Sydney Our last stop on our Oceana trip is Sydney. The flight from Noosa (Sunshine Coast) was uneventful. We found our driver and headed to the Grace Hotel a beautiful Art Deco hotel at a great location. Orientation After checking in, dropping off our bags we walked along King Street to Darling harbour. We meandered along the waterfront taking in the views as we went. Navigating through a bit of construction, we found ourselves close to the iconic Sydney Harbour bridge and the Sydney Opera house.

Sunshine Coast Our second to last stop on our trip is the Sunshine Coast of Australia. There are two primary reasons for choosing this location on our trip. The first is a desire to visit the Australia Zoo, created by Steve Irwin “The Crocodile Hunter”. The second was to reconnect with Fiona, a friend of Deanna’s who worked with Deanna at Rivers Edge Camp. Brisbane to Noosa Our flight from Cairns to Brisbane (pronounced Brizbin) was uneventful other than my head congestion wanting to leak out of my ears.

Cairns Next up on the itinerary is the area around Cairns (which is pronounced kanz). It’s the most northern stop on our Australia tour. Unfortunately I’ve decided to become sick. Nothing serious just much coughing and congestion. Probably related to going from 35 C to air conditioning and back while at Ayers Rock. The flight here wasn’t a ton of fun with plugged ears and such, but I’ll be fine in a day or two.

Uluru - Ayers Rock Our next two nights are in the middle of Australia in the within the Uluru-Kata Tjuṯa National Park, more commonly known to English speaking folks as Ayers Rock. The flight from Melbourne took us through Alice springs before landing at the Ayers Rock airport. A tiny place in the middle of nowhere, that would be unremarkable save for the national park. Just outside of the park is they Ayers Rock Resort complex that plays host to five or six hotels, a campground and a town centre that has a couple of restaurants, souvenir shops and a grocery store.

Melbourne Our flight from Queenstown to Melbourne was uneventful, no diversions as the weather in Melbourne was ideal. Our time in Melbourne is more unstructured than anywhere else on our trip. We had originally planned to stay with friends of friends but that didn’t pan out. I booked our three nights at the Oaks on Collins on the recommendation of our friend William. We didn’t have transportation arranged either so we grabbed a cab from the airport.

Final thoughts from New Zealand The New Zealand portion of our trip has come to a close. As I suspected, it wasn’t enough time but we really enjoyed our time here. The country is beautiful. Everyone we’ve met is very friendly. It’s a paradise for folks that love the outdoors. Tons of opportunities for epic hiking, skiing, beaches and other outdoor pursuits. It’s clear to me why so many Kiwi’s like coming to Canada, specifically Banff.

Queenstown Our last stop in New Zealand is the southern island town of Queenstown. Unfortunately, due to a large amount of rain, our plane from Rotorua couldn’t land in Queenstown and we were diverted to Invercargill and were then bussed to Queenstown which added another 3.5 hours to the trip. Not ideal, but not a big deal in the grand scheme of things. Our ride to the hotel met us at the airport and took us for a little tour through the core of Queenstown pointing out some good places to eat.

Technical Post: Blogging process I’ve had a couple of people enquire what the process and tools I’m using to create the posts while travelling. If you’re just here for the gripping commentary and photos, you can give this post a miss otherwise strap on your propeller hat and let’s dig in. Like most things that have any sort of technical component, my approach and tooling have evolved over the years.

Rotorua We have one day in Rotorua to explore. Two items on the itinerary, a trip to “Hells Gate Geothermal Park and Mud Bath Spa” and “Te Puia Te Po & Hangi Concert”. Rotorua was settled by the Māori people in the 14th century. The Māori people are the indigenous people of New Zealand and Rotorua is where a large percentage of them call home. It’s the only bilingual city in the country where English and Māori are spoken.

Auckland to Rotorua Another travel day today, but this one is a bit different in that we’re taking a bus from Auckland to Rotorua with stops along the way at Hobbiton and Waitomo Glowworm Caves. Auckland to Hobbiton. The trip from Auckland to Matamata is about two hours. We joined a full bus of folks that are on the tour. Auckland is the largest city in New Zealand with a population of around 1.