Pretty pictures of the beach

Here are pictures of the beach, looking down the beach, from the left and the right.

What did we do at the beach?

We played in the water, the sand and admired the ocean!

THE BEACH!!!!

Today we packed up for another adventure!

Leah packed a bag of books, word searches and things to keep her busy in the car ride. Sophia wanted to take her blanket, but I said I did not think the car ride would be that long. I had looked on the map, very briefly, and it looked like we were only going to be driving for about an inch! That would not be long at all.

We arrived at a park about 7 minutes and only 1 u-turn later! I think next time Leah will leave her bag of busy books at home! The girls played on the playground and Stas went exploring. We realized right over the hill was the beach!

The beach looks exactly like an Oregon beach, and let me tell you the water is about the same temperature! Brrrrr.. There is strong undertow like the Oregon coast, too.

Thank goodness the water was cold, because after watching Shark Week on Discovery Channel this Fall, Sophia had told us there were sharks off the coast of New Zealand. She would NOT be swimming in the water.

The girls jumps through little waves, dug holes, had a picnic and had a great time! Stas did some playing in the water, took a little snooze and buried both girls.

It was another lovely day in Dunedin.

Leah gets to skype with Mr. J's 3rd Grade class

Our Saturday started out a bit early, as Leah skyped her 3rd grade class back in Salem, Oregon. Mr. Johnston's had the kids ask Leah some questions, and Leah told them a few things about New Zealand.

It was a lot of fun, and Leah was so happy to see Mr. J and her classmates!

Have I said how much I love our view?

Here are a few more pictures taken from our deck. There were taken first thing in the morning. I love the pink clouds.

Baldwin Street the Word's Steepest Street

It is Friday night here in New Zealand, so we headed out for an adventure. Stas was confident he could stay on the left side of the road (the wrong side), so we took a vote and decided he could drive us.

We headed over to the steepest street in the world, which was written up in Guinness Book of World Records in 1998 (page 187) if you would like to check it out!

We walked, and walked and walked all the way to the top! There is an amazing view from the top, and thank goodness there was also a water fountain.

Here are some photos!

New Traditions we are enjoying thanks to Kiwis!

I discovered that it is a Kiwi tradition to have take away (take out) fish and chips on Friday nights. Apparently, this is usually Mom's night off in the kitchen, so this was an easy solution for families!

We decided we had to try out this tradition, and we have voted it a success. We had regular cod, but next time I will get the famous blue cod. It is super moist and tasty!

The girls have also found another Kiwi tradition. Kids here love egg and ham sandwiches for their lunches. Basically, it is hard boiled eggs cut up and mixed with mayonnaise and then a piece of ham is added between two pieces of bread. This has replaced the staple of peanut butter and jelly!

Shortbread Take III

A couple of weeks ago we were invited to go to morning tea at one of our neighbors' house. Mrs. Wyatt made the most fantastic shortbread, and was kind enough to give me a copy of her mother's recipe. She did mention I was going to have to do a lot of stirring, since I did not have a mixer.

First, I would have to buy a pan and the needed ingredients, so off I went to the store to buy a pan, rice flour, butter and sugar icing (I think this is powered sugar.)

TAKE I- The first time I made the shortbread I mixed and stirred and mixed some more- trying to make sure it was creamy. In the end it turned out okay. It was a bit flat, and we thought it was because I only had a larger cooking pan. The good news was it was edible, but as Sophia said, it was not as good as Mrs. Wyatt's shortbread.

After waiting a couple of days for my arms and hands to rest from all the stirring, I tried again.

TAKE II- The second time I made the shortbread, I made sure I mixed, and stirred, and whipped (took a small break) and mixed and stirred some more. I doubled the batch, thinking this would make it thicker, since I still only have one cooking pan. Well, this batch turned out horrible. It was flat and full of butter. I thought perhaps I would have to have a mixer to make this recipe. Then I had a light bulb moment..... I forgot to double the flour. Ugh!!

My arms and hands needed a break so I pondered for a couple of days what I needed to do next. I decided I needed a mixer. We bought the cheaper hand mixer for $29- the rest were $45.00!

TAKE III- I put the butter in the large bowl with the sugar and turn the hand mixer on low. That mixer TOOK OFF!!!! I grabbed it with all of my might trying to keep it in the bowl. I thought perhaps the buttons were opposite (like everything else here) and switched to a different level, NOPE, now it was going even quicker. There was butter flying out of the bowl, and there was a haze of powered sugar all over the counter. I felt like one of those people who tries to control a big waxing machine while going across the floors!

Next I added the flour, gently mixing it in by hand first, and close my eyes as I turn on the mixer again. Off it flies, and I wondered if there was any way I could get both hands on the tiny mixer to try and gain some kind of control. I ducked and a piece of dough flew over my shoulder and landed on a cabinet. I looked down, and the floor was covered in a light powdery substance. It was hard to say if it was sugar or flour.

Finally, I have regained control, and put the dough into the pan- and off it goes into the oven.

It smelled good, but so did both the others. It looked good in the oven, but so did the others. Finally, it came time to pull out the shortbread. And...... I think there might be success!!

Yummmmm!

To the LEFT!!!!!

This weekend we took our second car ride. Stas (of course) was behind the wheel, I was in front, and the girls were in the back.

A side note, for some of you who don't know: 1. I do not have the greatest sense of direction 2. I can't read a map and 3. I get carsick. Therefore, Stas was in charge of driving, and figuring out where we were heading. He, upon occasion, forgets my aversion to maps, so when it was handed to me- I politely passed it back without looking at it.

