Further Adventures...

Arlo is smiling because he is having the time of his life down here in New Zealand. It has been three weeks since we arrived, and he has become a seasoned traveller. This is a picture from one of the many walks he has been on through the lush forests (I think this was near Te Annau). We have been on the north island for just over two days now, staying with the Duggan family (John, Winnie, Sara and David) in Wellington. They are long time friends of good friends of ours in Ottawa, who kindly opened their home to us once they heard we were coming to NZ. Just like our arrival to the south island, where James and his family welcomed us into their home and gave us a chance to make some plans and get ready for our time there, the past couple of days here have helped us to recharge our batteries, get some washing done, enjoy some fabulous home cooked meals, and get ready to tackle the rest of New Zealand on the north island. I even got a chance to go for a quick climb into the surrounding hills with John yesterday for a view of the surrounding area from the highest point around. John and David took us around the city yesterday, and we loved it so much that we decided to stay an extra day and tour about a bit more. Today we went back to TePapa, thier fabulous national museum (it is a lot like the museum of Civilisation in Ottawa in style, with the National Gallery, Nature, and Science museums attached as well), rode the Metro, cruised the shopping district, visited the Parliament Buildings (yesterday we couldn't get in due to a bomb scare - in the end thebomb squad blew up some guy's suitcase full of clothes- it wasn't a bomb), rode the cable car up the hill, visited the botanical gardens, and the cable car museum, and made it home for a wonderful dinner. We are heading off north to Taupo tomorrow, and we will have just seven more nights in this wonderful country. It has been a whirlwind in many ways. We have packed so much into some of our days that in a way these three weeks seem like three months we have spent. At the same time it feels like it is almost going to be over far too soon for us. We have met a load of wonderful people from all over, and had experiences that will stay with us for a lifetime (we'll have to remind Arlo about them). One thing we are sure of is that this is just the first trip we are making down here, but sure not the last.
Time after time we have been faced with awe inspiring scenery during our drives through the countryside. It has been a struggle to keep my eyes on the road (I figure it takes 1.5 times the effort to drive on the other side of the road than it does back home), because we are constantly being innundated with km after km of breathtaking coastlines, mountain ranges, gorges, valleys, and rainforests. On those occasions we have had time to stop we have snapped more than our share of photos, and though they don't come close to doing any real justice to this country, we thought we should share some. Here are a few random shots from the past few weeks.

Creative mailboxes backed by the mountainsides outside of Queenstown, high above the Shotover River (the hill drops straight down behind those bushes about 400 feet). The river below is the one used in Lord of the Rings when Arewyn washes the Nazgul away on their horses with a rushing river.

Jenny and Arlo stopping to check out the view on the way to Milford Sound. The winds are pretty strong up near the tunnel that passes through the mountain.

A friendly and sometimes cheeky Kea we met on the way to Milford Sound (we had to check for our windshield wiper blades after we met this one).

The air in this rainforest even tastes yummy!

Milford Sound, in Fiordland (South West coast of NZ)

Seals are the only residents on the shores of Milford Sound.

The weather was so fabulous, and the seas so calm on the day we cruised the sound that it acutally made the national news! It also made Arlo drop off to sleep quite soundly.

A veiw up the sound. Milford Sound was named by British fishermen who didn't know what a Fjiord was, so they called it a sound. A sound is an inland valley that gets flooded by the ocean and is shallower towards the mouth usually, and a Fiord (spelled correctly for NZ) is a deep valley gorged out by glaciers that is open to the ocean and gets deeper towards the mouth.

Arlo checking out the underwater black coral formations and colourful sea life underneath Milford Sound.

Posing for the paparazzi again.

Mama and Arlo enjoying the cruise.

A red beaked gull.

Arlo and Daddy on the sound.

All the way across the country (Arlo slept like...well...a baby for the drive to Dunedin) this is a lighthouse on the Otago Penninsula adjacent to a Royal Albotrass observation center.

With mild weather all year long giant trees like this are common, and not always that old as they can grow all year without going dormant.

A Royal Albotrass in flight (it went straight over our heads a number of times!)

