Top ten visits around the globe!

I must admit, I'm fairly blessed with where I've travelled to. I'm fortunate to have family and friends who not only love need to travel, but want me to come along for the ride too! So I've compiled a list of my top ten must see things around the globe (well not really around the globe as there are endless places I still plan to visit!)

Do you agree? What are your top ten must-see destinations?

Guilin, China

Siem Reap, Cambodia

Luang Prabang, Laos

Lake Bled, Slovenia

Hoi An, Vietnam

Tromso, Norway (Sorry for the poor quality of this photo,  in the exctiment  I couldn't keep my hands still!)

Lake Tekapo/Mount John, New Zealand

Folegandros, Greece

Shanghai, China

Langkawi, Malaysia

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"Kia Ora"

 ...or 'hello' or 'welcome' in Maori - a standard greeting you will hear all over New Zealand, partnered with a beaming smile! I can honestly say that Kiwis are possibly the nicest people you will ever meet - a definite plus when you are facing a 3500km campervan adventure around New Zealand!

Where did we go?

Left: Week one route, Right: Weeks two and three

 

 

 

 

 

 A 3500km something journey probably seems a bit daunting if you've never tried this kind of holiday before - which we never had! But when you're sat planning your route on google maps throwing in the odd glow worm cave here and a glacier there, the two and a bit hour estimate that google maps spits out for a 200km journey seems like a breeze - except in a campervan you need to double this at least. Not only are you on a restricted speed limit (80km/hour) but the chances of reaching this speed on somewhere other than the highway out of Auckland are rather scarce. With road closures, bad weather and getting stuck behind a tractor on a single lane "motorway' you need to be realistic with your time goals.

In retrospect, trying to cram in all of New Zealand in three weeks was a bit very optimistic. Don't get me wrong, it was fantastic on so many levels, it gave me a great taste for New Zealand - sampling the very things that I have been yearning for...whale watching, dolphin swimming, Hobbiton, clean fresh air [somewhat scarce in Bangkok/London/Shanghai - the last three places that I have lived] which only deepended my desire to explore more of this breath taking country. 

To put thing into perspective - we met a guy on the ferry over from Wellington to Picton, who was from Hawkes Bay in the North Island. He had been 'holidaying' on South Island for as long as he could remember, yet this time he was taking TWO MONTHS just to spend in the south of the South Island, as there was still so much to see. And after spending a bit of time down in The Catlins (though unfortunately not making it over to Doubtful/Milford Sounds) I know exactly what he means! 

Although I could sit here for hours reminiscing about all the places I would have loved to have visited as well, I cannot help but be thankful that I've been able to witness as much of this paradise as I have already - and I'm only 23 - still many countries and places left to scratch off my map yet!

Let's get started.

Wildlife Photography

I have a true passion for photography - and as you may notice a lot of my photographs are of landscapes and wildlife, and predominantly in black and white. To me, if a photo can keep it's depth and still tell a story when it is stripped of it's colour, then it is a photo worth having. Photography is just a hobby of mine for the moment and I hope you enjoy taking a browse through some of my favourites.

I have captioned both the place in which it was taken, and with what camera and lens. I do not pretend to take photos of animals in the wild, when they are taken in a zoo or a wildlife park. I remember reading a profile of a contributor for a competition on animals in 'the wild' - you had to provide the date it was taken and the standard formalities. Yet, this woman had managed to photograph a 'wild' komodo dragon, a 'wild' tiger and a 'wild' grizzly bear ALL in the same day, now either that was one fantastic day jetting between countries or someone was telling a bit of a fib - I know which I believe. However, no matter where photos are taken I do believe there is a gift in capturing something of beauty.

Harmondsworth Moor, London

Siem Reap, Cambodia

London Zoo

Kaikoura, New Zealand

Ohau Point, New Zealand

London Zoo

London Zoo

Kaikoura, New Zealand

Harmondsworth Moor, London

Bird and Flower Market, Shanghai

Yuntai Shan, China

My back garden, Shanghai, China

Hue, Vietnam

Kanchanaburi, Thailand

Ayutthaya, Thailand

Bavaria, Germany

I'm back!

After an incredible five weeks of to-ing and fro-ing - I'm finally back in the Land of Smiles. From being a Lord of The Rings ninja, whale watching, penguin spotting, watching the fireworks at Darling Harbour and being reunited with my bff - it truly has been a magical few weeks. 

I've spent hours upon hours changing my mind about how I want to layout my blog for my travels in NZ. Do I take it day by day explaining what I did, or do I set it out place by place - and the truth is I don't think either way truly encapsulates just how much there is to see and do in NZ. But I must say, if WHEN I go again - I certainly will not attempt to see the entirety of the two islands in just three weeks, it is impossible. 

So here tells the story of two girls ladies (daughter and mother) and a campervan in New Zealand - and let me tell you it was one hell of a ride!

I'll start off by telling you a little about my family. We've always been incredibly close, a little crazy with a tendency to take ourselves off on little adventures. So, after years of mithering my parents to go to NZ, we finally booked the tickets and began planning our journey (this was about three weeks before we were due to leave.) [This still does not beat the record of us booking a week skiing in Italy the night before we went - told you we were spontaneous!]

After spending obsene amounts of time researching, plotting and map studying I had a fair idea of where I wanted to go and when I planned to be there. Originally we had planned just two weeks in the South Island - that was our summer vacation, until  mum sneakily proposed the idea of myself, and her, flying out a week early to Auckland and driving down to Christchurch to meet dad a week later. Rather hesitantly dad agreed - actually hesitantly isn't the right word, us travelling for a week without him wasn't a problem, I think it was more likely due to our tendency to freely spend money. Don't get me wrong, we won't spend money on things that we don't want/need - but when it comes to holidays, we like to enjoy every single aspect and take full advantage of our surroundings.

Let me give you the general gist of the journey so you know what to expect. We drove approximately 3500km in three weeks, with some days barely driving and others we spent the entire day driving - you need to find your balance and see what places appeal to you. I didn't have THAT much interest in the North West coast, or the west coast in general really so we spent a full day driving from Wanaka - though I would still spend a full day doing the drive along the Haast Pass as with the unpredictable weather conditions and countless photo ops you will want to spend a lot of time out of the van! 

A little tip - the Pass gets closed at 17:00pm so you want to make sure you are out the other side before then!

We spent a few nights freedom camping, some on unpowered sites but mostly on powered sites. If you would like to have a gander at my list of pros and cons of staying at each, just click here.

Now, let's begin our journey through New Zealand.