Ulva island, land of birds
Ulva island is one of New Zealand’s only open island sanctuaries. The moment you step off the boat (15min water taxi from Golden Bay in Oban) you’re greeted by birds. The songs carry… Continue reading
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Tribute to Christchurch and New Zealand
As all Kiwi’s and many others around the world stay shocked by the recent terror attacks, I seem to just struggle to find the words. The words that express the sadness, the hurt,… Continue reading
Sights of Summer
As winter gave way at the end of 2018 in New Zealand, the sunshine tried to open up and eventually brought on lovely flowers, birds and landscapes to enjoy. Below are a few… Continue reading
12 Days of Christmas – the travel edition
Here’s my top pick for the best destinations around the world that I’ve been to that would be great at Christmas 1. New York, New York Though I went a bit early at… Continue reading
The Borneo Adventure Roundup
From leeches in the jungle to island delights. From rivers with monkeys to sanctuaries with orangutans and sun bears. Borneo was a mixed bag with definite highs and a few lows. It was… Continue reading
Sun Bear and Sepilok Orangutan Wildlife Sanctuaries, Borneo
WARNING: CUTE PHOTOS AHEAD! Wild and free animals (or lack of) behind me, it was onwards to cute wildlife cared for in the popular sanctuaries of Borneo. Sun Bear Conservation Centre My first… Continue reading
Kinabatangan River Wildlife Spotting, Borneo
I was excited. This was it. This was the chance to see wildlife in the wild. It was going to be great. Note: This post contains Proboscis monkeys with no shame and due… Continue reading
Homestay and local village of Tambatuon, Kota Belud, Borneo
In a quaint, quiet valley of Borneo lays a sleepy little village called Tambatuon. It’s here that my tour started its second week/second tour. We were based in a homestay for a night… Continue reading
Survivor Island, Borneo
Pulau Tiga in Borneo was the location for the first season of Survivor. This was the next location on the Borneo itinerary for me and it definitely was an improvement on the 2… Continue reading
Round up of New Zealand’s South Island
Well my posts about my roadtrip around New Zealand’s South Island have finally come to an end. It’s kinda sad to be honest! I loved the scenery and hikes so much. I’m very… Continue reading
The Road Home: Hanmer Springs and Picton
I thought I was leaving the rain behind me. I thought I was escaping. It was sunny again. Then it was not. Hanmer Springs This was when the fun and enjoying of camping… Continue reading
Scenic delights of Aoraki Mount Cook
Ice cracks and crashes as an echo is sent through the Hooker Valley. This is a pretty special way to celebrate the start of 2018 on New Years Day, walking the Hooker Valley… Continue reading
The road to Ohau – scenic inland New Zealand
When I think of beautiful scenery in New Zealand I think coastal initially. My roadtrip through the South Island taught me otherwise. Not only are the coastal aspects beautiful, but the mountain and… Continue reading
Postcards from Moody Doubtful Sound, Fiordland
Saying farewell to the sunshine in Wanaka, I packed up the car for a few nights of camping before New Year’s Eve. The drive over the Crown Range into Queenstown always freaks me… Continue reading
Diamond Lake and Rocky Mountain Summit Hike – Wanaka
Walks labelled as Moderate-Hard shouldn’t be underestimated. Especially if you’re walking on your own and don’t do big hikes often… So someone like me was totally qualified to hike up to both the… Continue reading
Sights of Wanaka – Lavender and Wine
What’s more to love right? Flowers, the smell of lavender, maybe a taste of lavender ice-cream… followed by a trip to the most scenic vineyard I’ve ever been to… topping off the day… Continue reading
Wanaka Hiking Mount Iron
Sometimes it’s difficult to comprehend such beauty and this road trip has had those moments over and over again. Wanaka didn’t disappoint. I fell in love with this small town a few years… Continue reading
3 Years on.. Places I can’t get out of my head
Back in 2015 as part of the monthly bloggers linkup I shared my passion for Africa as the place I couldn’t get out of my head. Three years on and is it still… Continue reading
Road to Wanaka
Lake Matheson > Haast > Makarora > Wanaka Leaving the beautiful Lake Matheson behind me it was onwards to Wanaka, my favourite town in the South Island (competes with Tauranga for best in… Continue reading
Reflections of Christmas: Roadtrip to Franz Josef and Fox Glaciers
Hokitika > Franz Josef Glacier > Lake Matheson > Fox Glacier Spotting ice during a summer Christmas… sounds a little unusual right? Well last Christmas I did just that during my roadtrip in… Continue reading
Seals and Pancake Rocks: Driving the West Coast of New Zealand
Westport > Tauranga Bay > Punakaki Leaving the sandflies behind the West Coast of New Zealand just gets better and better. Westport is the first decent town you’ll hit South of Karamea, it’s… Continue reading
The REAL middle of nowhere: Oparara Arches
Day 2 Route: Picton > Westport > Karmea > Oparara Arches > Kohaihai Campsite, Kahurangi National Park Where the heck are the Oparara Arches you may ask? The Oparara Arches are nestled away… Continue reading
That daily ‘happy place’
Sometimes travel takes you to your happy place. One that makes you smile. One that takes your breath away. One that puts you in a good place to start your day. I’m lucky… Continue reading
Snorkelling and sunset cruising along the Low Isles of the Great Barrier Reef
Calm seas, purple skies and heavens opening. This trip out to the Great Barrier Reef was definitely a good one to end my trip on. Clear skies aboard a stunning catamaran in the… Continue reading
WARNING: Cute animals! A day at Wildlife Habitat, Port Douglas
Disclaimer: I cannot be held accountable for a few too many ‘awww’s’ or mentions of cuteness in this post. Read (and smile) at your own peril. I’m always wary about wildlife sanctuaries and… Continue reading
Cairns, North Queensland Australia: home to the Great Barrier Reef
