Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

Their boy Ron is an empty plastic cup that will never know pudding.

This really is a full service blog.

Donald Trump, welcome to your everything, everywhere, all at once.

There is one struggling party in US right now, and it’s not the Democrats.

We are builders in a constant struggle with destroyers. keep building.

Is it negotiation when the other party actually wants to shoot the hostage?

Republicans seem to think life begins at the candlelight dinner the night before.

We won’t go back.

“The difference between stupidity and genius is that genius has its limits.”

Conservatism: there are people the law protects but does not bind and others who the law binds but does not protect.

Republicans are radicals, not conservatives.

Republicans don’t want a speaker to lead them; they want a hostage.

You know it’s bad when the Project 2025 people have to create training videos on “How To Be Normal”.

You can’t attract Republican voters. You can only out organize them.

Republicans: slavery is when you own me. freedom is when I own you.

When you’re in more danger from the IDF than from Russian shelling, that’s really bad.

“Joe Biden deserved better than he got from some folks in his own party.”

If ‘weird’ was the finish line, they ran through the tape and kept running.

Tide comes in. Tide goes out. You can’t explain that.

The US Supreme Court is on the ballot in november.

Republicans in disarray!

You come for women, you’re gonna get your ass kicked.

No offense, but this thread hasn’t been about you for quite a while.

Let me file that under fuck it.

You are here: Home / Archives for Photo Blogging / On The Road / New Zealand

New Zealand

On The Road – Dagaetch – World Tour Part 5D – New Zealand

by | 16 Comments

This post is in: , ,

Dagaetch

After three weeks in the South Island of New Zealand, I took the ferry over to Wellington. Cool city. I had around a week on the North Island before I was flying out, which wasn’t enough time to see everything, but I still hit up a few highlights! One thing I did not do was visit the Lord of the Rings Hobbiton set. I love those movies and the scenery, but am happy leaving them as part of my imagination.

While I have several hundred photos of NZ that I would happily share, I think we’ll stop here :). Coming up next – Australia!

On The Road - Dagaetch - World Tour Part 5D - New Zealand 6
somewhere, NZ

This happened a few times! Sometimes the sheep need to get somewhere, and that’s okay. Just a fact of life. Oh and yes, in New Zealand they drive on the other side of the road (from the US). I was a little nervous about that, but it turned out that with the steering wheel on the other side of the car, it felt surprisingly natural. I think I only had one ‘oops!’ moment.

On The Road – Dagaetch – World Tour Part 5D – New ZealandPost + Comments (16)

On The Road – Dagaetch – World Tour Part 5C – New Zealand

by | 21 Comments

This post is in: , ,

Dagaetch

At this point I don’t know how much more there is to say about New Zealand, I’m mostly just “look, pretty!”. But that was the largest part of my experience. I poked my head in various museums and cultural landmarks, wandered a few cities, and met some people (mostly other travelers). But my memories are largely about the scenery. And that was fairly intentional. Pretty scenery is my happy place, so when I’m traveling for myself, that’s what I’m going to gravitate towards.

On The Road - Dagaetch - World Tour Part 5C - New Zealand 4
Purakaunui Falls, Catlins, NZ

More waterfalls! If my Google Maps timeline is correct, this is Purakaunui Falls. I do remember that that it was a short walk from the car park, and about 5 minutes after I took this photo, the sun moved and the scene was ruined (in a photographic sense). It was also a surprisingly crowded place, and this is one of the few frames I have without a person in view.

On The Road – Dagaetch – World Tour Part 5C – New ZealandPost + Comments (21)

On The Road – Dagaetch – World Tour Part 5B – New Zealand

by | 21 Comments

This post is in: , ,

Dagaetch

I love New Zealand. I love New Zealand. Can I tell you how much I love New Zealand? THIS MUCH. Seriously. In the 3 weeks that I drove around the South Island, there was not a single day that I didn’t come across a scene that had me smiling wide. It was, quite simply, phenomenal. And there is a part of me that doesn’t want to go back, because I’m afraid I wouldn’t ever leave, and…uh…there’s probably some reason I couldn’t do that, but you’ll have to remind me later.

On The Road - Dagaetch - World Tour Part 5B - New Zealand 7
somewhere, NZ

Not a clue where I was. Just another vista by the road, with beautiful skies.

