Antarctica.

[drron]

There was a slight delay in luggage at the carousel.our larger bag was in the first few out,the other amongst the last..So off to Avis.My first rental as a preferred driver.however this booking was made prior to my joining up and couldn't get the number in.However flashed my card and a few key clicks and I had a preferred slip,one signature and off.First stop Meriton serviced apartments at Bondi Junction.Review here-
http://www.australianfrequentflyer....serviced-apartments-bondi-junction-27154.html
Very convenient for us.Basically have my impressions of our cities confirmed-not really friendly,self centered,aggressive drivers with no manners and expensive.However we have valuable time with our grandkids including the christening of our third on Sunday.Also good news from home where our eldest surrogate grandchild has qualified for entrance to Medicine.
Certainly cities have one major advantage over regional areas-choice.Especially food.We go to some old favourites-Kam cough in Bondi Westfield-a good Chinese restaurant but to us expensive.3 dishes plus a bottle of wine $125.
A family dinner at the Centennial Hotel Woollahra-very good food but a 3 course meal plus a bottle of wine per couple is $180 per couple.Also have a couple of brushes with ? fame.Matthew Newton walks in front of mrsdrron whilst she is driving-she resists the urge to hit the accelerator:shock:.And at the Busy Bee in Queen street getting our lunchtime pizzas is James O'loghlin from the New Inventors and family doing the same.
Have enjoyed our time and are impressed with our accommadation-definitely not 5 star but very convenient for us-next year though with less travel I will need a few more SPG nights so 4 Points here we come.
Now getting ready for early start in the morning-have to max our Flounge time!Hopefully some more from NZ before we get on the ship.

 

[totalk]

Have a nice time, I bet this will be a very wonderful trip for you and your family. Congratulations by the way.

Cheers

 

[drron]

A couple of points I missed in the last post-whilst getting one of the cases out of the rental a wheel fell off-made it extremely difficult to schlepp.Fortunately DJs was having a sale so a new 4 wheeler Samsonite was purchased.
Next was when 3 year old granddaughter was asked whether she wanted pizza or a ham and egg roll for lunch her reply was-"I would rather have lunch at Bill's,have you been to Bill's Poppie?"Bill's however was full.
Early start on Monday.Dropped off rental,checked in at the F counter and in the Flounge by 0630.Started with breakfast.Now there was a glitch.I wanted to start with the Bircher muesli-the waiter repeated my order but the muesli never arrived-OK so I wasn't paying for it so no probs.The time flew so we left the lounge to arrive at the gate at 0820-advertised boarding time.As we arrived they announced boarding was delayed and would commence in 10-15 minutes.Actually commenced 35 minutes later.We lined up and the GA was having fun with obviously several connections delayed-2 pax we heard did not make it-were to be in 5D,E-we were in 5 B,C.The 2 in front of us in row4 were QFF NB,s-they were displaying their BPs to everyone.Mrsdrron got no acknowledgement as WP.Behind us was a young child with what sounded very close to whooping cough and another couple planted themselves in the vacant row5 with another young infant with a very good set of lungs.
QF45.SYD-CHC.Scheduled 0905.Pushback-0925.TO-0955 as only 1 runway in action.
More of flight next.
But now an answer to a question I often asked when I was the school bookie-Why do Kiwi horses run so fast?They saw what happened to the sheep.

 

[drron]

An early lunch.I have the lamb jalfrezi(curry)and mrsdrron has the baked pasta with beef-hold the beef.

The broccoli with mrsdrron's pasta was grossly overcooked.Meals came with mixed lettuce leaves-tasteless-and a bread roll-dry.Later a raspberry slice.Basically this was an international flight with domestic service.i spent the rest of the time listening to the music of 1955 whilst reading my Kindle.
Scheduled arrival-1405.Actual-1425.Picked up our preordered duty free-really easy,then through Smartgate-only problem someone had left their passport in the reader!Once again the heavy bag was out in the first three,the lighter bag virtually last-moral,obviously overpacking is good!
Off to Avis and on our way quickly-by 1500 we are on Highway 1 north to Kaikoura.bought some cherries($NZ6 a KG) and raspberries($NZ2.50 a punnet).Soon at Kaikoura and the White Morph Motel-review here-
http://www.australianfrequentflyer....iews/white-morph-motel-kaikoura-nz-27218.html
Next Kaikoura.

