New Zealand

Finally. I'm sorting photos from our recent travels. It was a fantastic trip, and I'll admit it, re-entry into my "normal" life has taken me longer than I expected. Whether it's the incredible heat that hit our area once we got home, whether it was the overwhelming "stuff" I needed to catch up on, or whether it was just me not wanting to admit the trip was over with, I've been having a weird couple of weeks. 

On with the photos already. Today I'm sharing some photos of our time in New Zealand. We found it to be a wonderful place to visit, although everything was expensive for us, since the dollar isn't having a really good time anywhere lately. We flew into Auckland, which is obviously on the water. Oh, yeah, since it's (2 large & many small) islands, most of New Zealand seems to be on, or at least not too far from, the water. Which made my boat-and-water-loving-husband quite happy, thank you very much.

We didn't go up the sky tower, and we certainly weren't tempted to bungee jump off of it (yes, some people really do that), but I loved the perspective we did get of it:

Did I mention that New Zealand is surrounded by water & lots of boats?

In case you missed my comment about boats and lots of water, here's a shot of the regatta we passed while we were on an inter-island ferry.

I love signs. I especially like signs that make me smile.  I don't know about you, but I would be more tempted to shop in a Really Good Gift Shop instead of this OK Gift Shop. It must be better than OK, since we saw several of them. Imagine: a successful chain of merely OK Gift Shops.

Our second day in Auckland it was really raining. Really raining. We went to their botanic garden anyway. I'm glad we did, since everything looks fresher and greener in the rain. Except maybe people walking in the rain, but I'm referring to plants right now, not tourists.

Flying from Auckland on the North Island to Christ Church on the South Island served as a really good visual reminder that May is their fall season. Look at those tree colors!

Look, Sheep! Being a knitter/crocheter/fiber & yarn lover, I loved noticing the different breeds and colors of sheep. I lucked upon one roadside wool shop. It was in what looked like a converted gas station. They process fiber for other people and their own as well (sorry, I checked, no online presence). I bought enough really earthy, lanolin-rich wool to make a sweater - hopefully. I'll let you know.

We drove east of Christ Church to Akaroa on the Banks Peninsula.  Still surrounded by water. See how happy my husband is on the beach? Even during polarfleece weather?

We drove around a lot of the Peninsula. More than we needed to, but let's not dwell on that. Quite a lovely place, isn't it?

I really doubt that these sheep have any idea how gorgeous their view is on days like this........

We saw and did so much during our short visit to the islands. We learned about Maori culture, saw the thriving vineyards, watched a sperm whale breeching, stood really close to some fur seals, kayaked on the Avon River, visited the Arts Centre in Christ Church, enjoyed each city's botanic garden, sampled the local brews, listened to the boy's choir in the Cathedral, enjoyed the crisp fall weather, rode the cable car in the capital city of Wellington, photographed sheep, and shopped for wool. We felt so lucky to have the opportunity to be in New Zealand. It's a beautiful place and 3-4 weeks might be enough time to really start exploring the South Island.... It's on my wish list.