News I didn't want to see.

News I'm thrilled to see.

Akaroa French Fest 2007

Yesterday we went down to Akaroa for their annual French Fest. We were joined by our new expat friends, Larry, Raina, and little Nola. You can see the pictures, if you like.

If you'd like to know why Akaroa has an annual French Festival, you should check out this article, which gives a good brief overview of the history of the settlement.

I also found this interesting article from the NY Times about Akaroa.

I included a few pictures of the carpark in Takamatua, where we parked to take the shuttle bus, to provide a sense of proportion. There are probably about 200 cars there--and that's a generous estimate. It was a large crowd by South Island standards.

Also, you'll see there's a map with the pictures, courtesy of the NZ DOC. Christchurch proper is just off the top edge of the map (above where the map says Lyttleton). It's a very pleasant 90 minute drive.

I have to say, the area east of Little River and all the way through to Akaroa is the most beautiful of all the (few) places we've been in NZ. There's a difference in the climate in the valleys, and the area's weather seemed to be about 2 weeks or so ahead of us. It was a lush green, with the trees full of leaves and blooms, and the very much reminded me of the Shenandoah National Park and the Skyline Drive. It's not the same, but anyone who's been down the Skyline Drive on a cool summer day knows the green expanses I mean. The next time we head down to Akaroa, I'll stop along the way to get some pictures.

On a totally unrelated note, cheers to my friend, media mogul John Herman, who won $17,000 worth of home theater equipment! And special cheers to any of you who voted for him in the Makeshifters contest!

Reason #23584

“They told me I was nobody, I was nowhere and I had no rights,” she said. “For the first time, I understood what the deprivation of liberty means.”


Sorry, I've tried not to be political here, but when I see stories like that of Ms. Ghuman or this one, I'm glad to be here and worried for those who aren't.

How does a country go back to sanity when these things have not only become common but seem normal? Is having a Democrat in the White House really going to change all of this?

See, I told you!

Well, I finally got around to putting up the pictures from Evan's birthday. As you can see, he's all about the Transformers these days.

It was a beautiful weekend, and especially so on Sunday. On Saturday we went to Sumner to meet up with some fellow expats from Indiana, Raina and Larry (and their little girl, Nola). We had a lovely, though slightly chilly, walk and a nice little lunch.

Sunday was sunny and warm, so we went to the Botanical Gardens for a walk and some playground time. As you can see, spring is in full force here. The daffodils were amazing--they would have made Wordsworth proud.

Next week will make the 2 month anniversary of our arrival here in NZ. Hopefully our container will be here for the celebration! In commemoration of the event, I'll try to put together a longer post about our experiences so far and our impressions of NZ.

Still alive

Yeah, we're still here and things are still going well.

It's been a busy couple of weeks since I last posted, with Evan's birthday, Evan starting school, a visit with our friends Chris and Debra and their lovely family, and my starting to work. Oh, and the Rugby World Cup, too!

Chris, who took me kayaking a couple of weeks ago, has his own company that does management training. I'm working on writing a training manual about Managing Interpersonal Conflict.

I do have pics from Evan's birthday, but I've just been too lazy to post them. I'll get to them tomorrow or this weekend, so be patient.

Kaikoura and Sumner

Saturday we drove up to Kaikoura, a town about 180km or 2 1/2 drive north of Christchurch. Billed as 'Where the mountains meet the sea,' is is truly a place to behold. It reminded me very much of Maine, and especially of Bar Harbor, minus the crowds and the cheap tourist crap ... oh, and move Mt. Katahdin about 120 miles to the southeast.

Just outside the town proper is a colony of southern fur seals. There weren't too many seals out Saturday, but I was able to snap a few pictures.

Today we went to Sumner, one of Chch's many ocean-side suburbs. People in Chch like to joke that it's the only city in the world where the cheap houses are near the ocean and the expensive ones are near the airport. Sumner makes a lie of that. We went to Cave Rock, which Evan and Debi climbed while Connor and I explored the cave. It was another beautiful day. This whole weekend we enjoyed nortwesterlies, which are Foehn winds originating in from Australia and across the Tasman, hitting the mountains and bringing warm weather. It was about 68 degrees, so the kids splashed around a little in the water as we walked along the beach.

One thing about NZ weather: it is very mild compared to NH. Consider that while the Northeast is enjoying the last days of summer, we are enjoying the last days of winter. How often do you want to walk along any beach north of Virginia during the winter? On a day like today, though, you see the full range of outerwear. I wasn't alone in walking around in shorts and a t-shirt, but as you can see in the pics, there we also people bundled up in fleece.

Anyway, enjoy the pictures!