A Mansion Has Many Rooms

According to local legend, this mansion house was transported to it’s current hilltop location in four sections, sometime in the 1980’s. Allegedly, the farmer who owned the house and property, had intended to renovate the mansion, making it the family home. With spectacular 360 views of the surrounding countryside, it’s obvious as to why. Apparently though, soon […]

Turuturu Mokai

“Turuturu Mokai” is one of the oldest fortifications built by Maori in New Zealand and was fought over during the Taranaki Land Wars of the 1860s. Situated just outside the South Taranaki town of Hawera, it was once a former public reserve and popular playground. However, in recent years the Ngati Tupaia controlled reserve has […]

Newgrange

Ireland, 2001: Newgrange (Irish: Sí an Bhrú) is a prehistoric monument in County Meath, Ireland, about one kilometre north of the River Boyne. It was built about 3200 BC,during the Neolithic period, which makes it older than both Stonehenge and the Egyptian pyramids. Newgrange is a large circular mound with a stone passageway and chambers […]

Carpe Diem

December 2013: This former high school closed in 2007, and despite more than $85,000 spent on security since, fed-up residents have arranged patrols after systematic vandalism and theft. A poster in one of the classrooms ironically proclaims “seize the day”- yeah right… The New Zealand Government is currently trying to offload 52 closed schools. Doing […]

Portals

New Zealand, Dec 2013: This series of abandoned railway tunnels, almost look like portals to another dimension…

Amal

South Lebanon, 2005: Came across this man while driving around South Lebanon in late 2005. He was atop of the local Amal Billboard, changing the ragged Amal flags for new ones. His brother was one of the “martyrs’ featured in the mural. Thankfully he and his friends were ok with me taking photos, after the […]

Deserviced

Prison

One of New Zealand’s oldest prison’s has finally closed its doors- after well over a century of use. It’s current status is deemed earthquake prone and too expensive to maintain. Now decommissioned, it’s listed as a category 1 historic building and land-banked for Treaty of Waitangi settlements…

The Hunter

Wairarapa, NZ, yesterday: Met this young local hunter at the beginning of the Rimutaka Rail Trail yesterday. He was pretty quiet at first, then opened up and gave me a detailed breakdown of the lay of the land ahead. With his four pig dogs- GPS collars around their necks- he was heading off-trail into the […]