NOT bay gulls or bagels!

Sunday--late arising, slow start. Lots of yawning and sitting about looking at the view. Finally, about 3 p.m., we decided to check out the Royal Albatross Colony out at the tip of the penninsula , only a few miles away.

Below, me in outdoor tub, supposed to be on next post--don't want to take the time to redownload!



This is one of the only accessible albatross breeding sites, and we were very lucky--a huge albatross flew very near to us as we stood looking out from the cliffs. At this time of year, one parent is guarding the newly-hatched chicks, and the other is off gathering food, so to see one in flight at this time of day was very unusual and amazing. These birds are enormous, having the biggest wingspan of any bird on earth (over 2 metres). Very cool.



Back to the cottage, quiet night. Frank has unpacked his drafting board and is contentedly drawing an airplane plan. It's wonderful to be somewhere so beautiful for a bit of time, to slow down and really enjoy the experience. I've been re-watching some of the "New Zealand as Middle Earth" documentaries--can't believe we are really, truly here in the midst of that scenery! So far, NZ has met all my expectations.