NEW ZEALAND – Rangiora and Akaroa

On March 7, 2015March 9, 2015 By alisonferryIn Travel3 Comments

It has been ten years since we visited the land of the Long White Cloud and so our trip to see the Williams family was long overdue. We arrived in Christchurch after a short flight from Sydney and spent the first couple of days at Rangiora with Ron and his daughter Zoe. It was wonderful to be back at their peaceful retreat with a view of the Southern Alps and their cattle quietly grazing in the front paddock at the front of the house.

The weather was superb and so on the first day we drove to Blacks Winery in Wairapa for a relaxed lunch outside with the beautiful hills all around and dotted with vines. The Chardonnay was pretty good too!

Then it was off to the pretty little town of Akaroa on the Banks Peninsula which is about an hour’s drive from Christchurch. It is a stunning drive over the hills and the views were simply superb.

The town has a pretty harbour and has an interesting history. French settlers arrived before the English and as a result the streets still bear French names as do many of the shops and restaurants and the majority of tourists appear to be French!

There is still a Maori influence as well and we went to a little settlement close by where there is a beautiful little wooden church built by the missionaries years ago and still used today.

New Zealand is known for its adventurous spirit and people here love to be physical whenever they can – this involves walking, cycling, swimming, water sports of all kinds, team sports and anything else you can think of. At Akaroa there are many walks and “rambles” around the town, the harbour and the surrounding hills. We went to one which is a Nature Reserve as well and the views were simply magnificent. The park is guarded by a totem of the God Tawhiri Matea.

Akaroa, with its quaint houses, history and village like atmosphere will always remain a favourite place for me and hopefully there will be many more visits.

Photo Friday – Another African Experience

On February 13, 2015February 13, 2015 By alisonferryIn Africa, Travel2 Comments

Africa seeps into your soul somehow. We have been lucky enough to travel through several African countries and each one has given us a new insight into the heart of this fascinating continent. For me it is always watching the animals. Sitting quietly observing the daily habits of wild creatures is endlessly fascinating. Many times I have been scared out of my mind, others I have been enchanted by the antics of baby elephants, tiny lion cubs, frolicking antelopes and the hilarious little warthogs.

One day, however, is imprinted in my memory. We were in Chobe, Botaswana and had watched literally thousands of elephants day in and day out. This particular day we decided to observe them from the Chobe River and watch their water play. It was with some anxiety that I stepped into a little aluminium dinghy with two outboard motors and two African crew. They were going to show us some unusual sights deep along the river where “no one goes” they told us. Just what we wanted – watching quietly from another vantage point. Or so we thought.

After about twenty minutes, we stopped in the middle of the river and watched a herd of elephants coming down to drink.

Before long a couple of big males swam towards us, using their trunks as snorkels. It is one thing to be on land and close to this enormous creature and quite another to be in a small boat feeling very vulnerable!

However, it seemed they only wanted to play and so long as we left them alone, they were happy.

The river was also full of hippos – and these animals kill more people in Africa than any other, so we are told.

By now I was feeling a little apprehensive but had faith in our two African guides. Then the unthinkable happened. The motor in the boat stopped and the worried faces of our guides told us this was totally unexpected. We began to drift towards the hippos….

“Don’t worry, we will fix this,” they said and they fiddled around before getting the oars out and started to row towards the little sandy beach. Just then I saw a huge crocodile slide into the water from the opposite bank…

Really feeling a panic now, I decided the safest thing would be to get out of the boat and onto dry land and maybe someone could drive out to pick us up. The sharp African eyes suddenly alerted us – on the seemingly deserted beach, under a shady tree, lay two lions having a snooze with one eye on us!At first I couldn’t see them. Then real panic set in – we had elephants swimming and frolicking near us, a lot of hippos in the middle of the river, a huge croc on the opposite bank and two lions on the beach – and a broken down boat!

When it became obvious that the Africans didn’t know what to do, and there was no phone reception, we took the matter into our own hands and looked at the fuel lines of the boat. Fortunately years of owning boats in Australia had made us comfortable with the mechanics and the first thing Richard did was to check the fuel lines. They were blocked! After some rudimentary repairs, we got one motor going and slowly chugged back to our point of departure.

If you go to Africa, expect the unexpected and remember “Africa is not for Sissies” !

Magnetic Island – My Island Home

On January 22, 2015 By alisonferryIn Travel17 Comments

Situated just 8km off the coast of Townsville, North Queensland is my “island home”. The place where we escape on weekends, spend holidays and enjoy the company of friends and family. Where we indulge in the luxury of reading, hiking, swimming, cooking unusual dishes and where time really means not much. We can do what we like, when we like.

This beautiful island has 23 bays and beaches and much of it is National Park surrounded by Marine Parks with some beautiful fringing coral and sea life. In winter we watch whales on their migration north from Antarctica and dolphins and turtles abound.

Huge granite boulders, hoop pines, eucalypt forest and patches of rainforest are found and of course, the resident wildlife is always there …… Rosellas flock at dawn and sunset and greedily gobble up seeds thrown by residents. The curlew looks on haughtily but doesn’t dare intercede.One morning a young kookaburra hopped onto our verandah and expected his breakfast – which he got – pieces of bacon which he slapped against the railings attempting to “kill it” before devouring.

There are some beautiful walks through the National Park, including one to the “Forts” – a series of structures which were lookout forts during the Second World War. This is where you will often see koalas in the wild. Textures and colours of trees and leaves never fail to amaze me.

And finally the sunsets – always magnificent and there is nothing better than to enjoy a sundowner at the end of the day watching the sun sink into the horizon declaring the day is over and a new start awaits in the morning.

Welcome to my Island Home !