Tag Archives: New Zealand

bureaucrats who have no imagination

Posted on October 16, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

I am a big fan of New Zealand and of its most resilient city Christchurch. However, I was disappointed to learn this week that the Christchurch city council has eliminated the job of official Wizard and axed the legendary Ian … Continue reading →

Posted in Tourism | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Song of the Open Road

Posted on October 7, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

Feeling wistful and nostalgic these days for the open road. What better poet to capture the way of the road than Walt Whitman. Song of the Open Road, 4 The earth expanding right hand and left hand, The picture alive, … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Tourism, Writing | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

We Are Here

Posted on June 7, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

In case it may have slipped your notice, I have a bit of a thing for New Zealand, or Aotearoa as the Māori  people call it. I recently stumbled upon We Are Here which is an atlas of Aotearoa – … Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Books, Maps | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Stop Dreaming About New Zealand

Posted on May 13, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

Those of you who stop by TBTP on a regular basis know that I am inordinately interested in clever travel and tourism promotional campaigns. So of course I fell for this new video from Tourism New Zealand (below). While New … Continue reading →

Posted in Film, Tourism | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

Goin’ Mobile beep, beep

Posted on February 28, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

If you land on TBTP on a regular basis, you know how I feel about bookmobiles, traveling libraries, and itinerant bookstores. So, you won’t be surprised by these two stories about mobile booksellers from opposite sides of the globe. I … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Bookstore Tourism, USA | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Telling Stories About Heroes

Posted on February 7, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

I was dead chuffed to stumble upon the wonderful short film “Troll Bridge” which was based on an original short story of the same name by the late great Terry Pratchett. Directed by Daniel Knight, the movie was created after … Continue reading →

Posted in Animation, Books, Film, movies, Tourism, Writing | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Under the Social Influence

Posted on January 28, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

By now you have probably noticed that I’m a sucker for a clever travel/tourism campaign. So it will be no surprise that I fell hard to this clever video from New Zealand urging travelers to stop repeating stereotypical photos they … Continue reading →

Posted in Air Travel, Film, Photography, Tech, Tourism | Tagged , , | 3 Comments

across those borders where only teachers travel

Posted on January 16, 2021 by Brian D. Butler

WOODWORK Bill Manhire Children are building their teacher a coffin. There it is in the paper, somewhere in Holland, a good plain coffin made of many parts, and two of the children call each day and talk to the teacher … Continue reading →

Posted in Books, Writing | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Forest of Hope

Posted on December 21, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

I spent November 2019 in New Zealand and had hoped to be back again this year, but the Covid-19 pandemic ended that notion. Still, I hold out some hope to return to Aotearoa sometime in 2021. In the meantime, New … Continue reading →

Posted in Asia, Tourism | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Is nostalgia a coping mechanism

Posted on November 6, 2020 by Brian D. Butler

As I was attempting to deal with the overwhelming political anxiety of this fraught time in the United States, I chose to fall back on my go to method of diversion: travel nostalgia. It’s hard to believe that I haven’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Air Travel, Maps, Tourism | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment