About Briar
Briar Jensen is a Sydney-based freelance travel writer. Her blog covers travel tips, reviews, insights and inspiration, travel accessories and gadgets.
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Love this sculpture called Waitukei, by Lyonel Grant in the Government Gardens @rotoruanz depicting the melding of Maori and European cultures. The male and female figures took over two years to craft from bronze. @purenewzealand @escapesnaps #rotoruanzMud volcanoes, sulphur pools, boiling water, bubbling mud and spitting lakes @hellsgatenz in @rotoruanz has it all. It’s not surprising it is named #hellsgate and it’s important to stay on the path. However, you can experience the ‘health-giving’ mud and healing waters at their Mud Spa. #rotoruanz #geothermal #astw_inc @escapesnapsWhen you fly to White Island, New Zealand with @volcanicairnz for an extra $100 you can include a stop on Mt Tarawera too. This mountain was split open in the 1886 eruption, leaving gaping wounds in the harsh, dry mountain top. Barren and beautiful, it is pretty windy up there! @rotoruanz #rotoruanz #mttaraweraWhite Island, off shore from New Zealand’s North Island, is an active volcano (apparently there were 183 earthquakes recorded in a 24 hour period last week) that you can visit by air or sea. Today I flew out to #whiteislandnz from #rotoruanz with @volcanicairnz in a helicopter. We landed on the island and spent about an hour wandering around the stark sulphur encrusted landscape and steaming crater lake. What an incredible trip, and remarkable topography. #activevolcano @rotoruanz @purenewzealand @escapesnaps #astw_incZip lining guides have a knack of pushing your boundaries. Here I am before the gorgeous girls at @rotoruacanopytours had me plunging backwards off this platform to zip backwards through the forest! (I look way calmer than I felt.) What I love about this tour is the conservation aspect. Between zipping through the trees they teach you about the forest and the native birds, along with their pest eradication program. An exhilarating and educational few hours. @escapesnaps @rotoruanz @purenewzealandWhat is this? Looks a bit like a flying saucer from a Sci-fi movie. But it is one of many art installations st @treewalknz in #rotoruanz Nightlights light up the redwoods for a magical experience in the forest after dark. If you don’t like heights, it’s a good time to visit, as you can’t see how high the suspended walkways are above the ground! @rotoruanz @escapesnaps #treewalknz- My Tweets
Category Archives: Australia
Wonderful Western Sydney
Lately I’ve been touring Western Sydney, gathering stories for articles, and I’ve been blown away by the diversity of experiences and attractions available for every age group and type of visitor, from thrill seekers, to nature lovers and history buffs. … Continue reading
Toe-tapping retro fashion fun in the Blue Mountains
Love retro fashions? Like a bit of toe-tapping on the dance floor? Enjoy lingering with friends over delicious regional food and wine? Then you’ll love the Roaring 20s Festival. Held in Sydney’s Blue Mountains this year’s event takes place on … Continue reading
Posted in Australia, Events, Fashion, festivals, Food & Wine, New South Wales, Sydney
Tagged Blue Mountains, Blue Mountains Vintage Cadillacs, Charleston Challenge, Charleston for Charity, Charlotte Smith Collection, Charlotte Smith Fashion Collection, Dress up, fashion, festivals, Food and Wine, Hydro Majestic, Hydro Majestic Long Lunch, Plate Up, retro fashion, roaring 20s, Roaring 20s fashions, Roaring 20s Festival, vintage cadillacs
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Sydney’s QVB turns 120 – share your story to win
Since moving to Sydney 20-odd years ago I’ve come to love the elegant Queen Victoria Building, which occupies and entire city block. But like many of the shoppers and commuters that pass through her colonnaded walkways and underground passageways, I’ve … Continue reading
Whale of a tale – on Australia’s Gold Coast
Sometimes the tale behind an image is as breathtaking as the image itself – this time literally so. I was enthralled by the image on the cover of the latest issue of Where* Gold Coast magazine this month. The juxtaposition of … Continue reading
Posted in Animals, Australia, Photography, Travel
Tagged Blue Dog Photography, Gold Coast, humpback whales, photography courses, whales
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Do Sydney’s Great North Walk one leg at a time
Fancy tackling the Great North Walk from Sydney to Newcastle, but don’t have the time to do the full 260km in one thru-hike and/or a bit nervous of getting lost along the way? That’s exactly how I felt. Billed as Australia’s … Continue reading
Posted in Australia, Events, Great North Walk, Hawkesbury, National Parks, New South Wales, Travel, Walking
Tagged Day hikes, day walks Sydney, Great North Walk, national parks
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Event: Sydney Tomato Festival Royal Botanic Garden
Love tomatoes? Then mark the Sydney Tomato Festival in your diary for this weekend 20-21st February 2016 – to be held at The Royal Botanic Garden Sydney. I didn’t realise Sydney had a Tomato Festival, so I’m disappointed to know I’ve … Continue reading
Postcard of the week – Outback recycling
I love this shot of a battered XXXX Gold beer can attached to a fence in the middle of the Australian outback. I hope someone enjoyed consuming its icy-cold contents before it was re-purposed to dangle like an earring on … Continue reading
Posted in Accommodation, Adventure, Australia, Northern Territory, Outback, Postcards, Road Trips, Travel
Tagged accommodation, Kings Creek Station, outback, Quad biking, XXXX Gold
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