The Land Down Under - New Zealand

I was away from the blog sphere for quite some time. And when that happens, it means that I'm really occupied with my job because the only chance that I get to blog is during working hours. Year end is really a busy busy time for me with upcoming projects and stuffs. Apart from working hard, I do get some consolations ----> TRAVELING!!

The first destination, i.e., Hadyai, Thailand was mainly a escapade trip with daddy. But overall, we found out that the trip was not as much fun as we thought that it would be. The food and stuffs were pretty expensive and were not what the others described as CHEAP! And we were stuck in the city because there were no other places to visit. Those tourist attractions were practically too far away from the city area which involved hours of traveling. So, we were caught in the city and the only entertainments that we had were the 'Aqua" Cabaret Show and of course, not to miss, The Tiger Show. Everyone used to say that Hadyai is a worth going place because you get to buy a lot of cheap cheap stuffs like crazy but BEG ME PARDON, that is not the truth. 10 years back and it's a YES but definitely not now a days. Prices has gone soaring high. Conclusion, not a really recommended place to go. But of course, on the good side was we get to relax and spend some quality time together without kid.

The second destination was work related because I was sent there with a colleague to attend a conference. Of course, the place was much much more interesting and I can't denied the fact that if it wasn't for my company, I will not be able to go to such beautiful places. I knew that I will never had such opportunity without forking as much as 6-7K just for the flight ticket. And of course, at such age and at the salary I'm earning, I can only dream of going. New Zealand is one of the country in my list that I wish to go and when the opportunity arised, I knew that finally I had the chance.

When people said that New Zealand is a very beautiful country, no doubt that that is the simple truth. From Auckland, we transited to Rotorua, one of the famous tourist attraction state in New Zealand. Coincidently, our conference was held in Rotorua, so we took the opportunity to visit some of the famous places in Rotorua. We took a day tour around Rotorua which involved 5 famous tourist attraction places. The package includes admission fees, lunch and pickup point from our hotel. Below are some pictures taken and they are breathtakingly beautiful especially if you are seeing it with your own eyes.

The Land of Green, a shot taken from plane.

Me in the city area of Rotorua. All shops closes around 5-6 pm.

Rotorua is famous for its geothermal activities.
Above shot is the famous bubbling hot Mud Pool.

First destination of our tour. The Wai-O-Tapu Thermal Wonderland. Just look at how beautiful the scenery behind me.

This is called the Artiste Palate. A combination of different colours in the pool.

It's Sulfur. The yellow thingy.

The famous Champagne Pool.

Me next to the Champagne Pool.

Second destination. The Waimangu Volcanic Valley.

Breathtakingly beautiful!

Nothing can beat the beauty of The Inferno Crater.

Third destination of our tour. The Rainbow Springs. This is where you get to see the endangered species. The trademark of the homeland. KIWIBIRD!

Next destination was The Agrodome.
We were there for the sheep shearing show.

Last but not least, Te Puia. This is where you get to see the famous geyser.
The Pohutu Geyser that erupted 2-3 times in an hour.

Some scenery along the way in the bus during our post symposium field trip.

The famous Mt. Manganui. We had our lunch here.

A stroll along the beach after lunch.

Beautiful combination of mountain and beach.

The Port of Tauranga

This is a scene that captured my heart.

A shot taken during our departure flight.

Many of my friends actually confessed that they envied my job because I do get to travel to many places which is very true. In just a year I had visited places that I can only dream of going previously, i.e., Amsterdam, Belgium...New Zealand....but is it the truth that when they say that the grass on the other side is always greener? I mean yes, I do get to travel to many places but I do have my worries as well on the other side. God knows how much I missed my boys during the time I was away from homeland. Given a status of being single, perhaps I will have no issue about traveling. Or what about the peanut salary I'm earning? Will you rather have a high salary that you need not worry about your expenses or a peanut salary but you get to travel around the world on company expenses? A friend of mine said she did rather have my role. Maybe different people on different commitment will have different views. Judge for yourself. But for me, I will still enjoy that traveling experience minus the feeling of missing my boys for as long as I'm in MTC.