On The Road – Dagaetch – World Tour Part 5B – New ZealandPost + Comments (21)

On The Road – Dagaetch – World Tour Part 5A – New Zealand

by | 30 Comments

This post is in: , ,

Dagaetch

After two months in Southeast Asia, I was eager to get out of large cities, away from the crowds and the heat and the noise. New Zealand had always been the next intended destination. I was able to find a flight that, with a brief layover in Singapore, took me to Christchurch on the south island.

Whenever I get asked if I had a favorite place from this trip, without hesitation, I will immediately say New Zealand. The natural beauty is simply beyond comparison. I spent a month there with a rental car, driving around, and…I still miss it, honestly. I enjoyed almost all of my destinations on this trip, but NZ is the one place that I would go back to without a single moment of hesitation or even planning. And I’m making you all relive it with me over the next four posts :).

On The Road - Dagaetch - World Tour Part 5A - New Zealand 8
outside Christchurch, NZ

I spent a couple of days in Christchurch getting my legs under me, arranging a rental car for the next month, and generally adjusting to a very different environment. While there, I connected with a local photographer through a shared forum, and he was kind enough to drive me around to some favorite spots and give me some tips on where to go. This image, one of the first I took in NZ, was a most excellent start to my time.

On The Road – Dagaetch – World Tour Part 5A – New ZealandPost + Comments (30)

On The Road – Albatrossity – New Zealand – #5

by | 30 Comments

This post is in: , , ,

Albatrossity

Final day of this New Zealand adventure, and today is more seabirds, shorebirds, and waterbirds. Map here.

On The Road - Albatrossity - New Zealand - #5 9
Okarito LagoonJanuary 1, 2016

The White Heron (Ardea modesta, kotuku) is considered by some authorities to be a subspecies of the cosmopolitan Great Egret (A. alba), but New Zealand ornithologists are notorious “splitters” and have given it species status. And there are some morphological and behavioral differences to support that decision. They are a critically endangered species in New Zealand, with one known breeding site (approximately 30 pairs of birds) in the Okarito lagoon. After the breeding season they disperse widely across the country, but since there are less than 200 of these birds in the entire population, your best bet for seeing one is to go to Okarito and take a leisurely boat tour of the lagoon.

On The Road – Albatrossity – New Zealand – #5Post + Comments (30)

On The Road – Albatrossity – New Zealand #4

by | 19 Comments

This post is in: , , ,

Albatrossity

The birds of the oceans around New Zealand have not been nearly as impacted by humans as the land birds, although that is changing rapidly as humans begin to impact the oceans more and more. It is still possible to see lots of seabirds, shorebirds, and waterfowl there, and some of them are unique to that country. Since I live in a part of the country that hasn’t had beachfront property for the past 70 million years, I really enjoy seeing seabirds when I get the chance. And New Zealand offers you lots of chances, so this post and tomorrow’s post will feature just a few of those.

Map here.

On The Road - Albatrossity - New Zealand - #4 9
Stewart IslandDecember 27, 2015

There are 22 species of albatross in the world, and 16 of these have been seen in New Zealand waters. I’ve seen six of them there, so obviously I have some work to do. One of the most spectacular is the Northern Royal Albatross (Diomedea sanfordi), a New Zealand endemic species. The Maori name for this species, and for all the other species of albatrosses, is toroa. When one of these approaches the boat, that 3 m (10 ft) wingspan gets your attention. This one was near Stewart Island, in the company of these two White-capped Albatrosses (aka Shy Albatross depending on which taxonomic authority you subscribe to), which have a wingspan of 8 ft, but obviously are much smaller than their huge Wandering companion.

On The Road – Albatrossity – New Zealand #4Post + Comments (19)

On The Road – Albatrossity – New Zealand #3

by | 19 Comments

This post is in: , , ,

Albatrossity

It is often said, and not entirely in jest, that if you drop your camera in New Zealand and it accidentally takes a picture, the picture will be stunning. There are indeed some beautiful landscape photo opportunities in that country, and although none of these were the result of a dropped camera, I hope you enjoy them anyway!

Map of places mentioned in today’s post.

On The Road - Albatrossity - New Zealand - #3 9
Road to Arthur's PassDecember 31, 2015

The Southern Alps run down the spine of the South Island, and dominate the scenery in much of it. This is a view on the road from Christchurch to the west coast of that island, via Arthur’s Pass, Midsummer snow is still on much of the alpine landscape, and a glacial river valley is in the foreground.

On The Road – Albatrossity – New Zealand #3Post + Comments (19)