Spectacular!

That's really the only word to describe the west coast of New Zealand. We began in the north, in a forest with palm trees. Wandering south we have, variously: hiked to see seals playing on the rocks; watch western swells crash against the shore; seen a sunset; walked the beaches looking for jade; and kayaked on a sea-side lagoon in a double kayak looking for birds.

If that were all we had done that would be more than enough, but that was just yesterday. Today we took a helicopter ride up and around Mt. Cook (New Zealand's highest mountain) and landed on the Fox Glacier. We went to a salmon farm and had fresh caught salmon sashimi. We tried our hand at an amazingly hard maze. And we finished off watching the sun set again -- this time over amazing Lake Wanaka -- a 40 km long freshwater glacial lake that is absolutely stunning.

In many ways New Zealand is like the mountain West of the US -- but in most ways it is simply unique.

West Coast New Zealand

Today we began our drive down the west coast of New Zealand. It's amazing country -- rugged and windswept. We saw seals lazing on the rocks and watched water surge into the tidal pools creating spray and rainbows galore.

This evening we stopped at the Rocks Homestay in Punakaiki. Far and away the best place we've been -- a small eco-friendly home run by two Swiss expats, it comes with a home cooked dinner, breakfast tomorrow and a great room with the most magnificent view for miles around.

Here is a taste of sunset in Punakaiki:

Nelson -- Food, Wine, Art and .... Rugby

We've been in Nelson for 3 days now and it is a wonderful place. On the north edge of New Zealand's south island it is said to be the sunshine capital of the country-- and on our experience we would agree. The weather has been delightful during the days -- sunny and spring like -- with very cold nights.

Nelson is the type of place you want to go to if you enjoy food. We had 2 absolutely wonderful dinners at Hopgoods and the Boat Shed. Fresh fish, good wine ... yum.

On Monday we toured the wine country in Marlborough. It's a good thing they can't ship most of their wines to the US or we would have spent alot of money. As it is we bought a bottle to take with us on our travels! Today (Tuesday) we went art shopping -- the highlight was meeting Mike Ward, Green politician, Nelson mayoral candidate, artist, jewelery maker and utter character. It tells you everything you need to know about what sort of man he is that when Katy admired a small pen drawing he had done, he simply gave it to us as a gift.

There was also street craft fare with music today. Those guys up at the top of the post are the Ukes of Hazard -- and exactly like it sounds they played country music on their ukeleles! Weird but interesting.

Tonight was the US v. Italy game. The US lost 27-10, which in some sense is a strong game for us. But in the end we need to start winning those sorts of games. From here, it is onward - south down the west coast for the next 5 days ...the rugby is over and now the grand adventure really begins.

Katy's New Boyfriend

For those who are worried that our marriage might be on the rocks, new evidence emerges!

USA v. Australia and More Wellington

Well .... let's just say it was fun go to the match. The atmosphere was, really, quite different from any US sporting event we've ever been to, though it reminded us of college football -- with everyone wearing colors and painting their faces etc. It certainly was a party.

Unfortunately, the Eagles chose a second side to play mighty Australia. We understand the logic -- they were resting the first side for Tuesday's match against Italy whom we have a better chance of beating -- but it made for a lopsided match. At home we might have turned it off. Since we will go to Nelson for the next match, we only hope the plans work out!

Yesterday was a relaxing day -- we went off to the Weta Cave (where they made Lord of the Rings) to see how they do their magic and then had a wonderful dinner courtesy of Kevin Eager and his partner Val, with a couple of their Kiwi friends. Val made a wonderful lamb (of course -- it's New Zealand!) and then we watched the All Blacks v. France. It was grand to catch up with old friends from the DC area, but alas the dinner was all too short.

On to Nelson now ...

Wellington

Our second stop was Wellington. The city seems very livable. We are staying at a B&B close to downtown and the area down here is very walkable. We've put on alot of miles already this trip.

Wellington is not really a tourist city -- it is the seat of government and seems to be generally a working city (though there are alot of tourists here right now for the World Cup).

One highlight of the city is the national museum Te Papa. It's primary focus is on the maori culture but it also captures alot of natural history and the history of the English settlement. Housing, as well, the national art collection, it seems like a Smithsonian type of museum. It is extremely well done -- a new building right on the water, with very good interactive exhibits that draw you in.

Katy also saw the national portrait gallery -- a new collection. Right now, however, it contains only portraits of rugby players (in honor of the world cup) so it is hard to say what the full collection looks like.

Last night we had dinner with an old friend from the US -- Mark Binning -- who is doing well and seems happy picking grapes in his retirement. We went out to dinner with him and had a wonderful bottle of NZ pinot -- looking forward to wine country next week.

And today, we went up to the top of the nearby mountain for a view of the harbor and a walk in the NZ botanical garden. Good, interesting plant life on what was truly a beautiful day (high around 60).

On the whole we like this place though we have to say -- with apologies to our NZ friends -- that the government offices (known as the Beehive) are equal to some of Washington DC's truly modest office buildings.

Tonight we go to the rugby match -- US v. Australia. Katy is already "rugby-ed out" but like a trooper is marching on. Sadly, we aren't likely to win the match. But it should be lots of fun seeing something we haven't seen before.

Sydney

Well, we made it! After 5 hours to LA; an 8 hour layover; and then a 15 hour flight, we are in Sydney. As evidence thereof, we offer this photo, with Katy in front of the iconic Opera House. See ... we really are here.

Our day was mostly spent trying hard to get acclimated to the time zone change. We arrived at 6 AM and had our bags and were through customs by 6:30 AM. If only Dulles were that efficient! So that put us at the bed and breakfast at 7 AM -- which was, of course, way too early to get into our rooms.

