Our Sydney visit was short and sweet! Not wanting to blow our budget we found a few excellent free and cheap ways to enjoy Sydney! Here is a quick recap of our week. We stayed at a quaint AirBnB in Potts Point, a trendy little neighbourhood with tons of eats and drinks to enjoy and a great night life at Kingscross. This was by far the least expensive way to stay in a good location in Sydney with hotels starting at $200 a night. Having a full kitchen and washer dryer also helped us keep costs down by cooking most of our meals. From our AirBnB we were able to walk most of the city. We started by taking the classic walk through the Royal Botanical gardens, along the sea wall until you turn the corner and get the full view of Harbour Bridge and the Opera House. It's a good 45 minute walk and well worth it for the views. The Royal Botanical Gardens are incredible, an excellent place for a romantic walk or picnic. We were lucky to be here in October/November and catch the Jacaranda Trees in full bloom offering beautiful blue flowering trees lining city streets. The gardens are also home to beautiful looking (mind you awful sounding) cockatoos and the even more beautiful Rainbow Lorikeet. We continued walking all the way to the Opera House and got a good close up. It's a marvelous building looking like huge orange wedges carefully balanced against one another. You can pay a good sum to get an insiders tour or catch a show. We chose to pass on this opportunity and instead sat on the harbour overlooking the bridge and Opera House with a beer. The sea side restaurants aren't cheep with $9.00 beers but it's worth one so you can sit and take in the sights and sounds. Watch out for seagulls if you order food however, they're fearless and will seize any opportunity to steal your meal! Another day we strolled through Hyde Park which is a nice escape in the city centre with beautiful gardens, next to St. Mary's Cathedral. Hyde Park has fun cafes and an over-sized chess board which we caught a group of older people playing an intense game that had drawn a good sized crowd. If you continue walking past Hyde park it'll lead you to Darling Harbour which is another incredible area for soaking in the sun. The harbour has something for everyone with restaurants, a children's park, Chinese Garden and Maritime Museum. Around the corner from Darling Harbour is Paddy's Market which is a massive warehouse of booths offering everything imaginable. You can also visit the Fish Market and get a catch of the day and a great meal, if you can find it that is! It's not actually hard to find we just happened to fail miserably during our walk about to pin it down. Our favorite day was spent on Manly Beach. It's a 30 minute ferry ride from Circular Quay near the Opera House and well worth it! When you land in Manly Harbour it's an easy 10 minute walk to the beach down a street lined with shops and snack stops. We chilled on the beach watching beginner surfers struggle to stand and soaked in the sun. Once the sun left us we hit a beach side bar for another $9.00 beer before taking the return ferry. It's a beautiful little town and an excellent day trip from Sydney!
All in all we loved our time in Sydney and have every intention of coming back to Australia one day to see it in more depth. Sydney is not the most budget friendly place we'll visit in the 8 months we're traveling but the people were kind, the weather was great and lots of cheap and easy things to keep us busy made it an excellent few days!
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It's been a wild 38 days, here are some of our top tips and highlights from New Zealand. 10. Getting Around It's small and it's a bit smelly but it's home. Getting around by motorhome is one of the most popular ways to see New Zealand and for good reason. Not only is it cost effective but it offers complete freedom to see the country on your own terms. We definitely recommend getting a self contained certified motorhome. This will allow you to take advantage of the many places around New Zealand that are free to spend the night so long as you have the certification sticker on your vehicle. Also be sure to get the free phone app, CamperMate. You can load an offline version to your phone which shows where to find gas, dump stations, freedom camp spots, paid camp spots, things to do/points of interest and full road maps. The best part of the app are the reviews so you know exactly what to expect. We would have been completely lost without the app it was extremely helpful! If you can't stand the idea of living out of a van than still consider driving. The scenic routes around the country are outstanding. The roads are in great condition, lots of signs and it doesn't take long for your brain to swap to driving on the left. Be prepared for tons of switch back roads, and wind especially on the south island. Our advice is to take your time, there are lots of passing lanes so traffic can move past you. Whatever you do don't speed! We went under the speed limit in many cases where 100 kph felt too fast for the curvy cliff side roads. They have 0 tolerance for speeding and drunk driving so don't test your luck. 9. Natural Wonders On top of some of the most scenic driving in the world there are many natural wonders to take your breath away. There are too many to name but here