TravelStream™ news feed for member betsyandjason on TravelPod's free travel blogs service http://www.travelpod.com/syndication/rss/betsyandjason en-us Copyright ©2010 TravelPod.com Sat, 08 Dec 2007 17:30:14 -0500 http://www.travelpod.com http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1197152280/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1197152280/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1197152280/tpod.html Sat, 08 Dec 2007 17:30:14 -0500 Kimreys in New Zealand

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Waikoloa, Hawaii, United States

After one bungy jump (yes - Betsy did take the plunge) and 3 days of flying, we arrived on the Big Island of Hawaii for our final stop on our incredible journey. WIth enough Marriott points to pay for an entire week, this was the perfect way to end the trip with a week of resort living. Unfortunately, the weather was "the worst weather for at least five years" according to locals. It didnt matter to us though as we appreciated the chance to wind it down and relax before getting back to the snow and ice currently in Annapolis. J did manage to complete his scuba certification while Lila was able to hit the pool every day (the Marriott pool had the perfect baby section with a gentle sloping sand bottom and was a perfect place for her to float with her new swim ring. Lila also continued her string of great behavior and she was the perfect dinner companion every night. People continued to comment on her great disposition, including one elderly couple who approached the table with canes and asked us "does your baby smoke marijuana because shes so calm and our grandkids are awful!"

While we are certainly sad to see this trip end, we are really looking forward to seeing everyone when we get home. We've enjoyed sharing the details of this trip and appreciated the chance to stay in touch while on the other side of the world.

Merry CHristmas and see you soon!!

Love, Jason, Betsy and Lila
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1196284560/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1196284560/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1196284560/tpod.html Wed, 28 Nov 2007 20:51:48 -0500 Kimreys in New Zealand

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Queenstown, New Zealand

It's hard to believe (and tough to accept) but we're wrapping up the NZ trip and the last two weeks have been an absolute whirlwind. I can't think of a better place to finish than Queenstown, which is the self-proclaimed adventure capital of the world, and after 10 days here, I'm certainly not going to disagree. To top it off, our friends Charlotte and Paul and their 18-month daughter Lucy made the trip to NZ from Miami and Paul proved to be the perfect companion to join me in every possible adventure activity that I couldn't convince B to tackle.

For the past week, Paul and I have been pretending to be living in a Red Bull commercial by doing every extreme activity that we could - including Bungy, Canyoning, and heli-biking. I even joined B for a horseback riding experience that may have been more extreme than any of the others as it involved galloping at an insane speed and swimming with the horses through glacial rivers. Somehow my horse reverted back to his racing days and broke off from the pack and sprinted back towards the farm - luckily I had a few riding pointers from B and was able to get him back under control to finish the ride. B also joined us in a few of the activities including the Shotover Jetboat ride and barreling down a mountain on a 3-wheeled luge. Other activities included fast morning runs with Paul who competes in Ironman, and one more attempt at catching a world record brown trout (I swear I hooked him but he got away).

With lots of different bungy options in Queenstown, Paul and I decided we needed to do it at the place bungy was originally founded by AJ Hackett - the Kawarau Bridge. The bridge jump isn't the tallest but it's unique in that you get to hit the water before the rope jerks you back. It was pretty amazing and the feeling of jumping off the ledge was actually more scary to me than jumping out of an airplane earlier in the trip. Canyoning was extremely cool and involved hiking up a mountain and then making your way back down via zip lines, abseiling, sliding headfirst down waterfalls and jumping off cliffs as high as 30 ft.

Heli-biking seemed like a great idea too - we boarded a helicopter in the morning that took us to the top of a mountain peak and then we proceeded to ride big mountain bikes with full suspension systems down steep vertical drops and huge boulders. Given that my mountain bike experience was limited to riding on pavement to class in college, I was pretty much out of my league. It certainly didn't help when the guide started the trip by telling me how the last guy broke his arm during the first 15 minutes of the ride. As I held on for dear life, I watched the guy in front of me fly over his handlebars 3 times in the first 10 minutes. To make matters worse, the 30 mph winds made it nearly impossible to stay on the bike. Miraculously, I managed to stay on and get to the bottom unscathed with only one minor incident and a few scratches.

