching the stars in the night sky. After floating peacefully downriver a bit more and then slogging over some more rocks, we emerged into the forest and then were whisked back to base for soup and a bagel. I was really not as traumatized as I look in the picture…the caving was great fun!

After the inner tube rafting adventure, we stopped on a whim at the Kiwi House in Otorohanga. We had yet to see New Zealand's mascot, the endangered kiwi. We stopped at a bird park in Rotorua yesterday, but their resident kiwi didn't make an appearance. Today, not only did we get to see the kiwi in the special nocturnal viewing room, but by happenstance, we arrived at Kiwi House right before the afternoon kiwi feeding. Mission accomplished! The kiwi are fascinating birds and almost look more like small furry mammals as they hunt and peck around their territory.


We ended the day with the 3 hour drive to Auckland and arrived at our hotel under the cover of darkness. Our road trip has officially come to an end after approximately 3000 km of driving. We've got a couple days in Auckland left before heading back to the States.

Bubble, Bubble, Toil, and Trouble

We drove from Napier to Rotorua yesterday and in the process toured some of the most active geothermal areas in New Zealand. Our first stop was Lake Taupo, the largest lake in New Zealand. The water actually covers a dormant volcano. 18,000 years ago, that volcano blew sky-high and changed the face of countryside. We hiked at the Craters of the Moon geothermal area as well as Wai-O-Tapu. It was amazing--the earth was just steaming all over the place with a nice healthy sulfur aroma to go along with it. Wai-O-Tapu featured a Champagne lake with a orange petrified rim.

My favorite part though, was the boiling mud. We chanced upon a sign that said "Mud Pool" on the road from Wai-O-Tapu to Rotorua. We decided to stop and check it out and I'm so glad we did. I don't know why, but I could have stood there all day watching and listening to the "gloop, gloop, gloop" of the boiling mud. It was quite mesmerizing, actually!

Today has been a bit of a wash-out--it's raining like crazy in Rotorua. We didn't let that ruin our fun though. We started this morning with the "Sheep Show" at the Agrodome. They showcase 19 different kinds of sheep and actually make a pretty entertaining 1 hour show out of it. And I'm not just saying that either because it kept us out of the rain… There was even an audience participation bit. As soon as the MC asked who would like to help milk a cow, my hand went up before Scott could talk me out of it. It was quite the experience and I’m happy to say that I did get a wee bit of milk out of the udders--success! This afternoon, we tried walking around town a bit but the rain (and wind) really put a damper on things. We ended up continuing the sheep theme for the day and went to see a movie called "Black Sheep", a tongue-in-cheek horror movie about genetically engineered sheep that go on the attack to maim and kill humans and turn THEM into homicidal sheep. The movie was bizarre, but entertaining, and it kept us out of the rain which didn't hurt. I'm just glad we went to the Agrodome BEFORE we went to see this movie. Otherwise, the sheep show might have freaked me out ;-)

I Love A Parade!

We made our way from Wellington to Napier yesterday with a brief detour though Martinborough. Martinborough is a boutique wine region on New Zealand's North Island. Apparently this wee town ("wee" is a favorite word among kiwis and we've been here long enough where I've started to coin the phrase...) will be home to the 5th worldwide location of the Cordon Bleu cooking school. Go figure! We were able to walk from vineyard to vineyard and sample some local vintages. We topped off our morning with a fabulous outdoor lunch at Alana Estates before driving 4 more hours to Napier. We've driven almost 2500 km's on this trip and I don't have as much patience for the long drives as I did a few weeks back. Fortunately, we only have two more legs to travel--from Napier to Rotorua and from Rotorua to Auckland.

Our hotel in Napier is wonderful despite its name (Pebble Beach Motor Inn is a bit unassuming)and overlooks Hawkes Bay. The hotel is located on the Napier "Marine Parade" which inspired the title of this blog entry. Napier is known for its abundance of Art Deco architecture.

