So the semester has wrapped up! It has certainly flown by! And now, how strange for us as northern “hemisphere-ians” to be facing Spring-time in November and the prospect of Christmas in Summer!?

We’ve never included any photos from around the university itself (at least, I don’t think we have) so here are a few from the last couple months… so you can enjoy the recent foliage: (a note: I wrote this before adding some photos – I’m having trouble getting some we wanted to post to show up; these don’t really show much of the campus, unfortunately…)

(The banks of the Leith.)

Running through the campus is the River Leith. There are lots of trees scattered throughout the open areas, which I like… there are a couple giant Sequoias which, though not GIANT in the true sense of the word (like California or Washington’s), nevertheless remind us of the northwest. I don’t have any pictures of them, but just how the cherry trees in these photos line the river, about a dozen horse-chestnuts line it downstream. (I know they’re horse-chestnuts because Chrissy told me which were which once, the white and pink chestnut tress, and since then I’ve always associated the white with Galdalf’s horse, Shadowfax… I’m not good with the names of trees or plants.)

Exams were interesting. They space them out over quite a long stretch of time so that lectures ended October 13th, my first final was the 19th, the second was November 4th, and the third was this past Friday, the 10th! On the one hand you have loads of time to study, but on the other, loads of time to forget! Although, I think I managed to make good use of my time and felt pretty confident during the exams.

So with finishing Friday at noon, in celebration, we headed back out to the albatross colony. Well, much to our disappointment, the viewing is restricted right now as the mating season is finishing up, eggs are being laid, and they don’t want folks up too close to things. So the fellow at the desk said we ought to come back in two weeks for the best chance to see them. Anyway, we went out to the car park, which is sort of down the hill, effectively behind the nesting area, as they nest on the sea-side of the head, and decided to walk down along the cliffs – there’s always a chance that you may see one coming up from the ocean to land. WELL, after an hour and 45 minutes we lost count after seeing upwards of 25 albatross in flight!! We saw them coming, going, and just doing loops over their nests. It was AMAZING! But the cherry-on-top (or I should say, “cherries-on-top”) was the four that actually swooped down over our heads! One came so close (and scared us both so bad) that I was stunned and couldn’t lift the camera and take a picture. We both sort of let out a shout as he came up from behind us and was no more than six or seven feet away! It really made you feel just how huge they are – his body, stretched out, was the size of either of us, and his wings were massive! This shot below is one of those fly-by’s…

Oh, I almost forgot… as it is spring-time, our landlord’s sheep have just had their lambs! Here are a couple pictures:

Occasionally we can hear their little baaa’s from our house. They all run and play together, like a bunch of little kids! It’s so funny to watch…

Now that school’s out we’re planning to do a bit of travelling. There’s so much to see… we’re looking forward to it. We’re hoping to track down some of the “Lord of the Rings” filming locations as there are numerous on the South Island – we’ll be sure to take plenty of pictures!

We appreciate your comments and are glad you’re enjoying this (though it’s been scant the last couple months!) We’re happy to be sharing these things with all of you…

~Andrew & Chrissy

Unfortunately we don’t have a picture from it, but perhaps one of these weekends we can get one. However, the anecdote for this particular message happened on the way home afterwards…

It was a beautiful day (coming on Spring here) but verrry windy. Nonetheless we stopped at a dock along the water on our way home to enjoy the view. We walked down to the end and sat with our feet dangling over the water. Chrissy had on her flip-flops (jandles, as Kiwis call them), so she took them off and set them next to her so they wouldn’t blow off her feet. Well, (and I’m sure you can see where this is going) the wind gusted a nice ol’ gust and lifted them right up off the dock, through the air and into the water! It was pretty funny so, of course, I laughed. However, Chrissy’s reaction was far more serious than I expected… she clutched the dock and shuffled forward a few inches like she was about to jump in. She said, “ooh! I was just thinking to myself this morning how this was the most comfortable pair of sandals I’ve ever had,” and other things to that effect. I said I was sorry but that it was pretty funny watching them sail through the air. She agreed, but was still rather sad looking, sitting there helpless as her poor flippers swam away with the current. (She thought the better of jumping in as it is not QUITE Spring, only getting there, and the water is in fact still icy cold.)