While I was doing my best to seriously injure myself, B and Charlotte had a great time catching up and introducing Lucy and Lila to each other. The kids enjoyed a steamship ride to Walter Peak to see sheep sheering and working sheep dogs. While Lucy ran from the baby lambs, Lila tried to struggle free and grabbed onto a fistful of lamb wool. With the help of our full time baby sitter Sam, Charlotte and B certainly stayed busy as well. They even managed to catch the elusive (to me at least) Brown Trout (for the record - not using a fly rod) and cook a Thanksgiving feast with their catch (NZ only has turkeys at Christmas time so there was no turkey on turkey-day for us.)

After Charlotte, Paul and Lucy headed back to the states B, Lila and I headed south to Fjordland, to visit Doubtful and Milford Sounds, and enjoy what proved to be the most expensive night of accommodations yet. We paid through the nose for a small overnight eco-cruise on Doubtful Sound. We spotted NZ fur seals, the world's rarest penguins (Fjordland Crested) and woke up to dolphins swimming around our boat in the morning. B also got out and kayaked part of Doubtful Sound and paddled up to waterfalls. Truly worth the small fortune we paid for the trip.

End note from B....

We sit inside this morning as Lila sleeps, looking out onto massive lake Te Anau, snow capped peaks, pastures of sheep, and as I look up from the keyboard just now I can see a full arc of a rainbow. It's beautiful but so, so windy and the passing showers will make it hard for us to get out for our planned hike. We will likely just spend our last full day mourning about leaving this incredible country. Tomorrow AM, we will get up early, make the 2.5 hour drive back to Queenstown, meet a family friend for lunch and hop on the plane to Auckland. We will spend one quick night in an airport hotel and then head off for the states. Fortunately, we have one more stop before we hit the cold weather of the East Coast. We hate to rub it in, but we've decided to extend our vacation by a few days so we can hit the Big Island of Hawaii on our way home. I know, I know, rough life we have right now...

Anyway, on our stop in Queenstown, I am trying to wrestle my fears and get up the courage to Bungy jump. I am about 50-50 right now... I think the scariest part will be the initial jump off the ledge (they won't push you - you have to make the jump on your own). I wonder if I'll faint - If I do, then I'll fall and it will be over before I know it, right??? Anyway, you'll have to stay tuned for the next chapter to see if I decide to take the plunge...

As for Lila, she has continued to be the perfect traveling companion. On our cruise, we had several people stop us to say how they couldnt believe how she never cried or fussed and always smiled at everyone. At the end, everyone knew her name and made a point to say goodbye to her. Her top two teeth are starting to come in - at this point they look big and far apart..J is already starting to worry about paying for braces. She's also VERY close to crawling and we think she'll be moving before we get back. We are certainly glad we took the trip when we did as she will be a handful once she is able to move on her own. Lila has loved having the full attention of her mom and dad but i know she is ready to join playgroup and meet all her friends in Annapolis.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1194989460/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1194989460/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1194989460/tpod.html Wed, 14 Nov 2007 16:45:22 -0500 Kimreys in New Zealand

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Christchurch, New Zealand

After extending our stay in Golden Bay an extra night, we crossed the south Island via the Lewis Pass to get to Christchurch. Betsy's mom Anne flew into Christchurch and is spending a week with us to check out a few of the sites. The drive across the country was spectacular and Lila was a trooper during the grueling 7-hour drive.

