Cairns Australia Day

Last week we took our final trip of our journey before heading home. We wanted to see the Great Barrier Reef before returning to the states so that's what we did!

Thursday the 26th was Australia Day so Jeff had the day off. We took full advantage and headed north to Cairns.

Once we landed we had to check out the water. Cairns is a small town with an Esplanade where all the Australia activities where in full swing. It was a rainy day but the bands and bar-b-ques where going!

Jeff checking out the water and the mountains

They had a great pool(called the Lagoon) right on the water that all the kids was enjoying!

Australia Day is the Australian version of our 4th of July. One major difference we noticed- every person and place is decked out in Australia paraphernalia! We saw one guy in a flag hat, shirt and pants! Love it!

After checking out the water, we went to grab some food!

Aussie banners everywhere!

We decided to celebrate the holiday the Aussie way -with a beer!

Apparently this is not a pitcher - its a jug of beer! Crazy!

Happy Australia Day!

Happy Australia Day 2012!

I hope everyone enjoys their Australia Day as much as Jeff is!

We are off to the Great Barrier Reef for the weekend so we will check back soon.

Kelly Tarlton's

Since we were so close to Antarctica, we decided to go on a little expedition to find the Arctic Penguins!

Just Kidding!

Jeff and I visited the Kelly Tarlton's Antarctic Encounter and Underwater World on our last day! The entire facility is built underground in the old sewer pipes under Auckland. Many Antarctic expeditions have been lead by Kiwi explorers and scientist. New Zealand has claimed part of the continent and maintains a large research base there.

Here is Jeff following the penguin footsteps to find them.

Kelly Tarlton's has a great set up to display the two types of Arctic penguins. Their habitat is set to simulate their native home with sunsets, sunrises and they change the terrain periodically to stimulate the penguins.

Here are the King Penguins all dressed up!

This is a Gentoo Penguin!

Then we were off to the underwater experience.

Check out this huge Stingray!

People could even get in the tank and swim with the sharks. We clearly decided not! Check out his teeth!

Then we found the much safer and cuter sea Turtles! They won't be here much longer because they will be released back into the wild soon.

Blow fish!

On the way out we saw the octopus. Then Jeff realized it was fighting with the starfish for a clam to eat on... Crazy sea life! I guess they have drama too!

Hokey Pokey Kiwi Style

While Jeff was at work, the weather in New Zealand was amazing. The best thing to do - grab a bit of Kiwi ice cream and head to the beach!

It was beautiful at Takapuna!

check out how blue the water is!

One night for dinner, we headed back into Devonport. We had seen this little restaurant off the main street and decided to go it.

The restaurant had only 10 tables and the service and food was amazing! This is where we learned what the Hokey Pokey is really all about! Hokey pokey in New Zealand is their #1 flavor of ice cream. We had to try it when we had our desert here. The ice cream was so creamy and smooth and it was drizzled with caramel sauce and bits of honeycomb! It came with brownies but the hokey pokey is what it's all about!

On our way back to the hotel, we walked past the ferry terminal and saw this amazing sunset!

Breathtaking!

Hop On Auckland!

On Jeff's first day at work in New Zealand, I decided to explore the city of Auckland via the Hop-on, Hop-off bus in the CBD. I really enjoyed seeing the city in more detail.

My first stop was atop the Bastion Point Lookout. This place was another gun emplacement for the military but now has a memorial set up for a Labor Party Leader from the 1930's.

It has fantastic views of the city and the islands in the Waitemata Harbour.

Loved the views!

You probably have seen the many "self portraits" of Jeff and I as we stick out the camera to take a quick pic. Obviously Jeff was at the office so this one is just of me!

From there, I walked down a little path to Mission Beach - one of the best beaches near the city. It was a wonderful sandy beach. The traditional activity here is to grab some take away food to enjoy on the beach, so that's what I did!

My next stop was the Parnell Rose Garden. Again it had wonderful views of the bay.

It had over hundreds of varieties of roses from all over the world.

