I have just returned from another great adventure- Australia and New Zealand! Yes, the flight was long- that seems to be everyone’s concern, but worth every mile of flying and layovers; I would do it all over again tomorrow! Australia is enormous and with limited time the best way to get from city to city is by plane. We had 12 flights when we returned from this trip and can you believe…no lost luggage (30 suitcases) and no missed connections!!
We began our journey departing from Chicago O’Hare with a change of planes in Los Angeles and Auckland – arriving in Cairns, Australia on Day 3- (lost a day crossing the dateline)! Located in tropical North Queensland, Cairns was a great place to explore for a couple of days…we snorkeled on Green Island, visited The Tjapukai Cultural Park, learning about the Aboriginal culture and traveled via the skyrail gondola which hovers above the fern-covered floor of the rainforest (4.7 mi.) to the quaint town of Kuranda. We returned to Cairns via the scenic railroad, winding around curves and crossing bridges.
Our next two destinations found us in two of Australia’s largest cities- Melbourne and Sydney! The most fun was our evening excursion to Phillip Island where we watched anxiously for the tiny fairy penguins (over 200 of them) to waddle up to the beach from their day at sea! With over 4.2 million in population, Sydney has become one of the most multi-cultural cities in the world. It’s an exciting place to be and with a three – day stay here we were busy! Highlights for me included visiting the Royal Botanic Garden, a dance performance at the Sydney Opera House, evening sunset dinner cruise on Sydney Harbor (best views of the Opera House and the Sydney Bridge), and having a relaxing lunch at Darling Harbor.
As soon as we landed in New Zealand, we knew the scenery and lifestyle was about to change! Comparable in size to Colorado, New Zealand has a population of only 4 million which gives way to beautiful landscapes including vast mountain chains, steaming volcanoes, deeply indented fiords, and lush rainforests! Our first destination was Rotorua- the Wautoma Caves and the famous Glow Worm Grotto. A visit later in the day to the Agridome enlightened the group to the various sheep grown in the region as well as a sheep-shearing demonstration. I guarantee you will see lots of sheep in New Zealand- there’s 10 sheep for every person!
The South Island of New Zealand is a favorite for most everyone. The fall season was in full swing, beautiful yellow- gold leafed trees and crisp- cool outside air. Our day trip to Milford Sound began early in the morning as we followed the winding mountain roads. After arriving, we took a 2 hour boat ride, photographing rushing waterfalls, cliffs, and jagged rocks- an awesome trip! After leaving Queenstown, we stopped in Mt. Cook for lunch and another “Kodak” moment!
The people of this country, “Kiwis”, are friendly, modest and open as we discovered first hand during an overnight farm stay. I stayed at a sheep and deer ranch about an hour drive from Christchurch. Others in the group stayed at various other local farms – we shared stories the next day on the motor coach! Everyone was impressed by their kindness, delicious cooking and down-to-earth home atmosphere.
Christchurch was our final stop in New Zealand and is quite a charming city with The Botanic Gardens, Art Museum and Cathedral easily accessible. We had time to explore and rest before beginning our journey home to the U.S.!