Turning Up The Heat This Christmas

It's a little under 3 weeks since Tom arrived and our first Christmas as a three.  This meant two things, the first being that there was no chance for a holiday lie-in and the second that it was a bumper present year!  I'm not sure Thomas realises how lucky he is to get so much amazing stuff from people he has yet to meet but it was something we certainly appreciated!

Summer has really arrived with the temperature topping 31 degrees and the evening so far showing no sign of cooling in a hurry.  It is now our 4th "hot" Christmas and despite this, I'm not sure that we are getting that used to it.  Christmas lights and songs about snow do not really seem to fit that well, but it is still great to have a couple of days off closely followed by another couple for New Year and the 2nd.  A mid-winter Christmas makes far more sense as a break from the cold and dark though for our mid-winter we will be back in Blighty, flight specials come out in the new year and we will be watching out for them closely!

Happy Christmas to you all!

Introductions

At 10pm on 6th December 2012, Thomas Byrne Avery was born in the Ashburton Maternity Unit weighing 8lb 7oz.  I would go into detail about the labour but I'm not sure Amy would appreciate that.  It's enough to say that there was no need to rush up to Christchurch as a result of any last minute hitches!  Enough can not be said about the care we all received from Sandra the midwife and the whole hospital team, along with the help in introducing us the the world of baby care, something neither of us had any prior experience in.  3 days later, on Sunday afternoon, we all went home feeling suitably ready to tackle things on our own.

Well, the first week has just flown by in a blur of feeding and nappy changing!  Thomas is thriving, the little jaundice he had resolved and putting on weight from the get go as opposed to the expected loss of up to 10%.  By day 6 he had gained 140g.  He is sleeping well both during the day and overnight and when awake is happy to just take in the surroundings, crying only when hungry or to request a clean nappy.

Every day has been one of firsts with multiple short excursions, either for a bit of fresh air or to various shops.  It has been great to have the time off to enjoy the early days and after my 2 weeks of paternity leave it will only be a few days till Christmas and New Year meaning that he will be a month old by the time that I go back for my first 5 day week.

Room for One More...

A Moments Rest

 Time marches ever onwards and already we are well into spring, which this year really does signal the start of new life for us.  Amy only has 5 more weeks until the official due date of junior and we are as ready as we will ever be (which is to say probably not ready at all but at least we have bought lots of stuff!).  Over the last few months we have been keeping a watchful eye on trademe for any second hand bargains to be had.  People have been very generous about handing down their unwanted clothes and several trips to the bright lights of Christchurch have seen us loaded up with the must have items for new parents.  As an added bonus Mum has even sent over my old bassinet which at 30 years old is still looking in top nick and will (hopefully) provide the perfect environment for nights full of sleep!

Otago Surf

 Preparations aside, we have also been trying to maximise our use of free time and managed to head down to the Otago Peninsular for a lovely weekend catching up with Keara and Jude.  A few drinks, reminiscing about uni days and UK friends, hearing all the latest stories and enjoying the fantastic beaches made for a great weekend.  The peninsular has to have some of the best views around and even Sandfly bay excelled itself this trip with 12-15 sea lions making for a real nature experience.  Keara even managed a short surf which made me a little jealous!

Meal Prep

Last minute jobs are numerous and one idea we though of was to make full use of our chest freezer and prepare big batches of meals to freeze.  5 portions of Moroccan Chicken a la Delia made their way into the freezer tonight which must bring the total up to at least 30 and hopefully mean we do not end up resorting to Ashburton's newly opened Burger King on too many occasions.  We have just had a public holiday weekend and headed up to Tekapo for a night, stopping off at Lake Opuha for a picnic lunch.  Gordon has just been put back on the road after a winters rest in the garage and while we did not use him for this trip we are hoping that, as well as providing an extra vehicle in general, we will be able to try a night camping close to home by March.  Opuha at an hour from home is a great spot with some great camping spots and even the luxury of flushing toilets!