We watched them go for a while until, finally, the wind actually started pushing them towards the rocks, further down the road, along the bay. So with my footwear still in tact and secure upon my feet, I walked down the road a ways to see if I could catch up to them.

Chrissy, helpless on the dock.

So as I got closer to where they had floated, Chrissy was directing me from a distance, waving her arms and pointing me to precisely where they’d come ashore. And, at length, after looking a bit (black sandals blend in with dark stones) – lo! there they were!

So I brought them back, saturated and salty, and Chrissy was overjoyed!

This picture here will give you an idea of how far they floated…

Far enough.

Needless to say, they’ve been dried out and Chrissy’s been ‘jandling’ about in them ever since… (By the way, they’re Reefs, in case anyone in advertising or marketing is watching. And we accept check or cash.)

~ Andrew & Chrissy

About a week ago now we visited the Albatross colony of Taiaroa Head at the end of the Otago peninsula outside Dunedin. This site is special for two main reasons: It is not just a colony of Albatross but a colony of Royal Albatross, the largest bird of flight in the world, AND this is their only mainland colony in the world! What that means is that the other major nesting sites are on various rocks that jut out of the sea in inaccessible places. Because of human infringement and furry little critters (stoats, ferrets, etc) this colony has waxed and waned over the past 70 years. However it is currently being preserved with the utmost care and a growing number of albatross are returning each year.

(Taiaroa Head from the eastern, sea-facing side. The colony is just around the tip, on the other side of the lighthouse.)

I said they’re seeing a growing number return each year because the albatross don’t really “live” here. They don’t really live anywhere actually. They spend the greater part of their lives over (or floating on) the open seas – sometimes for 3 to 6 YEARS before returning to the land for any length of time!

Most of this time at sea, at least for the southern species of Royal Albatross, is spent across the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans, circling the globe (literally) just between the tips of South America, Africa and Australia, and Antarctica. It is estimated they circle the globe 10 times or more in their lifetime! And they are ingeniously designed for this sort of lifestyle…

Firstly, I mentioned they are the largest bird of flight in the world – their wingspan is a few inches shy of 10 FEET! (There was a life-size model of one set sideways in the visitor centre – you really got the idea of their grandeur when you stood next to it!) This provides massive lift in the wind for them to sail many (many) miles without the need to flap their wings. In fact they have tendons in the sort of “elbow” part of their wing that lock so they don’t have to hold them stretched out. They also make great use of the natural thermals that blow over the waters and between the swells. A typical albatross flying pattern is more like an elongated “S” than a straight line. They drop down into the swells, almost touching the surface, then catch the gusts of air up at an angle back out of the swell, then dip down again into the next and up as before. This means they exert far less effort than if they were fighting the winds to and fro or flapping all the time… and you’d think about conserving energy when you’re travelling a few hundred miles a day!

Despite all the soaring that takes place they’ve still got large appetites! A typical albatross meal at sea is a squid – squids anywhere up to 3 feet long! And here’s the best part – they swallow them whole! (That makes me shudder thinking about it.) They also enjoy the odd octopus now and again.

By the time a Royal has made his or her journey, usually for a year at a time when they’re of breeding age, it’s legs have become atrophied for lack of use. This means if you’re watching one of these majestic birds arrive “home” it usually consists of a crash landing into the grass and a puff of feathers in their wake.

We happened to be visiting at what is really not an ideal time to see the albatrosses. From September to November (with October being peak) they are arriving to find a mate, nest and breed. Right now those who bred last year are still finishing up the care of their chicks (that hatched sometime in January) who should be taking flight soon. This means on the one hand you may get to see very young birds, but on the other hand very few. During the mating season there may be up to 80 at any time hanging around the colony (the number of visitors is restricted during this time.) At present, with the chicks almost reaching maturity, there are only about 10 hanging around, and maybe only 2 or 3 visible from the viewing booth (you can’t just go walk out among them).

You might be thinking, “well shouldn’t there be parents around with the kids seeing as how they can’t even fly yet?!” Yes and no. The parents pay careful attention to the chicks for the first few months, the first 20 days of which they are feeding them “on demand”. Up to 100 days they are feeding them about 3 to 4 times a week. At their largest growth point the chicks will actually outgrow their parents! A typical adult albatross may be 18-20 pounds while their chick can reach upwards of 35 pounds! This doesn’t last long however and by this stage feeding has decreased to 2, maybe 3, times per week, at about 4 pounds of food per meal. The chicks will eventually lose the excess weight which was necessary only temporarily to fill out their feathers they’ll need for flight. So currently parents are only around about twice a week for maybe 5 minutes at a time, just to drop off the latest catch and then head out to sea again.