We finally arrived in Christchurch on Friday night and quickly realized our run of great houses had come to a screeching halt. When we had originally viewing the rental apartment's website, we had been thrilled about the prospect of staying at a hip flat in the heart of the city. However, we would soon realize that you can actually be too close to the center of the action. We also learned that you can't always trust the glamorous photos that appear on a website. As we approached the entrance to our new home, we wound our way through a parking lot and came upon a metal cage door and a steep narrow staircase - this should have been a sign of things to come.... When we arrived, Anne was already there and had spent the afternoon helping the locals apartment owners with various chores, including cooking at a street fair and helping haul boxes up and down the steep stairs...someone forgot to tell her that she had just spent the last 30 hours traveling and was supposed to be tired. After going to dinner at a nearby cafe, we got Lila down to bed and all settled in for an early night. Around 11, we realized that our bedroom backed up to one of the biggest nightclubs in town featuring a mix of the latest techno and hip-hop beats. While there are times when I would appreciate the fact that bars stay open till 4am, tonight wasn't one of them. B and I listened to thumping bass all night long and did everything we could to keep Lila from staying awake all night. First thing the next morning I was on the phone with the owner, while holding an exhausted and fussing Lila tucked under one arm. I think that when he heard a tired screaming baby, he felt sorry for us and gave us a big discount on the apartment. Anyway, we had one more night in Christchurch, most of which was uneventful - it appeared that the whole town had partied so much the night before that the festivities ended a bit earlier - THANK GOD! B and Anne did some sightseeing, hit the local art museum and has a delicious dim sum dinner. The next day before leaving, we all took a Gondola to the top of a mountain and hiked down while overlooking the city, mountains and countryside.

On Sunday we headed to Mt Cook National Park, 3-hours south of Christchurch and the tallest peak in NZ. The views and scenery in this area were stunning - not to mention completely different from anything any of us had ever seen. The mountains were formed by glaciers and there were several glacier lakes at the base of the mountains. B and I did a morning hike that we both agreed was one of the best we had ever done - B and Anne then took the afternoon to take an inflatable raft onto one of the lakes and were able to get out of the boat and actually climb aboard a floating iceberg.

We left yesterday and are now in the final few weeks of our trip. We're now in Wanaka, where through a friend of a friend of a friend, have managed to stay three nights at the private home of Lois Mills, who owns Rippon Vineyards, located on the edge of the lake in Wanaka. The wine is amazing, The views are spectacular from the house and we're planning to get out for some more hikes and fishing before heading to Queenstown tomorrow, where Anne leaves on Friday and we are joined by Charlotte, Paul and Lucy Bashforth a couple days later. Who knows what the final leg of our trip will hold...

On a final note, we wanted to give a quick update on little Lila. Just today we noticed that her two top teeth are coming in - could be why she cried for two hours in the middle of the night last night (the only night we actually spent in someone's home!). She has made some new friends here in Wanaka, Lois's grandchildren Henrietta and Fred who are just a few months older than she is. Basically Lila just sits there with a block in her hand, watching Fred crawl around and wondering how he moves, while Henrietta struggles on her stomach making a swimming motion as she tries to learn how to crawl and she gets frustrated. Lila just sits and smiles and takes it all in, very good natured. She doesn't even mind when Fred takes something out of her hands. That said, Lila makes a terrible fuss ever time you wipe her face or put her hands into a shirt or sweater. She definitely has her opinions and lets you know when she isn't happy.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1194322560/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1194322560/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1194322560/tpod.html Tue, 06 Nov 2007 00:00:26 -0500 Kimreys in New Zealand

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Nelson, New Zealand

It is hard to sit and focus on a computer screen and update this travel journal, as the sound of waves roll onto the sands of Golden Bay not 100 feet from where I sit and the fragrant and calming smell of lavender combine with the crisp sea air to lull me into a state of complete relaxation. A low hedge of lavender is the only thing that separates our latest rental house, Beach Villa, from the beach at Golden Bay, at the very north of the South Island. Our house sprawls so that each of the three bedrooms and the kitchen/great room all lookout on the sea. Once again, we have scored a fantastic spot to spend the days.

Since we last updated the journal, we have traveled from the town of Napier in the Hawke's Bay region of the North Island to Wellington, taken a ferry to the South Island, driven through the Marlborough region, spent six days on a farm outside of Nelson, and then driven over to Golden Bay.

