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Never Miss the Unparalleled Beauty of Cathedral Cove New Zealand

4/29/2015

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My days in New Zealand have contributed enriching experience. Long journeys there had never made me tiring for the travel was easy with good roads. Though in the morning I was at loss for that was my last day, the visit to Huka Falls pepped me up. 

With the energy and enthusiasm still at high, we traveled to Cathedral Cove, which is quite nearby from the fall. Located in the Coromandel Peninsula, the Cathedral Cove is the result of the sculpture on the rock over the years by the different forms of nature, creating an archway.  

This secluded place, once upon a time, has gained increasing tourist attraction. We were ready for a picnic over there. Saving the best one at the end, what an amazing way to end the holiday!
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Cathedral Cove New Zealand | Image Resource: wikimedia.org
Reaching the peninsula, we started from the Hahei Beach, walking from the north along the cliff to the cove climbing and descending the cliff for an hour. On the way, the coastal scenery was amazing and we went on the side-loop track to walk into the Puriri grove and then reach the main track. Trekking along allowed you to visit the Gemstone Bay and Stingray Bay through the side track.

At the bays, we saw some boulders and sandy beaches, as well as the sea cave. Walking back to the main track, we climbed up to reach the summit of the hill and looked around to catch the breathtaking view of islands. I didn’t want to leave the place, but there were more in store for us, so we walked further to reach the pine forest through scrubland featuring greenish native shrubs. By then, it was climbing down to the Cathedral Cove.

I loved walking through the arch though warning signals were given for the rock falling due to erosion. Popularly known as Te Whanganui-A-Hei Marine Reserve, this place stretches around nine square kilometers. Rich in marine reserve, New Zealand has this sixth in the list.

Nature and its wonders had started making good impact on me since the visit to some scenic spots. My husband wanted to explore the rich marine reserve of the place and I felt he was right for it might be once in lifetime opportunity. Nevertheless, we were getting late, so we had to drop the plan. 
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Huka Falls, New Zealand – A Scenic Place to Engage in Activities

4/24/2015

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We had quite an exciting time the previous day. My first tryst with visiting the museum of this sort in the foreign country was here in New Zealand. Admittedly, the country had so far kept you on the toes, no matter, whatever your interest was. Our next place on the agenda was a visit to Huka Falls, which is located in Taupo, New Zealand.

Our driver-cum-guide informed us that we take the State Highway 27 and then the State Highway 1 to reach the place within three and a half hours. We traveled a good 275 kilometers when we reached the spot. The Huka Falls is open from 8 am to 6 pm. The driver left us at the parking facility, the north of Taupo.
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Huka Falls | Image Resource : wikipedia.org
We walked about one and a half kilometer to reach the falls. The roaring of water that originated from the Waikato River, the longest river in New Zealand, flows through the shallow ravine of rock to produce the stunning torrents of water over 220 thousand liters per second; it was breathtaking scenery.

Making our way to the foot bridge, which is built to experience the mind-blowing display of water, we were frightened at the enormous speed and power the water was landing in the pool below.  A few people were engaged in the jet boat ride to experience the fall. In fact, we didn’t want to as I was terrified by the force of the water flow.
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We spent half an hour enjoying the falls; I captured some of the stunning scenes as pictures in my camera. The jet boat ride was spellbinding to watch. It was getting late and we moved on to go to the Huka Falls trail, where the river looked lazy. Trekking through the forest, we reached the track going alongside the river.

I could hear the gushing sound of the water at every turn and we were near to the falls. I had unbridled fun clicking photos of the fall at some vantage points. We then passed the natural hot springs at the Otumureke Stream; the view of the Waikato River was amazing.

I got to know that there were some hot spots near the Taupo Lake. Though I wanted to soak in the pool, I didn’t for we had a few more things to do and it was getting late.
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Destination of the Week : MT Albert Motor Inn Auckland

4/23/2015

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MT Albert Motor Inn Auckland | Image Resource : booking.com
MT Albert Motor Inn Auckland : When we reached this hotel, we were lucky enough to get the last room available. The location was incredible and a friendly receptionist made the check- in processes very easy for us. The rooms were small but clean and the mattresses were changed promptly at our request. The coupled who owned the business were very welcoming. The kitchen in the room was small but well maintained by house- keeping. Saved us a great deal of money!
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Air Force Museum, Christchurch, New Zealand – Showcasing the History of New Zealand’s Military Aviation

4/20/2015

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My New Zealand trip was going to the last stages. By that time, I had grown fond of the place. Each visit to the attractions has made us more energetic and enthusiastic. We could hardly think of avoiding going to any spots in our agenda. For us any omission looked more confounding the more we visited the place and spent time at the place.