Well, despite what we thought was our unfortunate timing, the Lord blessed us abundantly to get to see an adult feeding their chick! And of all the chicks (there being only 2 of 10 visible from the booth) it happened to be the one closest to the windows! And that would be them below…

That is the chick’s father. They know this because (if you look close) they tag the legs of all the adult birds in a three-colour sequence and keep track of each visit/nest/egg, etc. Albatross mate for life but unfortunately in this case the rangers believe his mate has died at sea. When we took this photo it had been something like 3 weeks since the mother had been in to feed the chick, and that’s highly unusual. The father had kept coming regularly but his trips alone are not enough to keep the chick healthy. It was clear he didn’t know she was gone. The rangers keep track of the weight of each chick to make sure they’re on track, and if something’s happened (as in this case) they can supplement the feeding… with a nice helping of salmon, amongst other things. Apparently the salmon contains some very similar elements to what the young bird receives via his or her parents’ digestion and regurgitation. I’ll take their word for it.

Within no more than 2 or 3 minutes dad was off again…

It was certainly an amazing afternoon! We can’t wait to drop by in the spring (autumn for the northern hemisphere!) when the “crowds” are hanging about! What a sight that’ll be! But of course, seeing the dad caring for the chick and catching that brief moment which is impossible to time, it was a very special day to say the least.

Here are two other pictures for you. A couple other rare or interesting birds also nest nearby. Among them, the Spotted Sea Shag. We caught this pair in the process of building their nest, taking turns flying away for a minute or two, and then coming back with twigs or brush and wrestling about with them until they sat just right with the other pieces.

The cool thing about catching the Shags when we did was that this is their mating/nesting time and for that brief season only do they burst out in these beautiful colours. In a very short time they will all (every single one of them) moult and be entirely gray. So again, we wouldn’t have been able to time that seeing as how neither of us had ever even heard of a Spotted Sea Shag before that day. (But I’m sure you have, right?)

Well, enjoy the photos and continue to drop us comments when you get the hankerin’ – we love hearing from everyone!

~ a & c

We went snowboarding for the first time ever just last weekend (15th/16th)!! It was fantastic! Well, I suppose if you’d asked us on Saturday night whether it was going well we probably would’ve said otherwise… but sticking with it and persevering eventually we broke through and had a brilliant afternoon on Sunday. We had two lessons Saturday and one Sunday. By Sunday afternoon we managed to leave the beginner’s slope behind and venture down an actual run that people who know what they’re doing use. We had our fair share of falls (probably more than our share) but finally got the hang of it enough to enjoy riding down and even want to go back again! So hopefully we can pursue that in the future… not before too long and we forget everything… but after we heal. We’ve been sore all week.

We went with a group of young adults from the church (-we were the old married couple… but that meant we got our own room! It’s nice not being eligible for the whole “bunk-bed” thing anymore-) and had a great time with them.

Unfortunately, we have this beautiful blog space now and we forgot our camera for the trip! However, there were multiple cameras flying around, several of them digital, so I’m hoping to secure someone’s photos soon. It was a gorgeous spot, it’d be terrible not to at least show you something!

We do have some other photos for you however…

This is a shot from the “Octagon” – the centre of Dunedin. It’s an open space, intersected by one street north/south and surrounded by an octagonally-shaped (if that’s a word) roundabout of sorts. This is looking northwest and is an Anglican church… I can’t remember it’s name. The Presbyterians were the original settlers of Dunedin and (according to what I’ve heard in town) the Anglicans showed up a little later, wanting to put a church smack dab in the middle of town… but it had already been set apart, preserved as “open space.” So they put it here, right on the edge of the centre. (The roundabout goes just beneath the church, on the other side of those parked cars.)

Dunedin is the “Edinburgh of the South”, settled by Scots… and in case you forget, there’s a statue of Robbie Burns there to help you remember. (On the left.)

