After saying goodbye to half of the #Shamphonny crew (Steph and Johnny) in Westport, Amanda and I had 4 more nights in Ireland and Northern Ireland to explore. We first made our way to Donegal city, with a quick stop in Gortarowey Forest along the way for a hike. The hike had great views of Benbulbin mountain, as well as a centuries-old ring of rocks thought to be a family’s home. Coincidentally, our hike was on Arbor Day, which made the presence…
It seems everywhere we go, either Amanda or I find a terrible pun or phrase to repeat over and over. In Italy, I liked to remind my wife that “this place is ruined,” or I’d sing “That’s Amoré” in my best Italian accent. In Zagreb, the best Amanda could do was ask “Can I Zagreb you anything?” Turns out there aren’t a lot of punny phrases to make out of Croatia’s capitol city, but we have few complaints for the…
After two awesome weeks exploring New Zealand with Morgan in the campervan, we said our goodbyes to Sister Bear and Amanda and I continued our journey back to Auckland. We had arranged a relocation rental with Jucy, which meant that in exchange for bringing one of their cars from Christchurch to Auckland, our wheels for the journey were free, including a tank of gas and ferry crossing. The one thing we really wanted to do in NZ was the Tongariro…
Equipped with our Jucy Condo campervan, we left Auckland (after an incredible Women’s March) and had a brief stay in Rotorua to soak in the hot springs and hike in the hills before heading to Hobbiton. Most of the bigger thermal features cost money to see, so we stuck to the ones at our holiday park and those we could see from afar. Here are a few highlights, before diving into the Hobbity stuff. So Hobbiton. Sure, it’s man-made, touristy,…
After 3 weeks of housesitting in our beautiful Melbourne home, we said goodbye to the kitties, extra space, functional kitchen, laundry (you get the idea), and hopped on a quick flight to Tasmania. Before I go any further… Seriously! Come to Tasmania. It is awesome. When we arrived, we picked up a rental car in Launceston and headed west to Cradle Mountain-Lake St. Clair National Park. It took mere minutes once we got up the mountain before spotting some amazing wildlife…
The moment we arrived, it was clear the city of Tainan is a place of rich history and amazing architecture. But ask a local, and they’ll probably tell you this town is all about the food. For day 1 of our visit, we were fortunate to have our Taiwanese friends with us, including Joanne who lives in Tainan. So we spent our first afternoon eating and exploring the city center. Between all the eating we did squeeze in some sightseeing,…