Karen Toh's Travel Blog: To Middle-Earth and Back Again!

New Zealand is the gateway to Middle-Earth, a fictional land created by author J.R.R. Tolkien, and made famous by Peter Jackson when he filmed the Lord of the Rings Trilogy in his homeland.

Photo Image © Karen Toh

New Zealand, located in the south-western pacific ocean and comprises of a North Island and South Island. Its first settlers were Eastern Polynesian whose descendents later evolved into a distinct culture known as Māori. From 1840, increasing numbers of European settlers landed in New Zealand, starting trade with the Maori, but as the number of settlers increased, conflicts over land began, leading to the New Zealand Land Wars, resulting in loss of much of the Maori land.

New Zealand South Island is the bigger of the two islands and is divided along its length by the Southern Alps, the highest peak of which is Aoraki/Mount Cook. The North Island, although less mountainous than the South, is marked by volcanism. The highest North Island volcanic mountain is Mount Ruapehu, which is still active. In terms of sights, the north is more cultural, while the South is more picturesque. 


New Zealand’s is now a popular location for filming, and was used in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and the Last Samurai. Wellington (or lovingly called Wellywood) now has a growing community of film production talent.

I had previously visited just the south island with my parents and another couple in 1993, and this time, I wanted to cover both islands, and planned a trip with my friends, Rosalind.

P.S. Please note that some of the images in this blog are from http://en.wikipedia.org/. However, all other images are copyrighted © 2007, Karen Toh Guek Bee, and can be viewed at my Webshots Community Album. You can also read my other Travel Blogs here.Travel Blog References
· Contents compiled and written by Karen Toh Guek Bee.
· Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/

Photography Images:
· Copyright © 2007, Karen Toh Guek Bee, http://community.webshots.com/user/karentoh/.
· Courtesy of Wikipedia.com, http://en.wikipedia.org/