are a few we loved that are worth going out of your way for. Hot Water Beach: Beneath the sand at Hot Water Beach lies a natural hot spring which is revealed at low tide. Bring a spade with you to dig out a personal jacuzzi for yourself and relax in your muddy hottub. You'll only have about 2 hours before the water comes back in so time your visit well! Cathedral Cove: Just a short distance from Hot Water beach is a 45 minute hike that leads to a hidden white sand beach with a unique cave formation. You can also canoe yourself in or scuba dive the area on a calm day. Waitomo Caves: One of two places in New Zealand where you can see thousands of Glowworms light up the caves. The other places is near Te Anau on the South Island. Here we repelled down into the cave, tubed down the river and climbed up and over waterfalls! An absolutely thrilling and enchanting experience. Rotorua: This city is a geothermal hot bed with dozens of geothermal parks and several geysers to view. Note that most of the geothermal parks have an entrance fee anywhere $30.00 per person to $55.00 per person! Geothermal Wonderland is the most colourful and cheaper than Te Puia and other geothermal parks found in Rotorua we recommend this one. Huka Falls: Found near Lake Taupo, Huka Falls is a magnificent rush of water ending with a powerful waterfall. You can see it for free at a viewing bridge or pay for a powerjet boat to take you up close. Sandfly Bay: Found in Otago peninsula outside Dunedin you take the Highcliff road to reach the beach. The views are spectacular with sand dunes, seals, sea lions, powerful waves and if you're lucky a penguin or two. Curio Bay: Found in the Catlins on the South Island. On one side is a huge beach with excellent surfing the other side is a rocky bay with powerful waves smashing the rocks and home to a 180 million year old petrified forest. Milford Sound: An absolute must do while on the South Island. The National park is a dramatic landscape of mountains, waterfalls and flowing water. Take a boat ride out through Milford to get the full experience and hope for a clear day. Even in the rain it was worth the visit though! There are tons of other natural wonders we didn't get to like glaciers, national parks and lakes. You wont be bored if you're outdoorsy that's for sure! 8. Sea Life New Zealand has no shortage of sea life and Kaikoura is one of the best places in New Zealand to enjoy it. Along the sea side road leading up to the small town of Kaikoura there are several spots where large colonies of fur seals like to spend their days laying on the rocks while pups play in the protected pools behind them. You can get right up close to the seals here though you should give them at least 5 meters to avoid disturbing them. Kaikoura is also home to sperm whales, orca, dusky dolphins, giant royal albatross and many other whales throughout the year. It's located along the whale highway and also has a large underwater gorge where sperm whales like to hunt so it's a perfect location for taking a whale watching tour. Further down the coast of the South Island you can easily find sea lions and hectors dolphins as well. Less easy to find are the 3 species of penguin that call New Zealand home. Hohio (Yellow Eyed Penguin), Korora (little blue penguin) and the Tawaki (fiordland crested penguin). These can be found on the south island but require a good amount of patience. If you don't have the patience or time you can do a day tour in Dunedin and a few other places where they have special protected viewing areas. 7. Birds New Zealand is a birders paradise. Both colourful and diverse it's easy to fall in love with the birds of New Zealand. The kiwi bird is the first bird that comes to mind but you'll have a hard time seeing one in the wild. In fact few New Zealanders have ever seen a wild kiwi bird. The best way to view these hilariously lovable creatures is by visiting a sanctuary where day and night have been reversed so you can enter a dark room to view them. The birds in captivity usually have an injury which is why they've been kept in captivity. If you're absolutely set on seeing one in the wild the best way to find one in the dark forest is to listen. Kiwi birds have nostrils at the end of their long beaks for smelling out bugs. Because of this they are constantly sneezing as they eat which you can easily hear. Aside from the Kiwi Bird and Penguins you can easily find the Tui, Kea, Yellow Head, Black Billed Gull, Kakariki (small green parrot), Pukeko and many others while driving around New Zealand. 