When the Dune Rider pulled up to my hotel at 7 a.m. I knew that this was not going to be your typical tour. This purpose-built, four-wheel drive, air conditioned Mercedes coach sat atop giant tires designed to negotiate the quicksand streams of 90-Mile Beach, traverse rocky outcrops, and barrel through surf on its way … Read more

For the past 48 hours I’ve been burning the candle at both ends. After spending all day seeing the sites I returned to my hotel room each night and spent hours writing articles and preparing photos I’d taken that day. Most of the time this was no problem. Recently, however, I’ve taken so many photos … Read more

The fast ferry made the trip from Auckland to Waiheke (Why-HICK-ee) Island in a flat 35 minutes. One of the many volcanic islands that dot the bays around Auckland, Waiheke has long been a favorite of New Zealanders (it is where they go to get away from it all) and it is easy to see … Read more

I like Auckland. This has come as somewhat of a surprise to me, because everything I read about this city said not to waste time on it. Everyone insisted that there is nothing to do in Auckland, there are no sites of interest, and the city has no history. Granted, I haven’t spent a lot … Read more

If you’re at all curious what New Zealanders think of American politics, take a look at this President Bush billboard, which spans a railroad viaduct over a major highway in Auckland: If you’re having trouble reading it, the captions on the photos are as follows: HISTORY (Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston) SPORT (A blindfolded guy … Read more