Rotorua, Whakatane, Coromandel, Auckland, and finally....San Francisco

Our next stop after Taupo was Rotorua for a little thrill action (i.e. white water rafting). We figured we could not leave New Zealand without doing some sort of extreme sport. It was a good experience, however was a little commercial as the 4-5 rafts stayed together and basically played bumper boats all the way down the river. The highlight was definitely the 7 meter waterfall that we got to "ride" down!!

Stylish Rafting Outfits



Cathedral Cove

No rest for the wary as our next destination was Whakatane to see Olivia's (Kyle’s wife) parents house and say hello to her parents. On our way we stopped at a campsite right on the beach in Matata. We have really gotten used to living out of a camper van and have loved just being able to drive and pull off the road when we see a nice place to stay or are tired. Again, the weather that next day was not in our favor as we had planned to do a boat trip out to the famous White Island volcano. Unfortunately, the waves were too high for it to be safe to land on the island, so our trip was cancelled. Instead of spending the night at Olivia’s parents, we decided to just stop in and say hi before heading to our next destination= Coromandel Point.  In Coromandel, we stopped off at a couple key spots that were recommended to us by friends or fellow travelers along the way. We first stopped at Hot Water beach, which if you come in the right season, you can essentially dig yourself a hole in the ground and sit in yourself made spa! The geothermal hot water from below the surface rises up and heats the sand creating a spa/jacuzzi effect. Considering the weather was cold & rainy, we were less than excited about digging holes in the sand and getting in our bathing suits. So we packed it up and headed up north to Cathedral Cove. This was a beautiful spot along the water, where the crash of the waves has created a tunnel like cove right on the beach, called Cathedral Cove!

We didn’t get the chance to go all the way through Coromandel as we did have a few days set for Auckland as our final destination, so we drove our final leg of the trip with Jucy to Auckland and met Kyle and his family. They were generous enough to let us stay in the house with them and we loved being in a home setting finally…it had been over 4 months since we had left home! We spent our last few days on the other side of the world soaking in the sights around Auckland: 1) wine tasting / accompanying Kyle to work on Waiheke Island, a beautiful island just off of Auckland that has some spectacular wineries & views, 2) Taking a day trip to the breathtaking Piha Beach and spending an afternoon there, and finally 3) Enjoying what the city has to offer by spending time seeing the sights, walking along the pier admiring the hundreds of sailboats and partaking in Auckland’s dining & nightlife scene. We even almost extended our trip yet again…to go somewhere in the pacific islands – either Tahiti or Samoa islands. Sadly, we opted out of it because reality was loudly knocking on our door.

We said good bye to Kyle, his family and our dream of a vacation early on Sunday morning, boarded our 14 hr plane and headed back to the place we call home – San Francisco. Our final days leading up to our departure were bitter sweet, but we hope to make this journey back to these faraway lands again! This trip gave us new perspective on life, renewed our desire to travel, learn & experience new cultures, and invigorated our reality. It really was the trip of a lifetime; that we hope to repeat again and again and again….

Until next time,

Shaun & Rayann!

Link to pictures: https://picasaweb.google.com/rayann.torres/NewZealandNorthIsland#

Wellington & Lake Taupo make it a little easier to come home!

The Ferry to Wellington was extremely comfortable and had all the amenities one would need on a boat including a food court, movie theatre and nice big comfortable seats with great views of the strait we crossed. This was a far cry from our ferry experiences in Indonesia! As for Wellington, it was a nice little city that reminded us a lot of San Francisco. Surrounded by hills and set right on the water it was a great introduction to the North Island. After walking around the city for the afternoon we found a great little "free" parking lot right on the water, opened the back gate and enjoyed some dinner right on the ocean.  Our next two days in Wellington we spent 1.5 days at the Te Papa Museum. Quite possibly the best museum in the world, it has 5 floors of rides, games, puzzles, history, exhibits and activities that keep you wanting more. If we had another day, we probably would have spent it at this museum......it's that good! 

Te Mata treck

From Wellington we took our Jucy camper and headed north towards Napier, Hastings and Cape Kidnappers. Unfortunately the region had just been devastated with rain and flooding, so we weren't able to make it out to the Cape Kidnappers Golf Course or the Gannet Colony. We did however find an awesome treck - Te Mata Peak Track that afforded us spectacular views of Hawkes Bay and the areas.  It seems like we haven't talked about food enough lately, so here it is: On our way back from the hike we decided to stop at a small little strawberry patch and try their home-made strawberry/boysenberry ice cream. Mmmmmm, my mouth is watering just thinking about it. Next it was a stop at the Bee Farm to sample about 10 different types of local honey and get some information on how honey bees live.  It was very entertaining (believe it or not) and of course we couldn't leave without buying some honey and a honey comb (Shaun's new favorite). That night we drove at night to find our next camp site with not much luck. The problem is that the roads in New Zealand are so small and dark and uninhabited that you can drive for miles without seeing even a single light. So, defeated we decided to head north towards Taupo and found an awesome place in the middle of the woods, called Wilderness Adventure. We had the entire place to ourselves, and enjoyed a great dinner under the stars. Before heading to Taupo the next day, we had to ask the owners of the ranch for some gasoline, as the gauge on the Jucy is a little fickle and goes up and down rather quickly. Now fully rested and with some gas in our tank we headed for the lake.