As we headed to the Botanical Gardens, Stas took a wrong turn down a dead end street. I think perhaps he was pulling over to look at the map, but the girls from the back were very helpful and told him they did not think these were the gardens. At this time, another car comes down the dead end (did I mention it was a very tiny one lane street) and apparently was trying to get into the driveway we are blocking, all the while Stas was still looking at the map. Now some of you might wonder why I wasn't helping, since I we were stopped- but please read #2 above and that will explain it all to you.

The girls politely asked several questions in the back such as: Are we lost? What is Dad doing? Is he going to turn around? What is that car doing, Mom? These questions were very pertinent and we thought how happy we are to have such inquisitive children.

Finally, Stas turned to car around, as the woman patiently waited to turn into her driveway. It's so nice that the Kiwis are such polite people. We were stopped ready to continue our journey to the gardens. The girls were chatting in the back, and I am sure I was giving Stas some helpful or supportive advice.

The coast was clear and Stas made a right turn to continue on our way. We had traveled about two blocks, and were beginning to make a sharp right around a turn, when all of a sudden Stas turned sharply to the LEFT lane. The lane we were SUPPOSED to be in! Whew! Luckily we did not hit something or someone.

Of course this jarring was quite sudden and got the girls and my attention! We of course, suggested in the future that Stas should stay on the right (actually the left) side of the road.

Stas is truly blessed to have so many ladies in the car to help him drive and give suggestions!

I wonder when we will be going on another car ride?

View from the other side

After sitting in the sun for a little bit, we heading across a bridge and up a little hill. There were benches to sit on, and you could see and hear the music. There was also a great view of houses from here.

Feeding the Ducks

The Gardens also gives out duck food to feed the ducks. The girls had a very nice time with this!

Here are more pictures from the gardens

Lavender, my Mom's favorite! The herb garden had a sign that said to feel free and pick a sample. I ready to get enough for dinner, when I read the rest of the sign that said that you can smell while touring the gardens. Sigh.

Botanical Gardens and Jazz Music in Dunedin

Today we headed over to the Botanical Gardens to see the plants and to listen to some music. We did not make it through all the gardens, but we had a great time. The weather was beautiful, the music was very nice, and the gardens were wonderful. I have decided I need my herb garden to look like theirs!

Here are some pictures for you to see.

View of some of the city of Dunedin

On the way home from the town, I took some pictures of the city so everyone could see what it looks like.

Just a little hill and pictures of Dunedin

Dunedin has lots of hills, and in order to get back from town, we always have to go up a few hills to get home.

This set of hills is actually the ones I take each day back from the market. As you can see from one picture, the girls are thrilled to be walking up another hill!

The picture with the kids and Stas shows how much longer we have to go on the hill, the the other picture shows how far we had already traveled up the hill!

Here are more pictures of the bagpipes

Each of the bands had matching kilts and uniforms.

Scottish Bagpipes

It was a lovely day today in Dunedin, with the sun shining and the winds lightly blowing. As I was walking home from the market this morning, I came across several bagpipes groups. I soon discovered it was a bagpipe competition. I called Stas and the girls at home, and told them to meet me at the octagon (which is in middle of town).

We watched band after band of bagpipe players marching down the street and each finished in the octagon. Once they had all met in the middle, there was a short break and then they each played again and were judged.

They girls enjoyed themselves and thought it was great!

My Mom has always loved the bagpipes, so this video clip was taken for her!

It is Oregon, or is it New Zealand?

Today is wet, wet, wet. I have to say this is not the first day that it has been wet, but this is the first time I have taken pictures.

In one picture, you will see our lovely conservatory, where my clothes are hanging over the chairs. I needed a complete change of clothes after walking the girls to school. On the to do list is to buy some umbrellas, asap. I might even start driving if this weather continues!

I was even told by Leah's teacher I looked like a fisherman! Unfortunately, no one was at home, so I could not take a picture of me in my "fishing" outfit.

Wet, wet, wet.

Yummm- Vietnamese and Thai food in New Zealand

Today my husband took me for a tour of the University of Otago and then treated me to some lunch. He actually lost a bet, which is why we went out for lunch! He has been trying to get a faculty ID for the past week, and every time he goes there is something that keeps him from getting it. First the paperwork had not arrived, then they needed his passport, next they spelled his name wrong, etc. etc.

Lucky for me, I bet that he still would not have his id at the end of today! Good for me, bad for Stas.

Back to lunch..... I had an iced lemon drink, also know as a lemon cordial. In the States we call it a lemonade. If you ask for a lemonade here, you will get a Sprite! Stas has a Thai dish, which basically looked like fried rice wrapped up in a fried egg. It was quite good! I has a Vietnamese meat soup that was wonderful. However, it was a bit spicy. Thank goodness I had a cup of water, that I would soak my lips in every 2 minutes. Soaking your lips is when you pretend to be drinking the water, but really just let that cold water sit and cool off the spice!

We will have new pictures soon, and the camera is now fully charged and ready for use!

I'll pick my garden, you pick yours

Now, as most people know Stas and I can differ on any kind of decor- this includes the house, the yard, or the garden.

Of course, I saw the gardens and thought of the different colors, textures, flowers, etc. Stas saw the gardens and saw green grass, nicely trimmed bushes and straight lines.

Sigh...

Larnach Castle only castle in New Zealand

Here are some more photos taken from Larnach Castle.