New Zealand - Part 2

New Zealand is a great place if you like adventure.  There are a huge number of activities for every type of risk taker.  We picked two activities we thought would be exciting but not extreme.  We're both risk averse accountants so no bungee jumping or anything crazy!

We headed to Waitomo on the west side of the north island for a cave exploring trip.

In our gear - wetsuits, rappelling equipment and nice white rubber boots!

To get to the cave, we got to do abseiling (rappelling) for the first time.  The drop into the cave was 35 metres (over 100 feet).  If that doesn't sound like much, it's the equivalent of an eleven story building.

Blake on the way down

Vanessa rappelling

Once we were in the cave, we did a short zipline in the dark (sorry no photos of that) and then we plunged into the cold water stream that runs through the cave.  We had tire tubes that we could use to float on the water but you kept more heat in your body by walking instead.

Sometimes the water got pretty deep and we had to swim

The current was strong in spots and the rocks were slippery

By this point, we were had been in the cave for 3 hours.  We were sure that the end was close so we were both shocked when our guide said there was still more to come - climbing two underground waterfalls!  We don't have photos of us climbing the falls but here are a couple promo shots from the tour company so you can see what it was like.

Looking up the waterfall where we climbed

It was very narrow but our guide showed us the best spots to put our hands and feet

After the falls, we were finally done and we emerged out of the cave and into the light!

This was one of the most tiring days of our trip so far but definitely one of the most fun.

Our second adventure was jet boating on the Waikato River near Taupo.  It wasn't tiring like the cave tour but we got almost as wet.

We started off easy with a few spins in the river

It got more exciting when we got to the rapids

Starting to catch some air

Catching even more air

Almost the whole boat was out of the water

Headed back up river

After our adventures, we were ready for a holiday so we did the same thing that lots of New Zealanders do - we headed to the quiet beach towns in the far north of the island.  Highlights are in the next post.

Vanessa and Blake   

New Zealand - Part 1

We spent two weeks in New Zealand and covered the north half of the north island.  It isn't a big area but there are tons of things to see and do.

Travelling in New Zealand is easy and fun.  We think this is because Canada and New Zealand are identical in so many ways.  

The countries have some obvious similarities that we knew about before we arrived - both are former British colonies, English is the primary language and both have amazing scenery.  

There are lots more similarities that we learned about during our stay.  The people in both counties are are friendly, casual and always helpful.  Both countries have a much bigger neighbour right next door (U.S. for Canada; Australia for New Zealand) who is a major influence on the country's economy, culture and politics. You can drink the water out of the tap in both countries - we've really missed this luxury on our world trip!

The first week of our stay in New Zealand was in an area known as the Taupo Volcanic Zone.  The zone runs from the the east coast to the centre of the north island.  The area has active and extinct volcanoes and plenty of geothermal areas.

We started on the east coast in the town of Tauranga.  We visited an extinct volcano called Mount Maunganui.

The Mount is right next to a very nice beach

There's a nice walkway around the Mount

There's a great beach town at the base of the Mount

While we were in town, we had two great dinners with Gary and Pam.  Gary works with Vanessa and he and Pam love to spend their holidays in New Zealand.  The meals they prepared were tremendous with Gary running the grill and Pam whipping up tasty salads and veggies.  Dessert was great too as they introduced us to New Zealand ice cream which is unbelievably good.  A big thank you to Gary and Pam for two nights of good food and conversation!

We made our way inland following the volcanic zone.  The earth's crust is very thin in this region so there are lots of geothermal areas.  It's easy to see evidence of the heat just below the surface.

We took a hot mud bath in the town of Rotorua.

Enjoying our hot mud bath

After cleaning up, it was into the hot pool

All the heat is supplied by Mother Nature

Next up were two geothermal parks located between the towns of Rotorua and Taupo.  One park is called "Craters of the Moon" (great name!).

A big but not very active crater

Blake with a small but actively steaming crater

There was lots of steam and smelly sulphur

The second geothermal park was Wai-O-Tapu which means "sacred waters" in the Maori language.

Us in front of a steaming pool of water

In case it isn't obvious that the water is really hot, there are signs to warn you

This is called the Champagne Pool because of its colour and bubbles

Vanessa beside a colourful stream

Sulphates give this pool a cloudy green colour and bad smell

The deep green colour is beautiful but it's a toxic mix of sulphur and arsenic

An amazing sulphur pool

Next to the thermal park is New Zealand's largest bubbling mud pool

Sometimes the mud bubbles just a little

Other times it explodes

More to come from New Zealand!

Vanessa and Blake

Hong Kong

After surviving the longest flight of our lives and crossing a whole bunch of time zones, we arrived in Hong Kong for a short three day visit.

We stayed with our friends John and Angela.  Blake and John went to university together and John is now working in Hong Kong.  John and Angela were incredible hosts and the time we spent with them was the best part of our visit to Hong Kong.

We expected lots of skyscrapers, bright lights and crowds in Hong Kong but we were surprised to see lots of areas that were quiet and green.  Angela took us to two spots - Stanley and Victoria Peak - to show us this side of Hong Kong.

Blake on Stanley's quiet beach

"Blake's Pier" is at Stanley as you can see on the sign 

Part of Victoria Peak on the right and downtown on the left

Us with downtown in the background - a cloudy day unfortunately

Large parts of Hong Kong are very green like this part of Victoria Peak

You take a tram up and down the very steep Victoria Peak

Here are a few night photos that show the bright lights, big city side of Hong Kong.

Downtown Hong Kong at night

Enjoying a drink and overlooking the harbour

Double decker trams are a great way to see downtown

The last stop on our whirlwind tour was a visit to the Tian Tan Buddha that's commonly known as Big Buddha. Big Buddha is a 34 metre (110 feet) tall bronze statue that sits at the top of one of the highest peaks in Hong Kong.  The statue and the monastery next to it are the centre of Buddhism in Hong Kong.

Buddha roughly translates as "the Enlightened One".  Buddha is the title given to a man who lived in India roughly 2,600 years ago and whose teachings became the basis for Buddhism.  We expect to learn lots more about Buddhism as we travel through southeast Asia.

You take a 30 minute cable car ride to the top of the peak

Big Buddha in the mist - it was cloudy when we headed to the top

Climbing 240 steps to reach Big Buddha

Tian Tan Buddha

Vanessa with one of the six "devas" who make offerings to the Buddha

The monastery's main temple with a new temple under construction in the background

Inside the temple

Three bronze statues of the Buddha represent his past, present and future lives

Three days definitely isn't enough time to take in all that Hong Kong has to offer but we got a good taste of the city thanks to John and Angela.  A really big thank you to Angela who was a most excellent tour guide on our day trips!

Vanessa and Blake