6. Cost of Living New Zealand is not a cheap place to eat, sleep or drive. On the North Island gas averages around $1.30 per litre. On the South Island gas was over $2.00 in most places! We drove a diesel van so our cost was a bit lower with about $.90 on the North Island and $1.36 on the South Island. Ouch! Food can also be costly, especially for things that are organic, free range or fresh. Usually we don't mind spending a bit more to buy free range eggs over caged and so on however for twice the price it wasn't an option. $7.00 for a dozen free range vs. $3.50 for caged is no comparison. Seasonal veg weren't too bad such as pumpkin, potatoes and parsnip but fresh peppers and tomatoes and meat were very costly. We saved money by cooking almost all of our meals with a couple exceptions and spent around $700 on food for the two of us in just over a month of living here. Wine, thankfully, is not bad, you can easily get a decent bottle for $10.00 or a box for $14.00. Beer and Cider were quite expensive in general though so wine is the way to go! If you're going out for a drink and a meal you can expect around $8 to $10 per pint of beer and around $20- $30 for a dinner. We splurged once while in Queenstown at the Pub on Wharf for a proper Lamb Dinner with a good NZ brew and it was excellent! Paying for campsites is very odd because they charge per person even though we only use one campsite for one van. I guess taking 1 shower each is worth doubling the price? The average powered site cost about $20.00 per person but it's worth it once and a while for the hot showers, laundry (more $$) and power to recharge everything. You can easily get away without having to stay at any paid camps however since the BP petrol stations offer free dump stations and water plus free wifi and power up stations inside! We used these more than once. 5. Best Towns and Cities We feel that with a few exceptions a city is a city no matter where it is. Auckland, Christchurch, Wellington and Dunedin, while each had their own charm, were all cities non the less. Our favorite places were much smaller, easier to get around and extremely friendly. Queenstown is less of a city and more of a ski village not unlike Whistler and Squamish. Unofficial adventure capital of the world it's filled with expats, adventure travel stores, outfitter shops and pubs. It's a fun spot for a few days for sure! Make sure to try a Fergburger and taste some fudge at The Remarkable Sweet Shop! Invercargill is the southernmost and westernmost city and is worth a day to soak in the port cities charm before heading into the Catlins or onto Queenstown. Kaikoura is small but worth a few days. A small downtown, lots to do and beautiful scenery it's a great town to recharge and see some sea life. Make sure to book a whale watching tour here. Napier is a blast from the past with tons of Art Deco architecture and flare to make you feel like you're back in the 1930's. After a powerful earthquake 1931 the city was rebuilt in the style of the age and has maintained it since. It's a beautiful sea side city in the heart of Hawkes Bay wine region and we would have happily spent a few more days here. It is also home to New Zealand's national aquarium, great on a rainy day! If it's sunny head up to Te Mata Peak for stunning views, you can drive or hike up. Rotorua is a geothermal town well worth the visit but be prepared to spend some cash. It's heavily visited and most of the decent geothermals have been converted into paid parks. Despite the commercialization it's still a great stop with some fantastic spas and geothermal parks to enjoy. It's also a great spot for enjoying Maori Culture with several villages available for Hangi dinners and cultural performances. Taupo is beautiful, home to Huka Falls, geothermal spas and a beautiful lake. It's worth a stop here in the winter but best enjoyed in the summer. It rained the entire time we were here so we didn't enjoy the lake much but there is a ton to do here on a nice day. It also happens to be home to the worlds coolest MacDonalds. 4. Adrenaline Junkies Bungee, skydiving, water rafting, heli skiing, glacier trekking, zorbing and so much more is easily found in New Zealand. You can jump off the skytower in Auckland or skydive over Wellington, you name it it's here. New Zealand has a long history of adrenaline fueled fun but really made it's name after a kiwi named A J Hackett popularized bungee and commercialized the activity. It took off after he took a bungee off the Eiffle Tower in 1987 (illegally). In Queenstown you can visit the AJ Hackett bridge bungee and take a leap yourself off the Kawarau bridge. He is hailed as starting the Adventure Tourism in New Zealand also giving Queenstown is unofficial title as adventure capital of the world. 3. Wine! With wineries found all over the country it's no wonder why NZ wine is known around the world. Hawkes Bay, Marlborough, Waiheke Island, Cantebury, and central Otego and some of the wine regions we made our way through. Marlborough is one of the better known regions in Canada with wineries like Oyster Bay consistently being a Canadian favourite. Tasting trails are easy to find if you're up for riding a bike or booking a tasting tour. Don't be surprised if a tasting costs you $15-$20.00 for a sampler of 4. I imagine because of the number of tourists doing wine tours and not actually buying bottles this is common practice in NZ. It's absolutely worth doing a wine tour while in NZ, the rest of the time though you can easily find a nice wine for under $15.00 at the supermarket. We liked Stoneleigh quite a bit and the price was very reasonable. 2. Lord of the Rings As you drive from the north island to the south Island it's hard not to feel like Frodo and Sam. Peter Jackson didn't have to look too hard to find the perfect settings for the movie. You can visit many sites from the filming some free and some not so free. After the filming of the Hobbit they left the set intact for visitors to come see. It sounded really great so we checked it out to learn it is an $80.00 entrance fee per person. The idea of being cattle herded around the set with 40 other tourists with a 15 minute stop at the Green Dragon Pub didn't interest us for such a fee. The drive up to the set looks like the shire with rolling green hills and a lake, it's very beautiful! If you really want to see the dramatic landscapes used in Lord of the Rings you need to head south. On the app 'CamperMate' they've included little film reel dots on the map highlighting different areas where filming happened so you can go see Fangorn forest and Isengard if you have a car and some time plus dozens of other sites. 1. Kiwi Culture
