New Zealand Holiday

Last Friday evening we landed home from the most wonderful three week family holiday in New Zealand. None of us had ever been there before and the trip had been in the planning for about a year. In fact, Andy did absolutely all the planning and booking, for which I am eternally grateful, because I have not had the brain space for it nor, really, the ability to imagine we could actually achieve such a thing, logistically or financially. But it happened, and it was brilliant!
New Zealand is a stunningly beautiful country. Geographically quite different to Australia, it is a dynamic landscape formed by, and still under the influence of, volcanoes and earthquakes, glaciers and massive rainfall. Yet there are many cultural similarities and we felt quite at home. What's not to love about a country that bakes a treat called Lolly Cake and has an icecream flavour called Goody Goody Gumdrops? Oh, and they also have really, really good beer.
To a large extent ours was the Lord of the Rings / Hobbit Movie Fan Tour of NZ. Starting with the set of Hobbiton. Just superb.
Click away now if you don't want to scroll through about fifty photos!
- Jane x

another movie location

at 'Rivendell'

hiding from Ringwraiths (another location)

best lemonade ever

temporary and beautiful 'cardboard cathedral' in Christchurch, which had terrible earthquakes a couple of years ago

still earthquake damage visible everywhere

Moeraki Boulders

we survived 12 days in a motorhome, yay us!

Autumn colour

oh yeah, another snowclad mountain backdrop to camp by

tiny man, big horse

teenager!

Piper Cherokee, for reals... it had ashtrays on the armrests!

so much beautiful lichen and moss everywhere

yikes, we went in a helicopter too!

the boys' first experience of snow!

band pose

so many rainbows

Ahhhh, New Zealand. We loved you. Well, most of us loved you, most of the time. And the six year old... well, he's six.

- Jane x