Our next must-see place was the Air Force Museum in Christchurch. From the Hot Water Beach, we traveled straight to Christchurch to visit the Air Force Museum. We had to go to the Harvard Avenue for the location. Though I am a budget traveler and prefer the cheapest and most convenient travel, I have to sometimes depend on the one available easily.
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The Air Force Museum Entrance | Image Resource : wikimedia.org
The museum is open every day from 10 am to 5 pm. Housed in a modern structure that is extended in various parts, the Air Force Museum offers a warm welcome to the visitors with a broad passage unfurled to walk through. Walking through the entrance, we were welcomed by the staff at the helpdesk, who guided us to the collections.

Of course, the collections are those belonging to the Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) and they date back to the period just before the World War I. The museum owns the responsibility of preserving the objects used by the country’s military aviation from past to the present.
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The DHC-2 Beaver | Image Resource : wikimedia.org
Our first visit was to the aircraft section, which has around 32 of such type on display. Though I was not conversant with aircraft and their models, I could recollect a few names that were seen only there. Avro 626, Auster, Belriot, Bell Sioux, Cessna 0-2A, De Havilland models, and many more were displayed proudly. We passed by the Restoration Projects section, and interestingly, it existed to restore the retired or damaged aircraft, improving its condition so that it does not deteriorate further.

The Air Force Museum conducted exhibitions time and again for which it charged a small fee from the visitors. They are held either online or at the museum. The other attraction was experiencing the aircraft through Open Cockpit experience. The others are ‘Behind the Scenes Tour’, ‘Mosquito Flight Simulator’, where one can visit the restoration projects and view the aircraft and relive the aerial raids, testing the flight skills. We took about five hours visiting each section.
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Hot Water Beach, New Zealand – A Place Ever to Be Therapeutic and Relaxing

4/16/2015

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I had never had a dull moment in New Zealand; the attractions or sightseeing trips chosen made my summer visit to this place quite special. Still brimming with the excitement of the visits to a few places, I had a few more before I return.

Our next destination was the Hot Water Beach of New Zealand. My husband was particularly interested in this place as he would always picture the white sand beach and the forest with immaculately designed resorts, tucked away from the city.

The Hot Water Beach should be in any traveler’s itinerary, and the place is around 180 km away from our hotel. We needed about a better over two hours to travel to the beach. Checking out with the locals, we planned our visit to reach there before the low tide as it was expected to be at the beach either side of the ‘ebb and flow’ of the tide.

I should admit that our holidaying was quite intimidating, demanding many energetic and touristy things to do. We were prepared for a hot spring bath, and there were many people digging small pools. We looked around for a place and hurriedly dug a spa to find the pool of hot water oozing out of the golden sand.
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Hot Water Beach | Image Resource : wikimedia.org
When I was relaxing sitting in the natural spring, I felt the whole world under me. I had never experienced such a thrilling moment; I could feel the water hot, maybe, at 60-65 degree centigrade. It bubbles up through the fissures, which were situated closely.

I could figure out that these springs were found at places in the beach near the projecting rocks. We were enjoying the hot spring for almost an hour when the tide washed away the pool, giving an opportunity for other visitors to experience it.

With tourism creeping in here too, we could locate a few accommodation and fast food facilities at the beach for the visitors. Furthermore, there were a few activities like surfing and swimming, which should be undertaken under the precautions.

My husband wanted to try swimming, but sometimes there were dangers of strong currents and extremely hot water, so he was forced to drop that idea. The visit to the Hot Water Beach was etched in our memory for its therapeutic value.
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Destination of the Week : Puzzling World Wanaka New Zealand

4/14/2015

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Puzzling World Wanaka New Zealand | Image Resource : wikimedia.org
Puzzling World Wanaka New Zealand : I stood spellbound for many minutes just by looking at the amazing talent and architectural wonder displayed before my eyes. This puzzle place is really a world within itself. Though I couldn’t finish the maze, I am glad that I tried. I was thrilled even more to see a Leaning Tower bended at an angle of 53 degrees which had a backwards clock inside!
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Silverfern Backpackers Hotel Auckland – Suiting to Any Travelers 

4/8/2015

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After a long flight, I felt jetlag and wanted to take some rest; nevertheless, I was mentally prepared for such long journeys and my enthusiasm never plummets. I made my hotel bookings by using a hotel app. We got a cab to Silverfern Backpackers Hotel Auckland, which is just thirty minutes drive through the State Highway 20. I wanted to travel cheaply, but there were no buses at that time.

Traveling in the cab, I looked around; Auckland was stunningly beautiful with a lot of nature. With lush green rain forest, pristine sand, wonderful coastlines, the place urge you to dig into the mysticism of life beyond.

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Silverfern Backpackers Hotel Auckland | Image Resource : silverfernbackpackers.co.nz
Ideally located in the center of the busy Auckland city Silverfern Backpackers Hotel offered excellent accessibility to the shopping center like the Auckland City Center, museum, shopping malls, night clubs, cafes and restaurants.

