By Jayslyn Saw
Have you ever thought of having a vacation in New Zealand?
If no, let me sincerely tell you one thing – New Zealand is an ideal place for friends and family as a dream vacation, provided that you have enough time and money.
As the saying goes, ‘a picture is worth a thousand words’. Thus, bear with me that this article will contain loads of photos taken in New Zealand!
New Zealand is one of the world’s best places to live and explore. In fact, I would say that New Zealanders are the friendliest people in the world.
You can feel the local joy and experience how benevolent the people there are.
The total flight duration from Malaysia to New Zealand took me around 11 hours and 30 minutes.
Do not worry about the accommodation in New Zealand because you certainly can plan your road trips with a campervan rented there.
Additionally, it has a very pleasant climate and it is a good place for you to escape from the hustle and bustle of the city.
I still remember the season I travelled to New Zealand was spring and there were so many beautiful places and scenery with the impressive pristine beaches, rocky terrains and mountains to explore on my road trips.
New Zealand comprises two main islands, known as North Island and South Island.
The entire vacation took me almost three weeks just for visiting South Island. Can you imagine how big New Zealand is?
During these three weeks, I managed to visit many popular places such as Auckland, Kaikoura, Punakaiki, Otago, Christchurch, Dunedin, Glenorchy, Arrowtown, Wanaka, Twizel and Lake Pukaki.
What Kiwi and Kia ora really mean?
For most people, they would think that Kiwi is a type of brown hairy fruit with green flesh.
However, ‘Kiwi” here refers to the name of the people from New Zealand and it is an icon of their country that symbolises New Zealand’s flightless bird.
Apart from this, if you are thinking to greet people in New Zealand, you can just say ‘Kia ora’ (pronounced as KI-A O-RA) which means ‘Hello’.
Ground yourself to nature
If you are an avid nature lover or hiker, you should never miss the chance of visiting Aroaki or Mount Cook.
It is one of the attractions with the tallest mountain in New Zealand. It is a place with hiking trails and it was so refreshing and relaxing for me when I was there as you could sense a special kind of tranquility and silence with nature.
Besides, Milford Sound is another majestic vista you should experience. It took me approximately 1 hour 43 minutes by car from Te Anau and you can enjoy the fiord by cruise for about one hour.
The whole excursion with the cruise left me with wonderful memories particularly the grand waterfalls, alpine scenery and seal sightings. I am truly blessed to have nice photos with perfect weather in Milford Sound.
World-renowned lake is here!
Lake Tekapo is another magical place for wild flowering lupins. The beautiful lake is amazingly blue with crystal clear water and surrounded with mountainous landscapes.
Furthermore, there is a church named The Church of the Good Shepherd which is situated on the shores of Lake Tekapo.
Visitors are not allowed to use cameras, cell phones or even tablets to take photos inside the church as a sign of respect for their prayers.
So, I just took photos outside of the church as a memory. Before I came here, I had seen many photos of Lake Tekapo’s star gazing – Milky Way being articulated in the Internet.
So I brought along my camera and binocular. Unfortunately, it was raining that evening and I could not witness the galaxy.
Thus, if you have a chance to visit Lake Tekapo and you feel that you will be having the luck to capture those moments, then you should wait until evening just for the stunning shots of Milky Way Galaxy.
There are many things I would like to share with all the readers on the beauty of New Zealand. Perhaps, it would be great if you can start planning a trip there and experience them yourself!
Jayslyn Saw is a lecturer at School of Communication and Media, Han Chiang University College of Communication.
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