New Zealand is as similar to Australia the same way Canada is to America. Kiwis we met often made this comparison and the better we got to know the country the more it rang true. Like Canada, New Zealand is the quieter, modest counterpart. The similarities don't stop there, with a cute, passive animal as it's national symbol. Also like Canada, although to a greater extent, indigenous culture and New Zealand's national identity are synonymous in many ways. Maori is an official language in NZ with English being the other. There are many dialects of Maori but the most commonly used is because it was the dialect chosen to translate the bible back in the 1840's. Don't be surprised to struggle with street names as most are Maori, as are lakes and mountains. Maori is a beautifully rich culture with gorgeous arts so it's worth visiting a Maori village or museum to learn more. You can visit Maori villages and meet Maori people who will teach you about their customs and history and you can pay to enjoy a Hangi dinner as well. If you've ever seen the All Blacks play rugby than you'll have seen the Maori war dance, the Haka. Women dance Poi, which is a ball on a string swung intricately around the body. It's not uncommon to be welcomed with, "Kia Ora", which is a Maori greeting. Kia Ora is also farewell and thanks so it's said often. The relationship between the Maori and the government could teach Canada and other nations a lot about how to work with indigenous people for the improvement of the country as a whole. You'll be hard pressed to met a nicer nation of people than the Kiwis. Not only are they friendly and accommodating but have an great sense of humor never taking life too seriously, except when it comes to rugby of course. ![]() Fiji was incredible! We've compiled a short list of things we loved about Fiji and think would be useful when traveling to Fiji! 10. What to Wear Fiji is a conservative country when it comes to attire. We were reassured on the resort to wear whatever we like but when entering the villages there are some considerations we could make to respect their culture. When off the resort wearing bikinis, bathing suites and overly revealing outfits is not recommended and seen as disrespectful. You'll see men wearing a pocket sarong called a pocket sulu. It fits just past the knees worn with a tropical or loose fitting button up shirt. Women will wear long skirts past the knees with shoulders covered. Pants are seen as a foreigners wear although most of the young people will wear pants and t-shirts to work and change for village affairs. It's no problem for tourist to wear pants and conservative tops off the resorts. 9. Eat you heart out! Fijians eat a lot of fish and for good reason, they have an amazing selection at their door step. Definitely try some of the local catches served with some cassava and taro. Kokoda (ko-kon-da) is a local dish worth trying if you like sushi! It's raw fish served in coconut milk with spices and tomatoes; makes for a great lunch on a sunny day! Coconut, pumpkin and pineapple are also very abundant and delicious. If you are driving around Fiji you'll see lots of snack stands and food stalls along the road which are worth a stop to get some truly local flavours. 8. Drink it down Fiji has some great local alcoholic bevies worth trying. There are three major beer brands easily found, Fiji Bitter, Fiji Premium and Fiji Gold. Fiji Gold was a nice light beer not unlike Coorslight but better. Fiji Premium has a bit more flavour to it and Bitter is a bit hoppier. If you're not a beer drinker Fiji offers some great Rums made from the sugar cane grown in abundance. You can't go very far in Fiji without smelling the burning sugarcane fields. Kava is a must try when in Fiji too! It's a traditional drink made from Kava root mixed with water and some herbs. It tastes like muddy water and makes your mouth numb but definitely worth the experience. It's not just the drinking of the Kava that is worth it however, it's the clapping and ceremony that goes with it. Find some friends while in Fiji and ask a local they'll sort you out! Water is not suitable for drinking in Fiji. Fresh filtered bottle water is easy to find however. Fiji water and other's are produced locally. Purchase water in bulk off the resorts at a local supermarket where they're way cheaper. You can get a 2L bottle for under 3 FJD vs on our resort for 8 FJD! 7. Soak it in The weather in FIji is beautiful most of the year though try and avoid travel November to February during Cyclone season. Last February Fiji saw their worst Cyclone in recorded history and the damage was still apparent 7 months later during our visit. Blue tents dotted the villages, donated from China. Trees still knocked down and new power lines still being put up from the miles of lines that had fallen. During our visit in September the weather was a gorgeous 27 degrees and fairly windy. Because of the wind the water wasn't as clear as it would be in peak season, March and April. That being said it was still fantastic snorkeling! 