Spring in the Valley

Winter came late to the Hudson Valley, waiting until January to really get started, and then striking really hard with some really big snow storms. It snowed and rained all the way into April, and then the sky seemed to clear. Spring came to the valley in the course of what seemed like a few days. The tulips survived the deer with a little help.


Most of the land in the valley was part of the Livingston land grant, and it has been preserved in orchards bearing Apples, Cherries, and other fruits. Many of the farmers grow their produce, fruit, and livestock with organic methods. We thought for a while that the Organic label was just a way to paste a higher price on the food, but once you taste an organic tomato you can't go back. Well, at least you can tell the difference in the middle of the winter when someone brings you a tomato that's been shipped in a rail car from Mexico.

Kathy and I have met Jeff Gimmel, the chef at Swoon Kitchenbar in Hudson, NY. Jeff is determined to use the local supplies from the organic farms in the area, and when matched with his culinary skill, the result is outstanding. I had the opportunity to make the rounds with Jeff as he went to his suppliers on a Thursday morning. As we drove south from Hudson, the cherry trees were in bloom and the trees had been recently trimmed. The branches on the ground were loaded with flowers. The whole field glowed.

With the bloom of spring come more changes for us. We are about to hire a contractor to renovate the house, and we have rented a house within a couple of miles for the duration so a move is afoot. I retired from IBM at the end of April, so I am onto the next thing in my career. With spring comes the promise of all things new.

Returning Home

Hi all - it's been a whirlwind three weeks and we can't believe it's over.

New Zealand was the most gorgeous country I've ever been to date and one we will definitely be going back to someday. An incredible vista around every corner - from air, road or sea. We packed a lot into our 9 days there. You heard about Auckland and Marlborough in the last update. Queenstown is where we spent the remaining 4 days and it was beyond compare.

The beauty of the surroundings made us feel God's presence every moment of the day and night. In addition to being one of the places Peter Jackson did a lot of filming for Lord of the Rings (we got to stand on Middle Earth!!), it's a place where lots of crazy folks come to do their extreme sports - gliding off mountain tops, bungy jumping off bridges, luging down steep inclines, jumping out of planes, etc. We took pictures of all that insanity but the boldest we got was a speedy (and sometimes wet!) jet boat ride up and down the Dart River in Glenorchy. We also took a scenic ride to Milford Sound and back in a tiny little plane - swerving through mountains, glaciers and over the bluest waters you've ever seen. Yours truly did just fine in the co-pilot's seat - giving David hope that I will be able to go flying with him when he completes his pilot training.

In Milford Sound we took a cruise through the amazing glacially formed fiordland and were greeted by many seals and a huge pod of Dusky Dolphins. We met some great people along the way and enjoyed the fresh seafood and incredible wines every chance we could. We took a ride to the other side of Lake Waitapitu on the TSS Earnslaw Steam Ship and rode the gondola up to the top of one of the Remarkable Range mountains (where the paragliders jump off!!) and back down.

David honed his wrong-side-of-the-road driving skills as we drove off to historic Arrowtown (main site of New Zealand's gold rush) and the Otego valley wineries who specialize in Pinot Noir (our favorite!) Since David was driving he just tasted but we brought back some to the room for later indulgence :-)

Last night we spent a wonderful evening back in Sydney at the Park Hyatt right on the water near (under!) the Harbor Bridge. It was romantic and a nice way to end this fabulous honeymoon. Now we await our 20+ hours of flying - back through Tahiti to New York. Hope all is well with you and your families and we'll talk to you all soon.

Marlborough NZ

Hi all - All's well with the traveling Jacksons. We're about to leave for Queenstown but we had a marvelous time in wine country and catching a bit of email from the airport internet connection. We had our own villa all to ourselves here with two full bedrooms and baths, a kitchen, BBQ, laundry, etc. It came at the right time for us to refresh all the clothes so we have something to wear on the next part of our journey!

We had great fun visiting the wineries here - it is very hard to leave as we know we can't get many of them in the US yet - some they only sell here at their "cellar doors". The people have been so nice and the food organic, fresh and some of the best we've had in addition to sauvignon blanc and pinot noirs to die for.



David is a practised wrong side of the road driver now after our drive through Picton, Havelock, Nelson and Richmond. We did a full loop - on the way out admiring the amazing Marlborough Sounds - it's stunning beaches, inlets, etc and through the mountains on the way back . It was a very special day!!

Lots and lots of pictures coming when we get back home. I might need two websites!!!! We realize of course that we have much more to see here that we just didn't have time for so if any of you are planning your own NZ adventures, count us in - once we recover from this one!!!