We explored one final wine region by bicycle today. Interestingly, the bike rental company made us sign a US style waiver and list our "next of kin" just in case. We thought this rather odd since we have hiked on a glacier, gone jet boating, and kayaked without so much as signing a single form. While the majority of our 20 km bike ride was on "quiet" roads (we saw plenty of sheep!), there were a couple spots where we were basically riding at the side of a highway (now I see why they wanted us to sign a waiver...). There was even a one lane bridge to negiotiate! I'll admit that I am exaggerating a tiny bit... highways in New Zealand are one lane each way but traffic was still moving pretty fast. We enjoyed a few of the Hawkes Bay vineyards and also were able to taste some local beers and ciders. I think our favorite stop though was the Silken Oak Chocolate shop. There is nothing better than chocolate after a long bike ride!

Tomorrow we're off to Rotorua via Lake Taupo.

An Educational Day in Wellington

Lesson 1: New Zealand bagels are "decent".

Scott, being from Brooklyn, has a discerning palate when it comes to bagels. When we came across "Wholly Bagel" in Wellington, we didn't have high hopes. However, a taste test by Scott showed that the bagels were edible, and dare I say, tasty...

Lesson 2: Mac's Brewery serves up excellent cuisine as well as beer.

We stopped for lunch at Mac's Brewery overlooking the Wellington waterfront near Te Papa. The food was excellent, and much like wines in a fine restaurant, the menu suggested beer pairings to go with each main course. Yum!

Lesson 3: Maori culture is rich and multifaceted, Europeans went to great lengths to emigrate to New Zealand in the 18th and 19th centuries, and sheep farming is a complex and fascinating undertaking.

The Te Papa museum taught us all of the above in attention-grabbing, interactive exhibits. The museum lived up to its hype as a top attraction in New Zealand.

Our North Island Journey Begins in Wellington!

We awoke this morning to dense, pea-soup fog in Christchurch. When we got to the airport, all flights were suspended. We thought we were in for a long day of waiting around. The travel gods must have been with us because our flight to Wellington at 10 am was the first of the day to depart--it even departed on-time! 45 minutes later, we had landed on the North Island in beautiful, sunny, and warm Wellington.

Wellington is a charming city and the most populated we've seen in about two weeks. Scott and I were thinking about it yesterday and when we rolled into Christchurch after our drive through Arthur's Pass from Hokitika, that marked the first traffic light we'd seen since Dunedin (over a week ago!). That gives you an idea of how sparsely populated the South Island is!

We spent the afternoon today riding the Wellington Cable Car to the Botanic Gardens. We spent a relaxing afternoon walking around the city and window shopping. Tomorrow, we'll check out Te Papa (the New Zealand museum) which is noted to be the best in New Zealand (locals and tourists alike have gushed about it.

Hiking on the Franz Josef Glacier

I'm writing up this blog entry on Thursday but probably won't get a chance to post it until tomorrow. We're in a pretty remote corner of New Zealand and internet access is rather limited.

Scott and I made our way from Queenstown to Franz Josef yesterday--about a 6 hour journey. We saw some interesting features along the way including the "Gates of Haast"--magnificent boulders with roaring rapids running through.

One of the highlights of the drive was a rather quirky attraction called Puzzling World located near Lake Wanaka. They have a really disorienting and complicated maze as well as several illusion rooms. We must have walked two miles trying to solve the maze. The instructions were to find our way from the entrance to all four corner towers and back again. It took us about an hour to find all four towers. As the picture shows, we were very excited when we mounted the fourth tower!

Franz Josef is famous for its glacier. Today, we did a half day guided hike on the Franz Josef Glacier. After a short bus ride, we were led through a temperate rainforest terrain and then over a rocky, dried river bed to the face of the glacier. We couldn't have asked for better weather. It was sunny and about 65 degrees for our glacier hike. We spent about two hours climbing up the glacier and back down again. We've never done anything like this before and it was an amazing experience. Since the day was so warm, there was quite a

bit of melting going on. Our guide chiseled "drains" into the "staircases" that made up our hiking path to facilitate the water flow and maintain the integrity of the trek.

