Betsy Carstairs

This is my 1st time visiting the South Island. I have heard so much about Able Tasman Park that this trip down under I will take a week to explore this provincial park. The 1st decision was whether or not to go with a tour company. After a lot of research I picked WIlson Tours as they seemed to have the most supported tour.  This was a good decision. WIlson Tours is the only tour company in t ...

There is so much happening & so many interesting places to go in New Zealand. I have heard that The Great Barrier Island is a must see. This coming weekend just happens to be The Mussel festival there so that will be a fun thing to do. The ferry from ride from down town Auckland to The Greal Barrier Island is 3 hours so that for me will be fun as I love to be out on the water. Mussels are rea ...

2 summers in 2011 will be good. This year I am kick starting my usual winter down under in New Zealand where it is their summer. I am staying in a suburb called Birkenhead  a stones throw from the beach. This morning I took the kayak out for a paddle. Went for a swim at a secluded beach & came back to have a chat with some of the neighbours. It is summer here so the few people that are in tow ...

As I am navigating what dates to go to the desired destinations I had a friend sent me this article on Christchurch. I am now even more excited about going to this city & will make sure I get there for The Busker's Festival. Know the damage from the 2010 earthquake will still be evident but perhaps the debris will just be props for creative improvisation.  Should I fly into Christchurch from ...

The flight to New Zealand on Air New Zealand was a good choice. This is a non stop flight & the seats were quite comfortable. Food was passable but I did bring a few of my own favourites to nibble on the was so I was fine. Leaving @ 19:00 was perfect as I watched a movie read a book & dozed off. The 14 hour flight was only 13.5 hours as we had a strong tail wind so that was good. I will take ...

After very pleasant pre Xmas days of skiing in Whistler BC I am off down under to New Zealand. Christmas in the snow complete with horse drawn sleigh rides & carol singing to swimming on New Years day. Almost feels like I am planning a schizophrenic holiday. This blog I will talk about how to navigate from the mountain to the airport. I decided since snow was a very strong possibility that I ...

There seems to be a lot of confusion as to how the Harmonized Sales Tax applies to house sales so this article from Bell Spagunulo Law firm BASIC INFORMATION ON H.S.T. FOR RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE   H.S.T. has different implications for used residential real estate and new residential real estate. In this part of our website we outline the basic rules regarding H.S.T., and the basic rebat ...

I am a member of a strata council & am well aware of the frustrations & hours of volunteer time it takes to get through meetings effectively. When I read this article in The Vancouver Sun I just had to post   Imagine the 'bully president' seeking peace between the 'spendthrift' and the 'cheapskate'   BY SUZANNE MORPHET, VANCOUVER SUN OCTOBER 23, 2010      One-person plays can be ...

Here is a great article from Gail Vaz-Oxlade on a "new product" a collateral mortgage option offered by the TD Bank. Do not think I will opt for this. Know it gets confusing. Just when you finally find the house of your dreams you think you are home free. This article points out the pit falls of not doing your homework with getting a mortgage that works in your favour not the bank's The New ...

Kayaking on The Indian Arm is a fun sport for me & for some of my friends. One friend in particular Julie Blue decided to have me start her birthday on a kayaking adventure. I picked her up @ 7:00am & as the water was calm as glass off we headed for a paddle up the North Vancouver side of The Arm up past Cascades to just before Brighton Beach when the wind decided to blow up so we headed back ...