beach

Maui Stopover

Maui

Maui is a bit manicured for our taste but it’s still a beautiful island with sights that we checked out on our previous visit. We may yet return and hike the volcano! Day 1: Queenstown to Maui We left Queenstown about two hours ago and we’ve been here on Maui since before noon. We lost … Read more

Abel Tasman National Park

view

We did a section of the Abel Tasman track. It’s one of the easier and more accessible of New Zealand’s Great Walks. And the area is known for good weather.  We booked a tour through the backpackers where we’re staying. It included an hour bus trip to get us to the park, a half-hour water … Read more

Green Island

Green Island

Green Island is a small island off the coast near Cairns. Multiple companies offer excursions there. You can snorkel from the beach or just sit on it if you want. There are also walks and a place to eat. We’re following our usual practice of snorkeling from the beach first. It helps us get reacquainted … Read more

Melbourne

sunset

We expected to like Melbourne a lot and we did. It’s a great city for wandering and exploring.   Day 1: Hobart to Melbourne Our flight from Hobart to Melbourne was uneventful. We used StarBus to get from the airport to our lodging in South Yarra and it worked nicely. Our hotel room is actually a … Read more

Manly Beach

paddleboat in rain

Manly Beach is big and beautiful even in the rain. And even if you’re not crazy about the beach, the ferry ride to get there is worth it for the scenery. It’s a short walk through town from the ferry terminal in Manly to the beach. We appreciated the shops because we could walk under … Read more

Sydney

Clouds obscuring buildings

To be honest, I didn’t love Sydney. But I think a lot of that is due to the weather, which was rainy the entire time we were there. So we couldn’t really do some of the outdoor activities we had planned. What we were able to do, we enjoyed. The opera was everything we hoped … Read more

Waikiki Stopover

Waikiki hotel

Waikiki reminded us a lot of Las Vegas. Lots of high-end retail stores, lots of people walking around. The beach is nice, though a bit crowded for our taste. It was a nice weekend but we wouldn’t want to spend longer than that here.  Day 1: Home to Waikiki Our first day brought us to … Read more

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