New Zealand- Land of the Kiwi

Here are pics of the most beautiful scenery I've ever seen in the world! We took over 625 shots while in New Zealand and we were only on the West Coast of the North and South Islands. Views from Queenstown, waterfall at Milford Sound, mountain ranges, Fox Glacier, and Pancake rocks with blowholes and a rainbow. Enjoy!

New Year's Eve 2008

Charity and I were looking for an amazing spot that was not crowded to watch the firework extravaganza over Sydney. From the pics I think you'll agree we hit the jackpot while we were just wondering down a trail on the way to another spot which was guaranteed to be very crowded... I can't believe we found such an AWESOME spot! We got there around 3:30 and camped out all day on the rock taking naps, reading books, and munching on snacks my wonderful wife put together for us! Then, sunset came and it was sooo beautiful! Finally, two rounds of fireworks (one for kiddos at 9:30 and the BIG one at 12:00) The Harbour had six barges jammed with explosives along the Bridge and tops of several buildings going off in the pyrotechnic display that seemed like it lasted forever! So AMAZING! The perfect way to ring in 2009! The best part is we didn't have any traffic on the way home and got there in less than twenty minutes! We couldn't have pulled that feat off at Thunder of Louisville!

Comment on lack of posts recently

Sorry for the long delay in updating the blog as I have been dreading the day when I put all the pics we have taken so far on our travels in some form of order. Today is the day so I'll put some new photos on for all to enjoy!

He's trying to kill me

OK no, not really, but I sure thought so. There is a very scenic walk from Manly (just outside our doorstep) to the Spit Bridge. It follows the coastline over beaches and through a National Park. But no one told me it's a vigorous bushwalk over rocks that took us 5 hours. That's 5 hours one-way! Fortunately, we were able to take a bus back home.

But I admit, the walk was totally worth it. The views were breathtaking. We explored every little path available and ended up seeing Aboriginal rock art, rock carvings - do you see the face carved into the rock?, and Jeremy even scaled a cliff wall to get to the ocean.

Sydney

So we've finally made it into the city. We took the ferry from Manly to Sydney, which is a beautiful and relaxing ride with great views. We spent the day being tourist. We visited the Opera House, the Botanical Gardens, Darling Harbour which has lots of restaurants and shopping, and The Rocks which is the area of the first settlement in Australia.

Luna Park is the oldest amusement park in Australia and there is even a sister park in the US - NY, I think. We haven't visited Luna Park yet it was one of the stops along the ferry ride and I thought the picture was just too cool not to include.

At Darling Harbour, we visited an indoor zoo called Wildlife World. The biggest thing I learned that day was that many animals in Australia have large hopping legs, not just Kangaroos. First, there are numerous types of kangaroos, even ones that live in trees, as well as, rabbits, bandicoots, and mice. I'm still in awe of the mice - check out the picture below. Yes, that's a tiny mouse with large rabbit ears and big kangaroo legs. It's the craziest looking thing I've ever seen and boy, is it fast!

We've also already had the opportunity to see an Opera at The Opera House. We saw La Boheme and it was a great story. We got the tickets just days before the performance so we sat in the rafters but it was still a wonderful experience.








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In-store Training and Newcastle

We spent the past week in the Newcastle area so that I could do my in-store training. I got down and dirty in the kitchen while Jeremy laid out by the pool. We did get to have lunch together everyday. I true luxury!

I just had to share some of the pictures from Newcastle. Newcastle is a major port. We couldn't count all the huge ships waiting to be brought into port. I quit counting once I got up to 22 ships and still saw lights from the decks.

The beach is beautiful! Nobby Head in the background. It's a large hill with a lighthouse on top to direct the ships coming into port. The surf was great for all types of sports. We saw lots of people kite surfing! That's definitely a must on the list while we are here! While it looks really hard, I'm thinking I'll fall into the water alot less often than traditional surfing.

Hunter Valley Wine Country

We spent this past weekend visiting the Hunter Valley Wine Country. It's a beautiful place situated along the Brokenback Mountain range. Everywhere you looked was another beautiful view. We sampled our fair share of local wine, cheese, and beer. We had a great weekend!

Jeremy's favorite spot was the Bluetonge Brewery & Cafe. You could sample a flight of their beers (arranged from lightest to strongest on a wooden paddle) and then pick out your favorite to get a full glass for enjoyment.

We also visited the Hunter Valley Gardens. They have proper gardens including an India Tea Garden, English Rose Garden, and a Storybook Garden. I decided Humpty Dumpty and Jeremy were meant for each other - what do you think?

Finally, during a dusk drive along the route we saw our first wild Kangaroos! There are actually 2 in the photo and we saw a total of 3 the whole weekend. They are actually quite a bit smaller that I imagined - about 3 or 4 feet in height. I don't know how tall I thought they were - maybe the size of a man? Either way, it was quite a sight to see them in the wild.