Christmas at home was great as I was able to see my new nephew Austin for the first time as he was born in October and this was my first time home since then. It was also great to have that time at home to be with friends and family.
But more on the "Down Under" trip. I met Mom in Cairns, Australia on January 15th. We were up there to see the Great Barrier Reef and I have a great picture of an enormous fish I saw while snorkeling up there. I'd love to go back there as I was only able to snorkel the one day and there was so much to see! I need to get my diving license!!
The following day we visited an aboriginal cultural center and a rainforest up near Carins. Threw and bought a boomerang even! :)
The following day we left for Syndey where we spent our first night dining at the Skytower Restaurant downtown Sydney. The next day was filled with a tour of the Sydney Opera house and then lunch on the harbour and lots of shopping! Mom and I were lucky that night as they have an "open air cinema" with recently released movies so we sat ouside on the harbour with th opera house and the sydney harbour bridge in the background as a screen rose and we watched a movie! It was really cool! The next morning mom and I woke up and went to the Taronga Syndey Zoo to see koalas, kangaroos, and tasmanian devils as well as other animals from all over the world. That night we had a harbour cruise with dinner and then a performance at the Syndey Opera House.
Then, we flew to Queenstown, New Zealand (mom's favorite). The first night we ate dinner at a fanstastic restaurant overlooking the city that can only be reached by Gondola, or possibly by goat or sheep! The next morning we boarded a bus and drove over to Milford Sound which is quite possibly one of the most beautiful sights in the world. The next day mom and I decided to take advantage of being in the adventure capital of the world as we did some white water rafting down grade 4 and 5 rapids! Mom LOVED it! Possibly the best part of her trip I think! We finished up that day with shopping and eating!
And last stop Christchurch but not before crossing the country by bus and stopping at Mt. Cook. In Christchurch we did a little shopping, visited the Antarctic Centre and also took a wildlife harbour cruise where we were able to see Hector Dolphin's (the world's smallest dolphin) and small blue penguins swimming in the water! It was really cool. We found out at the Antarctic Centre that 75% of the world's population flies to Antartica from Christchurch, NZ and there was even a US plane sitting outside.
Finally, mom came back to Dunedin with me to see where I live and what I'm up to. We did a horseback riding trip on the beach one day and saw a yellow eyed penguin standing on the beach alone. We also went out to the Albatross Colony and to some of the beautiful beaches here in Dunedin.
Well that pretty much covers the past 2 weeks. We had a great time and hopefully you enjoy some of the pictures from the trip. Not sure about my next adventure as of yet but am planning another "Great Walk" trip in May and possibly one before then.
I hope everyone is well!
love,
lexie
BIG FISH! GREAT BARRIER REEF!
WALLABY!
SYDNEY SKYLINE!
SYDNEY OPEN AIR CINEMA!
SYDNEY SKYTOWER RESTAURANT
OPERA HOUSE AND HARBOUR BRIDGE - SYDNEY
OPERA HOUSE
SYDNEY HARBOUR CRUISE DINNER
SYDNEY HARBOUR BRIDGE
LAZY KOALA!
MILFORD SOUND
HORSEBACK RIDING in DUNEDIN
ARAMOANA BEACH - DUNEDIN