Opuha Outing

In a few days Leah, Amy's sister, is coming to visit as part of her global travels.  The plan is to show her Akaroa and the surrounding area if the weather plays ball before she heads off around the south island for a more extensive look around.  If events come around a bit earlier than expected then she may even be around for the birth which I'm sure would provide added excitement to the trip!  I printed off a book of the blog after arriving in New Zealand, which I called "The Asia Adventure".  This is my last post of book number two; "New Zealand Escapades".   I hope that I'll be able to keep up some semblance of a record of parenthood and life after the big arrival, though it may take the form of a few photos and sleep deprived ramblings initially.  One thing is for sure, my next post will be the start of a new chapter!

Room for One More

Sydney City Break

City Vista

Ask us a few years ago and we would never have given Sydney as the answer of where we would go for a 5 day city break.  As it is, it is now one of the few options open to us, not that we want to spent all our holidays in urban areas.  With Amy getting progressively rounder and the time that she would be banned from flying rapidly approaching it was time to take our last holiday for a while as a twosome and Sydney was the answer, both for a bit of winter sun and to visit family in that neck of the woods.  A ridiculously early start meant that we arrived at 8:30am on Friday with a whole day to spend exploring.

Operatic Tiles

We could check in early and after wondering arounf Kiribilli met up with Sally, Mick and Ann for a coffee at Luna Park before crossing the bridge and wondering through the Rocks, along Circular Key, around the Opera House and through the Botanic Gardens.  Tick, tick, tick!  It was fantastic to feel the warmth of the sun and as city vistas go there can be few better than the many we witnessed from different vantage points.

Garden Blooms

Day two of our tiki tour started with a short 2 minute walk to Kiribilli warf where we hopped on a boat to Circular Key before catching the ferry to Manly.  This was one of the trips I remember from my month in Sydney in 2001 and I really wanted Amy to see the city from the water.  It did not disappoint and 30 minutes later we landed at Manly.  I don't really see why Bondi gets all the glory, the northern beaches are infinitely better and with Manly being so close to the city and a bustling area in its own right it wins for me without doubt.  There was no surf this day but that did not stop the surf schools getting out in the water and with the golden sand playing host to plenty of intense games of voleyball it was all go.  We made do with walking up the beach and returning on the promenade before heading on a 2 hour circular walk on the peninsula.  We always walk a long way wherever we go and Amy was not going to let a little thing like pregnancy put her off!

Harbour Breeze

Sunday was a day for catching up with the extended family. I spent 5 months in Australia before university in 2001, a month of which was spent in Sydney where I was incredibly well looked after by the extended Chitty family.  Apart from Sally who had been able to come to our wedding, it had been 11 years since I had seen them and so it was great to be able to catchup a little without a trip around the world.  Andrew, Dawn and the kids met us in Kiribille where we wondered along the harobur front, past Luna park and up through the village for a coffee before dropping us at Sally and Mikes.  They had to head off for the kids cricket trials!  We were then driven to a lovely park and beach reserve just short of Manly where Pete and Dimity were already set up with an enormous picnic, and Mick and Anne were not too far behind.  It was also Micks birthday the day before so good timing.  What followed was a lovely afternoon in the sun with the kids having a great time collecting starfish and always on the go.  Hopefully it's not another 11 years until the next meet up!

The City

Amy had to have a little lie down once we got back to the hotel and with the sun rapidly going down I rushed out to try and grab some images of the harbour while there was still some colour in the sky.  There is a jetty right opposite the Opera House which was only a couple of minutes brisk walk away that I had earmarked as a good spot earlier on and so that is where I headed.  There were some fishermen trying their luck already (they had none!) but there was room enough for me to set up my little tripod on a fixed pillar rather than the rocking jetty.

The Bridge

 It was a little wait before the sky and lights were balanced and then as darkness came on much faster, there was just enough time to race around to the bridge to capture a shot of that in lights.  I am quite pleased with the results and once again evidence that a compact with some knowledge of how to use it is all you need.  We had travelled over with just hand luggage and so there was no room for my D80 or proper tripod.

