After staying in some lovely, “quaint” budget hotels in Australia, we were ready to live it up a little in New Zealand. A little honeymoon treat..

We checked into the Langham and were advised that they would be taking part in the Earth hour at 8:30 pm and that there would be a champagne toast in the lobby, what they did not say the the hotel would be illuminated with 1800 candles, this was an amazing experience. It all began a few years ago, when Sydney started earth hour, last year the Langham was the first hotel in Auckland to take part, so they take it very serious.

Before the Earth Hour we had a quick run around the city, a little bit of shopping, and a walk down the trendy, cafe culture Ponsonby Road. Auckland City itself, does not have a huge amount to offer, (with the exception being the viaduct area) most of the nightlife, and shopping areas are located in the suburbs of Ponsonby road and Parnell. You could spend hours in these areas and the public “link” bus does a circle of all the top areas of Auckland. Having lived here for over a year, I was very interested in visiting the places I had worked and bars that I may have frequented over my time here. Pog Mahones, is no more, and turned into a absolutely fantastic restaurant and bar called Prohibition, a classic old style speakeasy, staff wore the classic uniforms and a very talented lady singing “Georgia” backed by a bass and cello. While it was very odd to be in the building I spent so much time in, looking completely different, I was very excited about the transformation, and I highly recommend it to any future visitors.

The rest of the street also went through a little transformation, I was sad to see that the infamous Ponsonby Pies was no more, no doubt they out grew their space, the pie in an Australian and New Zealand institution, and surprisingly good at any time of the day.

The restaurant and wine scene is really after exploding in this region and its beautiful to see, the place was buzzing. It is such a personal thing to find a nice place with the atmosphere that matches what you are looking for.

Another early start awaited us on Sunday morning, this time we were picked up at 0645 and were heading north to the Bay of Islands, normally I would recommend doing this over two days, and perhaps continue on up to Cape Regina, Cape Breton and the down 90 mile beach, this area is said to be “winterless”. Being so far north, it avoids the chilly winter that they experience down south. The forecast is excellent (so far we have been very lucky with the weather)  there is so much to do in this region and but we opted for the Dolphin swim experience, this is unlike most dolphin swims, because first you have to find them, these are all wild dolphins and conditions have to be absolutely perfect. It took almost 4 hours to arrive at our destination, but you really don’t notice as you look out over the breathtaking landscape, rolling hills, sheep and a variety of cows. Our driver seemed to have a great passion for any farm related topics; ranging from the difference in milk quality from the main three breeds and the modern, automated methods of extracting milk from them, fascinating, I hear you say!!

The boat we went out on normally holds forty passengers, we were lucky to only have twelve on board and the adventure began, your captain brought us in through many coves and then out to open waters, scanning the ocean for any activity, we were laying on the front enjoying the sun and crossing our fingers that we would get to experience what we had set out to do, a couple of hours into it, a sighting!! the gannets were giving away the location of a  pod of Dolphins, soon we were up close and personal. There are many rules about what you can and can’t do, only three ships at a time and up to a max of thirty minutes per vessel. The swim was looking unlikely from this point as they were playing rather aggressively, this could be due to the fact that they may be protecting a calf. Either way, they were moving too fast to swim with. Unfortunate, but to watch them play and jump, sometimes completely out of the water, right in front of the boat it was truly beautiful to watch.

After that, we took a look around the islands and disembarked at one, for a look around. I wish that we had more time to explore this place and do a little more island hopping. But we are shuttled back to the mainland for our shuttle back to Auckland.

The big question is how to experience it, this is not an easy decision, the last time I was here, we ended up driving it and spending a night mid way. Breaking it up worked really well. It was a little tougher to go back, and be told were to go and to be back in 10 minutes or face public humiliation from the rest of the group.

There is no right or wrong way, it just depends on what will suits you better. The Independent Vs independent is one one of the big travel questions and I will tackle that in great detail in a future post. Fortunately there are many different tour companies offering tours of this region, and the are often very different, from backpackers to Luxury coaches.