In the true tradition of Easter in my world I did the typical thing and went travelling. This year with the Easter public holidays and ANZAC Day it meant for a cool 10… Continue reading
Travel Outtakes: The not-so-peachy moments of travel
This month’s blog linkup is all about the not to peachy moments of travel. Having travelled the globe and blogged along the way I usually try to keep it upbeat — because who… Continue reading
#30 Top Travel Experience before I’m 30: Rediscovering New Zealand
Number 30 in my Greatest Travel Experiences before I’m 30 had to lead me back home to my homeland, New Zealand, Aotearoa, the land of the long white cloud. New Zealand was never high… Continue reading
Near-Perfect Travel Experiences: Travel Linkup
Well, nothing in life is ever perfect… right? At least my travels are never perfect. I think that’s what makes them some of the best stories I have to share! So this month… Continue reading
Art and culture in Wellington
From houses to rubbish bins, walkways to waterfront sculptures. Then there’s the galleries, museums and shows that Wellington is busting with! I recently had the pleasure of spending 3 days in Wellington, based… Continue reading
Greatest Travel Experience #6: Immersing myself in Patagonian nature
Whales, penguins, seals. Glaciers that grow. Snowcapped mountains to hike amongst. Beaches. Where else could this fantastic destination be? None other than the Chilean and Argentine wonder of Patagonia. On my long backpacking… Continue reading
Kayak and Hiking in Abel Tasman National Park
The birds were deafening as we kayaked up to the little island in Abel Tasman National Park. Seals played by the rocks and the birds sang their hearts out. I don’t think I’ve… Continue reading
10 Things I love about travel
This month’s travel linkup is all about love… here’s 10 things that I love about travel: 1. Waking up in the middle of nowhere and pinching myself that I’m actually there 2. Being surprised… Continue reading
Favourite things to do while travelling
As part of this month’s link up of ‘favourite things’ I’m taking the angle of my favourite things to do while travelling, so here they are: Get Lost When you’re in a safe… Continue reading
One Year. 20 Locations. A year of memories
On this day last year I left my home of almost 5 years, London, to begin a world adventure and return to my homeland of New Zealand. It’s hard to believe it’s been… Continue reading
Places you can’t get out of your head
One’s destination is never a place but rather a new way of looking at things – Henry Miller This month’s travel linkup is all about places you travel to that you can’t get… Continue reading
Getting back to nature at Yosemite National Park
Sun, snow, birds, deer, squirrels, elusive black beers and an abundance of pure nature, all part of Yosemite National Park in California, USA. For years I’ve wanted to go to Yosemite National Park,… Continue reading
Farewell Latin America
So there it went. The end of my time in Latin America. I started at the beginning of December 2014 in Sao Paulo, Brazil, where I quickly moved to Argentina (for my safety… Continue reading
Seeking wildlife in Manuel Antonio National Park, Costa Rica
Sloths, check. Monkeys, check. Racoons, check. Iguanas, check. Birds, check. Beaches, check. After a bit of a disappointing trip to La Fortuna/Arenal (was super expensive to do tours and not much else there),… Continue reading
Colourful and scenic region of Guatape, Colombia
Colour, colour, colour everywhere! This is the South America I imagined! Guatape is an easy day trip (or overnight trip) from Medellin in Colombia. After just 2 hours on a bus you can… Continue reading
The end of my time in Ecuador
Ecuador was a tricky country for me. The moment I arrived I was surrounded by lots of green banana trees for miles. I had hope of a fantastic time in the countryside. I… Continue reading
Santa Cruz, Galapagos
More iguanas, tortoises, a pier that lights up at night, sea lions that laze about and some white sand beaches. Santa Cruz is an expensive, but nice spot to stay in the Galapagos.… Continue reading
Cruising Around the Galapagos: Part 4 – Rabida, Santiago and Baltra Islands
Santiago Island Walking on moon-like rocks to creep up on the playful Galapagos fur sea lions you feel like you’re a long way from home… or at least I did. The fur sea… Continue reading
Cruising Around the Galapagos: Part 3 – Fernandina and Isabela Island
The Western Galapagos Islands continued to excite me, despite the incident with the sea urchin… Fernandina Island on day 5 was incredible. Definitely a highlight for many people on the tour. Back… Continue reading
Cruising Around the Galapagos: Part 2 – Western Isabela Island
Lava rocks, pink flamingos, iguanas and wildlife all around. This is what I came to the Galapagos for. To be honest, the Galapagos wasn’t as abundant in wildlife as I had expected or… Continue reading
Visiting San Cristobal island in the Galapagos
Red, Blue and Nazca Boobies – birds that is. Male Red Frigate birds with their bright red chest ballooned out. Green, Grey and Leatherback turtles. All just a few of the amazing wildlife… Continue reading
Hitting the ice at Perito Moreno Glacier
First you hear cracking. Then you hear a shudder. Then you hear crashing. That’s ice falling from Perito Moreno Glacier. Taking the afternoon bus from El Calafate in Patagonia, Argentina, my newfound friend… Continue reading
Meeting nature at the London Wetland Centre
A day out with a bunch of bloggers, a free play with the new Samsung Galaxy S5 phone, a fantastic informative tour around a stunning nature reserve and a scrumptious lunch to boot!… Continue reading
Room with a view
Nature, sunrises, sunsets, ocean… these are all the things we look for in a view when we travel. Sad thing is I usually don’t have a decent view. I travel cheap and far,… Continue reading
A day in the sun at Kew Gardens
Giant waterlilies, manicured gardens, greenhouses to put almost any others to shame and a lizard to boot! Just a few of the incredible sights to see during a day out in Kew Gardens.… Continue reading
Photography Friday: O is for ‘O.E’!