Majestic.

Arlo gets up close and personal with a nesting Albotrass. Look at the size of that bird!

At the Dunedin rail station they have a fantastic farmers market on Saturday mornings. We were impressed to see that all the produce was organic, the food stalls were filled with local fare, they even sold local micro brewery beer, and Daddy loved the steak and brie pies.

Arlo went for the music. We saw at least three duets where on played the guitar and the other sang, but he really liked the music this girl was playing.

Wrestling crocs at the Otago Museum in Dunedin.

I ate the Whitebait sandwich in Hast days earlier, but was happy to see that I could find more in Dunedin for sale (?). For those who want to know, white bait is basically a couple of dozen minnows thrown into an omlette and served between two slices of buttered white bread. Yummy is not my word for it....the locals say it is an 'aquired taste'. I almost insulted them by asking for tomato sauce (what they call ketchup). It went down, but almost did not stay there. Luckily some local beverages helped wash it down.

On the way back to Christchurch we stopped to catch the end of a polo match.

Youri and Arlo enjoy their last day playing together.

Arlo really loved watching Youri. They seemed to imitate each other at times, which was good for Arlo, but not always the best for Youri since he is a year older. It was great for Arlo to have someone kind of his size to hang with while we were in Christchurch.

Kiwi hospitality doesn't get any better than what we got with the Waghorn clan. The score is now 2-1 for James in terms of trip to the other's home country, but I clearly have him beat with total days in the country. Hopefully the families get together before the boys are in high school!

Daddy and Arlo cruising the beach at KaiKoura.

The boys trying to play the route for the day. Don't worry, Mamma made sure Arlo was snuggly in his car seat in the back before Daddy drove off.

Even the locals didn't know what to make of this pig in KaiKoura, but Arlo was pretty interested.

Hiking the waterfront along the East Coast.

Waiting for the ferry to the north island. That sun sure is bright!

Mama and Arlo saying goodbye to the south island.

With the south island fading into the background Arlo is looking towards new adventures up north.

Windy Wellington is the nickname, and up here at the windmill above the city Jenny can sure see why.

Any true movie buff needs to stop by WETA workshops 'Cave' while in town. WETA created the special effects for Lord of the Rings, King Kong, and Avatar, to name a few.

What are you guys looking at?

Arlo landed a big one while in Te Annau (this picture is out of order, but a fun one).

Arlo is having a blast, and though he misses everyone at home, he is going to continue to enjoy the rest of his time here.

And when he's done he is off to Fiji to enjoy some sand and surf. Sorry to hear that it was minus 25 back home. He'll worry about that stuff later. Now it is off on more adventures....

On the go in New Zealand

Arlo and Mama at the Waghorn farm in Little Akaloa Bay on the Banks penninsula.

Arlo likes life on the coast.

All the way across the country on the west coast Arlo and Mama take in the sunset over the Tasman Sea from the beach at Greymouth. The common joke from Kiwis all along the west coast was that 'if you look just hard enough on a clear day you can just make out the opera house at Sydney harbour in Australia'. We actually saw a few tourists who seemed to bite on that one...

Fun times on the beach at sunset (about 9:30 - 9:45ish pm)

Careful about how much fun we are having here Mama...

Ooops, as you can see from the trail from Arlo's mouth, and the look on Jenny's face, it seems that they were having a bit too much fun for Arlo's tummy...

Still smiles, because the weather we had on the west coast was unbelievably fabulous.

A couple of cool beach bums hanging out west coast style...

Aw gee Dad, stop with the kisses already....

Finally some time to relax on the beach by myself...first thing to do is to taste these salty rocks. It took Mama and Dad a while to figure out why I was so happily sitting and sucking on the beach stones, until Dad took a taste and they put an end to my salt licking.

Mt. Cook reflected in mirror lake at Lake Matheson, near the Fox Glacier. These are the pictures that kill James, because he had to go back to Christchurch with the family and we had the most amazing clear views of the mountains. Not just an everyday occurence down here.