Made it up to Lake Taupo in good time to meet up with Shaun's friend Kyle and stay at his wife's parents place on the lake. Lake Taupo has a similar vibe to Lake Tahoe in N. California, with a huge lake surrounded by cute little towns nestled in the hillsides. Most of the days consisted of seeing the local sights in the surrounding area. We went to see the renowned Huka Falls which is an amazing shoot about 200 yards long and only 15 feet wide. Here the water rushes past at high speeds eventually cascading over a 20 foot fall to the open pool below. Apparently you can take a jet boat right up to the bottom of the falls and see firsthand how truly powerful the falls are. But, we decided to stay on land and take it in from above, however did not stay dry as the sky opened up and soaked us. Next stop was the Geothermal Pools - probably as close to what the moon looks like here on Earth, the vents constantly let out big spouts of steam. In addition to the steam there are mud pools and craters where only the toughest of plants can survive.

Thermal Mud Pools

Later in the evening we met up with Kyle and stayed the night at Olivia's parent’s cabin. It was very cozy and had the feeling of a mountain ski house. We cooked some steaks and enjoyed a few bottles of very nice New Zealand wines (Kyle's new job in New Zealand is working for a wine distributor in Auckland!)  Our plan for the next day was "dampened" as the weather from the previous day did not dissipate.  We couldn't hike the famous Tongariro Pass located just outside of Taupo. This particular treck is known widely as the best day hike in all of New Zealand......including the South Island. Needless to say we were disappointed not to be able to tackle it, but now it is just another reason to return to New Zealand. We did end up hiking near base but got soaked about half way through! Luckily there was a great Chateau nearby where we dried off and enjoyed a couple of beers around the fireplace. The rest of Taupo was lots of good wine, lots of good food and some games of monopoly. The weather even broke long enough for Shaun to practice his hand at paddle boarding.

Before splitting with Bolster we got to watch a Celtics playoff game at bar (before they got eliminated!!!). And of course we couldn't leave Taupo without trying for the golfing hole-in-one challenge set up right on the lake. Even though neither Shaun nor Kyle got a hole in one, they seemed to have fun.

Link to pictures:  https://picasaweb.google.com/rayann.torres/NewZealandNorthIsland#

Our last couple weeks on the South Island

The next morning was a very special day...Easter, or rather, Rayann's birthday. Shaun did an amazing job surprising her with homemade french toast topped with berries & powdered sugar, all cooked at the communal hostel kitchen! It was delicious. That day we had planned to simply drive up the coast and stay at a small B&B a little north of Westport. We stopped off along the way to check out the famous pancake rocks, a series of cliffs & crevasses carved out by the smashing waves of the sea into rocks that look like stacked pancakes. Then we started off for an afternoon hike along the Punakaiki River.

Shaun in front of the Pancake Rocks

Later that day, we drove up towards Westport, a small mining village on the north west coast of the south island. We checked into the Charming Creek B&B, which was truly wonderful. We had the chance to hike through an old mining trail and try the local eatery where we splurged on the local burgers slathered in beets. The kiwis LOVE their beets. Gay, our B&B owner, was an amazing host, and the homemade yogurt, bread & jams was delicious; a perfect birthday getaway! We only wished we could have stayed longer but our aggressive itinerary kept us moving northward.

Farewell Spit

Next up was Abel Tasman National Park and we were extremely excited to be headed up to the much talked about national park. Friends, family and strangers had all recommended doing one of the many kayak trips to the different beaches & coves. However, once we arrived, the weather made it impossible for us to do our 2 day/1 night kayak trip. Instead we spent our first day driving north towards the Farewell Spit, the south island's most northern point and longest sandbar in NZ. The wind made the trek up the lighthouse pretty difficult, but the views of the Spit and surrounding greenery were beautiful and made the trip worthwhile.


