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Kangaroo Island, South Australia -- (Part 7): More of Flinders Chase. First, a view of the area, then a very scared board, followed by some scary stairs. Background: three families used to tend the lighthouse. The stairs in two of the above pictures were the path through which all of their supplies were delivered-- 90ft straight up some sketchy cliffs--even Sam and Frodo would turn back. Following that are the Remarkable Rocks. There were so many tourists (from a bus that showed up while we snarfed our lunches) that it was nearly impossible to get shots without them, (mostly pretending to hold up the rocks,) therefore, enjoy a few shots of the orange algae and one of Steph under one of the rocks.

#remarkablerocks #kangarooisland #australia #southoz #flinderschase

Kangaroo Island, South Australia -- (Part 6): Matt and Steph headed out to Flinders Chase National Park early in the morning (everyone else was too tired/hungover from the previous night of homemade French Martinis and BBQ steaks--”do I sound Australian?!”) The first picture is a shot of our gorgeous abode ‘Admiral’s Inn’, all following are of Admiral’s Arch and the surrounding cliffs and lighthouse.

#Australia #southoz #kangarooisland #admiralsarch #admiralsinn #flinderschase

Kangaroo Island, South Australia -- (Part 05) - Family pictures with our new koala ‘babies.’

#australia #southoz #wildlife #koala #animals

Kangaroo Island, South Australia -- (Part 04) - They feel just like you would think, so soft and cuddly, a little heavier than you think. 8kg = 18 lbs. After Meredith held “Blue,” the woman in charge of the gift shop asked, “Did you smell him? They smell wonderful!” (Meredith did not smell the koala, but regrets now that she didn’t.) They are voracious eucalyptus eaters and nom, nom, nommed the whole time they were in our arms, even grabbing our hands while we were holding the eucalyptus. Several of us have holes in our shirts and skins from the koala claws, nothing too painful, but those claws are major.

#australia #southoz #kangarooisland #wildlife #koala

Kangaroo Island, South Australia -- (Part 03) - More of our kangaroo and koala friends, they were so serene and mellow. Some of us even had 3 kangaroos eating out of our hands at one time. They have similar characteristics to dogs - lounging in the sun, scratching themselves, giving a big lazy yawn. The koalas love their trees and eucalyptus, but the ones that grow up in captivity really seem to like human contact. We petted a few in trees, then one climbed down and clambered over to Andrew for another pet.

#australia #southoz #wildlife #kagarooisland #kangaroo #koala

Kangaroo Island, South Australia -- (Part 02) - Feeding kangaroos was a highlight of our whole trip. They were at first sleepy in the field, but we gently roused them awake with our enticing mix of kangaroo kibble mixed with corn and seeds. We quickly realized that the kangaroos mostly liked the corn and the seeds and even would curl their paws around our hands to pull the feed closer to them to sort out their favorite bits. They were very gentle, and even though they have teeth, you couldn’t feel them, but each kangaroo had what was like a ‘snaggletooth’ that came down between their top lip. Matt became one with the kangaroos and laid down in the field with them as they warmed their bellies in the sun.

#australia #southoz #kangarooisland #kangaroo #wildlifepark #wildlife

Kangaroo Island, South Australia -- (Part 01) - Andrew, the python tamer, holds a snake at the Kangaroo Island Wildlife Preserve. We asked what the snake’s name was, and the handler replied, “It doesn’t have a name; snakes don’t have ears, and they don’t come when I call them, so it doesn’t have a name.” Koalas on KI were adorable and sleepy, we caught quite a few awake though, including an 11-month old koala named Hazel. The aviary at the preserve was filled with all types of birds, including owls, cockatoos, kookaburras, and even uncaged types like peacocks (including an albino peacock), roosters, and pelicans.

