Lonely Planet’s Code Green mentions New Zealand….

Two New Zealand businesses, Whale Watch Kaikoura and Footprints Waipoua, have been included in Lonely Planet’s Code Green, a guide to responsible travel experiences.

Travel articles about New Zealand

For those who enjoy reading travel articles as much as I do, here’s a few new ones I found:

Sunday Star Times The untamed waters of Fiordland by Yvonne Martin
NZ Life & Lesiure Central Otago by Amy Kelly
Cuisine Magazine Gourmet Goldmine by Lauraine Jacob

World Bra chain record not broken

And the saga continues. Wanakafest 2006’s attempt to beat the world bra chain record has failed. They did finish up with 5 km of bras, which by any standard is a whole lot of bras. But they were way off the record, which stands at 95 km, achieved earlier this year by the women of Cyprus (they too were raising money for breast cancer awareness.

While not breaking any records, the bra chain provided much entertainment and raised over $10,000 for the Breast Cancer Research Trust.

Local newspaper articles:

Wanaka's world bra record falls well short
Bras end up being on small size
TVNZ video

Bra chain record bid set to fail

101 Must do’s for Kiwis

Just released by the NZ Automobile Association, this domestic tourism campaign aims to get more New Zealanders to stay home and travel their own country. Pick up a map at your local BP station and tick off your ‘have done’s’. An interactive campaign, the AA invites everyone to visit their site and vote on their top experiences. And for those who feel that something was missed out, you can submit your ‘102 must do’.

Earlier this month, another site ,Nzlive, was launched by the Ministry for Culture and Heritage. It provides a one stop site shop for listing of all New Zealand cultural events, festivals, and activities.

The Christchurch Press article Explore Godzone: Just do it …

Krazy Kelvin’s Maori Blog

This looks like a promising site to learn more about Maori culture. Here’s a description of his blog

Haere Mai / Welcome, Even though I have maori blood in me, I am ashamed to say that I know very little about my maori background, so this is going to be a learning experience not only for me but for anyone who reads this blog. It is a culture within itself that is worth sharing - its people; its language; its food; its music & its heritage ! My thoughts & prayers are with you all. Arohanui ! Kakite !

Check it out at http://kknzmaoriblog.blogspot.com/

Looking for good coffee?

If you’re travelling to Christchurch or Wellington and looking for coffee, then check out the New Zealand Coffee Review. It has a collection of café reviews around the two cities (plus a few other places) that can give you idea of where to go. Don’t know who runs it, but you can write your own review if you want.

WOW !! Fashion on display.

The annual Montana World of Wearable Arts Awards Show are being held in Wellington from 21 September to 1 October. This is not to be missed, as innovative and creative New Zealand artists and designers defy gravity, logic and conservative thought to produce eye opening and mind boggling creations.

Meanwhile, up in Auckland, the annual Air New Zealand Fashion Week runs from 19 to 22 September. Featuring the collections of leading New Zealand designers, the show is held at Auckland’s Viaduct Marine Harbor Village.

Eccentric New Zealand - Tirau

This sleepy town at the intersection of SH5 and SH1 between Hamilton and Rotorua has reinvented itself into the ‘corrugated town’. Shops and cafes line both sides of the highway, with corrugated appendages and designs.

Four luxury New Zealand lodges named in Hideaway Report

Andrew Harper’s latest Hideaway Report named 4 NZ lodges in his list of the 20 top Hideaways of the world. They were:

Taupo’s Huka Lodge at #4
Glenorchy’s Blanket Bay at #6
Northland’s Kauri Cliffs at #10
Eichardt’s Private Hotel in Queenstown at #17

Demise of the Bra Fence

What was once a novelty is now causing controversy with the Wanaka Community Board decreeing that the bra fence must be no more. And so the bras must go. But rather than just being thrown away, all bras will be put to good use, as part of an attempt to make the ‘Longest Bra Chain in the world’ to raise money for breast cancer research. As part of WanakaFest 2006, the Breast Cancer Research Trust is calling on women to send in their bras (and a gold coin donation) to help collect the 115,000 bras needed to break the world record.

Where these bras will end up after the festival is up in the air. The ‘bra fence’ will be gone. But there is still the sheep fence surrounding the property….

Imagine New Zealand

Great images of the untouched areas of New Zealand can be found at blogger Rhys Postlewaights' site http://wildnz.blogspot.com/.

The Bra Fence

Most people come to New Zealand for the scenery, the wine, and the adrenalin pumping activities. But according to Edward Readicker-Henderson in his article ‘Uses for dirty Underwear’ (Perceptive Travel Magazine Sept 2006), the only thing he wanted to see was ’the bra fence’.

And he's not the only one. Apparently the Wanaka District authorites have had to spend thousands on road works to ensure the safety of passing motorists who stop to look and photograph this unique farm fence. To find out more about the 'bra fence' check out the Snow Farm website.

Want to spend the night in jail ?

Not something that appeals to most people, especially travellers. But if your visiting Christchurch, you might want to reconsider and check into the former Addington Prison. This 1876 prison has been been transformed into a new hotel called Jailhouse Accommodation.
The prison was closed in 1999 but a few of the cells have been left exactly as they were, complete with prison art on the walls, bunk beds and the basic steel toilet.
Located at 388 Lincoln Road, about 10 minutes from central city, the Jailhouse provides cheap, clean and safe accommodation.