Wines, Whales and getting wet with the Dusky Dolphins

Blenheim and Kaikoura - South Island, New Zealand

Days 3-5

Total Driving distance: 1153 kms/ 716 miles

Fun Fact: Kaikoura comes from the Maori word meaning Kai = to eat and koura = crayfish

Our day started with a journey from the North to the South Island along the Interislander Ferry. The 3-hour sail through the Cook Strait from Wellington to Picton was quite beautiful with majestic views of Queen Charlotte Sound.

We were originally planned to stay in Blenheim and do a bit of wine tasting, but changed our plans and drove further south to what used to be a whaling town in Kaikoura. We did make time to stop at the Montana winery in Blenheim while passing through for a delicious lunch and wine before heading to Kaikoura.

The quaint seaside town used to be known for killing whales over a century ago, but now finds prosperity in showing them off, along with the various other marine life such as albatross, fur seals, and dusky dolphins. The rest of the afternoon was nice and lazy as we took a stroll along the black rocky beach and took a quick nap in the sun while listening to the gentle waves hit the shore.

The next morning we got up bright and early for a full day starting with the dolphin encounter. Out of all the diving we have done, Kaes and I both agreed that this was one of the most memorable experiences we have ever had. After just a 10 minute boat ride, the captain let all of us off to get in the water to swim with the frisky mammals. We all had on 10 mm wetsuits, but the water was 14 degrees Celsius, which is 57 degrees Farenheit. I can’t begin to express how cold the water really was, but as soon as the dolphins were playing and circling us, we quickly forgot the sacrifice it took to see them in groups between 10-20 at a time, all very interested in what we were. Along with the dolphins, we saw the albatross soaring over the water with the longest wing span of any bird (pictured below) and playful fur seals. The pictures were taken when we got out of the water as we didn't bring our underwater camera :(

After our exciting morning, we didn’t think the day could get much better, but we were wrong. Our afternoon ended with Whale Watch Kaikoura. We saw a Sperm whale that was around 70 feet long stretching across the waters acquiring more oxygen before diving back down into the deep waters.

The day was one of the most memorable we have ever had. It is hard to describe the beauty and richness of New Zealand. Pictures do not begin to do it justice. We were scheduled to end up in Greymouth for the night, some 310 kilometres away. It was a long 5 hour drive through mountains and passes, but we could not have asked for a more perfect day.

Margaret River Weekend Getaway

Our trip commenced to Margaret River Friday afternoon dogs and bikes in tow. Margaret River is about a 3.5 hour drive south from Perth. Our first stop was the Margaret River Dairy Company for cheese and yoghurt tasting before checking into our cottage at Margaret House right in the main town of Margaret River.

The dogs were so excited to get out of the car and explore all the new smells. As we were unpacking, we were greeted by a bird similar to a turkey (but could fly) that came right up to the fence. Jaek and Chloe both were anxious to do a little more than just greet them and soon enough, Chloe was under the fence on a bird chase. I couldn’t help but die laughing at our little bird dog that has learned so much from her big brother. Luckily, they were able to fly quicker than she chased them. Not a great start to the trip as I just knew we would get an earful from the owners for letting our dog escape.

That evening after unpacking and getting the dogs settled in, we drove to the town a few miles down the road to walk around and find dinner. Our next stop was the Settlers Tavern for a few beers and an afternoon snack of their delicious Mexican nachos complete with pico de gallo and guacamole.

After enjoying the beautiful weather and doing a bit of people watching, we decided to go to the local butcher to pick up a few steaks to take back to our cottage to grill and grab a bottle of wine.

The next morning we headed back to town for breakfast to have a bit of food in our stomach before a full day of wine tasting. The wine trail in Margaret River is not only picturesque, but full of some of the best wineries in all of Australia. First on the list was a small boutique winery called Edwards Estate. We decided they had some nice wines, but since it was our first stop, decided to not be over zealous and buy the first thing we tasted. I was keeping a list of our overall favorites from the trip to help in buying at the local regional wine center on our way home.

Next on the list was Voyager Estate with its manicured lawns and white stone building that reminded me of being in Greece. I have to say that I didn’t try a wine there that I didn’t fall in love with. Our favorites were their signature Chardonnay and my very favorite, the Sauvignon Blanc Semillon with its crisp refreshing aroma and taste; perfect for drinking during our warm summer months ahead.

Leeuwin Estate was right down the road and is also another popular winery in Western Australia. They are known to have their arts series premium wine label that has a new piece of art as the label for each new vintage that is released. Kaes had been given an Arts Series Shiraz from a vendor last Christmas, and it was one of the best wines we have had since being in Australia. We picked up three bottles here that we both agreed on and headed up the road to Xanadu for lunch.

I was very excited to wine taste at Xanadu as we had done a bit of wine tasting the night before at the Wine Industry Association of Western Australia event in Perth. The 2010 Sauvignon Blanc Semillon (did I mention I was a big fan of white wine?) is due to be released in February of 2011, but we were able to sample it at the event in Perth. The friendly representative from Xanadu gave us a bottle of their wonderful Chardonnay and convinced us that we had to have lunch at the vineyard after we told him we planned to head to Margaret River the next day. The 2009 Viogner (pronounced vee-on-yay) was by far my favorite with the flavors of kumquat and apricot that will go perfectly with a Thai or Indian dish.

After wine tasting and a late lunch, we headed back to the town to visit the Aboriginal Art Center and do a bit of tasting at the Margaret River Fudge Factory. (I know you are wondering if this place actually exists with its award-winning wine, superb cheese, and delicious chocolate; but yes, there is such a place) Then we headed back to the cottage to play with the dogs before taking an afternoon nap (wine tasting tends to make you sleepy, and we were on vacation) Dinner was leftover steak and potatoes while watching a movie.