There were constant reminders that we should be particularly mindful and respectful of this environment. The glacier can move between 5 and 15 meters per day. New crevasses open up regularly. There are even ice dams that can build up and then give way to create raging rivers of water.

After our glacier hike, we made our way up to Hokitika, a two hour drive over a very curvy road to the Northwest. Hokitika is known for its jade craftspeople. The "greenstone" is mined in the region and then fashioned into sculptures, jewelry and other objet d'art. Tomorrow we're off to Christchurch via the picturesque "Arthur's Pass" to complete our circuit of the South Island. We'll be flying to Wellington, New Zealand's capital, on Saturday where we'll start our exploration of the North Island.

3-2-1 Wimp-Out! (Sort Of)

Queenstown, New Zealand features the world's first commercial bungy jumping operation. Scott has been working on me for the last few months trying to convince me that I'd have enough courage to bungy on this trip. I thought long and hard about it. We even went so far as to drive out to the jump site to check it out. I don't know if it's the thought of hurling myself off a bridge or swinging upside down by my feet above a canyon. I just couldn't bring myself to do it. So, for the record, it was me that wimped out. Scott was ready to bungy provided that I do it with him. Since I was a "no go", neither was he. We didn't totally wimp out, however…

Jet boating is another activity invented in New Zealand. I was a little nervous about jet boating because you travel at excessive speeds down the inside of a canyon on as little as 4 inches (yes, inches) of water.

These specially designed boats are really meant to get the adrenaline flowing. In deeper water, they can pivot and do a 360 degree turn within the radius of the boat. We signed up for a combination jet boat/"funyak" tour of the Dart River. The tour started with a 1 hour jet boat ride up the Dart River.

We then inflated our "funyaks" (part canoe, part kayak) and paddled down the rushing river. The scenery all around us was spectacular and was featured prominently in the Lord of the Rings movies. It's definitely a popular movie set. There was a film crew on site filming the second movie in the "Chronicles of Narnia" series. Tomorrow, we're off to Franz Josef, home of the Franz Josef glacier. We're actually doing a hike on the glacier on Thursday (that's Wednesday back home with the time difference…).

Into the Wind on Milford Sound

Note: Just publishing an update to this post with pictures on 3/24... We've got free internet in Wellington!

Just a quick post, sans pictures. I'm on the computer at our B&B (the Shakespeare House in Te Anau) and they have coin-op internet. I've got only 10 minutes before they boot me off the system! We had a great drive from Dunedin to Te Anau yesterday. We drove the "Presidential Highway" from Clinton to Gore and then spent the evening enjoying views of the mountains and lake in Te Anau. Te Anau is the 2nd largest lake in New Zealand.





Today we booked a tour on the "BBQ Bus" to Milford Sound, one of New Zealand's most famous vistas. The BBQ bus allowed us to go on a smaller tour rather than piling onto a huge coach with a million other tourists. We drove from Te Anau to Milford Sound via the Homer Tunnel--a 50 year old tunnel blasted into the granite allowing road access to the area. After a BBQ lunch and "bush walk" (basically a walk through the forest) and some stops at various awe-inspiring vistas, we took a cruise on Milford Sound (really a fjord rather than a Sound...). We spent the next hour gawking at the breathtaking waterfalls and green, snowcapped mountains. We were also lucky enough to spot a pod of dolphins swimming near the boat. The wind was incredibly powerful but that didn't stop us from taking in the views from the exposed upper deck of the boat. We totally lucked out because fog and rain came in just as our fjord cruise was pulling back into port. It's been raining hard ever since. At least we don't feel so bad having to do our laundry tonight--there's nothing else to do here when the weather's bad.

We're off to Queenstown tomorrow!