In Wellington, we reluctantly dropped off Jane Myers, who nannied for Lila. We met the entire Myers family (aunts, uncles and cousins) and got to experience the typical Myers Family Friday afternoon. The whole family meets at the "Bar" for a 3-hour lunch, which includes Stella Artois, Sauvignon Blanc, and Pinot Noir followed by Dessert Wine. Everyone heads back to work for a few hours and then gets back together for cocktails and dinner, which of course, includes more beverages. We loved the whole family who made us feel right at home and Jason and I are still laughing at some of the funny stories told around the dinner table that night. We have to extend a huge thank you to all of the Myer's family, especially Tim and Jane's Mom, Marion, who babysat for Lila while we went out to dinner. I honestly don't think I have ever met a nicer, more welcoming family! I also want to note that included in the dinner was Megan Brown, a former Annapolitan who recently moved to Wellington with her boyfriend. It was fun to catch up with Megan and hear about her new kiwi lifestyle.

We woke up the next morning to a weather report of Southerly winds - the worst prediction you can have for the 3.5 hour ferry crossing. Neither of us got sick, but J did turn green and spent almost the entire ride lying on the floor of the onboard movie theater trying to deal with the heavy winds and10-foot swells.

When the ship docked, we drove our way through the Marlborough region en route to our next 6-day stop at the Last Straw Cottage. We sampled a few wines from Herzog, Clifford Bay and a few other small vineyards and I have to admit we got a bit burned out on Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc.

A few hours later, Jason and I thought we had to be lost when we wandered down narrow, windey country roads in search of Last Straw Cottage. After the long, cold and rainy drive we were overjoyed when we finally found our little English-style cottage nestled between fields of sheep, cows and horses. The two-bedroom cottage was (newly) built using strawbale construction and the thick walls kept the cottage warm and cozy. Despite being in the middle of nowhere, Last Straw had all of the amenities including fine linens, a massive clawfoot tub and internet access. The next morning we awoke to the most bizarre noise at 6:00AM. It surely wasn't a chicken, it wasn't Lila and we weren't sure what the hell it was just outside of our front door. It turns out it was Mr. P, the resident Peacock who is very nosy and wanted to investigate who had checked into the cottage the previous night.

Highlights at Last Straw included a magnificent hike and a short but beautiful kayak in Able Tasman National Park, a 50KM bike ride by J, some fly fishing by J (of course the big one got away but it only because the guide got wound up in the line - I can only imagine the series of curses that flew out of J's mouth when this happened!), a surprise visit and a delicious dinner with our California friends Mike and Marlo Moshier, and the most wild and terrifying horseback ride of my life!

Let me give you a short description of the ride... The owner Lynne and her sister Bev had invited me to "take a walk around the block" with the horses. I thought to myself, well this sounds kinda boring, but at least I will get to see some of the countryside. They brought out a beautiful 17-hand grey gelding named Murphy and off we went. Well, it turns out that Murphy hadn't been schooled in almost a year, he was full of energy, and their idea of a "walk around the block" meant dashing through cow and sheep fields at a full gallop. Murphy was like a racehorse and I held on for dear life as we flew through the fields. It was both fun and terrifying at the same time! Because we were riding through the countryside, we had to periodically dismount from our horses and open the various farm gates in order to get into the next pasture. The last gate we came to, Bev and Lynne warned me that the cows in this particular field had some times been a bit difficult. I should have been prepared, because as soon as we entered the gate, an enormous black bull pawed the ground, snorted and charged at the horses with massive horns. The horses began to prance and get intimated as the entire heard of cows followed suit. All of a sudden, we were surrounded by about 100 cows who were butting the horses. Lynne's horse began to rear, and it turned into a very scary situation. Luckily Bev's horse, a massive Clydesdale, had a standoff with the cattle and intimated then enough so that Lynne and I could cross the paddock and get out the other gate. We held the gate open for Bev, who charged across the field with huge clumps of earth flying out from underneath the dinner-plate sized hooves of her Budweiser horse. Just as Lynne got out of the gate, we slammed it shut and 100 cows smashed into the fence at top-speed.

Before we left Last Straw, I had several more rides on Murphy and a great lesson from Bev and it turns out that Murphy was a talented dressage horse in addition to being a speed demon.

