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Looking back at the photos I took while down south (A South Island road trip) they really didn’t convey the scope of the place. The two panorama shots below seem to do a better job.
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Last week I had the chance to head south. To leave Wellington for a couple of days, fly to Christchurch and take a road trip from Christchurch driving west over Porters and Arthur’s Pass to the West Coast. A work … Continue reading
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A couple of posts ago (“One year ago today – 13 July”) I referred to our local beach as Hataitai Beach. To be honest I didn’t know what it was called, it has always been the beach at the bottom of … Continue reading
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There’s a saying – “you can’t beat Wellington on a good day”. But sadly at this time of year those good days are few and far between. Today, after rain for the last 3 days, it was a good day. … Continue reading
Loyal readers may remember the almost trouble free starting of my various cars a few weeks ago.
Well I now have the 911 certified and registered and on the road. This wasn’t without some drama however. Despite going very well after 15 months sitting still, it didn’t stop very well – or even at all, really.
Driving it to the Powerhaus across Wellington to be certified was an adventure. Every set of traffic lights required a lot of pre-warning and frantic brake pressing as the car slowly, slowly, slowly came to a stop. Usually just inches behind the car in front.
The brakes are all fixed now and we are back in action – and I have to say, the lads did a great job tuning the car. It hasn’t run better in the last 5 years.
And yesterday the song lyrics were pretty much right. We had strong winds and rain, and the view from our front window was less than idyllic. But it was Sunday, a chance to hunker down and to do nothing much in particular. It was a challenge we were happy to take up.
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July 12 2011 – we were staying in the lovely Villa Greta in Positano on the Amalfi Coast. It was a scorching hot day with the temperature hovering in the low 30’s (celsius) with hardly a breath of wind. The … Continue reading
Every time Jean and I feel homesick for Italy we make the pilgrimage to MariLuca Ristoro. It is owned and run by a friend, Guiseppie, and stepping through the door feels like stepping back to Italy. It’s all warmth and friendliness and excellent Italian food, all in the heart of Wellington.
Bellisssimo.
Note: photos are courtesy of MariLuca Ristoro
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Every so often, as we sit here in the middle of Wellington’s winter, there is an echo of our time in Italy. Over the weekend we hung a picture on the wall. It was painted by our friend and talented … Continue reading
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Ever since returning to Wellington my cars have sat, in garages, unused. Given their ages, starting them up after a 12 month hiatus isn’t as simple as turning the key and cranking. Just sitting still doing nothing means all manner of … Continue reading
Daisy the dog had a rough night last week. Part of her heart condition means that sometime she can’t pump enough blood around her system and without enough blood to her brain she faints.
This isn’t a pleasant thing and when she faints we always wonder if she will recover and be her old self. So far she has.
Before we moved back into our home she was fainting regularly but the return to familiar surroundings and routines has meant this had become a thing of the past – until last Wednesday night. She fainted twice and we were up until 3am making sure she was comfortable, relaxed, sleeping and, most importantly, still breathing.
And that’s where looking out for each other comes in.
Poppie is Daisy’s partner in crime when barking at the gate or begging for food but not the rest of the time. That changes when Daisy is unwell and then, somehow, Poppie knows.
Like last Thursday morning when Daisy was recovering. Poppie is the one on the right.
To mark the last day of autumn Wellington produced one of those magic mornings that, sadly, we see too infrequently. Crisp, with no wind to speak of and just starting to warm up as the sun rose over the eastern hills.
At 8:15am the view from our front verandah looking south over Evans Bay to Cook Strait (and beyond to Antarctica as there’s not much in the way) was worth a photo.
Southern Cross and Pointers
One of things I remember from our time in Italy was sitting outside in the evenings watching the stars appear overhead. Often it would be in a small local restaurant, but more often on the terrace at our place in Tuscany or overlooking the bay at Positano. I always remember thinking that among all those stars there were nothing I recognised. All the familiar constellations were missing. Being a kiwi, one in particular was sorely missed.
Now we are home, looking up at night has that familiarity that was missing last year. And, as always, there is that pair of bright stars pointing towards our Southern Cross.
Note: Photo was taken using 18-70 zoom lens – 38mm, f4.2, 2 sec, ISO 800.
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Having written about various parts of the world over the last year it’s time to write about our place, Wellington, New Zealand. It’s where I was born and where I have lived since. After every overseas trip or holiday there … Continue reading
It really did feel a little like christmas on Wednesday when we made our first trip to the storage unit we filled prior to heading overseas last year.
This was our chance to bring some of the precious (and not so precious) things we had put away last year, home.
And every box was a new and exciting experience. Our box labeling was a bit haphazard – as you’d expect when things were being packed a week before heading overseas – so boxes marked “books” contained plates and boxes marked “plates” contain pictures and boxes marked “pictures” contained books.
Hence the reason it was a bit like christmas.
The bad news was that even after removing around a dozen boxes, the storage unit still looked full to the ceiling. Yikes.
Toscanakiwi 