Fiordland NZ

Our last day in New Zealand was spent sailing through fiordland, in the south western corner of the South Island. We visited several fiords (also called sounds). Milford Sound is probably the most famous, although Doubtful Sound is larger. It wasn't a nice day weatherwise as it was raining and quite cold up on the deck but the rain made the area look particularly beautiful and mysterious.

                            

                            

We were last in this area four years ago when we went on a day trip including a boat ride. Once again, a cold day but very different skies.

                            

                            

                            

   

   

    

Home Again

We arrived home yesterday from our New Zealand cruise. We had a great time and were well looked after by the crew of the Sea Princess. The highlight for me was Akaroa on the South Island, one of the first European settlements in New Zealand. Our ship anchored in the beautiful harbour and the tender boats took us into the little town which still has a French influence. This was my third visit to Akaroa and hopefully not my last, it really is my favourite place in New Zealand.

                            

                            

                            

                            

As mentioned in my last post, during our visit to Tauranga, we hiked up Mt Maunganui and even though the top was covered by cloud, the views on the climb were spectacular.

                             

                            

                            

More photos tomorrow including the famous Milford Sound.

Still Cruising

We are half way through our cruise now. Unfortunately, I am unable to post any of my photos, that will have to wait until I am home. The first three days of our cruise were sea days which gave us time to relax and take it easy.

Our first port of call was Auckland and it was so nice to be able to go for a long walk around the city, visiting the lovely Albert Park and walking along the waterfront. The next day was Tauranga, a town we had not been to before. We took a bus into the township in the morning and after lunch we hiked up Mt Maunganui and visited the blowhole. This photo courtesy of NZ Tourism.

                         

Mt Maunganui was a challenge and when we got to the summit we were in the clouds, so no view! But we had spectacular views on the way up and down and also we also watched a young man parasailing up at the top.

Our third port of call was Napier, a lovely town which was destroyed by an earthquake in 1931 and they rebuilt it in the art deco fashion of the time. 

Today we are in Wellington for the day and are meeting up with the owners from our last housesit in Upper Hutt. It will be so nice to catch up with them and hear the latest news, we have already heard that one calf has been born!

We will be back home in Brisbane next Monday, will post some more with some photos then.

Cruising

Today we set off on a 14 night cruise to New Zealand and return. We booked this cruise in February, long before we accepted the housesit in Upper Hutt New Zealand. We love cruising, it's very relaxing and the best part is you only unpack once! Our itinerary is below and the only place we have not been to is Tauranga, so looking forward to spending time there. My favourite town in New Zealand is Akaroa and I'm excited to be going back again.

                       

Our ship is the Sea Princess and it made news recently as it had mechanical problems and cancelled the last two cruises, so we had been hoping it would be ok for our cruise and thankfully it is. 

The last time we cruised on a Princess ship was in 2003 to Alaska and that was a fantastic experience. 

Here is the Sea Princess moored alongside the Portside Wharf Brisbane where we board her. On the weekend we found out that we have been upgraded to a bigger and better stateroom!

                        

We have three 'at sea' days before we get to Auckland, so will be out of contact for those days but hopefully I can give you updates when we reach land.

   

Floriade

At this time of year in Canberra, a visit to Floriade is a must. The annual festival which runs for 30 days celebrates spring and the flower displays are always magnificent. It was a public holiday in Canberra today and as it was such a lovely warm day, there were lots of people out enjoying the festival.

                         

                          

                          

As our daughter and son in law came home last night, we took our granddaughter with us to Floriade, leaving the baby at home with Mum and Dad. We took a bus there and of course, the bus ride was one of the highlights of the day for her. Plus we had a ride in a teacup, such fun!

                         

A Special Housesit

We are spending 5 days in Canberra and for my overseas readers, Canberra is the capital of Australia and about a 1 hour 40 minute flight from our home in Brisbane. 

I guess you could call this weekend 'a housesit' even though it is for our daughter and son in law. 

They are away for the weekend enjoying some rare free time without the children. We offered to fly down and not only 'housesit' for them, looking after the house and the pets but to care for the grandchildren too. I don't think normal housesits include looking after children but of course, grandchildren are extra special!

                                      

                                          

Our granddaughter is 2.5 years old and our grandson is 10 months. A big job to take on but they are well behaved and very happy children and a joy to look after. 

It's quite a warm weekend in Canberra and very pleasant outside so yesterday we took them for a bus ride to the local shopping centre and at that age, bus and escalator rides are fun. Also a walk to the park to play keeps them amused and happy!

                                          

        

Inner City Beach

The other day I mentioned that Brisbane City has its own beach. I walked through the South Bank Parklands yesterday and took this photo. It was a nice warm spring day so there were lots of people enjoying the beach and the parklands.

                            

This photo (courtesy of Tourism Queensland) shows how the beach is right beside the Brisbane River.

                            

It's a great backyard!