The following day, instead of kayaking Abel we decided to hike along the coastal track to the various beaches. We set out early and returned really late, making it a tough hike of about 15 miles, but yet again the views were astounding. Every few kilometers we came across a cove with white sandy beaches and turquoise waters. You could see why this is such a popular area in the summer, kayaking to beach after beach. But even though the waters were rough for kayaking and cold for swimming, the day was perfect for the hike.

Abel Tasman

"This is the hardest thing I have ever done my entire life!"
This was Rayann's exact quote used multiple times throughout our 2 day/ 1 night mountain bike trip through the famed Queen Charlotte Track in Marlborough Sound. Harder than a Sprint Triathlon and 1/2 marathons, the 55km tested both our endurance and our stamina. When we signed up for this activity we didn't research the elevation changes along the track. According to the brochures the track is rideable for everyone from beginners to experts. With Rayann and I falling somewhere in the middle we thought it would be difficult, but something that could be easily done in 2 days. It turned out to be hard work, but did not detract from the beauty and magic that the Marlborough Sounds region is known for. One of Captain Cooks favorite stops during his Pacific Ocean voyages in the 1800's (7 times total for extended periods of time) the many coves and inlets are named after his vessels and crew members.

View from the Queen Charlotte Track

To access the trail head we had to take a water taxi to the outer most tip of the Queen Charlotte Sound. We were greeted with blue skies and warm weather for the first time in 5 days which lasted the entire weekend. We were dropped off at Resolution Bay and immediately encountered up and down terrain that lasted for the whole ride. Most of the uphills entailed us getting off our bikes and pushing them up the steep inclines. What added to the difficulty was that it had rained in the area for the previous 5 days so the track was extremely muddy and in some places completely washed out. This only added to the experience and really challenged us both going up and down. The most rewarding part however were the views and vistas once we got to the top of the inclines. Every turn would give us new breathtaking views of the sounds with trees running right down into the ocean and sun soaked coves packed with birds and other wildlife.

Before we headed out on our trip we decided it would be best to book accommodation since it was low season and we weren't sure which ones were still open. We decided on a little homestay called Noeline's located in Punga Cove 21km into our journey. This place was awesome!! When we arrived, Noeline our 80 year old hostess had homemade scones right out of the oven and hot tea waiting for us (Just what the doctor ordered). After talking for an hour or so we decided to shower the mud off ourselves while our hostess, who felt like our temporary grandmother, stoked the wood stove in the living room. To add to our experience the Royal Wedding happened to fall on this night, which was a much celebrated event in New Zealand. Noeline was super excited to watch the big show and provided numerous details and commentary throughout. Even more she would periodically check her transistor radio and provide updates of the footy game as well as the Australian League Basketball finals game where the New Zealand team won the title for the first time ever. We were completely blown away by the experience and would like to thank Noeline for her hospitality.

After a great rest at our adopted grandmothers place it was off to tackle day 2 at 8am. In front of us was a 6 hour 34km long ride filled with difficult terrain. This is where Rayann's quote was used often. She would also yell at the top of her voice so that she could psych herself up to get to the top of the hills. What we decided early on is that even though the downhills were extremely fun, we did not look forward to them because we knew that whatever goes down, must go back up on this trail. Again though, the reward far exceeded the effort because each time we would get to the top of the next hill we were given another remarkable photo opportunity. After only a few spills and near misses with trees we made it to our destination, Mistletoe Cove, with a half hour to spare. It was probably one of the most rewarding things we have done on the trip and by far the most physically demanding! Now we might have to buy some mountain bikes back in San Fran and tackle the great trails they have out there!

The day after our mountain bike exertion, Rayann was adamant about not doing any physical activity the next day. So we headed to The Blenheim/Renwick region to do some wine tasting in the famous Marlborough Region. We spent the morning and afternoon tasting some local specialties including some fabulous sauvingion blanc, pinot noir and local MOA beer before making our way down south to Kaikoura. On our way down we stopped at Ohau Waterfall, famous for housing hundreds of seal pups during the fall & winter months. Every year the seal pups climb up the stream to this waterfall and its pools to play and socialize with others pups while the mothers are feeding out at sea. We were astounded by how many seals were in and around the waterfall, swimming, playing, fighting and relaxing. The scene was incredible and one of the highlights of the trip. This was much better than any zoo or aquarium trip we've ever taken!

Link to pictures: https://picasaweb.google.com/rayann.torres/NewZealandSouthIsland#

WE HAVE NOW LANDED ON PLANET NEW ZEALAND.........