Only an hour or so into the trip we were at an Aboriginal visitor center, I am not always a big fan of these, but this was great. I was glad to be spared the almost naked man, in traditional gear (before I have had breakfast anyway) Our guide was very passionate about his heritage and explained with great humor the various Boomerangs and other hunting, battle weaponry. Then played the didgeridoo, like I have never seen it played before, one hollow piece of wood making such a wide range of sounds. The key is circular breathing (in through your nose and out through your mouth.. AT THE SAME TIME..) just try it!!

One lady asked if she would teach him and he said as politely as he could that no woman  is ever permitted to play, in his words ”no woman has, and never will be permitted to play”  I though for a moment he was going to have to use is iron wood weapon (his weapon of choice). I sensed a bit of hostility in the room also… A very informative 30 minutes, and gave a great background to his aboriginal customs.

From there it was onto Bells Beach (any point break fans) this is one of the best known surfing regions  in Australia and today it is going off, 10-15 foot waves it is a beautiful sight. As the whole area was getting ready for the Rip Curl pro competition over Easter, access was very limited and bus parking was not permitted, I almost cried, I could have watched it all day long. But we had to drive on, I am not going to go through every minute of this tour as It would not do it justice. It simply has the best coastline I have ever laid eyes on, the most frustrating point for me was the perfect waves beach after beach, and not being able to stop and put my feet in that water. If I stopped everywhere that I wanted to I would be there till next week. A little further down the road, we stopped when we saw a few Koala’s hanging out, considering they sleep 20 hours a day, it was great to see one wide awake happily munching, to see koalas in the wild is a rare treat, and most people have there Koala experience after paying $30.00  and $20 more for a picture with one.

I found one, up on a hill and was within stroking distance, but considering these cute little furry animals can rip me apart, I decided to let him sleep. Two guys that saw me take a picture, were on the scene in no time, and had difficulty deciding should they shake the tree? or throw something at it.. some people should just stay at home and play computer games…

Our next stop was Lorne, and sorry to go on about the surf conditions again, but off-shore, 4ft and glassy anyone?? one other person to share the waves with, this was getting more and more painful to watch. But we only had 30 minutes for lunch, back on the coach.

The grand finale of this tour is always the Twelve apostles, columns of sandstone rising out of the dangerous waters below, this is truly a breathtaking sight, I have seen hundreds of great photos of these wonders, nothing can capture the experience of standing out on the point with the southern ocean blowing and the swells below crashing against solid rock. It really is one of those great humbling places that puts those trivial things in perspective.

There are other stops after this, London bridge which in the late eighty made headlines when the ground gave way and left a couple stranded on an out crop. They did their best to get the media attention away from them, because as it turned out they had pulled a sickie from work and were also having an affair and there partners would have been less than happy.. A story I would have been proud to tell tourist visiting the Ring of Kerry!!

It was a long drive back to Melbourne from this point on the Great Ocean Road, three hours and change. Of course, on these day tours, there is always one elderly lady/ gentleman, that somehow always gets that seat beside the driver and grills them with questions, concerns and anything else they care to mention, including insulting everyone on the bus at one point or another and her highlight was arriving at the twelve apostles and repeating over and over again to anyone that looked her way, that “this is exactly like Cornwall, just exactly like Cornwall”.

As many plans as we had made for the evening, we went back to our room and rested for a few minutes… we woke at 5am and were ready to move on to the next art of the journey.