 

[anat0l]

An early lunch.I have the lamb jalfrezi(curry)and mrsdrron has the baked pasta with beef-hold the beef.

I've seen that pasta meal before. It may be the same one that's not viewed favourably by a bunch of people who left AFF#4 on dinner flights.

It actually looks similar to a meal I ate on UA Y, except UA added a liberal sprinkling of cheese.

From my experience of having pasta in Y on various airlines, they are almost never done well. The last pasta dish I can think of that tasted good was QF Y's tagliatelle with meatballs.

The broccoli with mrsdrron's pasta was grossly overcooked.

I'm yet to see a Y meal where the broccoli is cooked correctly. That's all across the world, on any airline that I've ever flown.

Meals came with mixed lettuce leaves-tasteless

What? No dressing?

a bread roll-dry

No surprises there. Again, yet to see a Y roll that actually is good, again across the world on all airlines I've ever flown. The closest to the best is probably LH (who also offer some great pumpkin seed rolls).

Later a raspberry slice.Basically this was an international flight with domestic service.

Almost. The domestic service wouldn't give you dessert (maybe cheese & 2 crackers or a thimble of chocolate), except for Perth CityFlyers.


Great report so far drron.

 

[drron]

Almost. The domestic service wouldn't give you dessert (maybe cheese & 2 crackers or a thimble of chocolate), except for Perth CityFlyers.

In fact got exactly the same DRW-BNE on QF 18 months ago.In Y as well that time.On that occasion was coming back from an Orion cruise.
Back to NZ.Quite enjoyed Kaikoura.The outlook from the motel was pleasant

We checked out a few of the local sights-and shops-then picked out the Sonic restaurant for dinner-3 bars in the CBD and all seem to be owned by the same group.Food was OK,service slow-in fact about 10 minutes after we ordered people were eing told a 40 minute wait for food.As always mrsdrron picks her wine by the label-but it worked-

Actually they had sold out of our first choice-Whales Tail-appropriate for this place.We both started with scallops in garlic butter-small and overcooked-

Then ewe both had the mussels.At least here in NZ they are fresh but even so we both decided we still prefer the black mussels to the NZ green lipped ones.

Total bill-$NZ119.For brekkie the next day we had the raspberries and some of the cherries.Slept like logs.Went to bed with a very calm sea.Awoke to a gale with the seas choppy.So whale watching or a seal swim were out of the question-just had to head for Marlborough!

So the drive is next.

 

[drron]

The drive north from Kaikoura to Kekerengu is very picturesque mainly along the coast.We were continually passing and being passed by the Trans Coastal train>Just north of Kaikoura are several lobster bins-small huts selling lobsters-appeared to be more reasonable than in town but was a little early when we went through.Had a cappucino and cake-really nice cake and a great spot,the view fro0m our table-

you then head a little inland and the scenery is much more varied.Unfortunately the rain began pouring down and the wind continued to blow.On the reccomendation of the fellow from the White Morph we had lunch at the Allan Scott winery-

Lunch was really good.I had the Thai beef salad which was delicious-

Mrsdrron had the scallops on a country salad,she really liked it-

A glass of Sav Blanc and another of Pinot Noir and all up $NZ57.
Then it was off to The Marlborough Vintners hotel-good reviews on Trip Advisor and rated number 1.Well!See review here-
http://www.australianfrequentflyer....borough-vintners-hotel-blenheim-nz-27223.html
It is though right in the vineyard-

The sav blanc isn't quite ready-

Next-time in Marlborough.

 

[drron]

After checking in to the Marlborough Vintners Hotel we walked over the road to the mini mall.A shop with olive products and some deli lines,wine tasting for some of the smaller vineyards and tasing of the products of a Canterbury distillery-very nice.
That night we ate at the MVH.A limited menu but the food was excellent and very good service.We shared an entree of hot smoked salmon then I had the twice cooked porkloin,mrsdrron the rack of lamb plus some asparagus.I then had the cheese plate and mrsdrron the creme brulee.With a bottle of Staetlandt SB it was~$NZ180.