A Ride on the Wild Side

It turns out that the US isn't the only country known for its tacky roadside attractions. Scott and I set out from Christchurch to Dunedin yesterday--a 400 km drive. Our first stop was at Rakaia, the "Salmon Capitol" of the region. Our cappuccino even came with a chocolate Cadbury fish on the side. We made our way south past some beautiful snowcapped mountains in the distance to the west and the breaking waves of the Pacific to the east. We stopped at the infamous Moeraki Boulders before rolling in to Dunedin around 5 pm.

Our hotel in Dunedin was rather unique (with free internet I might add!--a rarity in New Zealand). We're staying at a boutique hotel called The Brothers which used to be a working rectory. The hotel sits at the top of a hill overlooking the Otago Harbour and boasts Baron, the "Conceirge". Baron is a big, black slobbery dog (but cute and loveable too).




Today we struck out by car to explore the Otago Peninsula (after a brief detour in the morning to check out the Cadbury chocolate factory tour. The scent of chocolate nearly made me swoon!). There were plenty of samples to go around. The Otago Peninsula juts out from Dunedin for about 35 miles. It's known for spectacular views and rare wildlife. The ride itself was a tad harrowing. New Zealanders are known as risk-takers and this was abundantly clear from the roads we were driving on. We took the "low road" along the coast on the drive out and the "high road" along the cliff face on the way back. The roads were incredibly narrow and featured sections with 1-2 feet of "shoulder" before a plunge into the water or over a really, really steep cliff. It was well worth it though for we managed to sight all the major species that we set out to encounter.

We saw frolicking fur seals on an off road adventure with Nature's Wonders tour. They use 8x8 Argo vehicles to take you from the homestead at the top of the cliff down to the beach to view the seals. We were able to get up close without disturbing the animals by hiding in a special viewing bunker. After watching the seals play, we moved on to the beach. From another specially constructed viewing area, we saw a few yellow-eyed penguins. These are the rarest of all penguins and are extremely scared of people. Of course, the Nature's Wonders tour is part of a working farm so we saw plenty of sheep too (here's a picture just for you, Heather...). We stopped off at the Royal Albatross Center on the way back to town. Our timing was perfect. We saw hatchlings in their nests (again from an observatory specially designed not to disturb the animals). We saw adult albatross soar. We even saw one of the parents feed its young (the mom regurgitates fish bits into the beak of the baby--probably more info that you really wanted…)



We made it back to Dunedin safely this evening. While walking through town, we saw a number of college students running around. What was really unusual is that the students were in costumes (one team was painted orange from head-to-toe). Apparently we had stumbled upon a scavenger hunt sponsored by a local radio station. What a quirky end to an amazing day! We're off to Te Anau tomorrow.

Driving on the Left: It's Not Easy!!!

Our first day in Christchurch, New Zealand was met with cold temperatures and torrential rains. We didn't let a little bad weather stop our exploration of this largest city on the South Island. We walked about town and enjoyed shopping at the Arts Centre which used to be a university--in fact, this is where Rutherford "Father of the Atom" conducted his experiments. I never realized that he was a Kiwi… After lunch, we took the bus to the Antarctic Exploration Center. Claiming to be the #1 attraction in New Zealand, it was pretty interesting and educational (albeit a bit overpriced in our opinion at $30 NZ/person…). We got to experience a simulated Antarctic storm (lots of cold and wind but no snow since Antarctica is the driest continent on earth…) and view the "Little Blue Penguins".

We were pleased when the weather perked up a bit today--just in time for us to pick up our rental car. We were looking forward to this day with mixed emotions. We were excited to be hitting the road to explore the countryside but scared to death about trying to drive on the left. I got behind the wheel first and let me tell you, it's not easy to switch sides when you've been driving on the right for almost 2 decades! I kept drifting left (since normally the bulk of the car is to my right…). As you can see from the picture, I was pleased to get us safely to a scenic overlook on Amberley Beach. Scott scoffed when I kept turning on the windshield wipers every time I wanted to make a turn (the wipers and turn signals are opposite of "normal"). I had the last laugh though when he did exactly the same thing as soon as he got behind the wheel. Ha! Our ultimate destination for the day was the Waipara wine region. Scott and I took turns tasting wines (he tasted and I drove then we had lunch and I tasted and he drove…). It was a lovely day. Too bad the wind kicked up and the rain started pouring again on our return to Christchurch. We're off to the South for the 5 hour drive to Dunedin tomorrow. Dunedin is home of the Cadbury chocolate factory--I can't wait!