These were so unique!

I then took a bit longer to enjoy the Auckland Museum. It sits atop a hill just past the CBD and can be seen from the Harbour. It is a beautiful building!

One great exhibit was on the Maori Rugby team. It was cool to see the history of the team and how the culture of the people is still ingrained in their traditions.

They do the Haka dance before the game to scare the opposing team! Really fun to watch!

They also had an entire floor dedicated to wars and those who had fought for their country. I thought this statue was cool - it is a dedication to the New Zealand Bombers!

One exhibit that I did not photograph was about volcanoes. I am now officially scared to death of volcanoes. I learned all about what they do to people when they erupt and even watched a dramatization on what could potentially happen if a new volcano erupted in Auckland. I sat in a fake house, watching a fake news report and the looking out my"window" saw the whole thing happen! They as the smoke and lava got near, the whole house shook and when black!

Wow - I never want to be near a volcano! I needed some happy thoughts after that one!

So, my last stop was the Parnell Shopping Village.

Parnell is the oldest neighborhood in Auckland and it was adorable!

So quaint!

That night, after Jeff and James were done with work we all ventured back to the CBD for dinner on the Viaduct. This area was developed for the 2003 America's Cup. This is a major yacht race they hosted and revitalized this area with great restaurants and shopping.

As we ate, we enjoyed the best sunset! I loved it!

Waiheke Island

On our second day in New Zealand, we headed out to Waiheke Island. This is only a 3o min ferry ride from the CBD and is called the "Island of Wine". Check out the view from the ferry when we looked back at Auckland! Beautiful!

Everyone mentioned this is a must do and it has tons of activities! Wine tours, hiking trails, beaches, and many more!

We love taking the ferry!

Once we arrived, we got on the hop on, hop off bus called the Island Hopper to take a tour of the island. This gave us the freedom to do what we wanted!

Look how fun the Hopper was!

Our first stop... Oneroa Beach and the community around it!

Oneroa is a quaint beachside community with fun shops and cafes. But the beach is what caught our eye!

It was beautiful, untouched and peaceful! What a way to start the day!

Our second stop was a winery - Te Whau is know for its 300 degree views of the water and they did not disappoint.

Amazing views. On talking with the winery guy, we found out he and his wife bought the place over 20 years ago as a second career. What a way to retire!

The winery owner started us out with a tasting of their signature wine - The Point, a cabernet merlot blend. We tried three different vintages and got to taste the difference between each year - even though they were made with the same type of grapes.

It was great to try them all and Jeff and I even had different favorites! Jeff preferred the '09 and I liked the '08.

From there we were off to another Winery. This was called Wild on Waiheke and included a winery, brewery and outdoor activities!

Since this was a break from the wine, we decided to try all the beers too!

Don't worry - we shared this tray!

We found a great new cider and even a great Hefeweizen.

As I mentioned before, they had several outdoor activities from giant chess to archery. The idea of archery and drinking didn't sound like a good combination so we decided to pass on the games! Too dangerous for us!

After tasting some of the wines and a hearty lunch, we were back on the bus to find our next stop. By this point it was getting later, so we decided to hit another beach!

Onetangi is one of the favorite beaches for the locals so we had to stop there! After seeing it, I know why!! Beautiful sand and a great coastline!

The water was crystal clear - perfect day for the beach!

After enjoying the beach we were back on the bus to find the ferry again. On the bus back, we had a few more stops before we made it to our final destination. They driver let us hop off at this point to take some pictures. It was the best view of the day! You can see the clear water, white sand and in the distance is Auckland city!

I was mesmerized! Jeff even had to call out to me from the bus so they wouldn't leave me out there staring at the view! Oops!

Once back on the ferry, the sun was out in full effect! We were camera crazy snapping every island and ship as we rode back to Auckland.

Here are a few of our favorites on the ride back!

We easily could have spent our entire time in New Zealand out on Waiheke Island! It is a must if you go to Auckland!