Note from J....In Golden Bay, we've continued to enjoy ourselves with some great hikes, a horse trek on the beach for Betsy, a couple more great nights with our friends Mike and Marlo and Im still in pursuit of the monster trout he knows is out there. We're here for a couple more days before heading further south to Kaikoura, Christ Church, and ultimately Queenstown. The trip continues to be a true adventure and its great to not only have the time to see New Zealand but also to build time as a family. This aspect of the trip has taken on even greater importance after the passing of my grandmother last week. Its hard to describe the importance she played in my life but as my mom put it, she would be happy knowing that B and I are focusing on our family now and truly appreciating the time the three of us have together. Being this far way during this time has been extremely tough but being here with Lila, who was named after my grandmother, helps in a small way. I know grandma is in a better place and knowing she has joined my granddad who passed away earlier this year makes me smile...
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1193126040/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1193126040/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1193126040/tpod.html Wed, 24 Oct 2007 06:05:46 -0400 Kimreys in New Zealand

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Napier, New Zealand

The trip is starting to feel like camp since every day we seem to have a very cool activity lined up - skydiving, big trout fishing, world class horseback riding have all been recent activites.... I decided skydiving was a must on this trip and apparently Taupo Tandem Skydiving is the best and biggest in the world. They will let you jump as high as 15000 ft. and suprisingly i decided to pay a little extra for 15 additional seconds of freefall over the typical 12000 drop. The first two thousand feet of freefall was into the clouds and the moisture in the clouds hitting my face felt like little needles as i hit speeds around 140mph. Then broke through the clouds at about 13000 feet and could see the entire lake (which is the size of Singapore) as i continued to drop for at least 45 more seconds. Not too much else i can say to adequately describe it but i think the pictures do it justice. I also have a DVD that I'm trying to figure out how to post. Overall - it was an incredible experience.

Trout fishing was great on the Tongoriro river which feeds into Lake Taupo- went two days with a local guide, Will Kemp, who is a mate of our friend Tim in Annapolis. Great guy and after finally getting my casting skills back - we started to get onto some big Rainbow trout averaging around 4 lbs. In typical fashion, I managed to lose a huge one on the first day after fighting for over 15 minutes - B then joined for the second day of fishing and managed to land the biggest of the afternoon. Planning to go again once we hit the South island.

As you might expect, B managed to locate one of the best riding centers in New Zealand while in Taupo. She became quick friends with Karen Neiderer, who was on the NZ Olympic Equestrian team and now does a few lessons. B did 2 days of lessons, and although shes still recovering, had a great expereince and is fired up to get back into riding once we return

In our 10 days in Taupo - we've made lots of new friends and are on a first name basis with all the local shop and restaurant owners. Perhaps our best new friend was a woman named Jenni Donovan, who Betsy met in the local convenience store and who babysat for Lila for several days. Jenni actually traveled with us to our fishing spot over an hour away to watch Lila while we fished. She also owns 16 calves who are 10 days old and need to be bottle fed...B jumped at the offer to get up one morning and help out with the feeding.

Since we can't always convince near strangers to travel with us all the time to watch Lila, we have kept with our reliance on Tim's entire list of NZ contacts and convinced Tim's sister Jane to join us for a week to help out with Lila. Lila loves Jane and the feeling seems to be mutual. Most of the time Jane calls Lila "darling" and "gorgeous" in her lovely NZ accent, however we have learned some new words to describe Lila's less than favorable behavior - our favorite new expression is "grizzley" when Lila becomes "a bit naughty." Jane has been great company and we will certainly miss her when she leaves us in Wellington - we just hope we can convince her to come meet us in Queenstown for the last 2 weeks of our trip and have her help taking care of Lila and Lila's friend Lucy, when Charlotte and Paul Bashforth and their 18 month old daughter, Lucy, come join us.

