We’re halfway into our New Zealand – Australia journey, kicking back for a day in Christchurch, NZ – the biggest city on New Zealand’s south island. After spending our first week on the north island, yesterday we took a 3-hour ferry ride to the south island. All was perfectly smooth and calm for our crossing from Wellington. (which was quite a relief since my last ferry ride a year ago from Puerto Rico to Culebra island was, well, “eventful”.) After  [read more →]

OK. Check out this place. One of the great preschools of the world. The kids are indoors – outdoors, whichever they choose. great BIG sand play (wait until you see the MUD PLAY – stay tuned till next week, friends), chickens, pigs, cows, a pet DEER for heavens’s sake! vegetable beds, fruit trees. and lo and behold: the “WILD WOODS” – a built-in “forest kindergarten”, just a 10 minute walk down a farm road driveway. You’ll get to see it  [read more →]

OK. Here we go. Flying into New Zealand.  Ithaca to Philadelphia to Los Angeles. (6 hours)  Los Angeles to Auckland, New Zealand. (12 hours!) Surprisingly, it wasn’t that bad. Got some sleep. Watched 3 movies. Sipped champagne!

Then Auckland to Whangerei (pronounced “Phangerei”) 35 minute flight north to rural harborscape, rolly polly pasture land dotted with lava rock spat out by a now dormant volcano. (located right behind our B&B. I hope its dormant!).

Annemarie and I are here as guests of  [read more →]