Author: Oliver

Posted in City activities

Walking in Melbourne: Red Bluff beachwalk

Posted on by Oliver

A few months ago, while on another expensive trip to the mall, Willemijn bought a book with walks within Melbourne, in an attempt to let us explore our city of residence a bit more. Since then, the book has been sitting on the shelf, gathering dust.

But a couple of weekends ago we decided that we would need to remedy that situation. We took the great weather as a sign, flipped through the book, decided on a trail, invited some friends, packed our stuff (including our new drone) and off we went to the Red Bluff beach walk.

Continue reading “Walking in Melbourne: Red Bluff beachwalk” →

Lake Manapouri
Posted in New Zealand, Travel

Camping in New Zealand

Posted on by Oliver

We’ve just come back from two weeks of camping in New Zealand, and it was a blast. But before we go into more detail about the different places we have visited, I thought I’d do a short introduction about the general things we have learned and encountered in this islands country.

So, if you are planning on spending some time among the Kiwi’s and thinking of hiring a camper-van, read on for some handy tips and tricks. Continue reading “Camping in New Zealand” →

Posted in Daily life

Boys and their toys

Posted on by Oliver

As we have written before, the kids are keeping up their Dutch through lessons on Saturday. Usually, these are two hours long, and Willemijn and I take a walk on the beach to pass the time. However, once in a while we miss a weekend lesson and, as catch-up, Kai and Luka do Double-Dutch …lesson, that is.

The “downside” to this is that Willemijn and I usually end up at the mall, which is an expensive way to while away four hours. And yesterday was no exception.

Continue reading “Boys and their toys” →

Posted in Daily life

Life’s Little Pleasures

Posted on by Oliver

Life is busy work. We often spend our days running around, trying to keep up with the hundreds of tasks that we still need to do, too preoccupied to stop and realize what we are on about. Not stopping to enjoy the little things in life.

Well, as they say, realization is the first step to rectification. So, instead of going on like I have, I have decided to take a step back and start enjoying the little things. Like taking my daughter to school.

Continue reading “Life’s Little Pleasures” →

Posted in Daily life, Typical Australian

Country Races

Posted on by Oliver

A few weeks ago, we spent the weekend in Rutherglen on invitation from friends of ours. They, and a group of their friends, have been going to this little country town every year for the past twenty (or so), as annually, the wineries around the town hold a tasting event. You pay some money, get a glass, travel from winery to winery, taste their wines, eat good food and generally enjoy yourself. Which we did.

At the same time, in a town not far away, there is a day of horse racing. Some of the men in the group felt like going to watch, and since I had never been to a horse race, I figured I’d join them. I was also curious about this sport, that – to me – is just an excuse to combine three of Australia’s favourite pastimes: being outdoors, drinking and betting. Continue reading “Country Races” →

Posted in New Zealand, Travel

Doing the Tongariro Alpine Crossing

Posted on by Oliver

Having only one weekend in New Zealand and wanting to get the most out of it, I was on the lookout for things to do that are “the thing to do” here. One of which was my visit to Hobbiton.

But I was also looking to do some hiking in this largely empty country. Some research on the internet revealed that, apparently, the Tongariro Alpine Crossing falls into the above mentioned category. It’s a day hike between two of the highest volcanoes on the North Island and is quite famous for Kiwi’s and tourists alike.

So I booked a hotel in the area for the night and prepared for a day of mountain hiking. Continue reading “Doing the Tongariro Alpine Crossing” →

Posted in New Zealand, Travel

Welcome to Hobbiton

Posted on by Oliver

If you didn’t live under a rock in the early 2000s, you will have seen and experienced the big hype around the Lord of the Rings movies made by Peter Jackson. The are, of course, the adaptation of the even more famous books by JRR Tolkien of the same name. And if you haven’t read them yet, I strongly recommend that you do.

Most movie buffs will know that the films were shot in New Zealand. And since I am here on business for a couple of weeks, I thought I’d take the weekend and go and visit the most famous site of film’s shooting: the town of Hobbiton. Continue reading “Welcome to Hobbiton” →

Posted in Tidbits

New look (again)…

Posted on by Oliver

Waaaaay back when we reached 100 posts, we decided to change the layout of our blog and freshen things up a bit.

Now that we have passed 200 (this post is number 215) – and more than a year later – we figured it is that time again. So we switched the layout yet again, and will also be updating our logo and picture overlays.

What do you think?