Topical Tulips

The Botanic Gardens are preparing for the annual tulip festival. It’s still a bit early but you can see the beds all planted and budding. 

This year the theme is reproducing the flags of some of the countries participating in the Rugby World Cup. They are a bit difficult to see before the flowers come out but you can probably make out those of Australia (top centre-left), South Africa (in the middle behind the phoenix palm)

and Fiji.

The magnolias are putting on a magnificent display. Here is Noreen basking in the awesomeness (the young people tell me this is a real word).

This bank covered with wild flowers is always a favourite at this time of year.

Talking of the RWC – the game last night between Australia and Ireland was a cracker, especially as the Irish won.

And it appears that Happy Feet has shed his transmitter, or perhaps it just stopped working. (We are not entertaining the idea that he has been eaten by an orca.)

Spring Tranquillity

After a windy week the weekend has been quite still. Yesterday we planted flowers in the front garden (Noreen’s responsibility) and veggie seedlings in the back (my job). The garden is looking good at the moment. Here are some of the new silverbeet plants (with the remnants of last year’s mizuna forest behind).

This is a broad bean that has over-wintered. It flowered soon after planting when we had an unseasonably warm spell but it seems healthy enough now.

Today we walked the Eastern Walkway. I have never seen this area so calm and tranquil – there must be a big storm brewing!

This afternoon I exchanged some noxious weeds (blackberry and old man’s beard) for some young manuka seedlings at the annual weed swap event. They will be planted somewhere up the bank although I am starting to run out of space for newcomers. You can see some of the spring flowers in the background.

In other news – the Rugby World Cup (RWC) has started. We watched the opening ceremony and first match between the All Blacks and Tonga on television. Last night England were lucky to beat Argentina in a very physical encounter in Dunedin. Tonight we will watch the Springbok-Wales game on the box. It’s being played in Wellington but I’m not interested enough in rugby to pay the inflated RWC prices for tickets. There has been a profusion of flags flying from cars and properties as people get in behind one (sometimes more) of the teams. Here is a Welsh supporter’s house in Kilbirnie.

Happy Feet is still heading vaguely south, although he seems to be meandering a bit. This may be caused by the inaccuracy in his low tech tracking system. They deliberately choose this approach to keep the device lightweight but capable of operating for up to a year (it’s superglued to the tail feathers which will be shed when the bird moults). And now I see the tracking satellite has stopped working due to solar flares. Hope it recovers soon.

Finally, spare a thought for the inhabitants of Christchurch – just over a year since the large 7.1 earthquake, and six months from the far more deadly event in February, they are still experiencing substantial aftershocks. If you know anybody there let them know they have not been forgotten as they await the long task of rebuilding for a better future. Kia kaha.

Fathers' Day

This has been one of the best Fathers’ Days, ever. To start with, Jenny gave me this badge, which she insisted I wear.

We went for brunch to the Hop Garden.

I had Townsend’s Sutton Hoo.

Then Noreen and Jenny took me to the Silverstream Railway. I found out I was free. We went on a steam hauled train

and this diesel railcar.

(named Aotea after one of the canoes that brought Maori from Hawaiki).

It was good fun although Jenny put on her serious face when asked to pose 

but couldn’t keep it up for long.

In the workshops are a number of old locomotives. This is C512 built in Glasgow in 1875. It spent most of its working life on the West Coast of the South Island, finally retiring in 1972. It has lived at Silverstream since 1984 and was in steam until 2009 when it required a major overhaul.

This is an example of the high point of New Zealand steam, Ka935.

In other news, the story that has gripped New Zealand for the last couple of months is that of the errant Emperor Penguin, Happy Feet. After washing up north of Wellington it was nursed back to health at Wellington Zoo after eating sand in an attempt to cool down (mistaking it for snow). It left Wellington last week and has just been released into the Southern Ocean. You can follow its progress at it was fitted with a tracking device. I just hope it doesn’t get eaten by an orca or other predator.