Breakfast the next morning was simple but nice-very good selection of good quality fruit juices,fruit plus yoghurt,cereals etc.Freshly brewed coffee to finish.So a late start and drove to Picton,then across the Queen Charlotte drive to Havelock-a really scenic road but not good if you suffer from motion sickness.

At Havelock we went to the Slip Inn on the waterfront for lunch,30 minutes later we walked out without getting to order so went to the Mussel Pot where I had the steamed mussels with coriander,ginger and coconut milk-nice.Mrsdrron is not a fan of the green lipped mussels so had scallops which were very nice-

She had a glass of the Forrest SB and I a glass of their Doctor's reisling-unfortunately made in the European style and far too sweet for me.All up $52.Then back to the hotel for a nanny nap before tasting some more of the local drop.There is just so much to choose and all appear reasonable-but it is cheaper to buy at the supermarket than the vineyard.
For dinner we self catered-pate,cheeses and a couple of bottles of SB.Cherries for dessert-delicious.Learnt a new sign here that is everywhere-PYO-pick your own.
Next-off to Nelson.

 

[drron]

Probably the last instalment before embarking and basically internet unavailable-or that expensive not worth it.
thursday and blue skies and less wind.once again a scenic drive to Nelson though the descent into Nelson once again is very twisty.Arrived early so checked out the CBD.It appears they were having a World's worst busker competition.From old guys who had forgotten they cant sing to 2 and 3 year olds-yes mum they may be cute but performers-sorry.
Then checked into the Sands apartments Tahananui.Report here-
http://www.australianfrequentflyer....nds-apartments-tahananui-nelson-nz-27254.html
An enjoyable stay.They even lit up the tree outside.Unfortunately on a public computer which is not allowing me to copy my photos-you will just have to wait.That night went to Relish at the yacht club.right on the water and the food was good-I had the seafood chowder-packed with seafood,then the snapper-cooked beautifully.Mrsdrron had the scallops-again beautiful,followed by the Manuka hot smoked salmon-really fantastic taste.Plus a bottle of SB and cost $NZ117.
now we were going to have local seafood for Christmas but with crayfish $115 kg and scallops $47 kg we had to come up with plan B.So on friday drove to Golden Bay.once again truly magnificent scenery but the drive up and over the Takaka hill is not nice.Had to stop at the top to let mrsdrron recover.Didn't help that it was raining and the summit enclosed in cloud with outside temp-7C.
Went to Anatoki salmon farm-free entry,free fishing gear and everyone catches a fish as they are trained to commit suicide-still took drron an hour.They then clean and fillet your fish for $NZ19 kg and it can then be hot smoked for $NZ12.50 a load-i had just over 2kg of fish so made it all up~$25 a kg or $A19.Great value.On the way home picked up some raspberries,boysenberries,apricots and cherries plus some cream.So we were set for Christmas.
That is next.

 

[drron]

Just reporting in.Back in Dunedin today.Whilst there was internet availability by satellite it was extremely slow and expensive at $A30 an hour.Plus kept dropping out.
Anyway will be restarting the TR tomorrow but just wanted to say this is a must do-though probably would reccomend via Argentina-will give reasons at the end.
A real treasure though is Macca-Macquarie Island but only allow 750 visitors a year.It was mind blowing,will have to cull the thousands of penguin photos though.

 

[RB]

Looking forward to the updates Ron. Read a story in the press today that made me wonder if you were "blessed" with the company of Peter FitzSimons?

 

[mrs.dr.ron]

Looking forward to the updates Ron. Read a story in the press today that made me wonder if you were "blessed" with the company of Peter FitzSimons?

Yes, he was on board, plus his wife and 3 kids. They had two cabins just up the hall from us. Dont get me started on that family. Lets just say the rest of the passengers all noted the prima donna "dont you know who I am" attitude !!

 

[docjames]

Yes, he was on board, plus his wife and 3 kids. They had two cabins just up the hall from us. Dont get me started on that family. Lets just say the rest of the passengers all noted the prima donna "dont you know who I am" attitude !!

How unpredictable...