One word= WOW. This place is out of this world. Sorry to say, but Yosemite Valley eat your heart out. Right out of the gates New Zealand takes your breathe away. The Queenstown airport is nestled right in the middle of this huge snow capped mountain range that is not to be outdone by the surrounding lake. It feels like you are on the movie set for Lord of the Rings and Froto and Sam will go running past you. Queenstown holds the crown to adventure capital of New Zealand, and is evident by paragliders circling in the sky, high speed fan boats taking off from the pier, and the countless information sights selling everything from bunjy jumping and white water rafting to spelunking and canyoning. We got right down to business as soon as we arrived, hiking the nearest peak we could see. It was a very steep and difficult climb, but we were rewarded with spectacular views of Queenstown and the surrounding area. A rainbow even broke out over the lake for some pretty cool photo ops.

Unfortunately we did not have enough time to partake in the adventure activities that Queenstown had to offer. We had a very full itinerary that began with the Fiordlands located in the southwest of the South Island. Located inside of the Fiordlands National Park are some of the Top Ten areas to see when visiting New Zealand. Fist stop was the Kepler Track located just outside of the base town of Te Anu. We did a 5 hour hike on the Kepler Track where we were amazed by the green-ness of the area. The whole forest is blanketed with thick green mosses and trees with equally as green foliage on them. The hike was both challenging and rewarding, and at the end we saw a great big yellow moon rising over the snowy mountains before getting in our car to head back to our hostel in Te Anu.

From Te Anu we headed up to perhaps one of Southern New Zealands most popular areas, Milford Sound! We set out early to get there, as the ride was about 2 hours and wanted to avoid the cruises that fill with tour groups coming from Queenstown. The ride up was truly spectacular and probably one of the highlights of our trip to NZ so far! Since we were heading up before daylight we could see the sun rise over the snow capped mountains throughout the valleys surrounding us. Words & pictures so not do this justice, but trust us when we say we were in awe of the scenery.

We arrived just in time for the first cruise departure and boarded the boat. Although the weather wasn't the best (foggy & cloudy) at least the rain held off and the entire Milford sound area had a mystical feeling to it as the clouds hung to the surrounding the cliffs. On the boat we learned that the Milford Sound is not actually a sound, but a fiord, which is created by a melted glacier rather than a drowned river valley. Along with the abundant waterfalls we encountered, we were fortunate enough to see bottle nosed dolphins swimming along the sides of the boat and a couple seals crawling around the rocks. The cruise took us all the way out to the mouth of the sound and back again, leaving us with some of the best memories.

Wanaka. When we drove through this small town it felt like we were transported to a small town in Western Massachusetts. With brilliant yellow, red and orange leaves covering all the trees it was a great town to spend a couple of autumn days. Just like many of the other South Island towns, it was nestled right on the edge of a lake with panoramic views of the surrounding snow covered mountains. The information center was filled with brochures with walks all around the area. After asking the extremely helpful staff employee we headed up to the trail head of Diamond Lake for our afternoon hike. It ended up being a little more demanding than we were expecting, but again it was well worth the effort as we could see the entire little town below along with views of the towering Mount Aspiring off in the distance.

Now for the good stuff! A Franz Josef Glacier helicopter ride and the Fox Glacier Crampon Hike!!! One of the few places in the world where a glacier runs down into a rain forest, these two glaciers are awe-inspiring. First, we were lucky enough to find a coupon for a 20 minute helicopter ride over the Franz Joseph Glacier located on the West coast of the South Island, New Zealand. We boarded our 5 passenger helicopter around 3 o'clock with Rayann in the back and Shaun somehow scoring the Copilot seat complete with the microphone and headset.

It was the first time Shaun had been in a helicopter, so he was super excited. The ride was like a National Geographic TV show, soaring just feet over the ice and snow formations. Once above the clouds and at the summit, the pilot set the helicopter down in the packed snow to allow us to walk around for 10 minutes and take in the sun soaked top of the glacier. This once in a lifetime experience got us really excited for hiking up the Fox Glacier located just down the road. The Fox Glacier is just as impressive as the Franz Josef. The main difference is that the valley is not as wide and is at a lower altitude. But when you are doing a one day crampon hike you are not worried about reaching the summit.

Once we departed Glacier Country, we started to make our way up the west coast in our trusty Ford Mondeo. We decided to just "pick a place" to stay next, so we chose Greymouth. We hadn't read much on the area so we located the information center and got some information on local hikes throughout the coastal region. We checked into our hostel, Global Village (which has exceeded all other hostels we stayed at BY FAR), and headed off for the Point Elizabeth track. The track was unlike any other as we were walking along the ridge of the coastline through forest and farmland. At the end of the treck we were happily rewarded with a local brew pub, where we befriended some amazing locals and tasted the local beer brewed right in Greymouth! Unfortunately, we sort of lost track of time and left the pub as t he sun was setting, making the treck back in the dark quite difficult. We came across a goat in the dark that scared the life out of us. Luckily for us, we carry our headlights everywhere otherwise we would have had to hitch hike back!

