How can you tell? Here’s eight clues from an author and publisher — I recently received a lovely comment from IB Above the Mark on a Medium.com story I wrote: Your blog post beautifully blends natural beauty with historical context, creating a richer travel experience. It resonated deeply with me. I’d be honored if you could check out my latest article…. Flattering, yes…

New Zealand Nuttiness — It doesn’t take all that much to amuse us as we drive the length and breadth of New Zealand. Throw a white-capped peak or sparkling-ocean beach our way, and Teresa (my beloved spouse) and I will probably pull over for a gander. A little history museum? Fifty fifty — there…

New Zealand’s Dark Sky Project at Lake Tekapo — Have you ever wondered what the stars look like in the darkest sky in the world? I just found out. We left Aoraki Mount Cook on a bright winter’s day in mid August. Sunlight bounced off the glacial waters of Lake Pūkaki as we drove south along its shoreline, reflecting…

Four long-term travellers, four ways to do it well — As full-time mature flâneurs, Teresa (my beloved spouse) and I have been on the road for almost two years. As we’ve been traveling around New Zealand, every now and then we’ve met younger people who have found their own way to live as full or part-time traveller-nomads. I’ve been delighted…

How to make your Globetrotter stories come to life — One of the greatest compliments I ever received as a travel writer was from a gracious 89-year-old lady named Dolly. She forcibly took my arm and began to walk me down the lane. It was a bit unsettling. Where were we going? I had no idea. Then she said to…

At the foot of New Zealand’s tallest peak — Heavy snow was forecast on the day we drove to Aoraki/Mount Cook. I’ve driven through plenty of snowstorms in my native Canada. But in New Zealand, they tend to close the roads when it snows. …

It started with the kiwi — There is a perfectly rational explanation as to why we travel with endangered birds in our car. It all started with the kiwi. Teresa (my beloved spouse) and I were enamored with kiwis from the get-go of our New Zealand trip. When we arrived in Russell, a lush, tiny town…

The beautiful wasteland of the Bannockburn sluicings — …

Giant’s Gobstoppers. Alien Eggs. New Zealand’s Stonehenge. These are just some of the names that have been applied to one of the most improbable-looking geological oddites in all New Zealand, the Moeraki Boulders. To the Māori, they were ancient eel baskets, thrown overboard when a great canoe of the ancestors…