New Zealand, Part 1

The retirement thing happened suddenly, and I thought perhaps I’d get another job in the private sector, or somewheres else? Nah! And, while it’s a cold, wet winter in the Santa Cruz mountains, it’s summer in New Zealand, where my brother Ron and his family live (in Rotorua, North Island). Boom! Amazingly, it’s been almost a decade since we were there for the first time after Dad passed away. Time to go back!

I started by flying to Christchurch on the South Island and taking an Intrepid tour of its west coast. Arriving a day early, I stayed at the meet up spot and did some exploring…

That exploring included a longish walk through the Botanical Gardens (something NZ has a lot of)…

NZ, like other places, also has a lot of memorials, particularly to war dead. Also, noteworthy locals. And, I like well done street art, waterways, and cool Mexican restaurant menues…

On January 14th 2024, our group met in the morning and immediately started driving to the west coast. It was too early to take the soak in the hot springs in a cute vacation town (name?), so some of us took a little walk in the sculptured woods. Then, we stopped in another cute town to learn about the history of gold mining in New Zealand, including miner digs, a local museum, and an old refinery…

Eventually, we made it to the coast, then went on a cute little train ride (still part of the early mining days) into part of the west coast rainforests (love them tree ferns!). Note fur seals, gulls, a selfie with our very cool Kiwi guide Ollie, and the first of several tour group shots. My fellow travelers included Paul (my Aussie roommate), Ann, Linda (both from England), Masha (from LA!), Louise (Aussie, but lived in Mt. View), and Maria (a youth from London who wound up leaving early)…

We stayed in Westport, then Kumara, and continued to stop at scenic spots along the way…

Glow worms (bioluminescent fungus gnat maggots) are a popular tourist attraction in this part of the world, and there was cool, non-touristy spot behind our Kumara hotel. Only visible at night, they’re in the dirt looking like the night sky. Hard to photograph, but here’s one, and then with the flash on.

The Hotika Gorge was particularly spectacular! In Greymouth, we made the mistake of not going to the new cultural museum, thinking the price (NZ$49) was too high. Since the spectacular Te Papa museum in Wellington is free, and others cheaper, that might’ve been reasonable. But it was unique, and might’ve been worth it. Only some street art in lieu.

We took another walk, more rigorous this time, to a magnificent view up and down the west coast…

I should’ve taken better notes, but another walk took us to a lovely lake with views of Mounts Cook & Tasman. This batch has some picnic table art, not a real Kiwi, a real spider’s nest, attractive mosses, and more NZ nature…

We spent two nights in Fox Glacier, a sporty lil’ town in the mountains, where most of us did some kayaking in the morning. In the afternoon, we went for a walk to see the Fox Glacier itself…