Link to pictures:  https://picasaweb.google.com/rayann.torres/NewZealandSouthIsland# 

The land of Oz!

After about 3 months of living in undeveloped countries, our arrival into Cairns, Australia was like a breath of fresh air....until we remembered South East Asia was really over. Once we arrived we were picked up by one of our friendly hostel workers, Roxy from Castaway Backpackers, which was a nice perk after spending the night in Darwin airport. How quickly we realized we were back in a developed country when Roxy asked for $50 for a one night stay in a double room, shared facilities. What?! We just paid $20 for our own private bungalow in the Gili islands - yes those days are long gone now.
Cairns itself was a great little town and we spent 2 comfortable nights at Castaways. We had expected the town to be much bigger but found that it was very quaint and quite walkable. The town thrives off the tourism industry from the Great Barrier Reef, which supposedly brings in over 60 billion dollars a year! That's easy to see after seeing the prices they charged for trips out the reef. Since we were only there really to snorkel the Great Barrier Reef, we decided we would book a 2 day/1 night boat trip out the the reef costing us a whopping $300 each - you can imagine what a blow this was after living off of next to nothing in asia, but oh well, the reef is a once in a lifetime experience, right? Well, as you have previously read, the story earned its very own blog post. If you missed it, make sure you check it out!

Once out of Cairns, we decided to head up north to Port Douglass & Cape Tribulation. We had heard great things about the northern east coast of Australia so we dedicated a couple days there. We spent 2 nights in Port Douglass and spent the majority of the first day in and around the small town, checking out the local shops, St. Mary's Church and eating some fish & chips. It was a very beautiful, peaceful beach town and could easily see how people can spend weeks there. Unfortunatly, the weather wasn't beach perfect, so we headed about 14 km north to Mossman Gorge, a rainforest river valley.

Mossman Gorge

Not really knowing what a mossman was or heeding the advice from Roxy to take mosquito repellent, we comenced our trek through the mossman. The first stop was by the river where some tourists were braving the ice-cold river water. We should have known then by seeing the number of mosquito bites on the people in and around the water to go get mosquito repellent, but continued through the treck around the rainforest. The treck turned into a full on run as the mosquitos were attacking the minute you stood still. By the end of the 30 minute walk/run, Rayann must have had 20 bites on each of her legs. After that, the bug spray never left our side the remainder of the trip!

Shaun posing with the rainforest trees

The following day we made our way up to Daintree National Rainforest & Cape Tribulation. Our first stop was at the Discovery Center, where we had a chance to learn some really interesting facts about the rainforest plants and animals. This was a great introduction to common plants & animals found in the rainforest. We spent the remainder of teh day driving through the rainforest stopping at most walks, bearing the rain, and trecking through the paths of the rainforest. Unfortunately the rain never let up the entire day but that didn't stop us from exploring and walking - we did bring raincoats after all! Our drive up Cape Tribulation came to a hault when we came upon a tree down over the road. It was probably a good thing as our small Getz would not have been able to handle the dirt roads the remainder of the ride up north. Despite the rain, we had an incredible day in the rainforest.

So then it was off to Brisbane. I feel like we say this at almost every stop, but Brisbane is a city where we could see ourselves living for a couple of years. Clean, quiet, comfortable and easy to get around, Brisbane felt like home as soon as we arrived. We booked a hostel called Minto which was located just outside the city and is one of the best hostels of the trip. It was a completely redone huge colonial with a big front porch looking out over the skyline of Brisbane. We felt as if we were sleeping over a friends house complete with the dinasaur sheets and multi-coloured comforter. Walking around we saw all the different nooks and crannies of the city from the converted red-light district to the up and coming parts. Our favorite stop though was in the Botanical Gardens after a walk along the riverfront.

Brisbane Skyline

Day 2 was raining... again...not to fret though we found a great indoor activity. A brewery tour of the Australian famous XXXX "fourex" brewery was a blast. The whole facility tour was set up like a Disneyland theme ride complete with a revolving stage bringing us back to the beginnings of the brewery and commercials from the 70's and 80's. Needless to say there were numerous mullets in the 80's commercials!