Left Taupo on Monday and we're now in the town of Napier (the largest collection of Art Deco architecture in the world) in the Hawke's Bay region (renown for Sauvignon Blanc and other tasty NZ wines) and have an amazing house overlooking the Bay/Pacific Ocean. Planning to hit a few vineyards tomorrow after spending most of the day today enjoying the sunshine and hanging out at the Spa pools overlooking the black sand beaches of Napier. The trip continues to be a great adventure and actually seems to be getting better...we leave for Wellington on Friday and then catch the Ferry to the South Island on Saturday.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1192669740/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1192669740/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1192669740/tpod.html Tue, 23 Oct 2007 06:01:28 -0400 Kimreys in New Zealand

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Taupo, New Zealand

After 2 weeks, we left Russell and started our journey south. Before leaving, I did manage another diving trip with my crazy teacher - I did get some type of certificate but he's not sure its exactly street legal. The last dive was amazing - more wresting with crayfish and at one point, 7 dolphins swam right up to us and started circling us from all sides. It was incredible - once I realized that they were in fact dolphins and not great white sharks as I first thought.

As we were leaving, the All Blacks proceeded to BLOW it in the quarterfinals of the Rugby world cup to France. Lets just say the country is still in shock. B and I were definitely bummed but it has definitely made for some great talk radio. It rivals any UGA football call in show where some redneck from south Georgia calls in and dissects every possible reason for the loss - reasons for the loss have included the hotel accommodations they stayed in while in France, the caliber of rugby training in grammar schools, and the fact that they were forced to where their grey jerseys instead of black. All in all - a huge loss for NZ and for the Kimreys. We're now being forced to watch the Auckland - Wellington game in the upcoming Air New Zealand Cup (since NZ also lost a big cricket tournament in an early round...).

First stop after Russell was in Raglan - hippie town thats known for being the best left handed surf break. So - I thought it was time to give surfing another shot (I take lessons in every great location I go to and everytime I still suck). This time was no different - great waves - looked like lots of people were getting some great rides - and I still barely stand up. I think im going to retire at this point since im finally able to accept the fact that I will never be a pro surfer...

In Taupo area now - staying at our friends Tim and Annie Myers uncle's house in Kinloch, which is right outside Taupo. It's a great house - unfortunately - the weather has taken a turn for the worse and has been raining and very windy lately (we're convinced it has something to do with the Rugby loss). Fishing for big trout and skydiving or still on the agenda though so sure to have some good stories before we leave...

Addendum by Betsy:
So J makes it sounds as if we were both truly upset by the All Blacks loss - there is no exaggeration - yes I have become a rugby fan! Although I've never understood a single football play, I was the first one ready to head down to the pub to watch the early AM rugby matches. Something about the tribal ritual dance/chant that begins the game, to the play clock that never stops, to the tight shorts - I was fixated and screaming at the TV with the rest of the Kiwis.

Anyway, we were so sad to depart our PERFECT house in Russell and our studio in Raglan was a little too hippie for me - something about the name "Dreamcatcher", the bizarre tribal masks on the wall, and the guest book with quotes from other visitors like "great vibes and powerful dreams...." As for other Raglan activites, I decided not to try my hand at surfing - instead, I left Jason to the private lesson with the 6' tall Czechoslovakian supermodel, and I felt very much like a mom as Lila and I waved goodbye to him and went back to the room for a nap. All in all, Raglan was an interesting experience - my favorite thing was the "flying fox" zip-line that was within walking distance from "Dream."

For a quick update on Lila who is now 6 ½ months old- we just weighed her today and she is up to 14 ½ pounds. She is pretty tall and is already wearing 9 month sizes. She is still a little on the skinny side, but she is loving the NZ food - her favorite baby food here so far is a combination of organic parsnips and kumara (a type of sweet potato). Believe it or not, this is pretty typical baby food here - I haven't forced her to try some of the other wacky combinations like rhubarb and polenta or lamb, mixed berries and wild rice. She has made her first purchases of Merino wool - she has a new sleep sack called a "Go-Go" bag to keep her warm during the cold nights here (it can drop to 10 degrees Celcius - still haven't figured out how to convert to Farenheight but it certainly feels cold). After getting far too squirmy to sit on our lap and eat, we have bought Lila her first highchair - big, pink and plastic but she loves it and gets so excited to sit up by herself and eat. On Friday we are shipping in a nanny for a week so we can do some more outdoor activities (its just been too chilly and rainy to take her on many hikes) and go wine tasting in Hawke's Bay. We will have to keep you posted on her new playmate. All in all, Lila's little personality is coming out in full force, she is definitely opinionated, loves to laugh and smile, and always wants to play and be held. She is rolling over and starting to sit up on her own and she is becoming a little chatterbox - she chortles and cackles and says "Mom" all the time in her cute little voice. Lila seems to be the center of attention wherever we go and we have managed to talk most of our waitresses into holding her and playing with her while we eat dinner or lunch out. We can't imagine this trip without her!
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1191546600/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1191546600/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1191546600/tpod.html Thu, 04 Oct 2007 21:27:30 -0400 Kimreys in New Zealand

