Rotorua fun and Kiwis in sweaters

On our last days in Rotorua we did a couple of fun and touristy activities. First we took the gondola up the hill for a great view of the lake and surrounding area. But the best part for the kids and us was the ride down on the luge. These were go-carts we steered and rode down cement tracks to the bottom through forests. Lots of twists and turns, not unlike driving through New Zealand's South Island. The kids loved it and were able to take a couple more rides down while Catheleen and I enjoyed the view and weather from a Cafe at the top.

The next day we stopped at another hill for zorbing, a ridiculous sport where you climb into a large inflatable ball and then roll down a hill. Both John and Elizabeth went for the wet ride, where they sloshed around in their ball like clothes in a washing machine. They weren't hurt by the ride itself, but they may have busted a gut from all the laughing and screaming on the way down the zig-zag course, all captured on a Go-Pro for our viewing pleasure. I think it would have been more of a hoot if they went together in the same ball, but they went for separate rides.

For one of our last activities in Rotorua we thought we would check out a redwood forest a few miles outside of town. I thought that we would be getting away from the sulphur smell so prevalent in the area, but it followed us here too, at least for part of the time. Anyway, the forest itself was really a marvel. The government here planted the redwoods in 1901 as part of an experiment to see what types of trees could be grown in the area to support a forestry industry. This particular grove was protected as a memorial to local veterans of the first and then second world wars. What a pleasure it was to walk through a redwood forest, with its majestic trees covering the area. The trees were surprisingly huge. For some reason these trees grow faster in this area than in California, where the trees originate. 

One observation about houses here. Having stayed at a large number of places in New Zealand now, I've found the often drafty, single-pane windows and house heating methods a little quirky compared to what I'm used to. There is no central heating or cooling of houses, where you simply set the thermostat for the house to the desired temperature, and the heating or cooling is then distributed to all the rooms via vents. Rather there is typically a mix of wall mounted heat-pumps, space heaters, wood stoves and other odds and ends to keep the place comfortable if need be. It's like they are strangely insisting that they live in a balmy, sub-tropical climate, ignoring the fact that it can be distinctly chilly at times. I understand many Kiwis spend their winters indoors bundled up in sweaters, and on sunny winter days, is isn't uncommon for it to be warmer outdoors than indoors.

Here's John coming out of a zorb orb. 

Barefooted Kiwis

Catheleen

What is with Kiwis and going barefoot everywhere? I shudder when I see barefooted people at the grocery store, restaurants etc. It's a Kiwi thing but it drives me bananas. As well it took the longest time for me to understand them when they would say left (pronounced lift) and eggs (pronounced iggs)...but I do love their quality of coffee both the flat white and in a pinch, Jed's coffee.

Geyser

Hello today we went to geysers the geysers were so interesting where we we're was Rotarua a town on top of a volcano we saw so many bright colors there like this  

Now I will tell you what the colors are this is from the panflict 

Green: Colloidal sulphur/ ferrous salts

Orange: Antimony

Purple: Manganese oxide 

White: Silica

Yellow-primrose: Sulphur

Red-Brown: Iron oxide

Black: Sulphur and carbon

The huge amounts of colors in the rocks are all natural due to different mineral elements.b

For you're information sulphur is the stuff that made us dislike geyser a bit sulphur has the smell of what they say "Rotten Eggs" all of this steam smells awful 

Now this is what my father told me beneath my feet about 100 m down it bubbling lava and all of this bubbles up to the surface 

 

Now real explanation Beneath the grown is a system of streams which are heated by magma left over from earlier eruptions. 

The water is so so so boiling hot over 300 C that it takes away minerals from the rocks throughout which it takes them to the surface as rotten egg steam.

Now here are some pictures 

Me reacting to the color😜

Well after that mom and dad we're so nice for all of us to go on the luge, the luge it this like mini sled and  we go down this really fast hill 

Well another extreme sport tomorrow we are going Zorbing

YAY

Hobbits and sulphur pools

On Tuesday we drove north west to Rotorua, and along the way we stopped at the Hobbiton Movie Set, where parts of The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies were filmed. When the director Peter Jackson was planning film locations in New Zealand, he did an aerial surveillance of this area and found this bucolic sheep and cattle farm, with its green rolling hills, including a critical pond and large tree. After a couple of years of construction, the area was transformed with dozens of hobbit holes and a tavern over a stone bridge. 

