1,340 miles, 1 flight, 1 family of four hosting us at their amazing home, 1 ferry ride, 1 apple orchard, 2 wine tastings, 1 koala, 1 harborside AirB&B, 1 kookaburra, 2 beautiful oceanside strolls, 1 haircut, $341.77 UNDER budget.
From Adelaide to Auckland, this part of the trip has been A+! Apples, grapes, wine, ocean, new to us flora and fauna and absolutely perfect weather in both places means we’ve had a wonderful week! Sarah Tie, her husband Kieran and their daughters Amelia and Hazel were A++ hosts for our time in Adelaide and that made the week even better.
From a lovely home in Adelaide to our Airbnb in Auckland has been an interesting transition. The balcony opens onto the harbor and comes complete with a view of the ferry terminal and downtown Auckland. The compact harbor sports a maritime museum as well as a working commercial port where container ships are unloaded alongside auto transport ships. There is lots to see right out our window, so sitting with a glass of wine watching the activity has quickly become a favorite activity.
A 40 minute ferry out to Waiheke Island with a stroll through some of that island’s famous wine growing country brought us to Cable Bay Winery. We were treated to some lovely wine and one of the best cheese plates EVER. We were only a little tipsy when we caught the shuttle bus to the beach to walk in the ocean again and enjoy a little sunshine. Back to Auckland for dinner and shopping for the cruise and more waterside activity watching.
We can both feel the wheel of time as our route makes the final turn back toward the U.S. We are both aware that were are closer to the end of the Big Meander than the beginning. We are happy we still have adventures ahead of us in these last months, a little sad the end is in site and ever so slightly impatient to see 6 months into the future to know how things might settle out when we get back to Denver.
We have to remind ourselves that the trip is NOT over, so we’re going to put some effort into enjoying the weeks that are left! The TransPacific cruise is 22 days long with four stops ~ Tauranga NZ, Suva Fiji, Tahiti (Papeete) French Polynesia and Honolulu Hawaii before our final destination, San Francisco on the 27th of April. We plan to continue regular posting, within the constraints of available WiFi both at sea and at our stops.
So for now……Bon Voyage! Catch you on the flip side!
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