#350 - #359.

Something Old

In the deep south, overlooking Lake Tekapo stands a little 55 seat church - The Church of The Good Shepherd - which was built in 1935 as a memorial to the districts hardy pioneers. It is at the midway point of the tourist bus route from Christchurch to Mount Cook & Queenstown. It is arguably the most photographed church in NZ, with visitor numbers sometimes reaching 2000 per day in the peak holiday season. It also hosts up to 100 weddings per year - many of the couples having previously visited as tourists. It was built of stone gathered from within a 8km radius of the site. Regular religious services are held throughout the year, as well as baptisms & funerals.

#351. Something New

It seems that Lion Television, producers of the reality TV show, "The Castaways", will be coming down under to film the second Castaway series on Great Barrier Island in the Hauraki Gulf next year. The island is one of NZ's "jewels" and it will be a great opportunity to have it showcased to the world. Lion TV would use local resources for labour, transport and accommodation but they don't say if they will casting for participants downunder or if they will bring their own cast & crew. No doubt they will be casting out a few fishing lines during their stay on the island.

The first series of Castaway was filmed in 2000 on a Scottish island, when a group of 36 people spent a year there fending for themselves. Seven participants left during the 12 months of filming.

#352. Something Borrowed

A lot of interesting photos from a blogger who is currently travelling around..........New Zealand !!!











#353. Something Blue

A "blue xmas" video by Porky Pig !!! (Friday Dec.8th) Also a link to the story about George Clooney's 19 year old 300lb Vietnamese potbellied pig who has died and gone to "Porky Heaven" !!!

#354. Shortage of 20c Piece's !!!

It seems the Reserve Bank has miscalulated the demand for 20c coins. Retailers have been unable to get their hands on supplies of the 20c coin. The bank has issued 49.6 million 20c cents as opposed to 53 million 10c coins. In the past the number of 20c pieces would of been half of that of 10c coins. They said that the dropping of the 5c coin and the change-over to the smaller new coins (which are cheaper to make than the older larger coins) would save money in the long run, but the dropping of the 5c coin is over the years going to cost the poor old consumer, millions !!! Where will all that go ? Into the pockets of the retailers. Take a look in the supermarkets - most products have been rounded off to "5c", so if your bill happens to end in 5c, it is automatically rounded up to 10c. A magazine I have been buying which has a cover price of $6.95 is now rounded up to $7. It is price increases right across the board for the poor old consumer, whether they like it or not - it's just tough titties.

#355. Rural Tits Sing Longer

Get your mind out of the gutter - it's not what you think. Tits are song-birds of the feathered variety. It seems that a study was carried out in 10 European cities & 10 forest areas, found that "tits" that live in rural areas sing more slowly and have longer notes, whereas "tits" that live in urban / city areas, sing faster & and in higher notes. It seems that great tits living in the city have to compete with the low-frequency sounds of city life, which means that they have to sing faster & higher notes, to make themselves heard, while those tits living in rural / forest areas just take their time and sing more slowly and in longer notes. The same could be said for the human race living in the urban & rural areas - urban life is hard & fast paced while rural life is easy & slow !!!

#356. TV2 !!!

There will no doubt be a few "kiwi's" out there that will remember that when TV2 closed down at night the little kiwi switched off the light and.........!!! Video's November 14th. (Thanks for the memories, Eru !!!)

#357. Where In The World Is It

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#358. From The Archives............

# 787 The Best Of New Zealand - Manuka Honey.

Manuka Honey is well known in NZ and is becoming increasing popular around the world. Manuka shrubs , also known as Tea Tree are a defining feature of much of our rural landscape. The uncultivated scrub has the amazing ability to colonise the smallest patches of land and flourishs on wetland margins, at high altitude and in low fertility soils.The hardy scrub, produces a delicate white flower, the nectar of which is collected by bees and used to produce honey. Manuka Honey is dark and has a distinctive sweet taste. It has long been used on the kiwi breakfast table. and more recently, some varities have been recognised for their unique health benefits. The "honey centre" is a great place to visit.

#359. Another From The Archives.........

# 788. Sheep & More Sheep !!!

As you may well know "sheep" far out-number humans in numbers by many millions. The two-legged population is around four & a half million, where as the four legged "sheep" population is somewhere around fifty million. North at Warkworth on the same property as the "Honey Centre" is "a sheep show" which you will no doubt enjoy, especially if you a tourist where you don't have any woolly bags running around.

The most famous sheep would have to be "Shrek", who managed to elude shearers for 6 years. When caught & finally shorn on national TV, the fleece weight 27.5 kilos. The wool was used to make woolly jumpers - the first of which was presented to Sir Edmund Hillary, our famous mountaineer. The other woolly jumpers were said to have sold for $10000 each. A little crack at Australia - "What do you get if you cross a kangaroo with a sheep" ??? Leave a comment, if you think you know the answer.