Opera House

 Our final full day involved an early-ish start as we hopped on a train from Milsons point to Katoomba, self styled capital of the Blue Mountains.  I had vague recollections of the Three Sisters from my previous trip and knew it would be a good option for us to see a small amount of Sydney's surroundings.  The sun shone, though definitely a little cooler than the city, and we enjoyed fabulous vies of the area on the train.  Initially we had planned on getting a shuttle bus to Echo Point but after walking the length of the high street and then realising we were already 1/3rd of the way there we just kept going.  From there we headed to the valley floor via the 800 steps of the Giants Stairway and made our way to the Scenic World cableway a couple of km away.  This meant we could cheat and not have to climb all the way back up.  I used Amy as my excuse of course!  The walk back along the cliff top was excellent and we had a well earned snooze on the train home.

At Echo Point

On our final morning we ended up watching Andy Murray win his first major at the American Open before exploring the city a little more.  After grabbing lunch at Circular Quay in the blazing heat we caught our flight home where we arrived back in Christchurch needing to clear snow from the windscreen before our hours drive home!

After the Sun Sets

Star Light, Star Bright

 There are some fantastic images around of nightscapes and once you start trying to capture your own interpretations it quickly becomes clear how difficult it is to get a really strong image.  The problem is that the light (what little there is) often results in very flat, uninspiring detail or once processed looks too artificial in my unsubtle hands.  Here are two rather different pictures that I believe have some merit.  The first was taken from the balcony of a surf lodge in Morocco and I feel it is a great representation of the view we were treated to ans the light from the sun left the sky and the start started to show themselves.  Incidentally this is a reprocessed version, the first being too light on reflection and losing the atmosphere it holds.  It is often subtle differences that actually really make or break an image with the difficulty first being to recognise what it is that is wrong and then know if it can be "fixed and how to go about it.  I'm still starting out on that journey, often not knowing what it is I need to do, either in camera or in processing, to really make the most of the scene that presented itself to me.

Final Glow

Simplicity is often key and I have read some advise that you should keep moving in closer until you are about to cut something out of the frame that really matters.  Trying to fit too much in just confuses the eye of the viewer, they just don't know where or what to look at and so interest is quickly lost.  Over the New Year break we spent 2 fabulous days camped by Lake Tennyson.  Apart from a very large number of 1lb fish that were eager to eat anything off the surface we also enjoyed spectacular scenery.  While I often wonder if dawn has the best light, it is generally sunset I go for as very early starts are hard!  I tried to get a good shot of the lake but failed and the best image ended up showing the surrounding hilltops catching the last rays of sun with the moon already up and bright.  Enough rambling from me, maybe I should just put up my pictures and leave any critique to your own judgement, after all what works for me may very well be rubbish to you!

An Early Start

A 5:30am alarm is rather difficult to set for a Saturday morning, shouldn't the weekend involve a nice long lie-in or two?  With the weather looking promising though I wanted to be up at Maori Lakes in Hakatere Conservation Park for sun up and that meant an early start was the order of the day.  We have spent  reasonable amount of time in the Park, about an hour inland from Ashburton, and its bleak beauty makes it a fantastic place to explore.  Doubly so on a sunny day with snow on the tops.  I had fished this lake last season and put it down as a spot of great photo potential when a low mist hugged the water.  Unfortunately the cloud on that day meant the light failed to bring the scene really alive as you can see.

First Visit

The wind was up and although blowing nor'west which normally means warm there was a wee nip in the air as it came off the snowy peaks.  My idea was to try and capture the grass tussocks that are such a feature of this area with some nice side-light, while at the same time revealing the surrounding mountains.  Unfortunately the lakes are fairly close to a large group of hills to the right and these proved to be just high enough to block the first rays of the sun.  This meant that the scene was only really lit about 50 minutes after sunrise and the nature of the background hills also makes me think that things could work much better as a sunset shot.  At least it won't involve such an early start!

Maori  Lake + Tussocks

I also wondered about my viewpoint.  I think next time I may try getting in closer to the lake with the tussock "islands" in the water forming the foreground focus and potentially giving a more dynamic composition.  It's all part of learning to work the scene, recognise where the best shots lie and then hoping that the weather plays ball when you make the trip.  I am enjoying being out and about with the sole intention of making pictures at any rate.

Hakatere Park

With the sun well up and rising I had intended on walking a little way up the Cameron valley, where we did our first ever tramp.  As it was I ended up walking to Lake Emily, where I had not been before, and working my way up to the top of a nearby hill where I was suitably rewarded by stunning views and a branch that had somehow found itself at the very top in an area devoid of trees even allowed a spot of still life.

