Kaikoura: We swim with seals and dolphins!!! Our first stop out of Christchurch was Kaikoura, on the northeast coast of the South Island. It was my favorite place on earth!!!! Why? Number 1, the seals. Number 2, the dolphins. Number 3, the whales. New Zealand only has one native mammal, and that is the bat. […]

Christchurch: We finally approached the gently rolling golden hills of the Canterbury Plains and arrived in Christchurch, the South Island’s largest city. It’s quite a nice city, really. It was modeled on the English plan when it was built in the 19th century, and it really reminds me very much of an English town (The […]

The West Coast: Alpine Hikes, Glacier Hikes, Mt. Cook, and Ferocious Winds I remember being told by an Australian that New Zealand’s South Island is “God’s country.” We thought he may just be right. The scenery is spectacular and unspoilt. Very few people live on the South Island, there is little industrialization, and the kiwis […]

Amazing Fiordland! It is widely considered that New Zealand’s most dramatic scenery and untouched wilderness lie within Fiordland. It was successive glacial action that largely shaped the landscape, and its wild beauty is showcased to stunning effect in alpine vistas characterized by carved-out snow-capped mountains, crystal-clear lakes, towering granite cliffs, captivating fiords, and untamed waterfalls […]

Cycling, Trekking, Surfing, and Sky-Diving over Southland We arrived in the southern town of Queenstown on the South Island and dove right in – literally! – to some of the world’s most spectacular, unspoilt, and awe-inspiring scenery. Belou joined us from France with his bike and we spent three unforgettable weeks with him in Fiordland, […]