The area was rebuilt in 2009 for The Hobbit movies, and was turned into a permanent exhibit and tourist attraction. We really enjoyed our tour on one fine sunny day, and we took a lot of pictures in front of all the hobbit holes. Some of the hobbit holes were smaller than others, which helped during filming to create the illusion that some of the characters were tall or short. The place was really well maintained. They must have an army of gardeners, with all the flower and vegetables gardens throughout. My favourite part of the tour was the end, when we're stopped in at the Green Dragon tavern for a pint of beer, or in the kids' case, a mug of ginger beer. I can't say I'm the biggest fan of these movies, but I have to say it was pretty cool walking around this set. We almost expected Bilbo or Frodo Baggins to come out of a hobbit hole. The kids just loved the tour and are excited to watch all the movies again. 

Our final stop for a few days was Rotorua, nicknamed Surfur City because of the hydrogen sulphide emissions, which give parts of the town a rotten eggs smell. Rotorua's tourist appeal comes from the town's nearby geysers, bubbling mud pools, and hot thermal springs. When we drove around town we noticed some steam rising at a park so we stopped in. I think the reason the large park is here is because there is so much geothermal activity here. We walked around to view all the bubbling pools, and found a spot set up with benches so we could take off our shoes and dip our legs in the warm water. John was concerned that his feet would smell like sulphur, but was happy to discover that this was not the case. 

I understand not too long ago residents would make use of the boiling and bubbling pools to wash their clothing. Nowadays the pools are all cordoned off, which is a good thing with tourists like me wandering about. We visited the Wai-O-Tapu thermal area on Thursday, and we started off our tour with a visit to the Lady Knox geyser, which erupts every day at 10:15. I thought it was odd that the geyser kept such good time, but it turns out there's a good explanation for this. As we arrived almost late but just in time for the eruption, a guide stood up and told a story about how long ago convicts from a nearby prison used to do their laundry at this hot spot, and discovered that their laundry soap would set off the geyser. The guide then proceeded to pour some detergent into the geyser, and sure enough, five minutes later the geyser erupted in a 20 meter spurt of sulphur and soap scented steam and water. Not quite the same thing as watching a geyser erupt on its own, but interesting nonetheless.

At this thermal area we walked the trails to see the sights. By the end of the two hour hike we were all feeling a little off from the heat and the continual sulphur fumes. On entry to the park we were warned to stay on the paths and not to smoke. I wondered why smoking was prohibited - it turns out some of the minerals we saw in the park like yellow crystallised sulphur are highly flammable. My favourite parts of the many stops along the walk were the Champagne Pool and Devil's Bath. 

Champagne pool should belong on an alien planet, with its large pool of water with carbon dioxide gas bubbling to the surface. There were minerals around the edge coloured either yellow, orange or red. Huge amounts of steam would obscure the area on occasion, some of it red coloured mist from one part of the pool covered in iron oxide. The pool was accessible via a causeway crossing part of the pool. The place was just fascinating, but the steam and sulphur smell eventually drove us away. 

Devil's Bath was our last stop but just as strange. The large pool below us, surrounded by white cliffs, was a bright yellow colour, as if it was filled with yellow paint with a green tinge. Sort of what toxic waste looks like in comic books I think. It was so bright it looked like it was glowing.

Here is Elizabeth and John making their way through the mist at the Champagne Pool, trying to minimize the smell as they escape the scene.  

Art Deco living and cracked iPhones

While visiting Wellington we stayed at a hobby farm, or what they call a lifestyle block. The kids enjoyed playing with the owners' kids, a boy named Dominique who was a year older than John, and a girl named Celina who was a year younger than Elizabeth. It was great to see them play with soccer balls and skateboards, and interact with the neighbour's dog and cat. Dominque had just purchased a dirt bike, and showed off for us by riding it over the nearby hills and across the stream. They had all the usual animals like chickens and sheep, along with an unusual collection of donkeys, and were just in the process of purchasing a pony for Celina, which was to arrive on the day of our departure.

While the kids were all playing together, Catheleen and I chatted with the owners, Roland and Angie. We stayed two nights and both nights we stayed up to tell stories and share some food and drink. Angie is originally from Switzerland, and it was fun to hear her tales of life back in Switzerland and how she ended up in New Zealand. 