It is great to be back and there has been some great changes (some not so great also) in Melbourne. We flew down with Virgin Blue, and sometimes I drift back into my aviation days of Station Manager at Dublin, overseeing airline turnarounds. But the Virgin experience is beautiful to watch, from the friendly checkin staff, comfortable seats and, for once, our bags were waiting for us when we got the the baggage belt! What they are doing just works. (Not saying Air NZ or Qantas offer less, I am flying Virgin because they are relatively new to the game, and I promise they are not sponsoring or discounting any part of this trip)

In Australia (both Sydney and Melbourne) a few interesting accommodation options are popping up, and I like it a lot. If you are not ready to share bathrooms and hear seven different alarm clocks go off at fourteen different times in a hostel dorm, but have no need to splurge $200-$400 for a bed, you will spend very limited time in. There are a number of reasonably priced hotels on the scene. They are basic, don’t get me wrong, a bed, in a room and thats kind of it, but they work really well. I visited a number of them in Sydney and Melbourne and I was very impressed. Not for everyone, and you know who you are. But at this point we are ready for the finer hotels that are on the New Zealand leg of this trip.

The Melbourne stopover was a bit of an afterthought and I am delighted we did it, we stayed out in the suburbs a little, but the public transport is great and with buses, trains and trams to decide between you will never be stuck. We decided to walk a lot (at least I did and Kate went along with it.. for a while!) I get a better sense of a city after walking it.

The Melbourne Grand Prix was heating up while we were there, and it was great to see, this is one of the most affordable Grand Prix of the season and there was a whole lot more going on too, Super 8 (kinda like Nascar with both right and left turns!!) and then a Grand Turismo race, to see these cars being driven like they were meant to, is a real treat. Various bars were located around the track, with fair like food stalls and plenty of places to watch the parts of the track that you can’t see, its a great experience (the noise alone can be heard throughout the city) and we were both shouting at each other all evening long, they sold packs with ear pugs, paracetamol and 30+ sunscreen on they way in.

What I really enjoyed was when the cars were not on track, they were open to public viewing and the smoke could still be seen rising from the tires, they were all there, Lamborghini’s, Porsche’s, Ferrari to be able to see these high performance cars, was just fantastic.

That evening, we went out to St Kilda, a suburb of Melbourne and is will known for its alternative living! it really is one of the funky parts of the city, after a long walk out on the promenade, looking out at the kite surfers zipping by at back breaking speeds (it is now top of my list of things to do this year) and that is when they are on the water, a lot of the time they are pulling off jumps and flips, staying aloft, for what must seem like an eternity.

I have always loved visiting St Kilda, beside the beach  there is a track, on it you will find it all, walking, running, cycling, rollerblading, and skateboarding.

We decided to stop at a local restaurant called “Donavans” and it turned out to be an incredible experience. A very nice guy, I had spoken to before I came out here, had family here and this turned out to be his place. We were welcomed with open arms and were served drinks right on the beach, after we were brought inside and given the best table in the house, full length windows looking out upon Port Phillp Bay at sunset, it will always be remembered and a definite highlight of the trip. Then we saw the formula one big names walk through the door and we knew we were in the finest dining experience Melbourne had to offer. We were getting the VIP treatment and the McLaren team, (Whitmarsh, Dennis) and Relault’s, Flavio Briatore are looking over and probably wondering who the hell these guys are. The BMW team was walking in as we left, and our table was no doubt being prepared at that very moment.

A once in a lifetime moment, and the food was like nothing we had ever tasted, I cant say enough great things about the owner Kevin Donavan and if you are ever down in this area, you have to check it out.

The city has changed a little since my last visit, but these are just small changes, new stores, some great new attractions, and I was very excited to experience some of these for myself.

As I mentioned previously, one of my favorite things to do, when I arrive into a city, is go to it’s highest point and take it all in. Sydney’s highest point is Centre Point Tower, and a relatively new addition here is the Skywalk, after breathalizing you, and putting you into a rather flash outfit, you are clipped in and walk out onto a glass floor 206m above ground. From here you can see it all, friendly staff explain the skyline and are very open to questions. You can see the financial district below, the rocks district (the oldest part of Sydney) Darling harbor, and the infamous Kings Cross area, on a clear day its possible to see the Blue Mountains.