Jenny, and the top of Arlo's head in the sling, with Mt. Cook and Mt. Tasman in the background.

Ray posing at the mirror lake.

Mama showing Arlo a Dragonfly...

Arlo showing Mama that he is a hands on learner....Poor dragonfly! (take a look at Jenny's face)

These posts look like big green candy canes...

Whaddaya mean they are meant to show the path to the Franz Joseph Glacier? I want to take it with me...

Arlo gets his feet wet at the beach on Lake Wannaka. Checking out the trout, salmon, and funny diving ducks in the observatory under the pier on the lake in Queenstown.

Still Roaming Around...

Sorry no photos with this entry, but we just got back into Christchurch after a week `on the road` and sorting through the thousands (literally) of photos we have is more that we are capable of. James, Ilhye and little Youri greeted us with dinner, an early birthday cake for myself, and some farewell from NZ gifts. It is nice being back somewhere familiar after a new place to stay every night this past week almost.
We headed to the West coast with the Waghorn family last Saturday, and it was a drive to remember. We crossed the country, which meant driving through the Souther Alps, via Arthur`s pass. It was one of the most amazing, and at times terrifying, roads one can ever travel, and easily the most amazing one I have personally driven. We wound our way up, and then down through the Alps, through several climates and biospheres. We had alpine, sub alpine, rainforest, and coastal vegitation along the way. The mountain views were spectacular. Arlo was loving　the drives, and being a great traveller all along the way.
We had fantastic weather the whole trip down the west coast, which is all but unheard of over there. The sun beat down on us giving great views of Mt Cook from the west as we trekked around Fox and Franz Joseph glaciers, and hit great beaches all along the coast. Pictures can`t explain the experiences we have had around the country here, but the ones we have taken are fantastic with the gleaming blue skies, crisp white snow capped mountains, and aquamarine blue water all along the coasts.

We ran into some sandfly issues, with bites that seemed to get worse a few days after they got us, but other than that we have had only wonderful experiences during our time here.

From the coast we headed inland to through the mountains to Queenstown, which is probably now at the top of my list for dream cities to live in. Beautiful outdoor loving place, nestled in the Remarkable Mountains, along side a beautiful crystal blue lake. Relaxed and full of energy at the same time. This was our highest night of sleeping (altitude), and the air was so crisp and the skies so clear that we could see nearly every faucet of the milky way in the night skies. From there we headed to Te Annau so we could get out to Milford Sound in Fiordland (not spelled fjiord here). We checked out the famous glow-worm caves (Te Annau is actually a Maori name that refers to these caves) and headed out on the sound for a cruise. Breathtaking is all I can say about the views on Milford. We had such good weather on the day we were out the sound that it acually made the national news here (might have been a slow news day). There we went into an underwater observatory to check out unique black coral formations that grow at an unusual depth due to the cold freshwater layering on top of the saltwater from the Tasman Sea. I would not have expected it, but we saw sea life that reminded me of coral reefs I have snorkelled on in the Phillipines or Costa Rica. Beautiful colours and incredible diversity. (and we learned that black coral is actually white, until it dies)
Well, we headed to Dunedin, out onto the Otago penninsula, to visit the Royal Albatross observatory. The Royal Albatross has a wingspan of up to 3 meters, and is one of the biggest flying birds in the world (if not the biggest). We wanted to see one fly, and after seeing five of the males sitting on the eggs from the observatory we thought we would head off without seeing them fly, and just then a giant teenage albatross swooped in over our heads from the sea. It was an amazing site, and one none of us will soon forget. Even Arlo was excited as it came back for several fly bys. Unforgettable.
We are heading up the coast starting tomorrow. A few days of trekkiing along the coast are planned, before we head to Wellington to spend some time with friends of friends. We hope to post some pics in the near future. Gotta go and share some beverages with James as it might be a whiile before we get back this way.
Take care, Ray, Jenny, and Arlo

Mountains and Penguins

Arlo didn`t notice the clouds or the rain, he was just getting into the swing of this travelling thing when we headed to Twizel in the Mt Cook area on Wednesday.

