January 10, 2025

NEW YEARS DAY - LIMA, PERU 

HAPPY NEW YEAR 2025!! Today we went to explore the Barranco Area of Lima, known for it's street art and the Bridge of Sighs! The ports in Peru have been a bit of a hassle in that we can't walk or taxi out from port - we have to be shuttle bused, on a very slow schedule, out to a local town square - this one was almost an hour out. Regardless, we wanted a FUN relaxing day, so Scott and Delia and I grabbed the shuttle. At the drop off, I met new resident Frazer, from Grand Cayman, (a mosquito scientist), who was traveling alone and once I confirmed he was not a whiner, I invited him to join us! I then introduced him to others as Trevor and we all were calling him that most of day, until he finally told them his name was Frazer!! Guess I scared him too much with my no whining rule! Classic my bad!! So many people coming and going. I had met a Trevor, from Australia, the days before who he looks vaguely like.

We took Uber to the main square of Barranco, there was lots of traffic and people out on this Holiday! The Street Art was everywhere!

The Bridge of Sighs is a wooden pedestrian overpass and one of most popular meeting spots in Lima. Legend has it you have to hold your breath as you cross all the way over the bridge to attain true love! Bridge is 40 meters long - we sprinted and tried not to knock any one over in process (a lot more people on actual bridge the day we did it - first photo from internet)!

Next, we headed to Lima's Football (Soccer) Stadium and the Circuito Magico Del Agua next to it, in Reserve Park. They do a nightly water show that Guinness World Records certified as the Worlds largest Fountain complex in a public park. We got there before dark to wander the park and the show started at 7:15 pm once it was dark and they projected images onto the spray field of the largest rainbow of fountains. Fun way to start the NEW YEAR of 2025!

By Patricia Patrick March 4, 2026
We had a beautiful sunny day to explore Wellington ! Was a very nice change from the stormy, big swells weather we have had the last two days! Wellington is the Capital city of New Zealand and the CBD is nice and big with lots of shops and museums. We didn't make it to the LOTR studios due to the time crunch but we took the cable car up to the top, for a scenic overlook of the port and then leisurley walk down through the Botantical Gardens, parks and historical cemetary.
By Patricia Patrick March 3, 2026
Rotorua became a bonus city for us. Our Port stay in Tauranga got cut down to one day, due to NZ biosecurity regulations and since we really wanted to do Hobbiton, we decided to get off the ship and stay in hotels and get back on the ship, in a few days. Due to a variety of factors, the Ship ended up doing a quick pick up of us in Tauranga, three days later. The Kiwi's we encountered along the way, who helped with all our last minute details, were amazingly kind, hospitable and generous. Below is our tired, chilly group huddled at the security shed, outside the Port in the wee hours (1:30 am) Monday morning, awaiting our final hurdle of getting back on our Home. Home sweet home! What an adventure!
By Patricia Patrick March 3, 2026
Rotorua, New Zealand is known for it's geothermal activity ( geysers, mud pools, hot springs) and rich Maori culture . I saw lots of that last time I was here in 2016, so this time I wanted to see their Redwoods in Whakarewarewa Forest. John and Colleen joined me in exploring. Their redwoods are smaller than the ones in Muir Woods California, but still impressive. Both are planted forest dating back to around 1908.