New Zealand - coming right up!

 

In three weeks, I will be on my way again to a place that has intrigued me since I was a child.  New Zealand.  Many other countries are on my list, and yet, even though I have been twice, I am super excited to go back.  I know that much has changed since I was there the first time.  In fourteen years (wow, has it really been THAT long?), immigration laws have changed and the demographic is vastly different, and the population has boomed.  Tourism has increased dramatically, making it far less inviting to visit the typical touristy places (so gratefully, I have already seen most of them at least once).  This all has it's benefits - it means that there are more public washrooms in more places, more availability to services, roads are better (when I first went there, most roads on the south island were tar and chip, now many are paved and wider).

It also has it's downside.  Everywhere will be busier, taking photographs will not be quite as pleasant.  There will be more people to remove or try to crop out (unless the intention is to photograph them), landscapes are not as clean and natural as they once were.  It's more difficult to find spaces on tours etc. (although we don't plan to take many).  Parking, restaurants, etc. will be harder to find spaces in.  But...

We will be there for 4 weeks this time.  Yes.  Still can't believe we've been able to make this happen.  I would so love to have our partners going with us, but my partner is otherwise engaged in his business, so we are making this a girls trip.  And that means doing whatever we decide to do when we wake up.  We have our route planned, rental cars, interior flights and scenic rail trips booked, but other than that, we are open to suggestion.  

We (my friend Linda and I) are still super excited.  It will still not be as crazy as it is almost everywhere else.  And we are approaching our time there very differently this time.  WE are very different this time.  

Yes, we want to see the gorgeous scenery, experience wildlife and nature as much as possible, enjoy the cuisine and culture, but we also are really looking forward to taking our time and enjoying the ride.  Being flexible about what we do, and what we see.  Focus on the path less travelled, going to places many people either aren't aware of, or aren't interested in taking the time to go there.  

We will be taking the Scenic Drives as often as we can.  We will be hiking the short trails as much as possible (we're not as young as we were before!).  We are trying not to have a rigid schedule so that we can detour and take the scenic drives.  We're staying in one place a little longer, rather than a single night here and there and driving allllll the time.  

My photography has grown leaps and bounds - certainly since my fist time there.  My gear is better, my approach, artistry, confidence and perspectives have all grown.  I'm more relaxed.  I strongly believe that in order to truly enjoy a vacation like this, you need to be relaxed before you go.  If you go when you're stressed, you'll still have that stress on your mind and cannot be mindful and intentional about the experience, and are less likely to remember it.

I've also been writing a LOT more since then - not here, I haven't been ready to share everything I've written, but I'm getting there.  Life has had it's ups and downs, and I've changed my perspective over the years on that, too.  I'm not here for anyone else, I don't write or photograph or create or think or do for anyone else.  None of us should.  I'm sure I'll share more of my thoughts on this later, but for now, I'll just say that I'm not being selfish, or even self-involved or self-centered, I'm just putting on my own oxygen mask first.  

Looking forward to sharing more, and hopefully bringing along a few of you with me, and maybe even enticing some of you to make the same trip for yourself - or another trip.  

New Zealand, here I come - back

When I visited New Zealand the first time, back in 2010, I started this blog.  The hope was that it could be a way for people back home, friends and family wherever, to come along with me and enjoy the adventure.  Little did I know how many people would participate and follow.  Little did I realize how much fun it would be to take the photos, write the stories and share them.

In past years, before the internet, and before digital photography, I always carried a camera, and wrote a journal of each day's activities in the evening while it was fresh in my mind.  As soon as the pictures were developed, I carefully documented what each one was about, so that my daughter and I could enjoy them again years later.  And it has been wonderful to look at those photos and stories again, bringing back memories that time had faded.  But the reach of that was limited.  We are so blessed to be able to now record so much of our memories so quickly and easily with the use of digital photography and blogging!

Since then, I have also worked hard, and continue to work hard, to step up my game and learn how to better capture the scenes that I visit.  As an apprentice in The Arcanum - a "Magical Academy of Artistic Mastery" - I am learning so much about light, colour, art, and the craft of photography from the master that I'm working with, +Laurie Rubin and learning almost as much from other masters and the other apprentices.  My goal is to become completely comfortable and confident about shooting my next adventure.

And my next adventure will be......ta da da da.... New Zealand!  Back where it all started.  And this is a little story in itself.

My friend Linda was one of those original tagalongs - virturally - on my first sojourn over to the other side of the globe.  It has been a lifelong dream of hers to visit NZ, and when I returned, she said - 5 years, give me 5 years and then I'll go.  Would you come along?  Of course I would.  So a couple of months ago, she reminded me that the 5 years was up, and we needed to go to NZ.  Yes, that's right.  Need, not Want.  Kiwi country calls loud and clear for those who listen, and when you answer, it's like a rope connecting you, and it just keeps pulling you in.