This is the train depot… a beautiful piece of architecture surviving from the early settlers. We were there for a farmer’s market that runs every Saturday morning till sometime around noon or 1. It’s just great – fresh eggs, vegetables, cheese, honey, meat, fish, pastries, muffins, coffee… you can even buy berry bushes there and plant your own. I picked up some venison sausage spiced with juniper. Very tasty.

A close-up of the depot tower, through the handy signpost. You can see, we’re not too far from the Octagon above in this shot. Or the “campus” where I study. (The university plays a huge roll in Dunedin’s life, as well as a couple other colleges here. They estimate the population around 115,000 – but during the summer break it fluctuates by about 30-40,000.)

I found this beautiful girl along the “esplanade” in St. Clair. We got along really well… we even went out for coffee afterwards.

St. Clair is a beachside section of Dunedin. We went down for the afternoon and ate our lunch in the car (it was really cold) while we watched the sea. It was stormy that day…

We weren’t zoomed in quite enough in this photo but you can get the idea. The brick path along the sea is the esplanade and it’s foundations go down about 12-14 feet to the sea. That wave is clearing that height, the railing above, and then splashing about 10 feet higher still. Where that’s hitting is exactly where Chrissy was standing in the last photo above. We stood there for a while, feeling the surge as the waves smashed into the wall, and getting mildly sprayed. It literally shook the ground.

But alas, after gazing upon the sea in all it’s might you start to crave a cup of tea. So we walked down to that green building on the right which happens to be a quaint little cafe, nicely sheltered on the edge of the hillside there so you can observe the waves from a safer, warmer distance. (If you look close you can make out it’s blazing neon sign in the window. A beacon to the damp, chilled pedestrian.)

And finally…

In case the 3 hours flying from Boise, the 11.5 hour flight from LA, the further 2 hour flight to Dunedin, the 30 minute drive from the airport, the bizarre time change and the radical transition from Summer to Winter didn’t alert you that you might just be a little far from home… there are these handy signs to let you know just how incredibly far from the rest of the world you really are.

(Impress your friends at parties with these little facts (according to GoogleEarth): Dunedin to Boise – 482,145,694.24 inches; Dunedin to Philadelphia – 581,465,305.27 inches; Dunedin to Cork – 1,930,918,473.65 centimeters.)

  I’ve started classes this week… only introductory stuff but it’s been great to get the feel of things, buy the books and start reading!  I’ve been aching to actually START so this week is like a release!

  Chrissy has been busy (but having a GREAT time) scouring Dunedin’s craft, home-ware and second-hand shops, collecting those various items that are turning our little cottage into a cosy home.  You might even call it a “nest”… we’re surrounded in the mornings by the most varied and amazing songs of the birds in the trees… I’ve never been there but it’s what I imagine the Amazon or some exotic rain-forest to sound like.

  We’ve been attending the home-fellowship of the couple we stayed with at the B&B.  It’s been so nice!  And we’re attending their church still on Sundays.  We’ve also enjoyed that very much!  The Lord has been so gracious to give us this fellowship and support right off the bat, with no searching or striving.  We had dinner at the B&B before the meeting last night and Chrissy asked to get something from the kitchen or something like that… and Stephen, the owner, just said, “you don’t have to ask… it’s your home.”  Needless to say, that feels really good.

  We’ll make this short for now.  We’re in the process of getting an internet connection at our new place so our contact with everyone might be sparse until then… but it shouldn’t be too long.  We’re hoping within a week.

  Thank you to everyone who has left us little comments and notes… we really appreciate it!  Continue to enjoy the pictures!  There are more to come, we assure you.

 ~Andrew & Chrissy 

The Maniototo Ice Rink in Naseby

Chrissy lacing up her skates

Apparently curling originated in Scotland and came over with the first settlers to Dunedin about 150 years ago. It’s been going strong since. Basically you have these curling “stones” that you slide down the ice and try to get into a bullseye carved lightly into the rink. You get points for how close you get to the middle of about 3 concentric circles. I’m not sure if we were using “regulation” distances or anything but we were sliding them about 50 or 60 feet.

