We have been exploring the North Island,
just like good tourists should. New Zealanders are an interesting bunch. They have created a tourist Mecca with a small-town feel. Anyone who might have an interesting rock or tree in their backyard, it seems, has put a fence around it and called it a museum. For a “slight fee”, you can see New Zealand’s largest or oldest or most colorful.
We got our money’s worth at Sheep World, as we spent the entire day there. We learned more about sheep than we ever thought we wanted to know. There are many different types of sheep, bred for a variety of reasons; wool, meat, pets. There was an entertaining herding dog/sheep show. The herding dogs are a mix of Border Collie and Greyhound – fast, smart and short-haired to survive the hot weather. It was amazing to watch them gather those sheep and bring them to the boss. Molly and Jessie both got to help “sort” sheep, using a variety of gates that separate the sheep according to a color painted on their heads. There were also deer, rabbits, alpacas, goats, pigs, possum and pond-eels at Sheep World. Guess the name would have been too long if they listed everything.
The 168th anniversary of the founding of Auckland was last week. Lots of on-the-water activities – tall ships, a regatta up to the Bay of Islands, and maritime festivals. Molly and Jessie and I laid low during the weekend – I didn’t want to drive with all the rest of New Zealand on the roads. If Jim were here, I’m sure we would have been in the thick of things. Life is a lot more laid-back with Jim in Seattle, but not nearly as exciting. He tends to stir things up and get us moving!
We went to a great Saturday market in Matakana. Terribly expensive, but full of people and music and home-grown veggies. Nectarines are in season right now – so sweet! Jim is amused by the signs around here. We saw Stubb’s Village Butcher Shoppe, and of course, the town of Manly – Manly Barber Shop, Manly Beach, Manly Ice Cream. I liked the ominous road sign, Cemetery (NO EXIT).
We went to the Maritime Museum in Auckland – a very impressive display of all things water-related. There was a lot of information about the America’s Cup race, and about the “discovery” of New Zealand by Capt. James Cook. The Maori Indians were already here, of course, much like the Columbus story of America. There was a short movie about the Polynesians, and how they navigated through the waters of the South Pacific, with no instruments. They read the stars, learned about the prevailing winds, and read the waves and currents. They even used whales as their guideposts.
Sir Edmund Hillary is New Zealand’s biggest celebrity; he died a week or so ago, and we saw his funeral on a big screen set up by the Museum. He was a great adventurer, and the first man to climb Mt. Everest. He died peacefully, at age 87.
We girls drove south toward Auckland to Bayswater Marina, where our friends on AZUL are moored. We all went to Shakespeare in the Park and saw the play, King Lear. It was a worthy effort, although pretty low-budget. I admire those actors for memorizing 3 hours of Shakespeare. It was a little disconcerting, however, to hear that lovely English prose in a nasal New Zealand accent. We spent a couple of days studying King Lear before-hand, so we would be able to follow along. The five teenagers in our group seemed to “get” the play just fine, and enjoyed the whole experience.
While Jim is in freezing-cold Seattle, we have been enjoying the sun and the friendly locals. We’ve gotten a little bit of boat work done; the topsides will be waxed by the time you get home – honest, Jim! Check out the new pictures in the Media Gallery! ~Jeanna
Question of the Week
This is the answer to last week’s question:
Centrifugal force pushes an object away from a central point, and centripetal force is the opposite if that.
Here is another question for you. Have fun!
What is the formula for changing degrees Centigrade to degrees Fahrenheit?