Trip to New Zealand (March/April 2018)

New Zealand is nicknamed the "Last Paradise on Earth." I was wondering if it is true.

Kristin and I had a privilege of taking a 14-day escorted trip to visit both North and South Islands of New Zealand. We joined the Grand Pacific Tours program that started from Christchurch in South Island and traveled through almost all major parts of both islands to finish the tour in Auckland. Some people continued their journey to the Bay of Island for a couple more days, which we decided to skip. During and after the trip, we both were fascinated by the wonderful beauty of this country, despite some challenges of its own to overcome.

New Zealand has a population of 4.7 million. Of this, 1.4 million live in Auckland and another half a million people live in Wellington, the capital. New Zealand consists of two main islands, North Island and South Island, and a total of 600 small islands, including Cook Islands. North Island has approximately 3.7 million inhabitants while the South Island 1.0 million. The ethnic mix is now European descent accounting for 74% and Maori people 15% of the total population. But, the Maori culture still remains strong.

New Zealand is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, a voluntary association of 53 sovereign nations. Located 1,500 km east from Australia, New Zealand maintains a friendly competitive relationship with Australia.

At present, New Zealand is under the women leadership. The prime minister is 37 year old and pregnant. Chief Justice is a woman. Mayor of Christchurch is a woman. The governor of New Zealand is a woman. Wow...!!!

New Zealand's national bird is Kiwi, a flightless bird native to New Zealand. It is nocturnal and can rarely be found in the wild during the day time. It lays large eggs compared to its size. It is this Kiwi bird that makes the nick name of New Zealand people Kiwis.

Many people tend to think of Kiwifruit or Kiwi when people hear of the people Kiwi, but Kiwifruit is native to China's Yantz River. It was introduced to New Zealand by missionaries and became exportable fruits in New Zealand. However, China remains the largest producer of this fruit with 56% of the world's production in 2016.

We began our tour in Christchurch, drove around both South and North Islands to finish in Auckland only after driving around the beautiful nation for 13 days. We both were amazed by the beauty of New Zealand, particularly South Island.

The coach captain was Geoff. He was driving the coach, providing all guides and making all arrangements with accommodation and restaurants. Wow...! He was the best tour manager I have ever experienced. I rarely give a 10 rating to anyone, but he was the first one who received it from me in our final evaluation.

We felt so blessed to take part in this tour. - Jeffrey