In a Sunburnt Country

Note: Pictures added on 3/24...

I'm at a free internet kiosk at the Sydney airport waiting for our flight to Christchurch. Yesterday we spent the day at Manly Beach. Have you heard of Bill Bryson? He wrote a book called "In a Sunburnt Country"--a travelogue about Australia. I found out just what that title meant yesterday. Even with copious amounts of sunblock, my legs look like lobsters after only an hour on the beach! The beach was beautiful though...

Today we climbed the Sydney Harbour bridge. What a rush! Pictures to follow later... Our flight is boarding...

Our Run-In With the Mob

Do you know what a group of kangaroos is called? Neither did we until we signed up for an Australian off road "adventure" day trip on Friday. A group of kangaroos is a mob, by the way, and we had a run-in with mobs of kangaroos--both in captivity and in the wild. We started our trip with a tour of the Featherdale Wildlife park outside of Sydney. Here we could see (and pet!) various animals native to Australia. Koalas, kangaroos, wallabies, and wombats were highlights of the trip. It was so cool!

Our day trip continued with a stop at Scenic World in Australia's Blue Mountain range. The biggest thrill on this part of the journey was our guide, Mark, getting pulled over by the police for running a stop sign… Scenic World wasn't as picturesque as it could have been because of rain and fog. However, we did get a glimpse of the "Three Sisters" and Katoomba Falls. We fortified ourselves with lunch at the historic Imperial Hotel in Mount Victoria and then took the vehicle off-road to check-out some little frequented vistas. We even caught a glimpse (from a safe distance) of the deadly funnel web spider which makes its home among the cracks in the brick along the path. Apparently, the brick picnic areas are teeming with these guys…creepy! On our way back to Sydney, we took the vehicle through a small stream and up a winding dirt path to observe kangaroos in the wild. The kangaroos in Australia are sort of like deer in the US. You can see them in fields pretty darn close to suburban properties. Fortunately, we didn't see any dead kangaroos at the side of the road like you would with deer in the States. We returned to Sydney via a catamaran cruise on the Parramatta river. We enjoyed spectacular city and Harbour Bridge views but felt rather wind blown after the trip--it was an exhiliarating adventure.

Wine, the Loo, and the Prime Minister Too!

We embarked on a "Boutique" tour of the Hunter Wine Valley today. John, our colorful Aussie guide and driver entertained us and other passengers from around the world (our tour-mates for the day included a couple from Newfoundland, a father and daughter from Scotland, a British couple, and a pair of friends from LA/Denver). The drive to the first winery took about 2 hours from Sydney. Our first stop was Iron Gate Estate and was owned by a reformed chemist who had decided "to follow his heart and not his checkbook" and open this place in Australia. The day was a whirlwind where we tasted Semillon, Shiraz, and Traminer (a "non-spicy" version of Gewurtztraminer, one of my favorite varietals). On the way home, we were treated to a DVD movie over the van's entertainment system. We watched "Kenny" an Aussie flick which chronicles the adventures of Kenny Smyce who is employed in the "Pump and Dump" industry. He basically plumbs port-a-potties for a living. The movie was a hoot but definitely best enjoyed after wine tasting rather than before. Scott and I (and our new friends on the van) got a good laugh out of the bathroom humor.

We didn't think that anything could trump wine tasting and a movie. However, we were shocked and surprised when our driver exclaimed "there's the prime minister!" in the middle of rush hour traffic. Sure enough, John Howard drove past us in the opposite direction, sitting in the stop-and-go traffic like anyone else with no pomp and circumstance what-so-ever. It was an amazing contrast to what you usually see in the States where roads are closed for miles around and security is at an incredibly high level whenever the President or other high ranking government official makes an appearance.

