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7 Mar |
It’s on to the east coast Vacations, Wine
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After two days on the west coast with its beautiful glaciers, and spectacular sunsets, it was time to head over the pass towards Christchurch on the east coast.
We decided not to stop in Christchurch, as we were told it was just another big city, instead choosing to head north towards the wine region of Marlborough.
We stopped at a few wineries in the Canterbury region, but they were not of the quality of wines we experienced during our first few days in New Zealand. Given this region is known more for it’s Rieslings [not our favorite varietal], it wouldn’t be fair of anyone to make any conclusions based on our evaluations.
Still, as has been the case everywhere in New Zealand so far, everyone has been extremely friendly, informative and helpful, and additionally, in the case of the winery personnel, very passionate about their wines. [I'll give them a few more years in the wine making category.]
By this time it was starting to get late, and we ended up traveling a little further than anticipated, since nothing seemed too appealing until we reach the little town of Kaikura.
Kaikura is a little town on the coast, with a rocky coastline similar to that along parts of Malibu, where we discovered a little lodge, set in a beautiful country setting, and with it own restaurant, reminiscent of the chateaus we stayed in during our trip to France (one of our more memorable vacations) several years ago.
Fortunately they had one room left.
Tags: New Zealand
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4 Mar |
Things are looking up Vacations
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Well, we weren’t able to get to Milford Sound, from Queenstown, on Monday either [because of the weather], so we decided to head to Wanaka, and then over to Haast, one of many very small towns we have encountered so far during our travels in New
Zealand, where we spent the night.
In Haast we met up with Dave at Heliventures who agreed to fly us down to Milford Sound on Tuesday.
Fortunately the weather cleared up significantly, and we had a remarkably smooth and safe trip.
To the right you can see Edie and me standing atop Olivine Glacier, and if you click here, you can see a few videos I took during the ride.
We decided to spend the night in Frans Joseph Glacier, we’re we finally have internet access and cell phone service again.
Tags: Milford Sound, New Zealand
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3 Mar |
IT LOOKS PROMISING, BUT… Vacations
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it’s 44°F outside, and it’s only expected to get to 48°F for the high today. We just didn’t bring that many warm cloths.
On the bright side, it is mostly clear, and the winds are reported as being light, so we might still get to Milford Sound after all.
Tags: New Zealand