It’s really hard to believe that I spent over a month cruising through New Zealand and it all comes to an end. I have some wonderful memories of New Zealand from the scenic views to the great shopping to the wonderful wines… it’s definitely a country I would recommend to travel to. I must say a lot of my time ashore involved browsing and shopping in surf shops, drinking Starbucks, eating sushi with friends and taking in a bit of history from each place.
In Auckland, this was by far the best for shopping as it reminded me a lot of Toronto. It had a big city feel to it but WAY cleaner than Toronto. They actually have people cleaning the streets all day (very similar to Holland) so there is no garbage laying around. Here is where my friends and I experienced the ‘Big Burger’ that my friend Raffaella had been speaking about for weeks. Literally, these burgers were about 8 inches wide and 4 tall and this is what the entire restaurant served, just big burgers but it was the best I had ever had. They even came with a holder for your burger to hold them together for you as you ate them.
Napier was quite the artsy town and had a real old 50’s feel to it. The streets were lined with antique cars and it was a very quaint town. I was only able to go once in Napier for a few hours so Starbucks and browsing through the main street was about as far as I got.
In Tauranga, we docked close to the Mt Maunganui which is an old volcanic mountain which has a nice walking trail up to the top for some great views. Looking over to the other side of the mountain, you will find a beach perfect for surfing. Each time I went to Tauranga, I enjoyed relaxing and taking in the sun there. It is actually where most New Zealanders go for vacationing.
For Milford Sounds, I can truly understand why they call it the 8th wonder of the world. The views are absolutely breathtaking. During my last cruise through the sounds, we actually couldn’t go into 2 out of the 3 we were supposed to due to the Tsunami warning after the Chile Earthquake. The waters were very rough the day after the earthquake and New Zealand and Australia had warnings out for anyone near the shores of both countries. We actually were lucky that we were near the sounds as many of the ports we had just left were closed due to the weather conditions. The roughest only last about a day for us onboard and then settled.
Although it’s bittersweet to leave behind the country where the New Zealanders take life as being very relaxed and easy going, I’m extremely excited for the next adventure, the Cherry Blossom cruise! This is the cruise I have been waiting for since I found out I was joining this ship! This is the cruise where I will see so many different countries in a month and half and not to mention visit the Parkers (Aunt, Uncle and cousin) in the country they have been living in for the past few years. We will be heading to a few Australian ports, Malaysia, China, Japan, Korean, Mariana Islands, and New Guinea. This will be a tough cruise for us because it is so long and there are a lot of requirements for the different ports including visas, customs and immigrations.
I’m actually really glad that I choose to go onto nights for the first month of it so I can go out and see each place we dock whereas a lot of my colleagues will not get much of a chance to. I’m getting to sleep during the sea days and go out and explore during the port days, I’m really finding it hard to believe I’m getting paid to do this…
In Auckland, this was by far the best for shopping as it reminded me a lot of Toronto. It had a big city feel to it but WAY cleaner than Toronto. They actually have people cleaning the streets all day (very similar to Holland) so there is no garbage laying around. Here is where my friends and I experienced the ‘Big Burger’ that my friend Raffaella had been speaking about for weeks. Literally, these burgers were about 8 inches wide and 4 tall and this is what the entire restaurant served, just big burgers but it was the best I had ever had. They even came with a holder for your burger to hold them together for you as you ate them.
Napier was quite the artsy town and had a real old 50’s feel to it. The streets were lined with antique cars and it was a very quaint town. I was only able to go once in Napier for a few hours so Starbucks and browsing through the main street was about as far as I got.
In Tauranga, we docked close to the Mt Maunganui which is an old volcanic mountain which has a nice walking trail up to the top for some great views. Looking over to the other side of the mountain, you will find a beach perfect for surfing. Each time I went to Tauranga, I enjoyed relaxing and taking in the sun there. It is actually where most New Zealanders go for vacationing.
For Milford Sounds, I can truly understand why they call it the 8th wonder of the world. The views are absolutely breathtaking. During my last cruise through the sounds, we actually couldn’t go into 2 out of the 3 we were supposed to due to the Tsunami warning after the Chile Earthquake. The waters were very rough the day after the earthquake and New Zealand and Australia had warnings out for anyone near the shores of both countries. We actually were lucky that we were near the sounds as many of the ports we had just left were closed due to the weather conditions. The roughest only last about a day for us onboard and then settled.
Although it’s bittersweet to leave behind the country where the New Zealanders take life as being very relaxed and easy going, I’m extremely excited for the next adventure, the Cherry Blossom cruise! This is the cruise I have been waiting for since I found out I was joining this ship! This is the cruise where I will see so many different countries in a month and half and not to mention visit the Parkers (Aunt, Uncle and cousin) in the country they have been living in for the past few years. We will be heading to a few Australian ports, Malaysia, China, Japan, Korean, Mariana Islands, and New Guinea. This will be a tough cruise for us because it is so long and there are a lot of requirements for the different ports including visas, customs and immigrations.
I’m actually really glad that I choose to go onto nights for the first month of it so I can go out and see each place we dock whereas a lot of my colleagues will not get much of a chance to. I’m getting to sleep during the sea days and go out and explore during the port days, I’m really finding it hard to believe I’m getting paid to do this…
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