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Russell, New Zealand

At this point, work is a distant memory. We're really getting to know the town (b calls it a one sheep town but we both love it) and B is now friends with the local baker, masseuse, grocer, and sweater maker (who is also the yoga instructor) - Kiwis have made the important discovery that possums have a great purpose - fur. They make sweaters from possum fur and b is in negotiations to buy her first possum sweater. Lila has become very content just going along for the ride....

I've been keeping up with the Tri training but decided after a recent swim in freezing water - I might need to hold off on swimming until I can find some warmer water. In the meantime - I decided to get my scuba certification. Found an instructor who lets just say believes in an accelerated training schedule. Day one lasted about 10 minutes and consisted on me picking up a book and dvd to read. Next session - pick up by boat - cover some key info on the ride out to a shallow cove - only caught some of the info given the loud motor and kiwi accent of the instructor. Get to roberton cove, put on tanks/gear and start diving and reviewing a few key things like breathing underwater. Two hours later - go to first "real" dive - fall off boat in 2-3 foot chop to start the dive- follow instructor down 30 feet into crayfish nests (NZ crayfish = lobster) and start catching dinner - also swam through kelp forests and saw an octopus. Next session is on Saturday - cant imagine what im in for next.

Did a family hike to wangamumu - site of an old whaling station and possibly one of the prettiest places on earth. B strapped lila into the ergocarrier and she managed to sleep the entire way there. Hiked through horse and sheep pastures, through some jungle, climbed up some serious inclines (that also happened to be slick from the monsoon the night before) and made it the whaling station where I also collected a few oysters for a mid-hike snack. Lila managed to wake up to see the destination - eat and then back to sleep for the way back.

Rugby world cup is in full force and ive almost forgotten about college football - except for the fact that im excited to see that UVA has recovered nicely from Wyoming loss and is on a tear - guess groh could feel the pressure. UGA seems to be back on track after SC loss but we'll know more after UT this weekend. Florida and Texas loss last week should make for an interesting BCS scenario...anyway - All Blacks are the national rugby team and the fans are slightly more enthusiastic than SEC football fans, true Ravens fans from Dundalk, walker richmond at western Albemarle lacrosse games and myles goger at all of jasons sports in middle school, high school and college...All blacks have there first real test on Sunday - 8am NZ time against France. B, Lila and J will be in at the local pub in time for kickoff!

Betsy found someone to take her kayaking and is off now - rest of the free time has been spent relaxing, collecting mussels at the beach, sailing, cooking great dinners, playing with lila, reading, daily walks and generally enjoying the feeling of having nothing to do.

We leave on Monday with 2 day stop in Raglan (where I will once again attempt to learn to surf) and then on our way to Lake Taupo area for 10 days...
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1190846580/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1190846580/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1190846580/tpod.html Wed, 26 Sep 2007 19:05:11 -0400 Kimreys in New Zealand

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Russell, New Zealand

Three to four hours North of Auckland in the Bay of Island/Northland region, Russell is the most historic town in NZ, so the tour books say. Pulled in weary - J from driving on the wrong side of the road and B from backseat driving and gripping onto the dashboard, only to be very pleasantly surprised by our rental home for the next two weeks. Zimmery Fid, sits perched on the hilltop two blocks from downtown Russell. The charming Cape Cod with double decker porches have 180 degree views of the water and are perfect for "sundowners."