Though there was Super Shuttle facility from the airport, we depended on the cab for certain reasons. Entering the lobby, we walked to the reception area, where a lady receptionist smiled at us broadly. Mostly suited for budget travelers, Silverfern Backpackers Hotel is quite popular in this part of the region.
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Silver Fern Backpackers Reception | Image Resource : silverfernbackpackers.co.nz
The hostel, most precisely called, offered Single Room, Single Ensuite Room, Double or Twin Room, Double or Twin Ensuite Room, Family/Group Room, Four-Bed Dormitory, Six-Bed Dormitory, Eight-Bed Dormitory, and Ten-Bed Dormitory.

We checked in a Double Room, which offered a decent space with a queen-sized bed. There was an attached bathroom with well-appointed showers.  The other facility offered by the hotel is the Game Room, which offered 24 hours accessibility to play or read books. There was also phone and printing service for business people. We had the Internet access, of course it was free for all the rooms, and storage facility so that we can stay in touch with our friends and family and keep the valuables safely during the stay.
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Silver Fern Backpackers Kitchen | Image Resource : silverfernbackpackers.co.nz
For food, the hotel has a spacious kitchen and BBQ area. Being of a self-catering nature, the kitchen is well stacked to help you with the food. The BBQ area, on the other hand, offers a variety of meat dishes to satiate our appetite.
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Silver Fern Backpackers Courtyard & BBQ | Image Resource : silverfernbackpackers.co.nz
We had two cups of coffee to start planning our sightseeing trip. New Zealand has many places to visit and they are far apart.
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World Health Day

4/6/2015

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World Health Day | Image Resource : valentiinternational.com
World Health Day : Join hands in greeting others for many added years of joy and happiness. A very prosperous World Health Day. We ought to remember that staying healthy no matter who we are counts. Hence taking in WHO’s initiatives each year to ensure the idea is a wise plan. This year is for Food Safety. Let’s eat to keep ourselves fit and composed.
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Te Papa Museum Wellington – Imparting Culture and History of New Zealand

4/3/2015

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The trekking at the Tongariro National Park was unlike any visit to any place. We had spent good eight hours hiking and it was the first destination where we had to stay back. When we reached Auckland, it was afternoon and after a nap for 3 hours, we roamed around the city looking for things that we could take them to India. Late night, it was raining. Well, we were in New Zealand and we had a few more must-see places in our agenda.

Our visit that morning was to the Te Papa Museum, located at Cable Street in Wellington. As we had to travel about 650 kilometers, we started early in the morning by cab, heading through State Highway one. It took us eight hours to reach the Museum of New Zealand. Our timing was exact that we reached half an hour after the opening of the museum. The entry was free.
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Te Papa Museum Wellington | Image Resource : wikimedia.org
Built and managed on the principles of the bicultural concept, scholarliness, innovation and diversity, the museum is the blend of past and future. Of course, there is more to this museum, which has six floors showcasing various exhibits devoted to the culture of New Zealand. Within the premises, and in fact, on the grounds, are areas that have wetlands and artificial caves.

Te Papa has some stunning collections of art and photography, swatch books, history, Pacific cultures, Taonga Maori, and natural sciences. When the history collections extend to wide variety of textiles and clothing used by people that go back to as early as the sixteenth century and stamps of from the New Zealand postal archive, Pacific collections contain items of modern and historical items of Pacific Islands.
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Inside Te Papa Museum | Image Resource : flickr.com
The natural sciences collections offer exhaustive things of fossils. It was spellbinding to watch innumerable specimen of reptiles, birds, amphibians and mammals. The museum also conducted exhibitions for a fee. Mostly, such exhibitions are related to the history and culture of the country. I figured out from the office that a few of popular ones were about the Maori culture.

The visit to Te Papa Museum was worth experiencing if you are looking for a wealth of knowledge about the history, culture and heritage of New Zealand.
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Destination of the Week : Lake Wakatipu New Zealand

4/2/2015

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Lake Wakatipu New Zealand | Image Resource : wikimedia.org
Lake Wakatipu New Zealand : Located against the backdrop of The Remarkable mountain range, this lake looked like a paradise clothed in white. With the mountains and the foothill vegetations throwing their reflection at the timid waters, I wished my eyes could capture this sight forever. Hunting hard I were close enough to see many small New Zealand Scaups or the Diving Ducks along with the Black- billed Gull.
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    I’m an optometrist from a beautiful place called Ludhiana. I love my job and I’m quite passionate about it. I’m quite a friendly person and I love listening to others and interacting with like minded individuals. When I’m not working, I love to cook, shop, camp, trek etc. I love to read about fashion and its latest trends. I have many interests, hobbies and passions. In this blog, I will be sharing my ideas and experiences to readers. I hope you like it.

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