Because breakfast at Dear Jervois the previous morning was a bit of a disappointment, I picked a new place for dinner this morning, Mary's. Closer to the hotel and located in a completely...
Blog posts from New Zealand
Auckland: waterfalls and parks
Since we had stayed in the Ponsonby neighborhood on a previous trip, we already had restaurants in mind and decided to return to our favorite breakfast place, Cafe Jervois. I ordered the smashed...
Auckland: rental car debacle
Unfortunately, the good vibes we had been feeling on the South Island left us after landing in Auckland. We had a pre-paid reservation for a 'meet and greet' agreement so I was hoping to see someone...
Marlborough: mussels and Cable Bay
After checking out of the hotel at 10am and packing up the car, we walked into town to do a little shopping at the local souvenir shop. On our way out of town we stopped at one last winery before...
Marlborough: wine tasting, day 2
The weather today was quite random - sunny and calm one minute, windy and raining the next. A good day for indoor wine tasting! Lawson's Dry Hills - Our first stop of the day, we just beat a large...
Marlborough: Picton and Queen Charlotte Drive
Awoke to a morning shower, so we were in no hurry and waited out the rain. Eventually, we headed north out of town to Picton and after scaling the viewpoint near Bob's Bay we drove north along the...
Marlborough: wine tasting, day 1
We woke up in a Nelson to a rainy morning but we had scheduled wine tasting for this day so no big deal. First we finished packing, then called all family members to wish them a Happy Thanksgiving....
Nelson: wine tasting on Thanksgiving Day
After sleeping in a bit we headed out on foot to pick up snacks at the grocery store and explore Nelson. Eric went into the city center to check out some gardens and I picked up a tea towel with...
Nelson: kayak trip to Abel Tasman
Our big adventure for the day was the "Heart of the Park Explorer" hike and kayak trip with Kaiteriteri Kayaks in Abel Tasman Park. We were picked up at the hotel at 7:25am. I was a bit worried when...
Wellington: botanical gardens & coastal views
Since breakfast was good the day before, we returned to Sweet Mother's Kitchen. Eric got scrambled eggs on toast and I got a flat white with an order of beignets and the breakfast burrito. Service...
Wellington: day trip to Martinborough
After a great night's sleep and feeling a mild aftershock while laying in bed, Eric got up to work out and I caught up on computer stuff. For breakfast we walked over to Sweet Mother's Kitchen where...
Wellington: flights & arrival
After a fairly long 12.5 hour flight from LA in AA's Main Cabin Extra seats we landed in Auckland. I got pulled out of the automatic immigration line (again) because of the angle of my face...
Auckland wineries: Warkworth region
Our first choice for the day, Mahurangi River, was not open due to a private function, so we headed to Brick Bay. This is quite the site, with sculptures, gardens, sheep and a very modern building...
Auckland wineries: Henderson and Kumeu regions
Wednesday After landing in Auckland and checking into our hotel, we took a 30 minute drive up to Babich Wines. Being a Wednesday afternoon it was not busy; in fact, the tasting room was empty! Once...
Auckland: restaurants
Wednesday Didas Wine Lounge - Located across the street from our hotel, this wine bar made an easy spot for our first dinner in Auckland. For round 1 we couldn't skip the Spanish classics of patatas...
Auckland: where we stayed
For our four nights in the Auckland area we stayed at the Abaco on Jervois, and we quite enjoyed our stay. We had an executive studio room on the second floor with lots of space, including a...
New Zealand – Christchurch
Christchurch was our entry and departure point for the South Island, so we spent one night on each end in the city. First night: Sudima Hotel Christchurch Airport We arrived near midnight and after...
New Zealand – Clay Cliffs and return to Christchurch
On our drive from Christchurch to Wanaka we passed a sign pointing toward the Clay Cliffs near the town of Omarama. We wrote a note to ourselves to remember them as a possible stopping point on our...
Our Itinerary
2024 Trips
San Diego, CA (Jan)
Sarasota, FL (Feb)
Madrid, Spain (Mar)
Valencia, Spain (Mar+Apr)
Palma, Mallorca (Apr)
Croatia (May)
Long Island, NY (July)
Faroe Islands (Aug)
London, UK (Sept)
Puglia, Italy (Sept)
Matera, Italy (Oct)
Rome, Italy (Oct)
Mosel Valley, Germany (Oct)
Frankfurt, Germany (Oct)
London, UK (Dec)
Manchester, UK (Dec)
2023 Trips
San Diego (Jan)
Orlando (Feb)
Richmond, VA (Apr)
Northern Italy (Apr)
NC Mountains (May)
Long Island (Jul)
Wisconsin (Aug)
Chicago (Aug)
Oak Island, NC (Sept)
Brooklyn, NY (Sept)
Bordeaux + Rugby World Cup (Sep)
Castilla y León (Sep)
Seychelles (Nov)
Willamette Valley (Dec)
2022 Trips
Florida (Feb)
NC Mountains (Apr)
Washington DC (Apr)
Valencia, Spain (May)
Hilton Head, SC (May)
Pacific NW (Jun)
Long Island (Jul)
Florida (Sept)
Chicago (Sept)
Poland (Sept)
NC Mountains (Nov)
Euro Xmas Markets (Dec)