Our most exciting activity took place on the third day. This was when we began our first relocation of a campervan from Brisbane to Byron Bay. Basically the way it works is that the campervan places out here need to get their vans from one location back to the other. So, what they do is give you the van for $5/day with a gas allowance and unlimited kilometers just as long as you get the van to the next destination by a certain date. We figured we were heading to Byron Bay anyway so why not give it a try. IT WAS AWESOME!!!! The campervan was a Britz company van complete with a sink, stove, table, and a fold out double bed. We had 3 days to get the camper down to Byron Bay, so we slowly made our way down stopping at the beautiful beachside town of Coolangata with breathtaking views of the ocean and Surfers Paradise in the background. We eventually made it down to Byron Bay which was no less stunning. The whole Gold Coast is truely a surfers paradise. At almost every turn there is a new bay with a perfect break filled with hudreds of surfers. Byron Bay had a great little beach with a cool downtown area filled with cafes and restaraunts. Unfortunately we were there a few weeks too early as they were getting ready for the Byron Bay Blues Festival which had an epic linup. No worries though we had a great time there regardless.

Byron Bay

So, we liked our first cmapervan so much we decided to relocate another one from Brisbane down to Sydney! What we did was rented a car in Byron Bay, drove back to Brisbane, picked up the second camper, split up and drove both the camper and the car to Byron to drop the rental car off before heading to Sydney. Crazy, I know, but well worth it as our next relocation vehicle was a Mercedes Sprinter campervan that had everything from a shower and toilet to a flat screen tv!! This was our home for the next 3 days. We did everything from sleeping and eating in it, to watching old reruns of Charlies Angels on satelite tv. After speniding a cloudy return afternoon in Byron we decided that we needed some time away form the ocean so we decided that our next stop should be Hunter Valley. This is thier equivelent of California's Napa Valley except the awesome fact that they do not charge for tastings. A much better way for customers to sample all the wines that they have to offer :) Not only do they give the tastings for free but they also give you generous fills of the glass. At numerous wineries we had to ask them to stop filling our glasses because we were getting too tipsey. A funny sidenote is that Rayann actually recognized a few of the wineries that we stopped at from when she came out to Sydney while working on a project for Accenture..... Deja Vu! After a great day of wine tasting we parked the camper, cracked open a bottle of Cabernet Sovinough, ate some cheese and crackers and cooked up a couple of steaks on the grill that we got from the local butcher. Not a bad evening at all!

Sydney Skyline

Yet another great Austalian city= Sydney. It has a very similar vibe to that of Brisbane, with it's Botanical Gardens and it's proximaty to water. Except it is much larger and you can definitely tell you are in a big city. However it is just as clean and has just as much character. Of course a visit to Sydney is not complete without a photo op in front of the Opera House and the Sydney Harbor Bridge. We sampled the local brews, walked through the Botanical Garden right at dark where we were joined by thousands of flying fruit bats, and visited local wombats that came down form the trees to hunt around at night. The day was topped off by sampling Harry's Cafe's world famous meat pies topped with whipped potatoes, mashed peas and gravy!

Because we were both sick of driving we decided to join a 1 day charter to the Blue Mountains the following day. We wanted to take a break, but did not want to miss out on this major attraction. After only a couple of hours we realized that guided tours are not our cup of tea, having to abide by a rigid timeline and other peoples speeds. Regardless we did get to see the spectacular Blue Mountains and the surrounding forests and aboriginal sights. The icing on the cake was definitely our last stop where we got to stop off and see 3-4 wild kangaroos feeding by a river bed. What is amazing about Australia is how different the animals truely are here. Because the continent broke away form the other land masses so early, it took a much different evolutionary path than the rest of the world. The locals are very proud of the fact that they are host to 6 of the 8 deadliest snakes on the planet, along with a varity of reptiles and spiders to boot.

Before leaving Australia we had one more day to burn before catching a flight to New Zealand. So, of course we headed over to the Sydney fish market. We got one of the best, and surprisingly cheapest feasts all trip. It consisted of the freshest sashimi we have ever eaten, cut from the fish right in front of us, a dozen local oysters, and a fried platter for 2 filled with fish, squid, scallops and french fries (or chips as they are called out here). We got on the plane nice and full after that amazing seafood feast!

Enjoy the photos! Link to Australia photos: https://picasaweb.google.com/rayann.torres/Australia#

Perfect Storm...Deadliest Catch...Shaun & Rayann Visit the Reef!!

This story is no joke. We are still shaken by what took place out there, and I think Rayann may never set foot in a boat again. It is a real account of what happened when we visited the Great Barrier Reef on a 2 day/ 1 night sailing trip. Janice & Julia (mom's), I would advise that you don't read this blog post!
I will start out by saying that our captain did an amazing job of getting us back to port safely. He stood at the wheel for 4 1/2 hours in grueling 20 foot seas to get the boat back into the harbor in one piece. OK, now for the cast and crew:

Captain, Radar (30 yrs old)........1st Mate & Dive Instructor, Russel (28yrs old).....Hostess, Leena (26yrs old).......Rayann & I.....3 Couples from various countries, one of which lived in Colorado but grew up in MA and NJ!.........2 guys form Germany......1 strange guy from NZ.
To say the least this was a very young and inexperienced crew. The boat had just been commissioned and had only been out on the reef for about 4 months. Not exactly comforting when you are facing an angry ocean.