An action shot of Andrew’s amazing curling skills

As I was informed by the fellow on the left in the photo above, curling stones are quite particular. They have a set weight – 20 Kgs or about 45 lbs. (They certainly don’t look that heavy.) And they are only to be quarried from Scotland. They are called stones because they are in fact pure granite. He told me that they’re cut out of the earth in tall rectangular blocks which then produce two official “stones” each. They’re very smooth and polished and have a little handle (as you can see above) attached to the top somehow (I’m not sure about that process.)

Oh yeah… and they cost a thousand bucks a piece.

My best throw ever… pretty good actually.

Meanwhile Chrissy was brushing up on her triple lutzes… with the help of a chair.

Afterwards we took a little walk up the road into the village and had a great time talking to some of the folks we went with and enjoying the scenery. We were so happy to come across some nice big ol’ trees… The whole area already reminded us of Idaho or Washington so this sort of added to the whole Northwestern feel.

All in all a wonderful day!

Looking back to Dunedin from the ridge at the top of the Peninsula

A foggy Dunedin at dusk

Looking over the bay, out to sea, from the Peninsula

South Dunedin (St. Kilda) & the Pacific Ocean

Sunset over the ridge of the Peninsula

The city is at the base of the Otago Peninsula with the ocean to the south and the bay to the north. The peninsula breaks away from the city in a northeasterly direction, leaving a vast and almost still harbour at the centre of the mountains that sweep around the city (and onto the peninsula) on all sides. Driving up the STEEEEP streets to the west affords beautiful views out over the bay and ocean, while heading up on the ridge atop the peninsula gives you an almost comprehensive sight of the entire city. It truly seems like Dunedin doesn’t have a bad side!

The centre of town is the Octagon… a sort of roundabout shaped like, well, an octagon. It’s quite a cool design. As I mentioned the city streets to the west (and several other directions) are quite steep, and the hills make their way even to the centre of town so that the northwest side of the octagon is a little higher than the southeast side. There’s a classic old church on the higher side as well as a statue of Robert Burns. (Scots were a significant percentage of the founders of Dunedin, hence the statue, streets like “Knox Street,” and neighbourhoods like “Burnside.”)

(Refer to the pictures we’ve posted for some “visuals” to help you “catch the vision… “)

We’ve been out and about everyday since we arrived trying to get settled. We bought a car – a 1989 BMW 320i. Yeah, it’s a sweet car. Or as the Kiwis say, “sweet as.” We got an amazing deal and just couldn’t pass it up. (There’ll be a picture posted up.) We’re still searching for a house/apartment. It’s been a tough process as we really haven’t gotten a definite sense about any of the places we’ve seen. And so the title of this post…

Like Abraham in Hebrews 11 we have definitely journeyed forth “not knowing whither.” The Lord definitely called us out to this land we’d never seen (for more purposes than we know) and so we wait on Him to lead us to that perfect dwelling within it. We’ve been encouraged by Psalm 37:3-7, specifically v.7. In my Bible (I’m using the KJV) the margin notes an alternative wording for the beginning, and that alternative really spoke to us. Instead of “Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for Him…” it reads, “Be silent to the Lord…”

Amidst all the searching and looking it can become overwhelming to have to weigh the options and make a choice that somehow balances out all your “ideals/wants” with all your “practicalities.” And not knowing how things will go in the coming months, what we’ll be spending time with (besides school) and even where in the city we’ll be involved for church, it’s hard to take upon yourself the burden of choosing wisely. I find myself, as I’m sure you can relate, turning what ought to be prayers into little personal discussion times with my own mind. I turn things over in debate fashion instead of laying them before the Lord and releasing them to Him so that, more than gaining judgment, I can bring myself into line with where He’s at and keep myself attentive to His voice and Spirit. Hence, “Be silent to the Lord…” We’re learning about being patient and silent… not perceiving the Lord’s peace and patience as the signal to start “figuring out” and taking initiative, but slowing down and resting in His rest. As the hymn says, “Here I raise my Ebenezer, hither by Thy help I’m come; And I hope by Thy good pleasure safely to arrive at home. Jesus sought me when a stranger wandering from the fold of God; He to rescue me from danger interposed His precious blood.” As Paul said, “He who did not spare His own Son but delivered Him up for us all, how shall he not with Him also freely give us all things?” How can we doubt the provision of the Father in light of the Son? Hallelujah!

So if you think of it keep us in prayer… and if you think you want to visit us, pray the Lord will provide a place with an extra bedroom – or two!