On Saturday we drove north from Wellington to Napier, on the east coast of the north island on Hawkes Bay. Napier was razed by an earthquake in the 1930's. The town was rebuilt in an art-deco style, which was prominent at the time. We really liked walking around and staring up at the building facades, with their straight line decor and pastel colours. It reminded us of parts of Miami. The town plays up the Art Deco style with various restaurants, shops and festivals to celebrate this heritage. I really liked it since it was so different from any other town I've seen. 

The bay itself was unique. When we looked onto the Pacific Ocean we saw a black pebble beach and water the colour of emerald green. The water was very cold, and we looked on while white and black birds dived for fish while a couple of seals relaxed on their bellies further out, one with a fish it just caught. The seals sometimes come on to shore to rest, and we read a sign asking people to leave the seals alone. I understand some people feed the seals, especially the skinny young ones that are still learning to fish, which is not good for them. 

We had great weather the three nights we spent at Napier, which is common in this place. The summer months have a daytime high of 25 Celsius, while the winters have a high of 14 Celsius. I think this is near perfect weather. The rental prices are pretty good here too. If we were retired and looking for a place to get away from a Canadian winter I think this would be a good spot. We stayed at someone's home, who I believe clears out to sleep on a friend's couch whenever she has guests. It seems strange to me that she would inconvenience herself whenever she has a booking, but I guess it's worth it to her. We really enjoyed the lived in, homey place built in the 1930's, especially the backyard with its avocado and lemon trees with grape vines running along the fence line. 

I don't know if the threat of earthquakes would bother me though if we lived here for an extended time, but I suppose most places have their risks. In Ottawa Canada I think the biggest risk is the winter driving conditions, which are not insignificant. I guess you are just used to whatever risks are prevalent, no matter where you live.

We also hit the mall in Napier for maintenance and upkeep. I discovered after it rained that I had holes in my shoes so I picked up a new pair of shoes and threw out my old pair. If we travelled long enough we would end up replacing everything I'm sure. As it stands now we've replaced most of our luggage, replaced or thrown out some footwear, and purchased some new clothes along the way. Our clothes are starting to look a little ragged and stained though. I think they'll all end up in the trash when we're back in Ottawa. 

Our devices have suffered the most over our trip. We've cracked and replaced two iPhone screens and one iPad screen, and ruined a third iPhone when I left it on the beach where it was inundated by a big wave.  

Here's Elizabeth at the park in Napier next to the bay. Parkland runs all along the bay, which is nice. This shot was taken around 6 PM.  I noticed the ocean colour changed to blue by this time in the day. 

Art Deco town of Napier

Catheleen

Hello from the Art Deco town of Napier. The entire town was razed by an earthquake in 1931. They rebuilt all in the style of the day - Art Deco. We are staying in a gorgeous period home, with gardens containing lemon, orange and avocado trees. The neighbour’s cat came for a nice chat and some loving. John wanted me to add that they also have a large screen tv with XBox!

We are going

Hello everyone yesterday we arrived on the north island of New Zealand we arrived in Wellington but we stayed just a little bit further in Lower Hut the air bnb that we stayed in had a dog and two adorable cats they also had two kids me and John's age it was really fun playing with them all:) The museum that we visited had the largest squid in the world which was a colossal squid now I will show you some pictures of our stay. This was the war section very sad all of this is huge art work not real people

The next photo is of Ollie the cat 

We'll see you next time

Windy Wellington and the Te Papa

Last Thursday we had an early morning drive to catch the ferry from Picton on the south island to Wellington on the north island. The two hour ferry ride was very scenic as we passed by many coves on our way through the sound to the open ocean and across the Cook Strait. The cruise through the sound with its tree covered shores reminded me of the British Columbia ferry that rides past Salt Spring Island and other islands on the way from Vancouver to Victoria, Vancouver Island. The ferry itself was a miniature version of a B.C. ferries, except the Picton ferry included a semitrailer filled with cattle, not something found often on the B.C. ferries I recall. The cattle were a little smelly when the wind was blowing the wrong way.

It was a beautiful cool sunny day, and as the ferry made its way into Wellington harbour, we had a good view of New Zealand's capital. There was a cruise ship in port, and the ship dominated this compact city of 400,000 (including suburbs), with its modest office towers and houses on the steep surrounding hills. I'm surprised there is enough room for this many people downtown and in the suburbs, given how little flat ground exists around the harbour before the high green hills start to take over. 