Weathered

A look to the north confirmed the weather forecast prediction of weather coming in over the course of the day with clouds gathering over the distant mountains.  Rather that head down the far side of the hill to pay Manuka hut a visit, I decided to make a beeline back down to the lake through some nice thick patches of matagouri.

Distant Clouds

It had turned into a fair old trip, I would reckon about 14km all up and about half of that through thick scrub.  Well worth the effort though, and even the early alarm.  the area is simply superb and I think I enjoy the scenery more each time I visit.  I have a few overnight trips and fishing spots in mind for the few months before December when life will never be the same again!

Down to Manuka Hut

Moeraki Magic

Boulder and Pebbles

When the weather forecast is horrendous it still pays to go.  That is certainly the lesson from this weekend after Amy and I headed to Moeraki on Saturday.  We had spent the last couple of weekends doing jobs around Ashburton and were keen to get away for a night despite the torrential rain that we have been having.  The met office were only promising 1 thing, more rain, but we still felt the 2 hour drive south was worth making if only for a meal out at Fleur's Place.  The boulders of Moeraki are a well known site and good stopping point to break up any drive along the east coast and a place we ourselves have stopped at several times.  Many images have been made of these peculiar spheres and I hoped to have a proper attempt myself.

Wispy Water

To say the sun made an appearance in the afternoon would be an overstatement, lets just say the cloud thinned a little but this still improved the 2km walk along the beach.  Lots of other people had similar ideas with it becoming apparent this evening was going to be the battle of the tripod!  I had in mind the shot I was after and with the tide out there were only a few boulders still in any amount of water so I made bee-line for the three in a row, beating the others who were just mooching around.  Another solitary boulder was the next subject and again with ND filter in place I could get just the movement that I was after.  Darkness was closing in but there was time for 1 more shot on the walk back with a rocky section of shoreline providing some nice foreground interest and leading lines.  I often just take what I can get but it was really nice to spend some time setting up the shot and really thinking about things with no rush.  Considering the weather I was pretty pleased with outcome too.  Oh yes, and the meal at Fleur's was very tasty!

Submerging

Britains Great!

So the Olympics started with a real bang.  All those who worried that the opening ceremony would be a damp, limp affair in comparison to the Chinese effort 4 years ago would never had envisaged Bond escorting the Queen to the event complete with parachuting from their helicopter transport!  Its appropriate then to give you a little taste of "classic" UK from our 3 week visit which was now over a month ago.

Middle England

It is a common story that those people who count themselves as globe trotters have rarely explored their native land to the same extent as their more exotic destinations and I can certainly count myself as ignorant of large swathes of the British Isles.  A 5 day stay in Ludlow was a perfect introduction to Shropshire and easily convinced us all that there is much more to be had in the local area.  The weather was mixed but the sun broke through one evening and it was a brief 15 minute run to the top of the neighbouring hill from our town centre accommodation to a fabulous lookout.  What more could you want than lush vegetation, an ancient castle, cottages, manor and church spire bathed in golden evening light.  Maybe the St George's Cross flapping in the breeze...that's there too!  Definitely worth the sweaty trot before dinner!

The Barbers

Now I don't normally like selective colouring in my pictures but with an overly sentimental and patriotic blog entry like this, I felt this version was a better fit than the straight black and while.  I did need a hair cut but unfortunately this establishment was closed so I cant confirm as to whether it was manned by an elderly gentlemen with impressive moustache or cut throat Sweeney Todd character, both of which would fit in with the narrow streets and exposed beamed buildings to be found in many a village we passed through.  There is even a trout river in (nearly) every valley, enough said!