So, planning has commenced.  This blog will now be part of our way to track those plans, and then the trip, and hopefully pull some more people in and along.  No tickets yet, but dates are tentatively set, and we are sooooo excited!

Right now it looks like 2 weeks (not nearly enough), and hitting:
Wellington, Blenheim, Christchurch, Dunedin, Invercargill, Stewart Island, Te Anau, Fjordlands, Queenstown, Twizel, and Middle Earth.

Can't wait to see the sky set ablaze over The Remarkables

Thank goodness for a little extra income from +Rodan + Fields !!!

Seals and Whales

Yesterday I left my camera at home, and had a real tourist vacation day - I went shopping with Bridget. I think I managed to get enough souvenirs without going over my weight limit on the way back. There are so many things here that are unique to this place, that it would be quite silly to go home without at least a sample.

New Zealand is a land of many wonders. Geologic oddities, flora and fauna that is found nowhere else, and one of the few places in the world where some species can be found all year round. I've learned so much, and have so much more to learn. I hope that in some small way I can bridge the 12000 km gap between home and here by sharing my adventures of the past few days. There is still so much more that could be written here, so far this has been such a brief synopsis. Let me know if you want to see more.

Today my friends took me back to Kaikoura - I passed through here on the scenic train last week - so that I could go swimming with the seals. The weather had not been cooperating the past few days, with strong sou'westerly winds, cold and rain. But today, the forecast is for calmer winds, even though there has been a very early snow on the mountaintops. We decide to go for it, so Bridget packs a lovely picnic lunch and off we go. Along the way, we can see that the sea is indeed fairly calm, but with a bit of swell. There are surfers out close to Ohau. Although the waves are not really high, they do curl, and it's a thrill to see this, a new experience for me.

Disappointment hits when we get to Kaikoura and learn that the seal swim is cancelled today due to the high seas. There are lots of other options however, and we decide to go on the whale watch, which is still going on, albeit with seasickness warnings. No worries. We have a few hours to kill before our tour at 3:30, so back up the coast we drive to see a seal rookery that we had passed earlier. If I can't swim with them, I can at least get a few shots.

We're in luck, there are at least a hundred fur seals laying on the rocks sunning themselves. Mom and Dad seals are mostly sleeping, and the pups are playing in the pools formed by the rocks and waves, or chasing each other about like little children do. We see two little pups chasing each other in circles, just like puppies. The surf crashes over the rocks around them, and it's a scene from National Geographic.

Bridget knows of a walking track close by that will take us to the top of a cliff looking out over the ocean, where Gary and I can get lots of pictures of surf breaking over the rocks. The walk itself is not long, but it starts going up the cliff at a very steep rate, and the sights of the harbour below, the low tide baring interesting shist formations, and are those penguins on that rock?, mean that it takes us about 40 minutes instead of the estimated 25 to get to the top on the other side of the peninsula. We see a perfectly formed lenticular cloud, which is only found near mountains. And stunning vistas of surf and rock.

The hike down takes about 15 minutes, so we have time to stop and see some trees that I haven't seen before, but we're not sure what they are. Gary has heard this is a Norfolk pine, but I admit I would need to look it up to be sure.

The boat for the whale watch starts off having a bit of trouble with kelp in the jets. But eventually they clean it out and off we go to find a whale. On the way, we see terns, albatrosses, and shearwaters. Albatrosses? Wow, that was a bonus. Two different kinds even. Off in the distance is a pod of Dusky dolphins, and they seem to be moving our way. Then we hear the call that a whale has been spotted and we will move in for a closer look. It is huge - a sperm whale that is about the same size as our boat and it's sister ship, just off to our left. All we can see for the most part is the dorsal fin and the spout, especially since the swells are quite high. It stays floating close to the surface for a few minutes, then goes for another deep dive, with the fluke giving us a final wave.

Just as the whale dives, the dolphins reach us, and start swimming around very close to the boat. They jump and somersault and put on a real show for us. It's hard to get pictures there are so many, at least 50. They're beautiful, with markings similar to orcas, and seem very friendly. They swim close to the boat for at least 15 - 20 minutes, then it's time to go back. What an experience to have seen all these amazing creatures in their natural habitat - no trainers, or glass walls of an aquarium, or cage bars at a zoo.

We finish the afternoon with a large order of fish and chips (sorry, no pics) and take it down to the beach to eat while we watch the sunset. The wind has died, it's nice and warm, and the seagulls surround us, hoping for an easy snack. Sorry, none left. Best fish and chips I've had in years.

The final piece de resistance is a cloudless, moonless night when we get back to Westview, and the night sky is brilliant with stars out here where there is no light pollution. Gary shows me the Southern Cross, and the Magellanic clouds - two things you can't see in the sky in the northern hemisphere. It's easy to imagine how the early explorers could navigate using the stars - they could actually see them. I notice Orion (here it's the Tipping Pot because he's upside down), and see three stars in the constellation I've never see before. Gary explains this is Orion's scabbard. What a way to end an amazing day!