We disembarked our rental car and went straight to the Te Papa, New Zealand's national museum. This museum was so good we came back the next day for more. It's been 100 years since the Gallipoli campaign of World War I, and to commemorate an exhibit has been set up in the museum. This is one of the best war exhibits I've ever seen. It followed the campaign from the allied landings in April 1915 until withdrawal the following January. The New Zealanders suffered disproportionally among the allies with the death of about 25% of New Zealand troops serving, and was a defining moment in the history of both New Zealand and Australia. The exhibit was very well done and included huge and realistic statues of some of the soldiers and participants, and great models and displays to provide some insight into the campaign. There was also an emphasis on a Maori regiment that served bravely and sadly suffered heavy casualties alongside their allied compatriots. 

The museum had a number of floors dedicated to Maori culture, and good exhibits on earthquakes and indigenous flora and fauna. At the earthquake exhibit, we learnt about a fault line that runs straight through New Zealand, and we got to stand in a house simulator that started to shake to get a sense of an earthquake. The island nation has experienced a number of significant earthquakes over the years, the worst ones in terms of devastation and fatalities being the Christchurch earthquakes in 2010 and 2011 and a North island earthquake in 1931 that wiped out the entire town of Napier. 

The flora and fauna exhibits were really superb and showed how invasive species of plants and animals  have transformed the country. There was one exhibit I really liked that tried to show how the island would have looked and sounded a thousand years ago when native trees and ferns dominated the landscape, and native birds like the huge moa and kiwi covered the place. I found the sounds of the birds interesting with strange exotic squawks and low caws. There were no songbirds singing back then like there are now - all the songbirds I hear all day in New Zealand are imported European species. 

There were some tours going on throughout the museum, some given by Maori guides. One Maori guide told a story about how the moas were hunted to extinction by Maori people by the early 1800's. At the time there also existed the largest eagle in the world that hunted the moas. Once the moas were extinct, the eagles started hunting small children among other prey, and could pick a child up by the head and carry the victim off. This led to the quick extinction of the eagles, who were taken down by the Maori to protect their children.  He told the story as a cautionary tale that people, including the Maori people, need to adapt to the world around them to prosper. Otherwise you'll end up like the moa and the eagle (figuratively speaking). I don't know how much of his tales were true, but I have to give him credit for superb story telling.

On our second day in Wellington the weather turned for the worse with gusts up to 120 kilometres per hour. I had heard that Wellington was a windy city, especially in the spring, but this was quite the blow. As we walked around the downtown streets the gusts would funnel in from the harbour up the streets running from the south to the north and almost blow us off our feet. I saw Elizabeth laughing while holding onto a pole and I wasn't sure if she was kidding or not. 

We also visited the Wellington Museum on the refurbished waterfront, which was well done and quirky. It covered the history of Wellington, and how it has evolved over the last 150 years since it became the capital. A nice thing about capitals is they often pour a lot of money into their national museums, and Wellington is no exception. The two museums we saw here were first class. 

The downtown streets were also fun to walk around, although many of the buildings and areas seemed a little run down to me and could use some refurbishment. I think this is an ongoing process, as there were a few cranes downtown working on a number of buildings. 

Here are the kids on the way in to Wellington harbour. 

Wellington blew us away

Catheleen

Gale force winds of 120 km per hour yesterday in Wellington so you could say that Wellington blew us away! More great museums and candy shops. A great lunch at Little Penang curry house. This morning we say our goodbyes to Rolland, Angie, kids and many lovely animals as we drive up the eastern coast to Napier New Zealand

Rural hobby farm outside of Wellington

Catheleen

Enjoyed the incredible company of new friends and hosts Angie and Rolland and their children, Salina and Dominic. Great stories over wine, beer and pizza. It was nice to see the kids with same age buddies discussing the similarities and differences. The evening could not be more perfect with the backdrop of their rural hobby farm outside of Wellington. Dog, cats, sheep, lamb, chickens and donkeys as well as motocross bike and rip stick skateboard. It is a dark windy day today with rain but Wellington nation has a ton of excellent museums and all completely free!

