The Weird, Wild Landscape - Wai-o-Tapu Thermal Wonderland

The Devil's Bath really is this eerie yellow-green color.When a park has "Wonderland" in its name, you have to question whether it will live up to the hype.  It was a dreary day when we visited the Wai-o-Tapu Thermal Wonderland - So much so in fact, we had to take shelter when a sudden down-pour interrupted our hike.  Did we care?  Nah...We laughed, chatted about what we had seen, and were excited to head to the next section of the park when the deluge diminished.

Between the bright colors of the thermal pools (oranges, reds, greens, blues and yellows), the harrowing walkways over bubbling sulphur lakes, and the vastness of the formations, we were left in awe of this surreal and visually stunning experience.

The Weird, Wild Landscape - Moeraki Boulders

The Wonderfully Weird Moeraki BouldersIt's rare for us to want to return to a site we accidently passed on a road-trip, but we recently backtracked...and for good reason.  The Moeraki boulders are rock formations left on one particular New Zealand beach; they were formed over 55 million years ago when shells, mud and pebbles were deposited and buried on the sea floor.  Over time, deposits of lime encased each item to form these spherical boulders which are revealed as wind and surf erode the no longer submerged cliffs.  The quantity and unique shape and size are truly a site to behold.

Time to Unplug

Utopia!

The time has arrived to check off another item on our bucket list.  We will be offline during the first five days in April to hike the Milford Track, a 54 kilometer (33.5 mile) trail through New Zealand's beautiful fiord country.  If paradise is a place where cell phones don't work, we'll certainly have explored it.

The Finer Things - Staying in Indonesia

An Unbelievable View from Ayung Resort!TripAdvisor informed us of a special promotion at Ayung Resort Ubud; it was a sign of relaxing days ahead.  This 4.5 star resort had amazing reviews which described tranquility, luxury, and an amazing restaurant...All of which turned out to be true.

We treated our four days in Indonesia as a vacation and indulged in poolside reading, wonderful wines with dinner, and restful nights in our deluxe room.  We participated in morning yoga class, took in endless views containing terraced rice patties and distant mountains, hiked the extensive grounds, and watched playful monkeys traverse treetops and rooftops before several enjoyed cooling plunges in one of the resort's swimming pools.  We ventured outside of our accommodations to visit the town of Ubud, a cultural center for creativity and spirituality, and we rafted down the Ayung River, a relatively calm stretch of water when compared with the rapids in Colorado.

In general, the people at the resort and in Indonesia were warm, welcoming, and willing to accommodate all reasonable requests put forth with a proper smile.  Our last day at the resort preceded a red-eye, overnight flight.  The resort's facilities were made available to us after our midday checkout and extra steps were taken to ensure our comfort prior to our evening departure.

We left Indonesia with an honest desire to return, knowing that we have only scratched the surface of what this country has to offer.

Striking Balance in Singapore

Singapore is a city of contrasts.  Tall, modern buildings cast shadows over little houses which seem to exclaim, “Ha ha city – I will not yield!”  Skyscraper designs include some very unique structural attributes…We photographed one example in which three buildings were connected by what appears to be an entire city suspended many stories above the pavement below (See The Trip – Photoblogging Our Trip).

Coming from KL (Kuala Lumpur) where all the parks were being overtaken by urban sprawl, it was refreshing to see Singapore’s dedicated and significant expanses of parks, a valuable resource in this vibrant city.  If seeking solitude, one can conveniently visit many beautiful green-spaces or take the train to Sentosa Island for a bit of beach time.

With millions of residents, you might expect Singapore’s public transportation to be a bit “scary”, but it isn’t at all.  The subways and railways are very clean, extremely well organized, and easy to use.  Additionally, rules of the road were respected, so we didn’t feel like we were playing Frogger when crossing streets.  Were these the only things we noticed about Singapore?  No. 

Singapore is a hodgepodge of different cultures and people, each contributing to the unique food offerings such as chili crab, duck porridge, dim sum and chwee kueh (water cakes). These dishes and many others are affordable and conveniently available in markets and food courts throughout the city.  Was there a Hooters?  Yes, down by the touristy riverside; it offered dining diversity, but it would be a pity to eat there with so many other amazing flavors so close at hand.  ;)

P.S. – We have to give a special shout out to our new friends Ivan and Susan.  They took time out of their busy schedules to introduce us to their city for an entire evening.  They are truly two of the nicest people and we feel fortunate to have met them when we did in Manila.