left our jobs, went to Asia

Today we say farewell to New Zealand. In photographs, not words.

Campervan, lake and mountains, New Zealand

Sheep and sea, New Zealand

Trek through damp and mossy jungle, New Zealand

Lone sailing boat, New Zealand

Backpack by the sea, New Zealand

Seagull on a wooden fence, New Zealand

Cows grazing under purple sky, New Zealand

Photographer looking for a shot, New Zealand  READ MORE »

New zealand is probably the strictest country I've been to, in regard to dogs. Can't take them practically anywhere, except specifically designated areas and your own land.

Dogs are strictly forbidden on Mauao hill, Tauranga, New Zealand

There are some very strong reasons behind, though. For example,  READ MORE »

Kiwis like to metaphorically think about themselves that they do have the ability to build or repair anything with a piece of number eight wire. Rephrasing, it could probably sound something like "innovate, make it simple, make it work".
In some cases the opinion is justified. While filming "The Lord of the Rings", an optical contraption (Ames room) was used to distort the viewers' normal perception of perspective.

Ames room demonstrates the illusion of disproportion, Wanaka, New Zealand

Looks (and is) very natural, and no expensive computer graphics are needed.
We saw how it works while visiting  READ MORE »

A sign greets the visitors upon arrival to Kaitaia. In Māori, English and a third language, unknown, but strangely familiar.

Welcoming sign in Maori, English and... Dalmatian, Kaitaia, New Zealand

After some reading and asking around, we found out that  READ MORE »

Sandboarding does not look like an activity, at least remotely capable of raising the adrenaline level.
Until you see the size of Te Paki dunes.

Sandboarders looking forward to slide down the giant Te Paki sand dune, near Cape Reinga, New Zealand  READ MORE »

Can't believe I'm posting already a second photograph of the toilet during only two months.
But this one's is equally good as the previous. By Friedensreich Hundertwasser.

Interior of Hundertwasser toilets, probably the most photographed in the world, Kawakawa, New Zealand  READ MORE »

Probably more than anything else, New Zealanders like to challenge themselves in various ways. Like bungy jumping off the unimaginable heights.
One more of the ingenious inventions is zorbing.

Zorb rolling down the mountain, near Rotorua, New Zealand

Stuff yourself inside the huge plastic ball, add water and some more  READ MORE »

Quite an unusual fusion of cultures, religion and symbolism, as viewed from inside of Christian church.

Jesus Christ walks on water clad in Maori cape, Rotorua, New Zealand  READ MORE »

New Zealand is located exactly on a junction of Pacific and Australian tectonic plates.
Therefore, seismic processes are very common. Volcanic activity, earthquakes, tsunamis and landslides are no wonder to locals.
In places like Rotorua, crust of the Earth is thin, allowing plenty of thermal areas to occur.

Wooden platform for viewing thermal activities, near Rotorua, New Zealand

They say it's good for skin to apply some of  READ MORE »

Did I say they are relaxed in New Zealand?
Well, at least not in Auckland.
Parked the rental car on Sunday morning in a restricted area, just to find an infringement notice half an hour later.
Boy, these officers are fast. Probably they get a commission off each ticket, as in London.
In any case, 40 dollars went down the drain.

Infringement notice for parking the vehicle in a restricted area, Auckland, New Zealand  READ MORE »

L.J. Hooker. Quite an interesting brand name for a real estate company, don't you find?
These guys (or should I say girls?) also operate in Australia, Fiji, Papua New Guinea, India, Hong Kong, Indonesia and China.

A sign on the street offering to buy some real estate, New Zealand  READ MORE »

Not so inaccessible as it seems, Sky Tower offers a heart-throbbing activity during the day - the Sky jump.

Sky Tower during a day, Auckland, New Zealand

A little different from bungy, as here you are connected to two cables instead of one, and no rubber.  READ MORE »

As a continuation of yesterday's post, that's the second prominent object visible from the apartment that we stay at. Auckland's Sky Tower. Tall, lean, mysterious, inaccessible.

Sky Tower in the evening's mist, Auckland, New Zealand  READ MORE »

I just realized the horrendous mistake that I keep doing. I usually don't describe the view from the windows of the places that we stay!

Correcting it immediately.

St. Patrick's Cathedral at night time, Auckland, New Zealand  READ MORE »

A house in a house.
Te Papa, the biggest, baddest and best museum of New Zealand, hosts The Marae, a community house of Māori.

Interior of The Marae in Te Papa museum, Wellington, New Zealand  READ MORE »