Batty for Sydney!

Scott and I arrived in Sydney yesterday morning. We spent our first day recovering from jet lag but still covered quite a bit of ground. Highlights included a delectable seafood lunch outside on Darling Harbour followed by a tour of the Sydney Aquarium. We especially enjoyed watching the duck billed platypus frolic in the water. I always imagined that platypuses (platypi???) were large like seals. I was surprised by how small they were--about 2 feet long and oh so cute.




After a refreshing night's sleep, we began to explore Sydney on foot. Walking from Darling Harbour to The Rocks and Circular Quay led us to spectacular views of the Sydney Opera House and Harbour Bridge. Halfway there, we stopped for a cup of coffee at a new place called "Size Matters". One of the employees was actually from Reading, PA. Small world… After taking in the views, we enjoyed a delicious lunch on the water. We indulged in a slice of "Sticky Date Cake" (say it with an Australian accent and it sounds even yummier) and that gave us the energy to continue our walk. We made our way into the Sydney Botanical Gardens located next to Circular Quay. As we approached a grove of trees near the center of the park, Scott and I marveled at the birds. But wait…they looked a little furry…and were hanging upside down. Upon further inspection, we realized that they were BATS! Hundreds of fruit bats call the park home. Good thing for us that it was still light outside and the bats were still napping. What a cool sight!





Tomorrow we’re off to the Hunter Valley wine region to sip some Semillon and Shiraz.

For the Birds...

Parrots? In San Francisco? We knew we would see all sorts of birds in New Zealand--from the namesake Kiwi to the yellow eyed penguins. However, who would have thought that feral parrots would call Telegraph Hill home? We visited Coit Tower with Scott's sister Heather and husband Perry this afternoon. Coit Tower is one steep hill from Heather and Perry's apartment. We were excited to find a huge flock of parakeets dining on some local berries that were ripening in the sunshine. What an unexpected treat on a gorgeous afternoon! I hope the wildlife "Down Under" is this entertaining!

Mission Accomplished!

Scott and I found an apartment and signed a lease yesterday! The picture to the left is the outside of the building. It's a two bedroom condo--the owners are moving to the suburbs south of San Francisco so that they'll have more space for their 7 month old baby. The place is located in the beautiful neighborhood of Pacific Heights and is less than 2 blocks--the uphill climb isn't even that bad... ;-) from the shuttle bus stop that will whisk Jenn to work everyday.


There is a grocery store (Whole Foods) less than a block away. The owners completely redid the kitchen and it's gorgeous with hardwood floors and granite countertops. The place is a touch on the small side (less than 1000 sq ft) but very efficiently laid out and is bright and airy.

Now, we can sit back, relax, and enjoy our last couple days in SF before we depart for the Southern Hemisphere! We're going to hang out with Scott's sister Heather and husband Perry today. Breakfast at one of their favorite haunts in North Beach is first on the agenda and we'll likely end the day at the Chinese New Year parade in China Town.

We're Packed and Ready to Go! (Almost...)

Tomorrow is the big day! We leave in the morning for San Francisco. Here we'll look for an apartment (and visit with some old friends and family in the area). What will it be? A brand new high rise condo-style apartment in the SOMA/South Beach neighborhood? A kitschy Victorian or Edwardian flat in Pacific Heights or Russian Hill? A quiet place in Noe Valley/Glen Park? How about a Loft near Union Square? We should know by the end of the week! We hope to find the perfect place in the City before we're scheduled to leave for Sydney on Sunday.

As you can see from the picture, packing light for a trip like this is no easy task :-) We did the best we could to economize on space and believe it or not, the large suitcase is only half-full to leave room for souvenirs. Scott and I love to shop while on vacation!

See you out West!

The Countdown Begins!

One week to go! Scott and I will be embarking on our vacation to Australia and New Zealand in one week! We thought that a blog would be a great way for our friends and family to share our adventure with us. Stay tuned for stories and pictures from the road...