*also known as the adventures of Kiwi Rob and Papito* Many of you know that I recently spent some time in the Bay of Islands, but what you don’t know is that it tested every ounce of my spontaneous yearnings and made me realise that I may not be as spontaneous as I’d imagined myself…
Category: new zealand
on the road: central otago wineries
Anyone who knows me at all knows that I love wine. Love to read about it, write about it, learn about it, talk about it, and drink it. Before travelling to New Zealand in 2014, all I really knew about New Zealand wines was Marlborough Savs. Fast forward to September of that year. I spent…
best of … 2016
Wow – it’s already 2017, and I can’t believe how fast 2016 went! What a year for The Girl With the Map Tattoo. I spent the entire year exploring New Zealand from literally top to bottom. I gained hundreds of Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter followers, grew my blog readership, and even made the jump from…
new zealand: a hiker’s paradise, part five
Welcome to part five in New Zealand: A Hiker’s Paradise, where I write all about hiking in New Zealand. This week, I want to talk about hiking in New Zealand’s South Island southern half, particularly hikes in Otago (near Dunedin), the Catlins, Southland, Fiordland, and Stewart Island. In part one, I talked about the differences…
big road trip: week five
A month ago, I packed up my life in Dunedin and headed out on one last big road trip across New Zealand. Here is week five! ** dates of travel: 4-12 Dec 2016 As I write this (Thursday), the last few days have been horribly rainy. I’m on the West Coast – which is notorious…
new zealand: a year in review
It seems like only yesterday that I landed at Wellington airport, a bright eyed traveller with dreams bigger than Stewart Island, ready for a year in New Zealand. I was picked up by my new flatmate, and his dog, and thus began a new life in a new city, a new country, over halfway around…
an open letter to new zealand
this is the hardest post I’ve ever had to write Dear New Zealand, I’m getting on a plane soon, and unlike Rachel, I can’t get off. My god, how badly I want to be able to get off that plane. How do I begin writing about you? Thank you for being spectacular. Thank you for…
on the road: the arts trail in golden bay, new zealand
New Zealand often has surprises up its sleeve. For example, I went north into Golden Bay the week before Christmas expecting small towns and empty beaches. Imagine my surprise then, when I drove into Takaka and saw a long main street full of galleries, cafes, and shops. It made me wonder, what else is in…
big road trip: week four
A month ago, I packed up my life in Dunedin and headed out on one last big road trip across New Zealand. Here is week three! ** dates of travel: 29 Nov – 3 Dec Back in Queenstown, I set about getting ready to get back on the road. This involved laundry, some last-minute wifi…
my top fifteen NZ moments
As my time in New Zealand finally draws to a close (cue sad music here), I wanted to take some time to look back on the last year and share with you some of my favourite moments of the last fourteen months. This country is incredible. I think I have seen almost everything, driven on…