Bridging the Teme

Crisp, Cold Carrington

Among Mountains

 Arriving back in the depths of a Kiwi winter, there was time for 1 last tramp before Amy's "condition" may prove it impossible for a little while.  She was as keen as mustard to brave the rather icy conditions and head deep into Arthurs Pass national park.  We had flagged this route as part of a late summer tramp but not quite made it and instead found ourselves crunching over a reasonable layer of snow up to the head of the Waimakariri river, destination Carrington hut.  The wide valley slowly narrowed and after passing Anti-crow hut and the thankfully placid river, one that has claimed lives when crossed in flood.  Soon we has steep slopes either side and really felt in the heart of the Southern Alps.  After 5 hours we arrived and found the hut empty, no-one else having taken the opportunity to make the most of the fantastic forecast.  Being split into two parts, each capable of housing 18 trampers, the two of us struggled to warm our room as the sun quickly dipped from view.  The wood burner really needing the help of some gas cooking stoves and more warm bodies.  All our clothes and sleeping bags (2 thin ones in my case) kept us toasty though and we hit the hay pretty early.

Carrington View

With 2 nights planned, we went exploring up valley on day two, heading towards the Waimak Falls hut but knowing we would not get there because of the snow.  Blue sky and untouched snow made for a glorious setting and a good escape from the bustle of daily life.  A late lunch at the hut was our reward for the mornings efforts and after some log splitting the fire was soon crackling to life early much earlier than the previous day which gave it time to do its job.  It was warm enough and the afternoon was spent reading and playing cards in our mountain home.  An early start Monday morning meant that we could retrace our steps and be in Sheffield for a pie by lunchtime, yum!

The Roche Moutonnée of Anti-crow

Athens in Trouble?

To not mention our time in Athens at all would be more than a little unfair.  With 3 days in total spent in the capital we set to work seeing all of the major tourist attractions that took our fancy.  It is an amazing place with ancient archways standing next to major roads, archaeological remains next to metro stations and above all, the Acropolis towering over the entire city as a constant reminder that the Greek civilisation has been around for a very long time.

Towards Lycabettus

Sightseeing highlights are highlights for a reason and we could certainly not fault those that we visited, the last of which was the new Acropolis museum.  This certainly is a fitting home for such important artifacts and a worthy middle finger to those countries who refuse to return plundered pieces with the excuse that they would otherwise not be well cared for.

While tourist-ville was trouble free, the shops and restaurants all looking busy enough, there were a few signs that all was not right with the world.  Our hotel was in a more residential area and there did appear to be a few too many people hanging round in the streets with nothing better to do; it is said there is currently a youth unemployment rate of over 50%!  The city is obviously home to many graffiti artists with most blank walls adorned one way or the other and the train carriages much more colourful than originally produced.

**** the Police

At no point though did we feel uncomfortable, quite the reverse with all those we came across being incredibly friendly and the majority putting us to shame with their perfect English while all we could mumble was "hello" and "thank you".  Athens is certainly an easy city to navigate, with things that are worth navigating to and I would be surprised if we were never to visit again.  And so it was that after a fantastic 10 day holiday we left Greece to spend a little under 3 weeks in the UK.

Speeding Metro

A Greek Idyll

From our current home, an island stranded in the south pacific, we headed to an island a little closer to "civilisation" en route to the UK for our annual trip.  In the current economic climate, under the cloud of the euro-zone in crisis and several countries on the brink of breakdown (if not anarchy were the media to be believed), Greece may seem like a rather strange choice.  In fact we had booked our flights 10 months earlier when things were not so dire and a little bit of excitement never did anyone any harm!

Glossa Outlook

So it was amid warnings of empty cash points, shortages, potential strikes and riots that we landed in Athens and made our way to the isle of Skopelos without incident and without much sign of any problems.  We met Mum and Dad at the ferry port and were soon in the village of Glossa; its steep narrow streets, tiny stores and white-washed houses seemingly untouched by time save for the whine of little scooters and a web of overhead wires.  Eleni's House became our home for the week.

Smugglers Cove

Skopelos is not a large island and yet it has a remarkable diversity and is the greenest isle in the Aegean.  A little car admirable handles the pot-holed roads as we explored from the northern lighthouse to the monasteries south of Skopelos town.  Of course there was also plenty of time to relax at the numerous secluded coves, empty so early in the season, and take a dip in the crystal clear water of the sea!  Once the hectic day was over, a beer on the balcony with a good book in hand provided ample opportunity to watch the setting sun.