Lines can be long, and if you are in anyway pressed for time, I would not be too upset if you miss the “Oz Trek” a virtual ride through Australia. I would prefer to see you out experiencing the real Australia. I find this to be a great first day activity, its easy, but exhilarating and leaves the rest of the day to stroll around and explore. We decided to do a little bar hopping.. surprise, surprise. Sydney has a great pub scene, especially in the rocks region, some old classic pubs, and the bar tenders are only too happy to tell a few stories. This is where you really get a feel for a city, this is where the real Aussies can be found, if all you do are visit tourist attractions… all you meet is fellow tourists!

This morning, after visiting a few new hotels and meeting new managers, we signed up to go on a new very popular tour of Sydney, one that has been getting a lot of attention recently, it is run by a company called Bonza Bike Tours and the tour was absolutely breathtaking. Our guide Nick really exposed every part of Sydney to us, the sights, the history and all in a very lighthearted, relaxed atmosphere. It brought us up a number of  hills, but the bikes were top notch and in only a few hours, we had seen the whole city, from the ground, not from a bus. These tours run in all weather, we were a little fortunate, and the day was perfect. Kind of wish I put a bit more sun cream on…

I want to keep this brief enough for now, but I promise I will write a future post on this Bike tour and other suggested tours, bar and restaurants.

After this we just took it easy and watched life go by, sitting at a cafe, looking out over the harbor, sun shining. This is what it is all about.

Tomorrow, on to Melbourne. It is a busy time for the city, Formula one season begins and we are staying in the part of the city that hosts it. It should be a great time and the next day we will be heading to the Great Ocean Road. I can only hope that the weather holds up.

Houston was uneventful, did watch the first few episodes of Weeds, interesting show, must look into it a little more, upon my return.

We were fortunate enough to have family in Los Angeles, and they spoilt us rotten, great dinner, a few glasses of wine and we were ready for road, this really helped to kick us into vacation mode and we were back with plenty time to check-in.

Check-in for Virgin Australia is at the much quieter terminal 3, very smooth and streamlined experience, we were informed that the flight was only half full.. happy days!

The staff were young, enthusiastic and friendly, a breath of fresh air, in comparison to some recent flights I have taken.

So what is the Virgin experience like… I am still kiddy from it all, a brand new 777 with it’s new plane smell, the first thing I noticed was the mood lighting that has changed many times and set a lovely tone, the next WOW moment was the bar, now fair enough, its for the elite amongst us. But it just looked so retro and looks fantastic

Kate and I, have 3 seats to ourselves, so this was always going to be a special experience. I have never been on a aircraft with this much leg room (32” leg room, 19 “ wide, and an extremely generous 6” decline). I have flown on a number of the competitors, Qantas, Air Zealand, Singapore and Cathy Pacific, nothing comes close. The in-flight entertainment (referred to as “RED” ) is my new best friend, for the next 14 hours.

I remember thinking, that if Apple designed planes, this is what it would look, and feel  like. Not the first time I have compared Jobs with Branson.

But back to my friend Red, for those that have traveled with Virgin before, you know that the in-flight entertainment is something they spend a lot of time on (the safety brief alone is fantastic). It has already surpassed any expectations I had.  A personal 9” LCD monitor on every seat back, movies on demand, close to 50 of them from new releases Slumdog Millionaire” and “Body of Lies” to classics like “Wedding Crashers” and “Gladiator” to name a few.

The music selection would make any ipod owner green with envy, hundreds of songs, all split up and easy to navigate through, pick from CD A-Z or by radio style genre icons. Then you can set a playlist for the flight, I have already found some great cd’s that I will be downloading once I get back. Next up, TV stations showing all the greats, Simpsons, The Office, Family Guy, Nat Geo, even some homegrown greats like Flight of the Concords or Summer Heights High.

A couple of other great features, there is a usb port, that you can charge your MP3 player or Ipod/Iphone on so you don’t need to worry about it dying half way through your favorite flick.