Shoe shopping therapy

Catheleen

Somehow in our rush to get to the fun, I lost not one but two pairs of shoes, critical Keane waterproof sandals and the only Winter-ish closed toed shoe, my Fly Londons. Now this would generally not be a problem considering my Imelda like shoe closet back home but this is "roughing it" on the road and shoe space is significantly paired down. The thought of exclusively wearing running shoes for the remainder of my trip made me bristle. I was in a very bad place and after a period of mourning, I resolved to take the family for some shoe shopping therapy, budget or no budget.

Random things about New Zealand

I have to admit we haven't done too much since we arrived in Nelson  New Zealand, on the northern end of the south island. We're staying in a really nice place on top of a ridge with a great view of the ocean. When we're at a particularly nice place, I just feel like staying close to home base and just relaxing. So without many recent activities to describe, here's a list of random things I've learned about New Zealand since we arrived on the South Island. 

1. What a beautiful place. Everywhere you go the views and vistas are amazing. 

2. Driving on the left is tricky. I keep walking to the car to get into the driver's seat on the wrong side, and I still think the turn signal should be where the windshield wiper controls are. Then there are the ever present the round-abouts - ugh. I attempted parallel parking once with some success, but I keep shoulder checking over the rght shoulder. It's a bit confusing. 

3. There really are more sheep than people here. Something like six sheep per person. You can't go very far without seeing sheep. We even saw sheep on someone's lawn in the suburbs. There are almost as many cows here too. 

4. New Zealand is expensive. It's about 20% more expensive than Canada I figure, but that has a lot to do with the current exchange rate. But regardless, the cost of living for New Zealanders is high here, since income levels are a somewhat lower than in Canada. I can see the lower Kiwi purchasing power with fewer people in the restaurants and shops and the more modest cars and houses. 

5. New Zealanders are a happy and friendly bunch. Various surveys show Kiwis self-assess as more content than most other countries. Everyone we've met has been very friendly. They are also very easy going in the driving department, even when I'm blocking traffic trying to find my way around.

6. New Zealanders are a crazy bunch, or at least they are in Queenstown. Between the bungee jumping, the speedboat racing on rivers through narrow cliffs and paragliding, they're just ... crazy.

7. Don't wait for the cheque. After a restaurant meal, remember to go up to the cash register to pay. We waited for the cheque for a while before we figured this one out. I like it. 

8. Don't leave a tip. This one threw me at first too, but tipping is mostly for something exceptional, not regular service at a restaurant. 

9. Black flies are a year round thing on the beach and lakes. They called them sandflies. Just when I thought the country was near perfect, I learned and experienced they have those small annoying black flies that we get in Ontario in May for a few weeks before they die off. They bite here too. 

10. Where is everybody? If you like a relaxing place without too many crowds, this is a nice place to be. We often drove for some time in the country on "highways" before seeing another car or soul.

11. The best things are free - mostly. This place has great and free national parks, which I think are the best reason to come to this country. They are well marked with excellent trails and signage. There are good city parks for the kids too, and public washrooms are everywhere. Many people take their campers around, and there are campsites all over for them too. A few more water fountains scattered around would be nice though. 

Going barefoot and kiwi encounters

We stayed for two nights on the west coast near the town of Franz Josef. It rained much of the time. Not surprising since the westerlies off the Tasman sea dump eight meters of rain a year onto this part of the world.  No one in this country seems to own a dryer by the way. Of all places, this rainy location could use some dryers. I don't think there are too many "good days for the drying" here, as some Irish travellers we met in Vietnam would say. Instead Kiwis seem to all hang their clothes to dry on the line. We learnt this time and again when we only found a washer at our accommodation. Maybe it seems strange to say, but I can't say I ever hung clothes on a line before our trip to New Zealand. It's not rocket science, but I learned on windy days that everything needs a peg or two to stay on the line.

A unique custom we've noticed in New Zealand lately is people walking around barefoot. We've only seen it a few times since it's still springtime on the cooler South Island, but I understand going barefoot is more common on the north island in the summertime when it can get quite hot and humid. You won't find any North American signs here stating "No shirt, no shoes, no service". On the contrary, outside of factories and certain businesses, it's perfectly acceptable to go anywhere in bare feet. Children regularly go to school in bare feet, or kick off their shoes immediately after getting to school. In fact, we've seen signs in businesses asking people to remove their dirty shoes. I remember purposely going barefoot for a couple weeks in Thailand years ago when we stayed on the beach. It was a nice feeling I recall. 