Now for the exciting part. So we board our vessel, which is a really nice 35 foot sailboat fully restored and are introduced to the crew and everyone else on board. It was raining and wasn't the ideal weather to begin a 2day/1night sailing trip to the Great Barrier Reef but we didn't really have a choice as the weather was forcasted to get worse later in the week. As Radar is giving his safety instructions, he asks if anyone has any bananas. Aaaaand of course one of the couples had 2 bananas, which they were immediately told to eat so they were no longer on board. For those of you that aren't familiar, there is a fishing superstition/folk lore amongst sea-goers that bananas bring bad luck to those boats that have them on board. Now I can truly say that I believe in this superstition full heartedily. Once the bananas were eaten, the captain took the peels and discarded them in the 5 foot rubber dingy on the back of the boat as not to litter into the ocean. Remember where he has put the peels as this comes back later in the story!

The ride out to the reef was very rough, or what we thought was rough up to this point of our journey. The waves were probably 5-10 feet with intermittent rains & high winds. It really wasn't too bad as the boat was encased by plastic that kept most of the bad weather out. It also gave Russel a chance to explain some facts about the reef along with the different corals & fish we were going to see. Unfortunately, Rayann's motion sickness was in full effect and spent a good chunk of the ride hunched over grasping her barf bag. The good news though, was that she wasn't alone, as about half of the people on board got sick. Not exactly as the brochure described it.

So we finally get out to our first stop and moored off of some really fantastic snorkeling spots. There were about 4 or 5 good sized reefs that we could swim above and around. The amazing thing was that surrounding the reefs are huge drops down to the ocean floor hundreds of feet. We had the chance to see tons of varieties of fish ad vibrant corals at this first stop even though the seas were rough. A good thing about the reef is that once near it, it acts as a barrier against the ocean making it much calmer that the ride out. After lunch, we moved to another site about 500 yards away to explore a huge U-shaped reef formation. This was by far the highlight of the trip. Again, tons of fish and coral. We even got to see a school of squid, giant clams that were as big as a trunk of a car, lobsters and even some clownfish hanging out in the anemone.

While we were all snorkeling, Radar had gone over to the other sailboat that was anchored near our boat to see where they were planning to spend the night as the weather was declining. There were 2 options; one was to go to the nearest island and anchor near it to use as protection, or move back to the first snorkeling site and ride out the night there. Radar, along with the other boat, chose the latter. We ate a great meal on the boat and went to bed fairly early, as most people were pretty tired from about 4 hours of snorkeling combined with a rough boat ride out to the site.

Day 2 we awoke to a VERY rough seas, even though we were protected by the reef. We all had a pow wow with the crew and decided it was best to cut the trip short and head back to Cairns. The weather was bad and was forcasted

Now that the raft was secured we could head out. The major problem now was that with the seas so rough and visibility extremely low Radar could not spot the hundreds of "reef bombs" scattered all around our snorkeling site. "Reef bombs" are areas of small reef formations about 10-15 feet in circumference that shoot up from the ocean floor acting as 'bombs' that can easily rip a hole in the side of a boat. Not even two minutes after we pulled up anchor our boat slams right on top of a 'bomb'! To avoid a catastrophe, Radar had to crank the wheel around and spin us off of the hidden reef as not to grind through the piercing coral. Thankfully it was only a small reef and we managed our way off quickly without puncturing a hole in the hull of the boat. It was right about this time that everyone's mood went from joking to serious. People were beginning to realize that the situation was not good and was only going to get worse! About half of the people on board moved to the inside of the cabin to get out of the weather as the crew had to open all of the plastic windows to increase visibility. By this time Rayann had already moved to her bed so that she did not get more motion sick.

As soon as we left the protection of the reef all hell broke loose, and we saw what we were in for for the next four and a half hours of our lives. Huge white capped waves 15-25 feet high crashing over the bow of the boat, 40-50km/hr gale force winds and pouring rain!! It was the most terrifying experiences of our lives. Straight out of the movies. Our 35 foot sailboat was at the mercy of the ocean getting knocked in every direction. Waves were constantly crashing over the boat throwing tons of sea water in our faces along with the unrelenting rain. Everyone on the boat was holding on to whatever they could to avoid being thrown off into the ocean. Radar was doing all he could to keep the boat heading either into or with the crashing waves so that our boat would not tip over. On a few occasions we all thought the boat was going to capsize as it got loose and knocked from side to side. Just a little more in either direction and we would have certainly tipped over. At one point a rouge wave 25 feet high came right up on us and our boat climbed up one side and down the other. Almost everyone on the boat had gotten sick, and were all extremely terrified.