6. Snorkeling Bliss Fiji offers some of the worlds best soft coral snorkeling and diving. Unlike their far off neighbours in Australia there is little fear here. While there are sharks in Fiji they are mostly reef, bull and some tiger sharks with very few attacks recorded per year. You can actually dive with bull and tiger sharks in certain parts of Fiji. We were advised there are no jellies to worry about and any jellyfish we did see don't sting. We didn't see sharks or jellyfish thankfully. 5. Talk the Talk Fiji' has 3 official languages with English being one. You'll find most people will speak Fijian to each other but can speak English no problem. While you can speak English to get around we recommend trying Fijian. It is a great language and fun to speak, worth using a few words during your visit! Bula (Boo-la) means hello but is used for lots of situations. Instead of saying cheers to a drink they'll say Bula! Vinaka (Vee-Nack-a) means thank you but again you'll hear it used more generally. You say Vinaka they'll usually say it back instead of you're welcome. You'll hear Bula Vinaka said a fare bit as well. The main language spoken and written in Fiji, where we get Bula from, is actually just one of many dialects spoken and known around the 14 provinces in Fiji. It became dominant after it was the dialect chosen to translate the first version of the Bible into Fijian when British missionaries came in the 17th century. 4. Cannibal Past Fiji has been populated as far back as 1600 BC. It's history is rich with stories of cannibal chiefs and survival. Not far from our resort at Wananavu in the village of Rakiraki you can visit the grave of the last known cannibal chief Udre Udre who's said to have eaten between 600-1000 people! This estimate comes from the number of rocks he collected, claiming that each stone represented a person he had eaten. These stones are now beside his grave located just off the Kings Highway. The theory on cannabalism in Fiji's past comes in part from the story of how people first landed on these remote islands, by boat. To survive the long journey scholars believe they would have started eating their dead. This later turned into something much more linked with their beliefs and hierarchy. For example, lower chiefs would provide body parts to the head chief after a battle which explains how Udre Udre could claim to have eaten so many. Cannibalism was not a subject I was prepared to bring up despite my intrigue but was relieved when some of the native Fijians we met brought it up themselves. Seen as a taboo subject and very unrelated from current day Fiji they now offer tours to Udre Udre's tomb and re-tell his notoriety. This is likely an easier subject for them to talk about now because most of the country is Christian. The people we spoke to often referred to the old religions as demon worshipping. 3. Current Day Fiji One of my travel rules is to never bring up politics or religion unless they do first. Thankfully they did and were very open about their past and present. Since 2006 Fiji has been united under 1 Fiji meaning anyone who lives in Fiji is Fijian. Prior to 2006 there were two governments 1 of Fijian Chiefs and one of British. There was more segregation of people as well with there being Native Fijian, Hindu Fijian etc. Everyone we spoke to seemed really happy with this change, to be united under 1 Fiji. Fiji is more than 50% Christian, churches can be easily seen in every village as you drive through. The church's are open to all during service so long as you respect their dress codes and are there for worship. We were advised that walking in to the churches to see them was frowned upon. Hinduism is second highest with over 40% and the remaining population is scattering of other religions. Only 0.4% of Fiji is non- religious! This would put Chris and I in the vast minority. Most shops are shut on Sundays because of this focus on religion with the exception of major hotels so plan ahead! 2. Gratuities
It's a horrible feeling to be unsure if you're cheaping out on a tip or if it's really not expected. In Fiji tipping is neither customary nor expected. However despite this there are times we feel compelled to give a bit extra for extraordinary service. At Wananavu Resort they had a fantastic idea that instead of tipping throughout your stay you had the option to contribute to their Christmas Funds Box. This money then benefits everyone working at the resort, not just the staff who interact with guests directly. We loved this idea and gave what we had left in Fijian dollars to this box at the end of our stay. 1. The People The people are in our minds,are what makes or break our overall experience in a new place. We met some fantastic people during our short stay in Fiji, both locals and fellow travellers. The locals in Fiji are warm, friendly and exited about sharing their culture. You can really get a sense from visiting the villages and meeting locals that they have a strong sense of community and caring for each other. |
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