We were here in the rain to visit the glaciers, so off we went. On our way here we took a short jaunt from our car to see the Fox glacier from a distance, a river of ice on a steep downward slope. The next day we took the time and effort to hike through the rain a fair distance to come within a few hundred meters of the Franz Josef glacier. It took about 40 minutes to walk there, and we passed though the u-shaped valley carved out by the glacier before it has since retreated. For the first five or ten minutes we passed through some young forests, which have grown since the glacier melted on this spot over 160 years ago. I was surprised to see nature fill in an area so quickly, which was recently just exposed rock. We next walked along a valley that had nothing in it but boulders and rocks, with cliffs on both sides. Mother Nature has not yet had time to fill in this area, which was massive and made me think of a desolate place like the moon. We eventually  crossed up and over a boulder strewn ridge to see the blue-tinged glacier itself, covered in rocks and boulders and letting forth a river of melt water from its base. We could see boulders nearby in precarious positions, balanced on top of smaller rocks or wedged in a crack in the cliff, with a waterfall pouring down on top of it. This is one strange place, but a great location to see the power a glacier can wreck on the landscape. 

On Sunday we also visited The Westcoast Wildlife Centre to see the kiwis. Kiwis are flightless, nocturnal birds, only found in New Zealand. There are five different species of kiwi, all of which are endangered due to introduced predators and habitat loss. We needed to wait for our eyes to adjust to the low light levels, but we were then able to view a Rowi, the rarest of the kiwi birds. It was quite active in its naturalised enclosure, racing back and forth looking for bugs and grubs in the undergrowth. What a strange looking bird with its long beak that looked like a straw with nostrils on the end, with big legs like a turkey on a small body. It was an endearing and odd looking creature. Too bad the birds are on the decline. They are easy prey for stoats in particular, which are weasels introduced to New Zealand in the late 1800's to help lower rabbit populations, another invasive species. It turned out though that the stoats found kiwis easier prey than rabbits. 

Yesterday we drove north up the coast to Nelson at the northern end of the south island. We'll stay here for the next few days before ferrying to the north island. It was a nice sunny day and we enjoyed a few stops along the way. We first visited Punakaiki to take a short walk along the coast to view the limestone formations and ocean surge. There was a great path and boardwalk here to see strange limestone formations which looked like stacked pancakes, since the spaces between the limestone layers were worn away. Also interesting was watching the ocean waves roll into small coves and blow mist and air through holes, creating strange blow hole effects. 

Later on we stopped in at a fur seal colony near Cape Foulwind. Not an auspicious name. I thought it might have been named this because we would be downwind from the seals, but Captain Cook named it when his ship The Bounty was blown off shore at this location. After a short walk we had a great viewing platform to look down on the furry seals. We saw some young pups playing while mother seal took it easy, sunning herself on this fine day. There were a dozen or so seals milling about or lying down, and a couple of males were fighting and howling at each other, perhaps competing for the right to mate. We all enjoyed the spectacle, while the waves crashed up over the rocks, leaving great sprays of mist in the air. 

Here's Catheleen and me at a stop along the west coast on a rare sunny day. 

Hiking to glaciers

Catheleen

Rainy few days hiking to both the Fox and Franz Josef Glaciers but today the sun returned and we had a brilliant drive up the West Coast of the South Island to the Fur Seal colony in Cape Foulwind as well as hiked to the Pancake Rocks and Blow Holes of Punakaiki. We are now on the North Coast in Nelson and our final destination on the South Island. Our Air B&B is a stunner with views of the beach and Sunset.

Highlights of Bali (Part 2)

Hello guys, John here bringing you the second blog of the highlights of Bali and I realized that I had forgotten some really awesome days and moments in Bali, There will be one, two or three highlights only but don't worry, they are the big ones and I hope you enjoy. 

First highlight is the monkey forest, if you ever follow my mothers Facebook or her social media you probably already know about this place, well for those who don't know it a forest filled with monkeys, who attack you if you have food... Did I mention there are no cages,  it literally is a hands-on experience... Get it? HANDS ON XD, monkeys have opposable thumbs XD, good one John... Anyways I have a couple of crazy pictures but long story short... If you have food they attack, if you have no food they sit next to you, if you stay still you're their new jungle gym, so basically to avoid stuff like this, don't bother showing up cause they throw hats and your bags, search your pockets. 

