Paradise

I found it. New Zealand is my version of paradise. I have no idea how to start telling you about it. Long flight out (over 30 hrs of travel) get to Wellington, meet up with Alison and spent the next 10 days catching up. It's not often I get the chance to spend one-on-one time with old friends. It's also not often that people are able to remain friends for over 20 years. I feel old just saying that, but it's also one of the best things about getting older...some things just get more rewarding with age. One of the best things about New Zealand is that our dollar is worth 1.53 there. Translation: it was the cheaper to be NZ playing than it was to be in Utah at work. Why did I come back you ask? Still trying to figure that out myself. Australia was cool as well, just not as cheap.
North Island on our way to the Bay of Islands. This is the rest area.... seriously. No bears in New Zealand, but of course I had to pick the botanical Garden walk that was recently the site of a crocodile attack.
South Island about 10 minutes from Mt. Cook. I did not photo shop that rainbow in there.
We ended up going through 3 pods of dolphins in 2 days. I loved every minute of it :)
This is a picture of sun rise on the Pirate Ship in the Doubtful Sound on the south island in the Fiordlands National Park
That is me saying "hello" from 15,000 ft. Just proof that I will do about anything for a good view.
Seriously..... so much fun. Mom and Buba, you have to try this!

They wrote a message on your hands for you. Mine said "no worries" but I forgot to put them out for the camera b/c I was to busy checking out the view from coast to coast. And the volcano's . You could see both sides of the north island, the lake, the volcano's (aka Mt. Doom and the Land of Mordor) and the sunset all at once. When was the last time you saw a sunset on the east and west coasts at the same time ! :)
That is about the only view I had of the plane.
Em and I in Sydney. We were going to put our feet in the bay until we noticed all the jelly fish floating there. Changed the plan

More pictures of the Doubtful sound. This is Seal Rock (for obvious reasons). It is just past the area where we saw all the endangered penguins.

We got to help shovel coal into the old steam engine. They polish that brass every day.

This is the cape. It's at the end of 90 mile beach and is the tip of the north island. Beautiful!!


90 Mile beach, where there was some great sea-shell hunting going on. And lots and lots of fishing.