#kangarooisland #australia #southoz #animals #wildlife

Waiheke Island, New Zealand -- (Part 03) - We loved Waiheke so much; we felt we could have stayed on the island for our whole vacation. After the exhilaration of ziplining, we headed for our wine tour of 3 wineries: Peacock Hill, Candle Bay, and Stonyridge. The first winery, Peacock Hill, had a wonderful mini food tasting to go along with the wines, and the second at Candle Bay had a patio built in the middle of the vineyard with sweeping views. We had a great time with our wine tour travel mates, and the charcuterie platters prepared for us were like nothing we’ve ever seen or tasted. We bought a few bottles of wine during our tour, but we are sorry (hic) to say, none of them will make it back to the States.

#newzealand #waihekeisland #winery

Waiheke Island, New Zealand -- (Part 02) - More fantastic views from our zipline adventure. With a satisfied grin, Andrew said it perfectly for all of us, “I had a ‘little boy adventure’ kind of a day.”

#newzealand #ecozip #waihekeisland

Waiheke Island, New Zealand -- (Part 01) - Stop One: Zipline! Sharon faced her long-time fears and bravely donned the zipline safety gear and took her first zipline across with Stephanie. The views were breathtaking and all too short for some of us. We had three different zipline tracks, each one higher, faster and more beautiful than the previous one. We wanted to keep going, but we had a wine tour waiting for us and some beautiful rainforest-like terrain to climb through.

#new zealand #waihekeisland #ecozip

Rotorua, New Zealand - We arrived in Rotorua after an almost 3-hour drive. It was a charming, small town, but boasted hot springs and traditional Maori culture. Sharon, Matt and Meredith soaked their feet in the hot springs but squeamish Andrew and Stephanie chose to stay on the sidelines. We wandered the town and found some fantastic shops with local crafts, and the people, as all New Zealanders seem to be, were helpful and friendly. Our night culminated with a Maori dinner, and demonstrations of Maori customs such as the men preparing their “battle faces” and the women flinging “poi” as weapons. Maybe they weren’t exactly supposed to fling it, but Sharon sure did that part well! At the end of the night, as the bus driver took us back to the registration center, she managed to get everyone on the bus to sing songs from their native lands. We chose “Row Row Row Your Boat” and tried to turn it into a round, but no one else was playing. The driver then went through a roundabout, or rather, drove around it about 10 times in a row (yes, there were other cars there) and sang “She’ll be Coming ‘Round the Mountain” as she sailed through the center of town.

#newzealand #maori #rotorua

(Part 02) Ferry to Devonport, a small peninsula near Auckland - only a 20 minute ferry ride. Lovely small town area (eg, Catalina in CA). We had a fantastic lunch at the Patriot pub in town, where we marveled at the winner of the 5000 pint club (Les Carves), then headed up the inactive volcano to the Mt Victoria bunker, the highest point in Devonport.

(Part 01) Ferry to Devonport, a small peninsula near Auckland - only a 20 minute ferry ride. Lovely small town area (eg, Catalina in CA). We had a fantastic lunch at the Patriot pub in town, where we marveled at the winner of the 5000 pint club (Les Carves), then headed up the inactive volcano to the Mt Victoria bunker, the highest point in Devonport.

Kitekite Falls - as if our journey to Piha and the black sand beach wasn’t pretty enough, then we hiked to Kitekite (pronounced Kitteh-kitteh) Falls. Due to tree disease, they had a shoe washing station at the beginning and end of the hike. We are loving how New Zealand takes care of their land and natural habitat.

Piha Beach (Part 02) - we drove down a winding beach road (think Road to Hana) and wound up at one of the most beautiful spots we’ve ever seen. There is the surf side, and the beach goers side (more dogs than people this time of year), with black sand beaches, the softest sand you’ve ever felt between your toes.

Piha Beach (Part 01) - we drove down a winding beach road (think Road to Hana) and wound up at one of the most beautiful spots we’ve ever seen. There is the surf side, and the beach goers side (more dogs than people this time of year), with black sand beaches, the softest sand you’ve ever felt between your toes.

Auckland- Day 1, Part 4

Auckland Domain, the restroom beneath the street, across from our hotel

Mostly just playing with Matt’s new camera :)

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