Radar stood at that wheel and fought the wind, rain and waves for 4 1/2 hours! Even though he was young and inexperienced he did an unbelievable job of navigating us back to Cairns Harbor. Did I forget to mention that our GPS navigation system broke 1/4 of the way back? We were all on the look out for landmarks and islands to guide us back to the mainland.

Needless to say this was not the Great Barrier Reef experience we were expecting, but certainly one that we will never forget. One thing is for sure though: I will never bring bananas on board a boat ever again!!!

Lombok and the Gili Islands, Indonesia

After our visit to Bali, our next stop was the island of Lombok. We hopped the 4-hr ferry ride form Padang Bai followed by the hour long shuttle to Sengigi. Sengigi was pretty much a let down the minute we arrived. The beaches were gray and not very clean, in comparison to Padang Bai. We also arrived without hotel, as usual, and spent the better portion of the early afternoon looking for a guesthouse. It seemed that everything in Sengigi was really overpriced for mediocre accommodation. But alas, we found something and decided it was not going to ruin our time there. That night we went to one of the many restaurants lined down the main road. Since there weren't many tourists in Sengigi it felt like we were being hawked at every few minutes. We couldn't walk one step before someone was trying to sell something to us. We also inquired about the hike to the infamous Mt. Rinjani, an active volcano that lies on the northern tip of the island. To our dismay, guided climbs to Mt. Rinjani were closed and did not re-open until April 1st. We both spent the evening debating whether we extend our trip (yet again) in order to be able to do the first hike up the mountain of the season. Begrudgingly, we decided to skip the hike and move on with our travels as planned. It will have to wait until next time... :)

The following day, we decided to spend the day at our guesthouse in front of the beach, away from the hawkers. We each got some massages from the local lombok woman, mainly because "No" was not an option. Although the forced massage was not so bad, we eagerly awaited the next day for our departure to the fabulous Gili Islands!

The Gili Islands are a true paradise where one could spend months. None of the islands have cars or motorbikes on them so there is no noise pollution. The only modes of transportation are walking, bicycling or horse drawn carriages! To access the islands you have to take small longtail boats from the small port on Lombok about 30 minutes to the 3 islands: Gili Air, Gili Trawangan & Gili Meno. The first island that we stayed at was Gili Trawangan which is crowned the 'party island'. This may be the case in the busy season, but what we found was a laid back beach paradise. White sand beaches lapped by clear blue/green waters all surrounded by coral reefs. From our bungalow we could walk down the only road on the island to a bunch of cool beach side cafes, restaurants and of course bars. There was even a movie theatre directly on the beach!

Our next few days were filled with snorkeling, bbq fish dinners on the beach and exploring the island. The first day we hiked to the top of Viewpoint Hill where we were rewarded with spectacular views of the three islands, Lombok and the surrounding seas. On our way back we found a secluded beach where we collected various sea shells and swam in the bay. The following day we rented bikes and biked around, finding a deserted bar/restaurant on the west side that was a perfect spot to watch the sun set. We grabbed a couple of beers and rode over to watch the sun set over Mt. Rinjani and the ocean.

Seashells collected on beach

Next, we moved over to Gili Air, known as a mix of the party Gili Trawangan and mellow Gili Meno. Where this small island lacks in number of cafes and bungalows it makes up for in it's charm. Small enough to walk around in an hour and a half, it is a great place to relax and unwind.....as if we needed that. The best place to stay is the new bungalow complex of Segar Villages. The bungalows are run by a super nice family of cousins and uncles who turned one of their uncle's farmland into an awesome bungalow complex. As we checked in and were relaxing on our front porch we were greeted by about 10 monitor lizards splashing around in the marsh in front. What really made this place special though was the open air bathroom, complete with the shower head coming directly out of a group of rocks. The bathroom even had a little fish pond in it with a bunch of fish swimming around! The dinners we had were unbelievable as well. One night we had some fresh authentic homemade pasta from the bungalow complex next door followed the next night by a seafood feast consisting of fresh tuna skewers served with rice, vegetables, salads and fruit. Not to mention the 2 for 1 drink specials.

The snorkeling has been some of the best of the trip.....much better than in Thailand. The colors are amazing and there is an abundance of marine life. Chartering a longtail boat for the day, we got to experience all three of the islands exploring many different reef formations as well as a ship wreck. Gilli Islands we will be back!!!

Link to Pictures: https://picasaweb.google.com/rayann.torres/LombokGiliIslands#

- Shaun and Rayann