Sunset cruise at Airlie Beach

Airlie Beach: Heaven at Whitehaven

Airlie Beach, a small coastal town surrounded on the inland side by sugarcane plantations and cattle ranches, is a destination for two big reasons - the Great Barrier Reef and the Whitsunday Islands. So, not surprisingly, we spent nearly all our daylight hours in Airlie Beach on the water, under the water, or at the..

Brisbane

To tell you about our time in Brisbane (aside from the koalas), we have to start with a really big “thank you” to our friends Robin, Doug, Gavin and Lindsay Hibbard, who are extraordinary hosts. Not only did they pick us up at the airport and share their home with us, Robin was a delightful..

Not the best start

I really didn't think I'd be writing a true trip post this soon. After all, we are in Phase 1--driving to Louisiana and then Texas, which is something we do several times a year. Yet, I think this worthy. Normally, when we make this trip, we avail ourselves of the generous hospitality of our friends..

map of New Zealand

The Plan

The original thought had been a week in Hawaii. But once I realized we had enough airline miles to get us to Oceania and back the decision was kind of a done deal. Flying into Brisbane where our friends live was going to require a layover in Fiji anyway, so we decided to make it..

Tom and Robin

Here we go again

I have one of those digital picture frames, and the photo here pops up sometimes--it is us the day we returned from the 2010 around the world trip--and it stirs my wanderlust. It's been awhile since we've had a chance to do some serious traveling. Something to do with moving across the country three times..