There is a chat feature that I was very curious about, lets say you are traveling with a group, there is a chat room that you can instant message each other, very neat. This can be turned off should you prefer your privacy. If instant messaging is not for you, you can play against friends (or strangers too, for that matter) on games like Battleship, Tetris and Golf. A whole lot of fun and will be hard pressed to do it all, even in 15 hours..

This is comfort like I have never experienced, a loverly atmosphere, as I write this the lighting is changing and I cant believe that we only have 2 hours to go until we arrive in Sydney. Kate has slept the whole way so far, and we should be able to hit the ground running upon arrival.

I know when it is time to go home, in two short weeks, I will actually look forward to stepping onboard this aircraft again.

Photos to follow; wifi not as easy to find in Sydney!!

We depart tonight and I am so excited, will be back in touch soon. Enjoy

In the time leading up to vacation, it is vital that you get everything in order. Ideally this should begin one year from estimated departure, particularly with longer, complicated vacations. It’s hard to keep track of all the little details that go into planning your trip, but this should give you an idea of what you should put into it.

I was thinking, that it would be pretty exciting, if I could use this platform to try and get you as close to Australia and New Zealand that I can. My wife and I, will be traveling down here shortly and its a perfect opportunity to give you a quick look at some exceptional places.

I warn you, if you are a big fan of “eat, shoots and leaves” and cringe when you see a typo or a grammatical error, this may hurt a little. I am neither a journalist nor a professional travel writer, and sometimes I mess up!

All this aside, if you care to follow our “working holiday” to Australia and New Zealand, while at the same time learn a little about each area we visit, and what it has to offer. I would encourage you to book mark or subscribe to the site and I promise, it will be entertaining. We are covering a of of ground, in a relatively short time, from the highlights of Sydney and Melbourne to three of the most scenically (if that’s a word) spoilt regions of New Zealand. But this is a vacation too, as a matter of fact, it is our honeymoon. So if I go missing for a day, don’t worry about it!

To get a brief outline of the places we are visiting. Click on the pointer for more information. If you have been to this area before, and can suggest any place, that I may not know about, please share this information also.

I will make sure that anything worth putting on here, will be of benefit to you, or at least, someone you know. I have been in this industry for many years and it could never be called boring, it changes everyday and that is one of the draws to it, at least for me.

How we receive our information has changed so much in the last few years and now we all have an opportunity to be heard, for better, or for worse. We have text, instant messaging, Linked in, Facebook, Twitter, oh the list goes on. But one thing is for sure, we are all much more connected, like it or not.

As most of you know, my areas of expertise are Ireland (obviously) Australia, New Zealand, Thailand and Vietnam. I pick these places because they all have something that really defines the travel experience. I know them very well. I have traveled throughout and that is why I can say, without a shadow of a doubt, that I am an expert in my field.

So come along for the ride, this is an interactive platform and I want to hear what you have to say, if you disagree with anything, thats fine (i will just delete it!! just kidding) if you feel your story may benifit others, I encourage you to contact me and share your stories.

I love what I do, I am passionate about it , and I cant imagine ever not being in the business that I am in. I love the diversity this world offers, and it is available to each and everyone of us. It’s a small world after all.

Your Travel Expert.

Evan

1. No flight ever leaves on time unless you are running late and need the delay to make the flight.

2. If you are running late for a flight, it will depart from the farthest gate within the terminal.

3. If you arrive very early for a flight, it inevitably will be delayed.

4. Flights never leave from Gate #1 at any terminal in the world.

5. If you must work on your flight, you will experience turbulence as soon as you touch pen to paper. Or start to drink your coffee.

6. If you are assigned a middle seat, you can determine who has the seats on the aisle and the window while you are still in the boarding area. Just look for the two largest passengers.

7. Only passengers seated in window seats ever have to get up to go to the lavatory.

8. The crying baby on board your flight is always seated next to you.

9. The best-looking woman/man on your flight is never seated next to you.

10. The less carry-on luggage space available on an aircraft, the more carry-on luggage passengers will bring aboard.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q-nX6g148mA