 

[drron]

Well now for the pictures from nelson-first the meal at Relish-

And our own christmas tree outside our window-

And the salmon farm,well worth a visit-

Christmas was a very quiet affair but stuffing ourselves with fresh fruit and smoked salmon.It was a fine day but windy.Polished off a couple of local Sav Blancs plus a Climbing pinot Grigio.Slept well that night!

 

[drron]

The great fishing style of drron-

Before gorging ourselves on Christmas morning we visited Nelson's parks.First their Japanese garden-

We enjoyed our stroll around these gardens which really did have an authentic Japanese feel.

 

[drron]

We next went into town and the Queens Gardens.A lot of people enjoying the peace and sunshine here.

These gardens were basically adjacent to the CBD.Many delightful buildings around Nelson.We enjoyed our stay here thoroughly.
Boxing Day we set off early-0740-and decided to go the inland route to Christchurch.Very scenic.Unfortunately nothing much open so lunch was a packet of crisps,cherries and chocolate.Mrsdrron was keen to get to the Ezibuy shop in Christchurch and it was open boxing day.When we walked in the assistant asked us if we had felt"The Shake"-Christchurch had a 4.9 aftershock about 2 hours before.after the retail therapy we decided to head to the CBD where we were booked at Rydges.basically the whole CBD was cordoned off and obviously a lot of new damage had been done.After driving around we finally found a 5 minute park over the river from Rydges.Mrsdrron walked across the bridge-glass and bricks were strewn across the road in front of Rydges so she made the decision to cancel the booking.A wise move as later we met a couple who did stay there-were rolled out of bed~0200 by another aftershock.
the drive to Dunedin next.

 

[drron]

So instead of staying in Creaky Christchurch we motored on to Timaru.Stayed in the Avenue Motel.A 1 bedroom unit as the only room left.Really helpful and pleasant manager.$NZ140 for the night.Slept really well.Internet was free.Reccomended.
We ate at the Sukothai-plenty of Asian customers-probably crew from the ships in port.Was decent farang style Thai-very tasty.3 dishes plus the inevitable bottle of Sav Blanc-$NZ95.
Off early again the next morning for Dunedin and stopped at the "world famous"Moeraki Boulders.Pebbles,marbles well what the-

The view the other way appeared nicer but with no boulders.

However the cafe there was a good spot for a cappucino and cake.Their gift shop was also of good quality and we assisted the Kiwi economy.So worth a stop.Then on to Dunedin.We were there early so walked around their Chinese Gardens and the Botanical gardens before checking in.just as well we did as no sooner had we checked in the heavens opened.The Botanical gardens has a nice rose garden-

It was a very pleasant stroll-

Next the Chinese Gardens.

 

[jandj]

So glad T/R'ing has resumed...

 

[drron]

We know there is a lot to do in Dunedin such as the Royal albatross colony,fur seals,sea lions and the rare yellow eyed penguins on the otago peninsula but heading for antarctica we were confident we would see many more.So it was the gardens for us.The Chinese garden was the first where we had to pay an entry fee-$NZ9 each.But they are certainly beautiful-

It was then off to check in.stayed at Bluestone on george which was very good-review here-
http://www.australianfrequentflyer....eviews/bluestone-on-george-dunedin-27288.html
After unpacking it was time to drop the car back to Avis-their Dunedin Office though is a motel and you just hand the keys to the receptionist.Mrsdrron got a little retail therapy in and then we had dinner at the Reef restaurant on George Street.I had the seafood chowder-a little light on seafood-and the Surf and Turf-a nice T-bone,3 garlic prawns,smoked salmon salad and wedges.The pretence of gourmet food was destroyed when the waitress asked me if i wanted tomato sauce on my wedges.

Mrsdrron had a scallops entree which she felt was very good then a pasta with a cheese and mushroom sauce.With that ever present bottle of Sav Blanc-$NZ115.
Fortunately the rain eased for a while and we were able to walk back to the motel for our last sleep on terra firma.
Next we finally set sail.

 

[cryan]

Thanks so much for the report - It was just great - I feel like I was in the back seat with you driving around NZ - and I am with Mrs Drron, I would go for the scallops and the wine label every time