Our last morning we woke up early to go bike riding down to the beach, only 5 miles away. Along the way, we came across some new friends.

They seemed quite docile especially considering that several of them had joeys in their pouch. They seemed just as curious of us as we were them. After we finished riding and got packed up to leave, we headed back to the field to take more pictures of our native friends.

Heading home we stopped at the Regional Wine Center to pick up our favorites from the trip, then headed back through Dunsborough as we heard there was whale watching at Cape Naturaliste Park. We couldn’t have asked for better weather and the breathtaking scenery of crystal blue waters with humpback and blue whales swimming so gracefully through the water.

It was quite a wonderful and relaxing trip for the long weekend that we plan to do again very soon!

1st Anniversary Trip to Australia - Margaret River and The Great Barrier Reef

Kaes and I flew into Perth April 30th and stayed with a friend from work that we know from Houston. Ross was very accommodating and let us stay the night before we drove to Margaret River the next morning to go wine tasting.

The next morning, we picked up Farah and Patrick at their hotel and were off heading south to the wine country. We were meeting another couple, Christina and Dirk, a little while later. Once we got to Cowaramup, a small town just north of MR, we checked into our chalet at The Grove Vineyard. It was a very nice cozy 3 bedroom chalet with living room, kitchen and outdoor grill. We even had a nice outdoor spa to enjoy after our long day of wine tasting! The scenery was very tranquil and the weather couldn’t have been more perfect. A light jacket was needed in the evening and it was nice to have the change from the always humid Singapore weather.

Our first stop was Sandalford winery first that was just a short drive from where we were staying. The view was breathtaking and the wine was even better! Then we met Christina and Dirk at the chalet and were then off to Woody Nook for lunch. After lunch, it was off to more wine tasting. Most wineries are open from 10am-5pm, so we didn’t have a lot of time to taste since we had to drive a ways to each one. We then headed to Tassell Park, the Cowaramup Butcher for some Australian steaks to cook for dinner, and then last to Lenton Brae. After the wine tasting, it was time to grill out our dinner. Dinner turned out delicious and we ended the evening by getting in the hot tub to indulge in our ever so tempting wine.

The second day, after a long night over overindulgence, Kaes, Farah and I finally got up and headed to Evans & Tate. We had to leave the other couple behind to do a bit more resting. This was one of my favorite wineries with the beautiful vineyards looking out in the back of the store.

Below is a picture of Farah and me with the Evans & Tate vineyard in the background. Their wine was outstanding and the scenery absolute bliss! Patrick joined us and we decided to head into the town of Margaret River to do some cheese tasting and find a place for a picnic. On the way to Margaret River, we stopped off at The Margaret River Dairy Company to do some cheese and yogurt tasting. After the cheese tasting, we decided to go to Cape Mentelle, which was an excellent recommendation from Farah for the scenery and delicious wines. Cape Mentelle had the perfect place to have a bottle of their 2007 crisp, oaked chardonnay. The pairing of chardonnay with our deli meats accompanied by the cracked pepper cheddar and vintage cheddar cheeses were perfect for our afternoon picnic.

After our picnic, we decided to go back to Evans & Tate to make a few purchases and then headed to the boutique winery Windance. Afterwards we decided to head down to the beach to capture the breathtaking views as the sun set. It was definitely a romantic end to our Margaret River weekend.

Sunday morning we woke up and had to head back to Perth to drop off Farah and Patrick. After we said our goodbyes, we met back up with Ross and decided to drive to Fremantle to see the harbor and visit the Little Creatures brewery. The bohemian staff and hippie atmosphere was quite different than what we were used to, but nevertheless a cool place to hang out before our flight out to Cairns.

We reached Cairns at 5:30 am Monday morning after our red-eye flight from Perth. We were both exhausted since airplanes are not conducive for good sleep. We headed to the Esplanade in Cairns and hung out at the McDonald’s in front of the Tusa Dive shop where we got picked up at 11:30 to begin our journey to the Great Barrier Reef and Coral Sea. We started off meeting everyone on the boat, getting orientated with what to expect during the next 7 days, then had a delicious spread off food for lunch. I unfortunately, did not partake in these events as I was worshipping the porcelain god…a moving boat has no mercy on me for my chronic sea sickness. Even with good medicine, sometimes there is nothing you can do when you are hitting 5 foot swells in the ocean.

Later that night I felt better and was able to do the second dive. Kaes was feeling just as sick as I was and missed the two first dives of our trip. The next morning we started early at 6:30 for our first breakfast (Yes, I did say “first” breakfast) and were in the water by 7:30 for our first of 5 dives for the day. We dove Steve’s Bommie, Cod Hole, Cod Feed, Dynamite Pass and Pixie Pinnacle for our night dive.

Wednesday morning we were heading towards Lizard Island. This was the place where some of the people would get off and fly back to Cairns and others would join for the last leg of the trip. After a long day of 4 more dives, we had the traditional “Australian BBQ” that consisted of baked potatoes, salad, Australian steak, and kangaroo. It was delicious!!!



The rest of the week consisted of more diving in the beautiful #3 and #5 Ribbon Reefs each day followed by our journey back to Cairns before flying back to Singapore. We had about 5 hours before our flight to Singapore, so we decided to visit the Cairns Wildlife Dome that was on top of a casino right in the city. This is where I met Harvey, and it was love at first site!!! You can see why below. He was the sweetest thing I had ever laid eyes on. It was a great way to end our wonderful trip in celebration of our first Anniversary!!!

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