Posts Tagged ‘ travel stories ’

Auckland and Geothermal Wonders of Rotorua

Auckland and Geothermal Wonders of Rotorua

by Irene Butler – Photos by Rick - Our New Zealand Photo Gallery - Our first impression of Auckland is how “at home” we felt. We are struck by the similarities to our hometown of Vancouver BC – from the waterfront filled with cruise ships, yachts and sailboats, to the fine shopping areas and malls, to the quiet tree-lined residential streets. Even the weather is as temperamental as Vancouver’s, in that all four seasons can be experienced in one day. On our first major walk our throbbing thighs confirm the roller-coaster terrain of Auckland which rests on 49 volcanic...

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New Zealands Subterranean World of Waitoma

New Zealands Subterranean World of Waitoma

By Irene Butler – Photos by Rick - Our Waitomo Caves Photo Gallery - We get up extra early, aim our rental car and head out from Rotorua to the hilly Waitomo region. On the scenic 2 ½ hour drive we drive through verdant valleys, past fields of corn and flocks of grazing sheep and herds of grass mulching cattle. It boggles my mind knowing that underneath the hills of Waitomo region are 300 known limestone caves, and we are excited to see the caves that are open to the public that go by the same name as the...

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Festive Season Fiji Style

Festive Season Fiji Style

by Irene Butler – Click Our Fiji Photo Gallery – A whole month in Fiji! How “bula” is that! After a solo press trip to this tropical paradise a few years ago, my husband Rick made me promise we would come back together someday – and here we are! A fine start is settling into our clean, cozy room at Jetset Accommodation in New Town on Vita Levu (the largest of the Fiji’s 333 islands). This is to be our home base for the month. After a refreshing dip in the hotel’s pool, we walk a block to Wailoaloa...

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Skyscrapers Souqs and Sandscapes of Qatar

Skyscrapers Souqs and Sandscapes of Qatar

By Irene Butler - Since tales of Aladdin swept my imagination away on a magic carpet in grade school, my desire to journey through the Arabian Peninsula has not waned. Sixty years later, I am to realize this dream. My husband Rick and I arrive in Qatar, the small country that jets into the Arabian Sea like a thumb off Saudi Arabia’s border, to discover how this culture steeped in tradition has melded with modernity. Continue reading Senior Living Magazine Visit our Qatar Photo Gallery

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Transylvania – A Melding of History and Lore

Transylvania – A Melding of History and Lore

by Irene Butler.- Published in Travel Lady Magazine - I have long been intrigued by Romania’s mysterious folklore. Images flash through my mind of free-spirited Roma (gypsies) moving across the countryside, gifted with musical abilities and with psychic powers to tell fortunes or bring on a curse. The very word Transylvania sends a shiver down my spine, and blood curdling images of haunted castles and fanged creatures. My husband Rick and I are ready to find the historical threads in the folklore. We leave by train from Bucharest to Transylvania – one of the largest and most picturesque regions in...

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