-
Transpacific Cruise: Hawaii Hotspots, LA Party Animals, and Where to Next?
Our 30-day transpacific cruise reminded me a bit of our 30 years of marriage, and FYI our anniversary is TODAY –the old married folks say Woo Hoo! (See end of article for info on our upcoming Irish Honeymoon Re-do 30th Anniversary Trip.) On both journeys, there have been constant surprises (Padre turned into a gardener, and onboard we both turned into classical cello groupies! Who knew?), threats to survival (eruptions and Rapid ‘Ōhi’a Death – yikes! – and then there was that time with the circular saw….), and fortunately, plenty of successful teamwork. I shudder to think what life in a tiny cabin must be like for an unhappily married couple…
-
Tahiti and Moorea: Manta Rays, Sharks, and the Lure of Distant Islands
The old man misled us about Tahiti, pretty much his entire life. I know my dad didn’t do it intentionally, but mislead he did, and guess what? I planned an entire cruise based on what I thought was true, when in fact things didn’t go that way at all. That said, I’m more than ok with how things turned out. We strolled Tahiti’s black sand beaches and snorkeled with lemon sharks off Moorea, and now we’ve added a few more tropical island destinations to the travel bucket list. Turns out that cruise ships do sometimes stop on Dad’s WWII islands – you know, the ones he actually visited. Turns out he…
-
New Zealand’s North Island: Rotorua or Hades? Shire or Sheep Farm? And Is Auckland Shut or Open?
We were young and stupid. Little did we know that life cost money, so we said ‘sure’ when offered a spot in a 1991 Auckland teacher exchange program. Almost-newlyweds with a blended family of typical teenagers (lots of scowls and secrets), we barely paid the bills as it was. I mean, Why NOT take a somewhat impromptu trip to New Zealand, way Down Under? We kicked off our married life with a magical two-week Ireland honeymoon, so it figures that we signed on for our next grand adventure as soon as we could manage it (or not), despite the restrictions of our demanding mid-career lives. Seems we’re not the folks…
-
New Zealand’s South Island: Welcome to Middle Earth! Earthquakes, Albatrosses, and Breathtaking Landscapes Everywhere
Eleanor Catton had me at the ball gowns lined with gold sewn into their hems. The 1861 discovery of gold set off a frenzy of fortune seekers stampeding south, way south, to New Zealand’s wild and empty Otago Peninsula, our next cruise stop. Catton brings this era to riveting life in her 848-page historical novel, The Luminaries, and even though Padre grumbled about hauling my ‘book brick’ his suffering was worth it, at least to me. I adore long reads that hold up, and it will go to a lucky Golden Princess passenger soon, hopefully one with lots of luggage space left. In Catton’s historical mystery novel I learned what 1860s life…
-
Tasmania and Sydney, Australia: Unzoos and Zoos, Manly, and the Golden Princess – Finally!
Funny what comes to mind when people heard we were visiting Tasmania. No one thought we were talking about Tanzania, thank goodness (they all had excellent geography teachers, I’m sure), but everyone asked if we would see Tasmanian devils while here. Puzzled, our new Tassie friends asked us why Americans inevitably ask about the devils, and we laughed – it’s the cartoon, of course! Tassies are not familiar with the cartoon devil, so just goes to show you how mind-penetrating those Saturday morning cartoons can be. Americans of a certain age (our age) grew up with that rambunctious, whirling dervish the Tasmanian Devil, so that’s what we think of when…
-
Tasmania: Wineglass Bay Bushwalking, Port Arthur, and the Isle of the Dead
Most visitors don’t make it all the way to Wineglass Bay Beach, the one in those famous photos. They stop at the Wineglass Bay lookout, snap selfies with the perfect curve of golden sand down below, and debate whether to keep going down to Wineglass Bay Beach, despite the warning signs that do everything in their power to discourage. So many hard hard steps! Must bring survival water and food! It’s a long long long way! Beware! Turn back before it’s too late, Dorothy! In fact, a hike to the lookout alone takes an hour and a half, and some tourists don’t read the fine print even on that. They’re…
-
Hobart, Tasmania: MONA, New Friends, Death, and Life: What’s Not to Like?
I knew Padre could sleep anywhere but didn’t know he could snore away, tucked inside MONA’s big white egg with me while a pulsing, hallucinatory light show closed in from all sides. The thing was on the ‘hard’ setting, even. I guess the guy really likes his sleep. Padre finally made it to Tasmania’s famous MONA (Museum of Old and New Art), a long-time travel goal, and he was so not asleep before we entered the egg. You better not be, or you’ll fall into a deep dark pool or be lost forever in the labyrinth of Escher-inspired staircases and dark stone passageways throughout the museum’s subterranean levels. Is it…
-
Hawaii’s Big Island: Waipio Valley, Wise Old Grandmothers, Tsunamis, and Kapus
The man on the ATV waved and smiled as our tourist van lurched by on the rutted red mud road. I smiled at his friendliness, but stopped before I waved back – since his ‘wave’ had turned into a one-finger salute. Not so friendly then, these Valley residents, just as the tour books warned. And I understand, I do, especially the part our guide Douglas shared, about how buzzing helicopters hover in the sky so tourists can snap shots of the Valley’s cascading waterfalls, precisely at the same time each day – he sets his watch by it, he noted with resignation. Since the residents who choose to live off…
-
Hawaii’s Kona Coast: Stellar Snorkeling, Thrifty Condo Living, and Friends Everywhere We Look
I love the Kevin Bacon game, where you link any two people in the world in six connections or less. We never expected to play Six Degrees of Separation in Waimea, Hawaii, a foodie mashup of art galleries and paniolo cowboy culture tucked up in the misty green foothills on the north end of the Hawaii’s Big Island. But play we did, and who needs six links anyway? We did it in one link (twice!) all in the same marvelous meal at Merriman’s, one of the Big Island’s best restaurants. But first, we had to escape the Costco parking lot. In terms of natural beauty, The Kona Coast is absolutely…
-
They All Start with T: Three Reasons We’re At the Airport, Again!
We like the airport. No, we don’t like pat-downs, delays, mind-numbing microphone announcements, or being smushed nose-to-nose with other passengers on a bus ride out to the tarmac to catch our plane. (United thought of a new way to torture passengers! Way to go, United!) We seldom complain about airport indignities because we love what the airport does for us. Kind of like how we stuck with algebra, since it was our ticket to college. (I like algebra now, truly I do, math buddies out there…) The airport gets us to the three T’s and much more, so off we go again. My always-supportive sister-in-law follows our travels closely, and she…
