It probably sounds funny to say that we are going to be taking a vacation. Most of you probably look at us and think we are on a permanent vacation right? Well, as you’ve seen lately we do spend a lot of time working on the boat and sometimes it’s just nice to get away for a change. That said, it’s time for the Dazzler crew to take to the land and see more of this amazing country.
Our dear friends, Mary and Jack will be here tomorrow and we will be taking a three week tour of the South Island here in New Zealand. If you’ve been following us for a while you know Jack is our friend who arranged to get our new Honda generator, also named Jack, to us in Nuka Hiva. He and his dear wife are two of our best friends and we can’t wait to explore New Zealand with them. We’ve booked Air B&B’s to stay in along the way and we’re all ready for a few weeks of fun and adventure….landlubber style! By the way, if you come to NZ and you want to travel, Air B&B IS the way to go. Hotels we looked at along the way were rather costly, the range of $200 NZ per couple, per night or more. The homes we’ve book are two or three bedroom homes and are $170-$210 per night for all four of us! And since we will be in homes with full kitchens we won’t have to eat out the entire time. We do love a good dinner out but sometimes it gets old. Of course there’s thee added bonus of having comfortable space around where we can all relax and enjoy each other rather than having to sit in some hotel lounge or crowd into a room and sit on the beds. We’ll provide a link to Air B&B for each home we stay and and we’ll be sure to let you know the pros and cons of each place.
Our journey will take us over 1000 miles south from Whangarei to Queenstown and then back again. We will be visiting geothermal pools and mud ponds in Rotorua, experience a true Hangi dinner with a Māori tribe, tour the Glowworm Caves of Waitomo via boat, have dinner on a streetcar while touring Christchurch, explore Hokitika and its artsy side, visit Hobbiton, the move set where the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings movies were filmed, see the Southern Alps and much more.
And as a special treat the owner, Vajin Armstrong, of Gandharva Loka, a music store in Christchurch, is actually making special arrangements to open up just for the Dazzler Crew so Jilly can pick up a couple of tin whistles and maybe some other interesting instruments. Can’t wait to see all the unique instruments Vajin has to offer.
Yes, this journey is sure to be an amazing one full of laughs, awesome adventures and lots of beautiful sights. We sure hope you’ll follow along to learn about this awesome country and all of the incredible people who live here.
Away We Go!
See you down the road. Cheers!
Until next time,
Jilly & Dan