This is a bit of a special Photo Friday. I decided since I’m up to the letter O in the alphabet I would celebrate with highlights of my ‘Overseas Experience’ (aka O.E) from the… Continue reading
Newly designed site with new photography galleries
Time for a change. A responsive change. Time to make the galleries have bigger better photographs. Time to re-design and re-develop designack.com! Over the last few months I’ve been pretty busy, not only… Continue reading
Favourite travel photos
As part of this month’s link up with a few other brilliant bloggers, it was put to us to choose our favourite travel photo. This was by no means an easy one for… Continue reading
Checking out the flowers in London’s East End
When London brings out the sun, you really do have to make the most of it. There’s no telling when you’ll see it again. I recently visited a spot I’ve been wanting to check… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 31: Norway
Dancing lights in the sky as you realise there is more to this universe than just what happens on earth Through a snowstorm and thick cloud we drove. And drove. And drove. Finally… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 30: Niagara Falls, America/Canada
One of the incredible places in the world, day or night, summer or winter, Niagara Falls won’t disappoint Niagara Falls was one of those places I’d always wanted to see. The shear volume… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 29: Milan, Italy
Just another cathedral in Europe right? I don’t think so this time… One of the most incredible feats of architecture I’ve seen in Europe is the Duomo. It is an incredible massive Cathedral… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 28: First, Switzerland
“A little magic can take you a long way” – Roald Dahl Today’s photo of the day comes high up in the Swiss Alps from a place near First. Just up the mountain… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 27: Oia, Santorini, Greece
Another done is done, another incredible sunset in Greece, from another incredible spot – Oia Greece is so relaxing and every day I was there, no matter the location, a beautiful sunset was… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 26: Kravica, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Gushing beauty. It’s pretty amazing how incredible our planet is when you find spots hidden away in small countries like this Today’s Photo of the Day takes us to a small spot hidden… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 25: Rwanda, Africa
Sometimes it takes another being so free and untouched to make you realise how incredible the world is and how unique and beautiful it really is Today marks the day that I started… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 24: Sintra, Portugal
A little splash of colour always makes you smile. Even more when its on a massive palace in a lovely part of Portugal The Pena National Palace is a spot in Sintra Portugal… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 23: Granada, Spain
Sometimes its worth looking at the details to see the beauty within the culture of a city Today’s Photo of the Day is taken from a very Spanish town filled with true culture,… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 22: Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Mostar, one of the beauties with a completely multicultural beautiful city and another UNESCO World Heritage site Mostar was one of my first stops in Bosnia and Herzegovina and still one of my… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 21: Athens, Greece
One of those ‘pinch me’ moments of ‘I can’t believe I am standing in the Acropolis in Athens’ The history that Athens holds is just incredible. When I was a teenager learning about… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 20: Bosnia and Herzegovina
Such heartbreak amongst such beauty in Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina is one of the most beautiful countries I’ve visited in Europe. Throughout the cities and villages, you can see the destruction… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 19: Uganda
One’s destination is never a place but rather a new way of looking at things – Henry Miller Africa is incredible and completely took me by surprise. Uganda was so lush, with incredible… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 18: Cappadocia, Turkey
Fairytale chimneys and valleys from outer space, Cappadocia has incredible unique landscapes to wander through, float above and hike up Cappadocia just a short flight from Istanbul in Turkey, is an incredible spot so… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 17: Lake Como, Italy
Peaceful beautiful towns on an incredible Lake. A spot to relax. Italy seems to be the country I’ve travelled most to in Europe. It seems to keep calling. Lake Como, just a train… Continue reading
Photo of the Day, March 16: Mt. Sinai, Egypt
Sometimes we just need a little bit of sunshine in our lives. Trekking through darkness around and around a mountain, I finally came to the last hurdle: stones steps (rocks) in the freezing… Continue reading