Entries from ''
“One Hobbit Stamp”
This post is a heartfelt shout-out to Sgt. Sarah Wilson and Ms. Trina Tauvela of the Auckland Airport, my dear Uncle Alan and Aunt Daphne and the honest person who found my wallet: Him and I were standing in the security checkpoint line at the Auckland Airport, chatting about potential occupations (Kitten Wrangler, Professional Sumo…
The missing link between homo sapiens and fowl?
- Aperture: f/10
- ISO: 400
- Shutter Speed: 1/1000 s
- Focal Length: 300mm
- Camera: Canon EOS 7D
So our new year didn’t exactly start off on a high note, but we spent the next two days — before taking the ferry to Waiheke for the wedding — making up for it by cramming in a colorful garden and exploring a few volcanoes. In the Domain near the Auckland Museum is the splendid…
A room with a view
- Aperture: f/2.4
- ISO: 400
- Shutter Speed: 1/16 s
- Focal Length: 4.28mm
- Camera: iPhone 4S
I felt the bed shake as Him suddenly jerked upright beside me. “The window!” Fully awake now, I watched as he flung off the covers and walked briskly to our hostel room’s window. And then I too remembered and grew alarmed. I joined him at the window and peered down to the single story below….
A 12-hour, nearly odor-free bus ride
- Aperture: f/4
- ISO: 1000
- Shutter Speed: 1/3 s
- Focal Length: 10mm
- Camera: Canon EOS 7D
We had stocked our bags with trail mix and fruit before boarding our 12-hour bus ride from Wellington to Auckland, but we soon learned our provisions had to be consumed in utter secrecy. John, our bleary-eyed, semi-retired bus driver, does not like food on his bus. And, as he warned us before each pit stop,…
Middle-earth (Or at least the middle of New Zealand)
- Aperture: f/18
- ISO: 200
- Shutter Speed: 1/200 s
- Focal Length: 10mm
- Camera: Canon EOS 7D
I’m not sure if this is always the case, but when one tours Wellington just before, during or after a Tolkien-related theatrical premiere, there are signs. Everywhere. Times Square-grade Bilbo Baggins posters cloak entire sides of buildings. Gandalf banners flutter from light posts. Elephant-sized fiberglass trolls glare at passersby. While it seems the entire Kiwi…
O Batmania!
- Aperture: f/11
- ISO: 400
- Shutter Speed: 1/20 s
- Focal Length: 10mm
- Camera: Canon EOS 7D
“There’s something magical about Sydney. This is fun, but it’s not magical.” That, my friends, is how Him described funky, artsy Melbourne, but I’m not sure I agree. Sydney, that shining darling of New South Wales, boasts a glorious harbor, the iconic Opera House and some famous beaches, but Melbourne has spunk — and a…
Great Ocean Road (Part II of II)
- Aperture: f/5
- ISO: 400
- Shutter Speed: 1/100 s
- Focal Length: 140mm
- Camera: Canon EOS 7D
Aside from the tour of MollyDooker winery, our second day on the Great Ocean Road ranks as my favorite experience so far thanks to some (very) close encounters with wildlife. More on that later, but first, some history: Back within Port Campbell National Park, we hiked down to Loch Ard Gorge, named for the ship…
Purple carrots and placenta cream
- Aperture: f/2.4
- ISO: 50
- Shutter Speed: 1/24 s
- Focal Length: 4.28mm
- Camera: iPhone 4S
Him says the list below consists of boring minutiae — and he’s probably correct (perhaps similar to your Facebook friends reporting on what they ate for breakfast) — but I’m going to share it anyway to justify the wad of receipts I’ve been carrying these past few weeks. Ever since we nearly succumbed to restaurant…
The Great Ocean Road (Part I of II)
- Aperture: f/32
- ISO: 200
- Shutter Speed: 1/60 s
- Focal Length: 85mm
- Camera: Canon EOS 7D
If planning a drive on Australia’s Great Ocean Road, give yourself plenty of time to see it properly — preferably a week. We had just over two days to traverse this famed coastal road linking Portland to Geelong, and that wasn’t nearly enough. Construction on the Great Ocean Road (henceforth the G.O.R. in this report)…