Anyways moving into the next highlight, the Balinese bird park, and I know what your saying... There a lot of animals in this blog but don't worry because there is one more highlight after this. Anyways so while we were in this bird park you would probably expect to see a lot of birds... NO, but on the other hand you did get to see a lot of birds so yeeeeeah. We all really enjoyed ourselves here because the birds were so friendly, one of them would bend right over so that you could scratch the back of his neck and when he would slowly go back up with a straight gaze at you and his hair stand straight up... Talk about a geek right? Anyways I can go on for days about this amazing bird park but we're on a tight schedule here people! 

Last but not least for the highlights of Bali we shall talk about the amazing snorcheling, beautiful coral reefs and sea creatures to roam those vast seas and to enlighten your eyes through the goggles.... Deep I know. My favourite sight underwater was this huge Stupa (temple) that was completely under water and inhabited by all sorts of sea creatures, I swam around there for 30 min gazing at that beautiful sight... Until I got spooked by the fact that my father saw a jellyfish in the distance (A Stupa is a smaller version of a Balinese temple). Well that wraps up everything for Bali and more room for Australia next time. This has been John and is officially signing out.

The Jump

The fact I Oh my goodness mom went Bungy jumping let me tell you the story. Once upon a time there was a family who went to go see some people jump off a bridge, the two kids we're joking around about doing it for themselves.  Sense going Bungy jumping was on her bucket list she  told the two kids that she was going Bungy Jumping and it was only later when she told the father of the two. The next day at exactly 10:45 Am she jumped 45m down to the water she said before the worst possible thing that would happen would be her getting whiplash but she did not get a single tug it was very gentle she said well that was the tale off the Jump.

Goodbye.

Highlights of Bali (Part 1)

Hello guys, John here bringing you only one blog of Bali and even though we've been in Indonesia for a month I think I should hurry up and get to the good stuff, but it's not all bad as I will be talking about all the highlights of Bali.  We not only stayed in Bali but went also to the Islandnof Java where we visited the temples of Borobudur and Prambanan as well as Yogyakarta and also travelled to Lombok and stayed on the very remote Gili Islands - Gili Air to be so specific.  

To start it off let me just say that I learned how to surf by the way, I mean not like a pro but I got to learn how to do it with the help of this company called Up 2 You surfing school.  Elizabeth and I signed up and we picked it up pretty quickly... But there was pain all around and that wasn't good :(.  Surf board rash is a real thing.  I pretty well did not have any fingertips left by the end of day three and had to take a break to recover!  Surfing was tough but fun as well the swell was huge at Legian beach were we had the lessons.

Next highlight might not be big to some of you guys but it's pretty small enough not to mess with your temper, I found 1$ Pokemon card packs all through Bali and I made some pretty cool profit of of them pulling 10 dollar cards from some of these packs, remember that I get to choose what goes into these highlights 😈. 

My next highlight is when I discovered this local chocolate company called Pod, basically it's now my favourite chocolate company as it produces the best chocolate in the world (My opinion).  Local to Bali and single source cocoa.  They combined interesting flavours and like green tea, ginger, cardamom, lemon grass, sea salt and it all tasted the absolute best.  I didn't find this chocolate everywhere in Indonesia but it was heaven when we did and I went all out on it, you gotta try some if your readings this... Real Indonesian cocoa bars :D, MMMMMMMMMH! 

My next highlight is a bit weird because it talks about the airport, the Balinese airport is so nice and I wanted to stay there all day even though it had nothing to do with the area itself, i don't know but I think it had something to do with the lack of order, civilization and technology but it was all good cause we went there 6 times :P! 

My final highlight as I am running out of time we had a really great time, Indonesia in general was amazing and beautiful when it comes to their culture and sense of humour, it's all good. I have to say that their food is really really good, they specialize on the chicken satay with peanut sauce, also I had the chicken cordon blue which has nothing to do with Bali... I was hungry okay 😭😜. But until next time where I think I will have another part of these highlights blogs of Bali because... I mean... We were there for a month and there isa lot more, but this has been John and is officially signing out! Just a to let you know these highlights are not in order there just the highlights that come up from the top of my head and then I right it down, it's a bit all over the place as the next part will be. 😝