I (Jeff) thought I would add a little to Carol’s post about the glowworms and kiwis and the day as a whole. We are now on the ship and not limited to 30 minutes at a time as we had to do in the hotel so we can send more info.

Driving on the left side of the road was not so difficult and, in fact, I got so good at it, that I worry about driving on the right side when we get back. As near as I can tell, only the UK, New Zealand, Australia, and Japan still drive on the wrong side of the street. Didn’t hit anything and didn’t get any tickets but since the wipers and turn signals are also reversed, it was embarrassing trying to signal a turn and have the wipers start flapping wildly.

The drive was long (about 2 hours and 30 minutes each way) but it was worth it. In place of our Yield signs, they have Give Way signs and roads get dangerous when it is “frosty” instead of “icy”. Hidden driveways are concealed.

But the scenery was gorgeous! Very hilly with bright green meadows all over the place (since we are in the Southern hemisphere, November is late spring). We expected to see billions of sheep but instead saw thousands of dairy cows -and hundreds of sheep. Although sheep are often associated with New Zealand, they are no longer profitable since hardly anyone wears wool and no one wants to eat lamp.

And as Carol already said, the kiwis and glowworms were so neat! Wish we could have taken pictures but you could only see both of them in the dark. While the kiwi was just plane cute, the glowworms were truly awesome. We floated down an underground cave in total darkness but it seemed like we looking up at the Milky Way stars through a forest canopy. Our guide said there may be a few in Australia, but besides those and the ones we saw here in New Zealand, they can be found nowhere else in the world.

People here are very friendly and helpful. Remarkably, there is very little trash along the road. And, although we are trying to sample the local cuisine, it’s good to find a McDonald’s every so often.

Tomorrow is our first excursion from the ship. We will go to Hell’s Gate Thermal Park (geysers and mudpots and an awful sulfur smell) and to a Maori village. Hopefully we will get pictures to show you as well.