Travels in New Zealand and beyond, going back to 2003!
The weather in Wellington this summer school holidays has so far been very kind to us and it’s been perfect for getting outdoors and exploring the copious number of regional parks, town belts walks and nature centres. Having my parents to visit, all the way from the UK, has been an extra motivator to get…
A short drive north of Masterton, is the Pukaha Mount Bruce National Wildlife Centre. I visited with my folks, from the UK, and my youngest daughter, age five, over the Christmas/New Year hols. It was a gorgeous day when we visited and after a cuppa on the deck of the cafe – with a surprise…
The new ‘Meet The Locals‘ area at Wellington Zoo is a lovely space for children and families. The natural landscape has been planted with lots of native tree saplings and vegetation, with the first ‘locals’ to meet being the little blue penguins that populate Wellington’s rocky shores. There is a slide to speed through, a…
Strictly speaking, we simply did the riding – not the driving – but I can assure you – it was WILD (erm, thanks – *I think* – to Jeremy, our guide). I didn’t really comprehend the adrenalin rush that the Huka Falls Jet Boat would give me, until I tried to stand up straight –…
After eight sleeps away on business, the man of the house is back! He was away in the UK and flew the long haul to LA, and on to Auckland, before the ‘hop’ down to Taupo to meet up with us on Sunday. Taupo Airport is a gorgeous place to hang out, especially in the…
What a road trip (in a good way)! I was dreading it many ways (5 hours driving with three children), but also quietly confident (as they’d been incredibly awesome for me all week – whilst their Daddy was working away overseas). We left our home in Wellington at 9.30am on a Saturday morning, trying to…
Everyone is well in the family again and all the girls have been back at school for a good week and a half. It was brilliant to get some sunshine this weekend to really keep those feel good vibes swinging! We headed out to Worser Bay to take our puppy for an off lead gallop on…
For the third week, in a row, I’ve had at least one of my three daughters home poorly from school. They have been hit hard by some flu type virus, that is doing the rounds across the country this winter. They are all slowly on the mend, though still not at full energy. In the…
We nipped away to Martinborough this Saturday and Sunday. The winter weather wasn’t too harsh, milder than it has been, but there were still plenty of showers between the sunny moments. The lambs in the fields and rainbows in the sky definitely hinted a change in the seasons. Spring is coming… (just hurry up already!)….
Coming from a New Zealand winter the heat and humidity of Singapore was both welcoming and – at times – exhausting. However, plentiful air conditioned spaces and a great apartment to sleep in meant we were given respite from the heat – failing that we simply sought out water; by way of drinking it, playing…
The rain wasn’t going to stop us getting to Martinborough’s Mid-Winter Affair. We set off at midday on Saturday, picking up our friend Cyndi (aka ‘Latte Junkie‘) on the way. Traveling over the Rimutaka Hill the children in the back-seat played spot the waterfalls in the mist (of which there were many – albeit small…
The past couple of weekends have given us some calm, sunshine weather to get out and enjoy the outdoors, despite it being the onset of winter here in New Zealand. We live near the south coast of Wellington and since getting our puppy, in October last year, we have good reason to get out for…
When my youngest daughter, Alice, heard that Wellington Zoo had five new otters come to live there, she was so excited to go and visit them. As the zoo is only a short, five minute, drive from our home – and we have an annual pass – we had good reason to pop by the zoo…
Rivendell, the place where hobbits and dwarfs meet with men, wizards and elves. Our youngest explorer was delighted to be hobbit sized, whilst my friend, Nicola, and I were wizards. Sophie, aged 9, wasn’t so sure about being dwarf sized, but she’d have a lot of growing to do to be on a par with…