So after dropping our bags at the B&B (which is in "The Rocks" the oldest part of Sydney and within steps of the harbor) we went for a walk into downtown Sydney to see the Opera House, the Harbour Bridge (yes, that's how the spell it here) and took a nice long walk in the Royal Botanical Gardens. The trees and birds and flowers etc. are all totally different in Australia. Iris, Fruit Bats, Cockatiels and Parrots ... oh my!

After a pit stop back at the B&B (where our room has a view of the Opera House) we went back out to take a ferry ride in Sydney harbor to the beach town of Manly. Its too cold still to go swimming but we were struck by how much the Australians love the beach -- a bunch of school girls were there sitting around in their school uniforms chatting and a few even went in (and came out shivering). On the way home the sun setting behind the bridge made a beautiful silhouette.

On the whole we walked many miles in an effort to stay awake -- successfully.

Then early to bed ... it was a long day.

On our Way ....

Well ... we are on our way. We left DC this morning and we are now at the LAX airport on a layover waiting for the flight to Sydney. We had 7+ hours here in LA, so instead of hanging around the airport we grabbed a cab and headed for the beach -- Manhattan Beach to be specific. It's only about 15 minutes away but, as you can see, it might as well be on a separate planet. On a beautiful clear day with a stiff breeze from the ocean, the beach was not too crowded, but the beach volleyball was in full swing.

Manhattan Beach is a pleasant beach-side town with a steep hill down to the water. After a walk along the boardwalk and out to the pier, we had a meal at Cafe Pierre where they had a great heirloom tomato salad and a nice cheese tray. It was a quiet start to the trip.

And now it is on to Sydney. For those at home following along, the itinerary looks something like this:

3 days in Sydney getting acclimated and enjoying the Opera House view

3 days in Wellington (capital of New Zealand at the south end of the northern island) meeting old friends and watching the US play Australia in the Rugby World Cup

3 days in Nelson (confusingly on the north end of the south island!), trying out the near by wine country and art, and watching the US v. Italy match

6 days driving south from Nelson to Queenstown with stops along the way down the West Coast of the south island of New Zealand. The highlight will be the helicopter ride onto Franz Josef glacier (unless we go crazy and try bungee jumping in Queenstown .... NOT!)

5 days in Rotarua (back on the north island again), including a 4 day hike up into the nearby mountains (max altitude only 3000 feet this time around)

3 days in Adelaide Australia, trying wine from the McLaren Vale

and finally, 3 days, in Cairns on the Great Barrier Reef for some sun and fun and a visit to the coral reefs.

After that its back to Sydney to get our flight home. Should be exciting and exhausting.

Off to New Zealand ....

And so, another adventure begins. This Saturday we leave for Australia and New Zealand (land of the Long White Cloud) for a month long vacation.

The core of the vacation is the Rugby World Cup -- a quadrennial event being hosted this year in New Zealand. Paul is a big rugby fan, and Katy has graciously consented to attend two games.

But since we will be gone for 29 days, there will be lots else to do. We start in Sydney for a quick visit, then over to Wellington for some culture; Nelson for rugby and wine tasting; followed by a 6 day drive down the west coast of the South Island, ending in Queenstown. After that we hop to the North Island and Rotarua, where we will spend 4 days hiking (the NZ folk call it "tramping") in Maori country, before flying back to Australia. There we will hit Adelaide (again for the wine) and make a stop in Cairns to snorkel the Great Barrier Reef. Should be exciting!

Adventures in Wisconsin

Typically, our family gathers every summer for a vacation. Usually we go to the beach -- it's a good thing we didn't this year as our normal schedule would have had us trying to go to Hatteras just around the time that Hurricane Irene hit. That would have been a wipe-out for sure.

So, to our good fortune, we didn't go to the beach this year. Instead, we took advantage of the fact that we were spending 6 months in Chicago to go up to Door County, Wisconsin -- to the little 1-street village of Fish Creek. We we joined this year by Paul & Natalia and their two girls, along with Mike & Debbie and their four boys. Brother John Blenner and his son Jeff made it up for 1/2 the week too, so it was quite a pleasant gathering.

We arrived on a Saturday and stayed in a set of condos at one end of the village (Paul & Natalia were at the other end in a hotel known as the White Gull). The rooms were pleasant with a small pool out back for everyone to swim in. The biggest flaw was that there was no flat ground -- hence our family obsession with the game of Core Hole (a/k/a "Bags") was somewhat frustrated. It is hard to throw on a hill!

That having been said, Fish Creek had much to offer. On various days we did a long 12-mile hike into the Peninsula State Park and an equally long (though somewhat less grueling) bike ride on the trail. Other grand activities included a day at the beach (where Paul, Debbie and grandson Aaron went sailing) and a day playing golf (for those who like that).

By far the highlight of the week (much of which was devoted to the arduous practice of laying about and talking) was the sunset. Fish Creek is known for its western facing beach across Lake Michigan and every evening crowds would gather to watch the sun go down into the lake. On clear days it was a beautiful sight to behold and well worth the trip.

The other highlight of the week was the food -- particularly that at the White Gull. One evening we went for a traditional Fish Boil, a cooking experience that is a pyrotechnic delight. To be honest we expected the fish served to be bland -- but it was far from that. The method of cooking created quite a firm, yet tender piece of fish meat that we just loved. Add in fresh cherry pie (Door County is known for its cherries) and the meal was great.

Equally good, if not better, was the breakfast at the white gull. Great muffins, wonderful coffee, good eggs and bacon. If breakfast is the favorite meal, this was a favorite place to have it.

Of course, the real highlights are just being together with family. Perhaps next time we can go in winter and see what it is like to do cross-country skiing.