Skiathos and the Pelion

Know Your Audience

Steppe Living

Having just started back into the whole blogging environment, it was with interest that I read an entry on smeeblog about how to go about it.  Rule 1 was be persistent; My mark = fail!  OK, so that may be a little hard on myself as originally I set out only to chart our travels through Asia for those back home as a sort of online travel diary, no wonder things slowed to a standstill once "normal" life resumed.  In the 9 months we were away there were 53 posts, in the 2 and a half years that have followed only a piddly 33 have followed.  Hardly a rich content stream to keep the interest of others so must do better.  Rule 2 was maintain enthusiasm.  A close friend of persistence, enthusiasm is a varied thing but I still enjoy my images and the memories they evoke so a tick in the box here, one day the world will know of the roaming traveller!  Rule 3 was the importance of inspiration, well another blog prompted this post so maybe things aren't going too badly here after all.

Child Racers

I would like to add a rule 4 if I may and that is: know your audience.  In that line of thought its pretty pictures for Celia.  And while the request may be for ones of NZ rule 5 could be don't give them everything they want at once to keep them coming back for more!  For these pictures I have gone all the way back to Mongolia to some edits, whose originals did not make it on first time round.  That's part of the joy of going back through the archives, finding the missed gem and discovering new favorites.

Family Outing

Image Repetition

Believe it or not I'm still plugging my way through the many photos that I took during our 7 month Asia trip, which scarily enough came to an end over 2 years ago.  It's a slow process, picking out the shots worth looking more closely at and then spending the time on them that they deserve all the while trying to avoid seeing what's new on facebook or what else there is to buy on trademe.  It is battle enough just keeping my recent efforts up to date so I anticipate things taking some time yet before I can truly say I'm current with nothing in my "to edit" file.

Bound for Drying

The above image could have been taken anywhere.  It was in fact in a field in rural China but what attracted my to the preview jpeg (and presumable the original scene!) was the frame filling subject matter and the repetition of the stacks.  I would like to go back and tweak the composition a little more but will have to make do with learning the lesson that it is best to slow down and be considered, after all a subject such as this is not going to get up and run away.

Red Hot

Trying to capture a market scene is tricky, I have a whole series of images from traders throughout the trip and very few convey the scene as it was.  Getting in close is one trick, it is far too easy to try and show too much in a photo such that everything getting lost and disjointed with just too much going on.  Two very different images but based on a similar idea.

Glorious Colour

Autumn Gold

After a rather dismal summer with no baking hot days (and many more suited in fact to baking rather than the BBQ) and a little more rain than strictly necessary for a drought prone region, April came at last.  The blue sky days materialised and we were determined to make the most of a long weekend after working the Easter break.  Otematata, our destination, is a small town in the Mackenzie country on the banks of one of the many hydro lakes of the region.  It is known as a brown, dry land with a drab pallet but undeniable beauty.  Autumn however is a time of colour and the Poplars shone a resplendent gold, perfectly framed by the ultramarine blue sky with highlights of red provided by the rose hips.

Mackenzie Colour

Of course I had a flick of my rod while Amy snoozed by the river, landing a good brown.  We walked and cycled and come evening retreated to the pub to watch the rugby (cheering the Crusaders of course) and enjoy the true drink of the Southern Man, a handle or two of Speights.

Lonely Road

Barkhor Piety

Walking Prayer

Photo club kicked off again for the year with the first open competition.  I did not end up taking much part last year, and so the intention this time round is to try and be a bit more active.  As it was I put in 3 digital images, in which all three gained acceptance, and 3 prints, where one gained honours; the image above.

"Walking Prayer" was taken as we walked the Barkhor circuit in Lhasa, a busy street circuit that serves not just as a shopping location but also circles the Jokhang temple; reputed as the most important Tibetan Buddhist temple in the world.  Shooting from the hip is a relatively hit or miss affair with plenty of practice needed to first recognise a subject and then get anywhere close to capturing it in the frame.  This is one of my few successes and for me represents the daily role religion plays to the Tibetan people, a suited man going about his business with prayer beads ever present.

Family Prostration

A more extreme display of belief seen on the circuit is the prostration of pilgrims.  This involves lying flat on the ground for every single step taken, and generally not just for the 500m loop but the whole trip from their home, however far away.  It was pretty humbling to see people with nothing involved in such an undertaking, showing incredible devotion and certainty of faith.