11 May - Happy Mother's Day!

Ngā mihi me te aroha nui mō te Rā o te Whaea! (Love and best wishes for Mother's Day)

Dick and I have gotten out a few times to experience some Wellington life. Last Friday night we went to Zealandia at nightfall on a guided tour in hopes of hunting down the small spotted brown kiwi. We saw three! It was too dark for decent pictures of them, but it was great to seem them in the bush. We also saw several kaka (one of three native parrots of NZ) and tuataras (dinosaur-aged reptiles in a phylum all their own, found only in NZ).  It was a beautiful night.

Zealandia at dusk.

Zealandia is an eco-restoration project just outside the city of Wellington. Before the arrival of humans, New Zealand was mammal-free, with the exception of two small bat species. Thus, large flightless birds developed. The largest known bird, the koa, was hunted to extinction. The 225 hectares sanctuary is bordered by a tall, specially designed fence to keep mammal predators out and re-establish native bird populations. It is also home to tuataras, replies dating to the age of dinosaurs that can live 100 years; giant wetas, among the largest insects in the world; and glow worms.

Pied shags

That round ball in the centre is a kiwi :)

Below: what they really look like :)

Saturday night we attended a "social ballroom dance" in town. It has a great mix of Latin and ballroom, and it was so fun to dance again after 4 months! I even won a dance contest, but not the prize I needed: a giant Cadbury Dairy Milk...

On Monday, there was a downpour that stopped just as I was getting ready to walk home from work. On my way home I enjoyed a beautiful, full double-rainbow. I quickly ran in the flat to grab my camera, but when I got back outside, it was gone! So, you will just have to imagine it.

This past Friday Dick and I had a great time joining a bunch of my colleagues for drinks at the Royal, a pub/restaurant on Lambton Quay. It made me feel like a real part of the team. At one point our friend Mark said loudly, "Look at this: I'm sitting between Atul (pronounced "a tool") and a Dick! Good round of laughter, that!

And yesterday Dick surprised me with some pretty mums for Mother's Day. I took a picture of them with our red-leafed back garden tree through the window. It is a beautiful, crisp fall day - we should be out for a walk. Being a bit lazy - I may paint for a while.

Tomorrow I am off early catching a train to Auckland and driving to Hamilton, so I know more scenic pics are on their way...