I see you've played knifey spooney before...

Hello friends and family!

Happy Easter everyone, hope you're having a great long weekend. I am in beautiful Queenstown, where it is busy and bustling and crazy. It is quite a different way to spend easter.

Anyway this post is dedicated to Kyle, who probably uses the post quote most often.

I have been buying kiwis like a fiend. When I visited Libby (Thank you again Libby!!!) she picked up a basket of Golden Kiwi fruit and with it came the Kiwi Spoon. The kiwi spoon is a hybrid between a knife and a spoon, hence knifey-spooney. One end you use to cut the kiwi, and the other end you use to eat the kiwi. I am now collecting the spife or kiwi spoon to bring home several. I don't know why, but they never fail to make me smile. So, if you too would like a spife please let me know. Firstly because it justifies my bulk purchases of kiwis, and second because I will horde them all if you don't tell me!

So what do I have planned for Queenstown you may ask (now that my kiwi fruit rant is over), I don't know. I went to visitor information today and was overwhelmed with the wide variety of possibilities. I'm thinking of white water rafting, jet boating, going to Milford Sound and maybe even bungie. Tomorrow I will decide, but you wont know what I chose until Sunday when I post about my adventures!

Hope you all have a great Easter!

Heather!

Flat is a relative term

Well I've been keeping myself not too busy. Every so often you just need to take it slow, and I am.

I spent a couple of days in Invercargill. It rained the first day and was freezing, but the second day it was just freezing so I checked out the garden and a bit of the museum where they have replicas of the motorcycle the Indian that holds the land speed record. Some of you may know it from the Anthony Hopkins movie Worlds Fastest Indian. As I travelled through both I dodged parents with young screaming kids who haven't even had their easter sugar yet.

Right now I'm on Stewart Island, and while my first impressions of it are that its beautiful, there is also a lot of rain. Hopefully it will clear up a bit tomorrow but I think I'll survive if it doesn't. I did a bit of a soaking wet hike today which was pretty but I didn't see many birds and just about fell off the trail. Oh rain, how you make trail conditions terrible.

The trail brings me to my title. When I arrived in Stewart Island I asked at the visitor centre about hikes. The lady pointed out a couple she thought I might like and suggested that I went on this one to start because "it was the flat part of the island". Amie I know has a different definition of flat than I do, probably because coming from Manitoba she knows what is to live somewhere very flat. Kiwi's have a real weird definition of flat. If you are on a trail, and at several points you require STAIRS to get up the hill, this is not flat. This is not even close to flat. Dear New Zealand, I love it here, but please stop getting my foolish Ontario hopes up when you describe trails to me.

Those are my adventures for today. I will take some time to back fill if it is raining tomorrow, but for now I need to investigate this whole dinner angle.

Lots of love from Down Under!

Penguins and other realised dreams

You all knew it was coming up eventually. The time when I travelled far enough into the south to encounter my all time favourite flightless friends! Also before I rant too much more I'd like to say, I'm not alone!! I have spent the past two days in a little town called Oamaru (pronouce it like its french and you're getting close!). It is also know as the the Whitestone town as it has many buildings that are about 150 years old made from beautiful white limestone. It has a beautiful historic victorian type feel which it takes great pride in and every summer is host to a Steam Punk Fashion Show. More importantly in my opinion is the towns other main tourist attraction. Penguins. There is a colony of Hoiho or yellow eyed penguins not too far from the main city on Bushy Beach and if you're lucky in the evenings you can see them make their way into shore anytime after 4pm. They climb up the steep banks beside the ocean and roost for the evening in the native bush. Oamaru is the furthest north these shy birds will nest, and the colony has faced many hardships from loss of native coastal bush and (like every other flightless bird) invasive predators. Closer to town and the heart are the Blue Penguins. The smallest penguin species in the world they only stand about 25cm tall. Cute and cuddly though they appear they have a fierce attack when threatened and will use beak, wing and claw to fight off anything from feral cats to people. Sadly you are not permitted to take photos of these little ones coming in but they're beauty and grace (yes grace) can't really be captured by the likes of me with a point and shoot anyway. Last night I got to watch as almost 40 penguins came in from their day at sea. They ride the waves like pro body surfers and as it crashes onto shore they jump upright and waddle their way up to the rocky beach. Once out of the reach of the waves they sit preening and cooling off. They travel between 50 and 60km a day to hunt and right now are busy getting fat for their winter moult. When they feel cool enough, they jump and waddle along the rocks to their nesting sites. There is a ramp in place for them, but some like a challenge and would jump from boulder to boulder. Sometimes it looked like they reached above their heads to hook their flippers on the rock and pull themselves up. I could actually go on and on with Penguin facts but I'll try to save those for when your in person and I can watch you edge away. The town is Penguin crazy, every shop has stuffed penguins, and penguin art/shirts/art/tea bag trays/hats I could easily decorate my entire home with penguin art from this town. While I don't have any pictures of the little birds themselves, I'll post pictures later from my hostel (the Red Kettle) which has penguin themed decor. I am quite at home here and happy to have spent a few days recovering from my other adventures in penguin paradise. As to my other realised dreams, on April 11 2011 I became the pround owner of my own Ashford Spinning wheel and all necessary accessories and supplies. I was (unsuprisingly) the youngest lady in the store by a score of years and got great service from the helpful staff at the Ashford Village. There is a lot of support for a young person getting into handicrafts here, not just because they are trying to part you from your money, but because they believe in tradition and like to see them carried on. The hardest part in my opinion will be leaving the wheel at home when I return to school in the fall. I purchased a double treadle wheel called The Traveller. It was recomended over the single treadle because you can use it easily with either foot and if you're really getting into it, it is easier on the hips. I also picked up some sliver (or Roving) of New Zealand Merino and a Merino Silk blend. While many people recomend the coriedale for beginners, the merino drafts more easily and makes a beautiful soft wool you can wear next to the skin. Watch for hand spun and knit projects coming at you in the following year! Tomorrow I make my way from Oamaru to Dunedin and perhaps later today I will do a fill in post about what happened between March 24th and April 13th. I didn't realise it has been so long since I had made a post on here! Hope everyone is enjoying Spring at home. Fall here has been wonderful!