Rain and cloud made the peaks tough to pick out, but we did a little trek to the Tasman glacier, and the lake that is forming from it`s meltwater. This is one of the dozen or so icebergs that have calved from the glacier and now float in it`s waters.

The view up Lake Tekapo, with some of the Southern Alps in the background.

Arlo and Mama on the lookout for yellow eyed penguins coming ashore

Here comes a little yellow eyed penguin heading to it`s nest, and probably hoping to hook up with it`s mate. It looked like tiring work surfing ashore.

Kia Ora and Happy New Year

Well, the sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and we celebrated New Years 2011 today with a barbecue feast of NZ beef, lamb chops, prawns, grilled veggies, and more in James and Ilhye`s backyard here in Christchurch. I don`t mean to rub it in for anyone back home in blustery Canada, but I actually got a bit of a sunburn on the tops of my feet while walking around today! Beautiful!
Our trip went as smoothly as can be expected for a 48hour odessy We spent more time on our stopovers than we did in the air almost! I hate to admit that the least enjoyable part of the trip was the time spent at Pearson in Toronto dealng with the rude American Air check in desk and then having to stand in the longest line in the world for US customs. We had arrived in plenty of time to get on our flight, but ended up having to sprint from the security check to the plane. There were others behind us, so the plane was held for a bit even after our run, which gave me just enough time to stop sweating before takeoff. Security at each of the six airports we went through treated us like royalty, mainly because of Arlo I guess. No body scanners ｉｎ the US airports for us, just a wave through. We flew to Dallas first, then spent some time relaxing in the airport. Arlo loved getting to stroll through the various duty free shops and lounges during each of our stops. After several hours in Dallas we took a flight to LA, where we had a stopover for nine hours. Arlo got to have a few naps, we lay out his blankets and he got a chance to play on the floor with toys (actually this happened at most of his stopovers). The time in LA was the toughest because when we got on the plane at 9:30pm we had 24 hours ahead of us until we made Christchurch, and it seemed daunting at best.
The flight from LA to Nadi, Fiji was the most remarkable for us as Arlo showed what a rockstar he really is. He should have thought it was midnight by the time change, but was still hanging in with naps here and there, so once we were in the air for this twelve hour leg, he conked out, and then basically slept for most of the flight! He woke at about 6:30am Fiji time, and stayed awake for much of the rest of our flight, but it seemed like he had already adjusted to the time zone on the other side of the world! He was his happy morning self, and we just rolled with it. In fact he was his happy contented self for all of our flights, and most people either fell in love with him on the plane when they saw him, or didn`t even realize we had a baby because he was so quiet! N they saw him, or didn`t even realize we had a baby because he was so quiet! Now this seasoned traveller has been on five seperate flights, and will have flown ten times when we get home! What a vagabond!
In Fiji the funny thing we heard was that the people there really love babies, and sure enough going through the terminal we had at least six different people in customs and security all wanting to hold him, even fighting each other a bit to get a chance, and plenty of other Fijians cooing over him. It was really a warm feeling place, and we are excited to be going back for a stay on the return flight. We spent our early morning there yesterday, then flew to Auckland, NZ, where we quickly found an airport shower, and washroom and made ourselves feel more human again. As we went to check in for our domestic flight to Christchurch we asked to see if we could move that flight up a bit, and they did get us an earlier flight, so we could get in an hour and a half ahead of schedule. A quick call to James assured us that he would be able to pick us up ahead of schedule, and we then relaxed in the fantastic Auckland International terminal (voted one of the 10 best in the world). We finally felt like we had made it.
James picked us up and brought us to his beautiful home, where we visited for a few hours before finally calling it quits. It had been 48 hours since we woke in Toronto to start the journey, and Arlo had made it to New Zealand in his typical cheery fashion, with smiles for James, Ilhye, and Youri, his new friends.
Today we were all feeling much more refreshed, as we hung out in the scorching NZ sun, went for a little walk, and watched Youri (1 and a half years old) and Arlo play on the grass. Life is good, and celebrating New Years without the snow is a real treat! Happy New Year to everyone.