Welcome to New Zealand, the land of the Kiwis!
We arrived in Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand with a whopping 1.3 million people (more than a quarter of all Kiwis)!
Reminded us a bit of Sydney, with most of downtown and the views centered around the harbor.
Nice views from the Sky Tower to the Harbor Bridge. Reminded us a lot of the Seattle Space Needle, except...
... YOU CAN ACTUALLY JUMP FROM THIS ONE!
A "controlled" base jump. Hmm... still scary, especially since they dangle you at the viewing platform for several seconds before you drop!
Once we left the city, a soon to be familiar sight met us - sheep.
Yep, at it again. Driving on the left side.
Catching up with old friends. Thanks Gina and Nick for a wonderful day and delicious dinner! :)
Beautiful and cool Raglan.
Next day it was time to geek out a bit and visit Hobbiton!
Original set of the new movie THE HOBBIT and some sets reused from LORD OF THE RINGS.
Max giving his best Hobbit impression.
Sylvia in front of Bag's End, the dwelling of Bilbo and Frodo Baggins.
Fun Fact: The tree on top was actually relocated from another site. Since the leaves didn't make it, they manually (!) colored and attached a few thousand fake leaves to restore the tree to its former glory - glad we didn't volunteer for that internship!
Our journey continued to Rotorua, which is known for 2 things: Maori culture and geysers.
In the evening we went to a Maori dinner and show. Here is our welcome by the Maori warriors. :)
Glad we know this is just for show...
The ladies were more welcoming with their poi dance.
Brings back memories from past UPS luau performances. We had to practice 5 months to get even remotely as good as they are.
Final farewell with the chief!
And here are the promised geysers. The Lady Knox geyser faithfully erupts daily (with a little help from its friends).
In the Wai-O-Tapu National Park with the Champagne Pool in the background. Looks pretty, but smells like rotten eggs!
Close-up of the Champagne Pool: red clay rim, green bubbling water, and very hot!
Sulphur pond - stinky!
Time to catch some fresh air again driving along the East Coast.
Welcome to beautiful East Cape!
The Eastern-most point of New Zealand.
Quiet beaches everywhere. Nice to travel a bit outside of peak season. :)
Napier - little city on the East coast best known for its Art Deco architecture.
Live entertainment and talkative locals. Easy way to relax at the end of the day.
In a short day's drive we make it to our final destination on the North island: Wellington!
Farmers market in front of the main attraction in town - the Te Papa Museum of New Zealand.
Next to exhibits about Maori culture and New Zealand's history, one of Te Papa's most famous exhibits is the Giant Squid.
Weighs in at nearly 500kg (1,000 lbs) and is 4.2m (14 ft) long. Wouldn't want to meet that guy personally in the ocean.
In front of the Civic Center.
Max and a founding father with the "beehive" (New Zealand's Parliament) in the background.
Alas, our time on the North Island was coming to an end. We decided to take the Interisland ferry to cross to the South Island.
Nice and comfy for the next few hours.
Goodbye Wellington!
Next up: our final country blog post - the South Island of New Zealand.
We arrived in Auckland, the largest city in New Zealand with a whopping 1.3 million people (more than a quarter of all Kiwis)!
Reminded us a bit of Sydney, with most of downtown and the views centered around the harbor.
Nice views from the Sky Tower to the Harbor Bridge. Reminded us a lot of the Seattle Space Needle, except...
... YOU CAN ACTUALLY JUMP FROM THIS ONE!
A "controlled" base jump. Hmm... still scary, especially since they dangle you at the viewing platform for several seconds before you drop!
Once we left the city, a soon to be familiar sight met us - sheep.
Yep, at it again. Driving on the left side.
Catching up with old friends. Thanks Gina and Nick for a wonderful day and delicious dinner! :)
Beautiful and cool Raglan.
Next day it was time to geek out a bit and visit Hobbiton!
Original set of the new movie THE HOBBIT and some sets reused from LORD OF THE RINGS.
Max giving his best Hobbit impression.
Sylvia in front of Bag's End, the dwelling of Bilbo and Frodo Baggins.
Fun Fact: The tree on top was actually relocated from another site. Since the leaves didn't make it, they manually (!) colored and attached a few thousand fake leaves to restore the tree to its former glory - glad we didn't volunteer for that internship!
Our journey continued to Rotorua, which is known for 2 things: Maori culture and geysers.
In the evening we went to a Maori dinner and show. Here is our welcome by the Maori warriors. :)
Glad we know this is just for show...
The ladies were more welcoming with their poi dance.
Brings back memories from past UPS luau performances. We had to practice 5 months to get even remotely as good as they are.
Final farewell with the chief!
And here are the promised geysers. The Lady Knox geyser faithfully erupts daily (with a little help from its friends).
In the Wai-O-Tapu National Park with the Champagne Pool in the background. Looks pretty, but smells like rotten eggs!
Close-up of the Champagne Pool: red clay rim, green bubbling water, and very hot!
Sulphur pond - stinky!
Time to catch some fresh air again driving along the East Coast.
Welcome to beautiful East Cape!
The Eastern-most point of New Zealand.
Quiet beaches everywhere. Nice to travel a bit outside of peak season. :)
Napier - little city on the East coast best known for its Art Deco architecture.
Live entertainment and talkative locals. Easy way to relax at the end of the day.
In a short day's drive we make it to our final destination on the North island: Wellington!
Farmers market in front of the main attraction in town - the Te Papa Museum of New Zealand.
Next to exhibits about Maori culture and New Zealand's history, one of Te Papa's most famous exhibits is the Giant Squid.
Weighs in at nearly 500kg (1,000 lbs) and is 4.2m (14 ft) long. Wouldn't want to meet that guy personally in the ocean.
In front of the Civic Center.
Alas, our time on the North Island was coming to an end. We decided to take the Interisland ferry to cross to the South Island.
Nice and comfy for the next few hours.
Goodbye Wellington!
Hello South Island!
Next up: our final country blog post - the South Island of New Zealand.