Rain and high winds the first day forced us to relax during our first full day, build a fire, get naps and get organized. Pulled together a great meal from the Four Square convenience store - Jamie Oliver would be proud with our recreation of his chicken and mushroom packet. Why don't WAWA's sell parsnips, leeks and organic chicken???

Russell is so small, that both B and J were slightly worried about whether or not we'd made the right decision about our location. After traveling by ferry to neighboring Paihia on our second day, battling tourists, tourist trap shops and restaurants, tons of construction and a 2 mile uphill hike to the Woolworth's Grocery, we decided our location in little Russell was perfect!!!

Goals for our two weeks in Russell include: Yoga (B found a yoga teacher who holds classes a few times a week in the town hall), kayaking, sailing, hiking and reading. Hope to see some whales and dolphins and spot a Kiwi bird.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1190354340/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1190354340/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1190354340/tpod.html Wed, 26 Sep 2007 18:56:56 -0400 Kimreys in New Zealand

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Auckland, New Zealand

Thought Lila was out for the count when she fell asleep right before takeoff. As soon as we were airborne, she popped awake and fussed, and fussed, and fussed. As soon as we had her back asleep, stewardesses made some meaningless announcements and so began the cycle of the entire flight. Jason slept about 6 hours, Betsy 2, Lila 4. Return flight sure to be even worse if Lila is crawling... So much for reserving a bassinet.

Thank God for a speedy baggage claim and customs. Jason's best investment of the trip may have been the car service that wisked our exhausted trio straight to the Westin.

Westin located along the Viaduct in Lighter Quay. Starwood points came to the rescue. Little Lila was definitely not an ideal roommate, then again, neither was Jason. J popped an Ambien and knocked out. Lila decided to wake up 3 times during the first night. B was up at 5:30AM in search of coffee while powerwalking with stroller through Auckland. Jason continued to sleep, and sleep after a morning dose of Melatonin. As if B didn't make it clear how unhappy she was with J about Ambien and Melatonin, there was a repeat performance each night in Auckland... We finally made time transition 3rd day in...

Sights in Auckland include: Viaduct, Queen Street, Devonport, the Bank (where J logged in a few hours while attempting various wire transfers to pay for housing - all due to Bank of America becoming suspicious with charges coming in from Annapolis, San Francisco and Auckland all within a 5 day span).

After much help and advice from Westin staff (our new friend Heinrich who held Lila while we figured out how to fit everything in the car) we were on route to Russell.
]]> http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1190351820/tpod.html http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1190351820/tpod.html#comments Travel Blogs http://www.travelpod.com/travel-blog-entries/betsyandjason/newzealand/1190351820/tpod.html Wed, 26 Sep 2007 18:41:04 -0400 Kimreys in New Zealand

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St Helena, California, United States

Its harvest time in Napa and B, Lila and I thought it was our duty to help contribute... From what i could tell, it looks like really hard work to pick grapes. It certainly made me appreciate that fifth glass of cab on my first night into the trip as i looked out on all the grapes that still needed to be picked. Since I am on sabattical from any type of work, i decided to let Lila start contributing and as you can see from the pictures, she has a real future as a grape pciker. Its seasonal work but you have to start somewhere...Anyway - we made it to the Moore ranch with no problems and Sam and Sara (and Sara's grandmother Mimi) were very gracious hosts as always.

In addition to drinking, we did manage a few other great activities while in CA. Sam and I did our best to act like a gay couple by putting on our tightest spandex and going for a couple long bike rides. It would have been worse if we stopped off for some wine tasting along the way but we did have to walk through time one time in our bike shorts - very gay but i felt suprisingly comfortable with it....the effects of the sabattical must already be setting in.

we also managed one night out for a great dinner at Adhoc - a new restaturant by thomas keller (french laundry, per se, etc.). This one is more casual and cheaper (you wouldnt expect anything else would you??). Concept here is that only one meal is served a night and there are no subsitutions (tough for betsy to accept). This must be the pinnacle of restaturant ownership when you can get away with only serving one choiuce and stil packing the place every night. It was a great meal and would definately recommend it for anyone coming to the area.


Overall - a great way to start to the trip and now its time to head to NZ!
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