We had such an amazing time in New Zealand that I want to highlight some of our favourite memories. The country has so much to offer that I feel it would be irresponsible to try and pick just one favourite thing (sorry Big G) but I’ll narrow it down to our top ten.

1. Visiting with Duncan and Sarah in Wellington. They’ve been living and working in Wellington for almost a year now, and the opportunity to visit in person and let them act as our personal tour guides around Wellington was special.

2. The Beaches. So many beaches! We aren’t big fans of lying on the beach in the sun, but we absolutely love walking barefoot through the surf. The best beaches for that have a gentle slope, fine sand, and are very long. The north island of New Zealand has this type of beach in spades. And if the beach has a shaded spot where you can sit and read while listening to the surf, it’s perfect. Just like this one.

3. Zealandia: This is one of many nature preserves working to save the native New Zealand species from invasive pests. It is well worth a visit, even if you don’t have a personal tour guide like we did.

4. Paragliding: You can find far more “exotic” adventure activities in New Zealand if you want, but tandem paragliding is one that I’d highly recommend. It was thrilling, but not frightening. It’s a bit like being on a swing … a very high swing with amazing views.

5. Milford Sound: I wasn’t completely convinced I’d like Milford Sound, but I’m very glad we went. It’s absolutely worth a visit. It was a sunny day (apparently an extremely rare event) and the view was stunning. I’m told that in some ways it’s even more impressive in the rain because that feeds thousands of waterfalls on the cliffs. Maybe next time.

6. Seashells: Is it even possible to walk along the beach and not look at the seashells? I know we can’t resist. We found such variety of seashells, and every beach was different.

7. Vineyards: There are few things more satisfying than tasting wines with the wine makers or the vineyard owners. Other than, perhaps, buying wines at the vineyard and then having them for dinner on the rest of the trip. We did both, and plan to return to repeat the experience. This picture is from a very small group tasting with one of the owners.

8. Thermal pools: Soaking in a thermal hot pool for your birthday is a special treat. You can’t guarantee you’ll be in New Zealand on your birthday, but it’s definitely worth soaking in the healing waters anytime.

9. Views from the deck: Jan did a wonderful job finding hotels, but in a few cases she outdid herself with the rooms and the views. Enjoying morning coffee or an afternoon glass of wine with a stunning view is hard to beat.

10. Art: New Zealand has done a fabulous job of highlighting its arts scene. You see giant murals covering walls in most cities and public sculptures in parks. Searching these out was one or our favourite activities. We picked this one because it almost looks like I’m part of the picture with paint spraying my back.

We enjoyed our trip, and enjoyed updating you as we travel. I hope you have enjoyed following us. Unfortunately this is what we came home to.

We’re trying to figure out why we didn’t stay longer.