Family Time

I just got back from an awesome long weekend with the parents in Arizona!

Bouse, AZ... when you can see it...

...and when you can't! There was a bit of a dust storm...

Desert-scape.

Blackrock Cafe

My folks spend the winters in a teeny tiny place called Bouse, west of Phoenix, where the temperatures are mostly beautiful! Aside from some quality visiting with the family and many of their friends, I got to do some kick-ass desert quadding, plus I got to see the London Bridge!

Southern Cross Mine

Ha ha! Read the sign! (actually it's better when you can't....)

Perfect day for a ride!

Say cheeeeeeeese!!

Amazing ladies!

Brought a bit of the desert back with me.

What a cool day, with my very cool Mom!!

Oh and yes, you  read that right - I did say that I got to see the London Bridge. In Arizona. At Lake Havasu City to be exact....

London Bridge (the second one!)

Lighthouse at Lake Havasu

The things I see in my travels....

Thanks so much Mom & Dad, for everything! It was super to see you and I look forward to seeing you guys again soon!!

Meet the parents!

Now, just nine more sleeps and... it's off to Europe! Wow. I'm so distracted and excited and I can hardly wait! It is going to be a fabulous trip! Until then... work work work...

Cheers!

A taste of Europe....

Oh yeah, baby!! I'm doing it! I'm FINALLY going to Europe! Woot woot!! The plane tickets are booked - we leave February 3rd... making a stop in Paris... then on to Barcelona, for a road trip down the Mediterranean coast to Gibraltar and a detour to Morocco... Can you say EXCITED!!! Wow, have I mentioned lately how much I love seeing the world!?

Lonely Planet is one of my bestest friends!!

I have an extremely busy summer coming up, work-wise, so with the exception of a few smaller jaunts, this will be my last big hurrah until at least late into autumn. Oooooooh I can hardly wait!

Cheers!

Planes, trains, and automobiles!

Okay, so it was mostly planes...

YC14 - in the boneyard.

YC14

I made a quick trip to Arizona last weekend, where I checked out the Pima Air Museum near Tucson (super cool - I love that place!), I toured an olive farm south of Phoenix, plus I golfed, and I also hung out with my little sister.

View of the boneyard.

NASA space shuttle parts transport plane (in use until the mid-90's!).

SR-71 Blackbird

One big-ass plane!

A10 Warthogs

Emergency exit?

Golf course greenery. **SIGH** Oh, how I like green....

Teeing off.

My Sista and her hubby.

It was an awesome little getaway, and I can't wait to head back down in the New Year for a visit with the parents!

Happy Holidays to everyone - all the best to you!!

Cheers!

Untitled

I'm home now - from New Zealand. Wow. It was the trip of a lifetime, a journey that has truly changed my outlook on life. For me, that place was darn near magical - the surreal landscape, the experiences, and most importantly, the amazing people. Of course the time went by way too fast! And I can't even begin to explain what kind of light bulbs went on for me... oh, and sadly, a few went out, too...  What I can say is, that even though my world is probably in the most upside down state I've ever experienced, I'll be able to hang on until it rights itself again. When, or how, or with whom it is going to happen, I have no idea. So I am just gonna roll with it. It is what it is. Life is good!

Cheers!

One of the best days, EVER!

Crikey!! I am leaving Queenstown (**SIGH**) in about 12 hours, and I must say, I ended my stay in this amazing South Island town with an incredible day! A local (extremely accomplished!) guide took me and Lilly up Single Cone, a peak with a 360 degree vista which was a bit cloudy, but still beautiful, in an eerie kind of way! It was soooo fantastic!

Still frozen in the alpine.

Love, love, LOVE being up high!

Enjoying the views.

Almost at the summit.

Me and Lilly on the summit.

Summit of Single Cone

Looking towards the Crown Range



The best day yet!! Single Cone is in the background.

On the descent.

Amazing vista!

We were up THERE!

Unbeknownst to me, I saved the best til last... This day of alpine climbing was my favorite activity of the entire vacation, hands-down! I wish I had more time, because I would definitely enlist Bruce (Summits Mountain Guiding) to drag me up more peaks - there are so many to choose from in the area and I didn't realize that until it was too late. Maybe next time!

Alright, well tomorrow I head to Christchurch - via the bus... which should be an adventure in its own right, if the driver is anything like the character who drove us from Fox Glacier to Queenstown... hee hee...

Hope all is well with everybody back home! See you soon!!

Cheers!

Milford Sound

Today I took a bus trip - a very long bus trip - to Milford Sound, where I took a cruise around the sound and out to the sea. It was sunny and warm in Queenstown, but on the other side of the mountain range, the weather was quite different!

This place is nothing like I've ever seen before. The steep, vegetated cliffs of the sound are cool, almost ethereal, and we saw penguins and seals! The day was fantastic and I'm beat... off to bed early tonite!

Eglington Flats

Cirque near Milford Sound

The view after leaving the Homer Tunnel (google it!!).

Tour Boat

Penguins!

Mysterious Milford Sound



Seal Rock

Putting on a show for the spectators.

Seals lounging on... yep you guessed it... Seal Rock!

Sooooo darn cute!!

Milford Sound

Cheers!