We arrived in Auckland four days ago, after 40 hours of travel time.  I am still a little sick from our trip to Peru, but every day I am feeling better. 

Some thoughts, so far, on and from Auckland, New Zealand:

As it turns out, leaving to travel for 6 months is emotionally and physically overwhelming.

Wherever you go, there you are.

I keep thinking that the cars are driving themselves. I have to remind myself that the driver is on the right side of the car.

Much like driving, people walk on the left side of the street. That is the trickiest thing to get used to.

Books are expensive here.

Most of the restaurants here are Malaysian, Japanese, Korean or Indian. If only I had an appetite!

The city of Auckland reminds me of San Francisco, Seattle and a beach town combined.

After spending three nights in Auckland, I am anxious to see more of New Zealand. We leave this morning for a 12 hour bus ride to the southern tip of the northern island – Wellington. There we plan on taking some day trips to vineyards and national parks. Can’t wait!

Image found here

Well, my bags are packed and I am ready (ish) to go. We are off to LA for the day and then taking a red-eye to New Zealand. So far, we have 3 nights at a hostel booked. We are planning on spending some time in Auckland, then renting a car and driving to the South Island. After New Zealand we are heading to Sydney to see one of my very best friends! I can not wait! I will be blogging during my travels and keeping you up to date with all my new adventures 🙂 Here goes nothin….

The most daunting task to prepare for our trip is packing.  Oh, packing!  We have had packing meetings, packing lists, packing days and still, our bags are not really packed. How are you supposed to pack for a trip that you have no idea where you will end up?

I ordered this book off Amazon and it has been a saving grace.  Without this book, we would have not gotten our vaccines (some of which are required from one country to the next) or bought traveler’s insurance.

They created a detailed packing list in the book and it has been a lifesaver.  I tell you the most daunting part is having to put together a minimal wardrobe that will be comfortable wherever we go.

There are some odds and ends that we still need to purchase (guitar string?!), but as the days have gone by, I have come to realize that I will have everything I need wheerever I go.

I took a quick trip to Montreal to meet up with friends over Memorial Day Weekend.  It was the first time I’d been there and we had a blast.  It was a very laid back trip and we spent our time mostly walking around, eating and drinking.  We rented a very cute apartment in the Plateau district via airbnb.com and began each morning with bagels and coffee on the patio. We spent our first afternoon walking through Old Montreal and were treated to a little French Canadian “Zou Bisou Bisou” to get the weekend rolling.

Inside Basilique Notre-Dame de Montréal photo credit Meaghan Calcari Campbell

Inside Basilique Notre-Dame de Montréal photo credit Meaghan Calcari Campbell

These Bixi bike rentals are stationed all over Montreal.  Though we didn’t get a chance to ride them our first day, we were definitely not leaving town until we made that happen.

To our taxi driver’s relief, we hopped a cab back to our apartment just before 8 p.m.  For the past week or so, there are have been nightly protests in Montreal opposing an increase in college tuition.

The evening protests take the form of peaceful banging on pots and pans.  I captured this scene on the street.  People also gather and parade through the streets.

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Following the “pandemonium” we ended the day with a fabulous dinner which included a cheese board, olives, french fries and rotisserie chicken and vegetables at the nearby and lively restaurant, Buvette Chez Simone.

via buvettechezsimone.com

The next morning we started our day with a fun and delicious brunch at Lawrence Restaurant.

Following brunch, we headed out for a walk through the Quarter Latin/St. Denis Street.  Once there, we started noticing all of these older individuals, suspended in chairs above the ground.  It turned out to be a performance art piece, “x-fois gens chaise” by Angie Hiesl.  At first it was puzzling, then mesmerizing, then nerve-wracking as ladders were set up, one by one, for the chair-sitters to climb back down to the ground.

“One is knitting, another folds laundry and a third is eating. All of them appear to be floating above everyday concerns, their strange position adding an enchanting note to the cityscape. Old age becomes urban poetry, insisting that we stop and take a look. Affixed to the façades of buildings on St. Denis Street, they are an evocative display of passing time, blurring distinctions so that life becomes art. Some might walk by without noticing them, but others will raise their heads and stop to gaze at this surprising image of mature angels adding a touch of grace to the urban space.”  via Goethe Institut

We continued with a walk down Sainte Catherine Street and afternoon drinks in The Village, Montreal’s gay neighborhood.

photo credit Meaghan Calcari Campbell

photo credit Meaghan Calcari Campbell

photo credit Meaghan Calcari Campbell

For our last evening in Montreal, we enjoyed a decadent and leisurely, four-course meal at le Quartier general with apportez votre vin or bring your own wine.

And as I said, we weren’t leaving until we all took a spin on the Bixi’s.   This was definitely an instance of saving the best for last.  It was perfect weather for a wonderful night ride back to the apartment.  We all wished we had one more day to ride all over the city.  It was a great trip with old friends and a lovely way to kick-off the summer!

Me on a Bixi photo credit Meaghan Calcari Campbell. Meaghan on a Bixi photo credit me.  Sorry for the poor quality, Meg!

Mike’s on bikes photo credit Meaghan Calcari Campbell

*Special thanks to Meaghan for sharing her fabulous photos with us!

Our grandparents built a summer home in Huron, Ohio in the 1950s and it has been part of our family ever since. This home has been a place to spend the summers and share countless memories playing cards, drinking milkshakes, swimming, etc. There is really no place like it. From the sprawling farms to the ice cream shops, it is certainly a place to get away from it all. After a lovely yet busy Mother’s Day weekend, Albert and I decided to take a mini-trip to the beach.

We enjoyed some orange sherbet, took a 7 mile bike ride and made a home cooked meal. It was quiet, slow-paced and wholesome. It was exactly what we needed.