Catching up

OK, so this evening, I won't gripe about internet connections. Finally found a spot where I can hook up my computer and therefore upload some photos (for a mere $4/hr.) Ironically enough, we are in the glacial region of New Zealand, far away from the cities.

So, before I start with the NZ commentary, I thought I'd get a few shots in from the busy few weeks before we left for NZ. So, stepping into the 'Wayback Machine', here we go.....

In the beginning of February, we had a great time with Liz's school chum Phil and his partner Deej. Here we are sampling one of 9 (I think it was) varieties of Moorilla wines. A fun trip that transported us up the Derwent river to the winery on a catamaran. Oh yeah, we sampled cheeses and fruit spreads, too.



On the way to Port Arthur, we stopped to see the tessellated pavement. Tessellated refers to the natural scoring process that etches the rocks with perpendicular lines. Phil had fun composing many sentences that used the term tessellated in the following week. If you haven't seen them yet, there are lot's of photos of the old buildings at Port Arthur on the .mac site.



We also stopped in Richmond, where there's a very old bridge, constructed by convict labor.





And, speaking of bridges, here a shot of the Tasman bridge at the point where one of the supporting pillars was knocked down by an out of control barge. Whenever we've taken a tourist boat up the Derwent, we always here accounts of this accident. The barge sank. The road actually started to collapse, and a few cars went down in the night, not realizing that the road had been damaged. Those of you in Albany will catch the similarity with the recent disjointing of the elevated expressway. More news photos here.

Christchurch, NZ

Tomorrow we hop a train across the NZ Alps, then a bus south to the glacier region. You'll have to google 'Franz Josef Glacier' yourself, because this kiosk bites the big one. Otherwise, things are great. More later down the road.

Wellington, NZ

Back on the road. ie, back in internet kiosks where I can't hook up my computer. So, no new photos for now.

On our first day in Wellington, the capital of New Zealand, we went to the Te Papa museum. Could spend a week in there. Walked around town a little to get our bearings. And, took a little rest.

This past weekend, I went to a fiddle festival near Melbourne and Liz stayed in Melbourne and saw the sites. So, we're both a little fried.

The fiddle festival was as good as any that I went to in the northeast U.S. About 500 people, maybe a little more interest in bluegrass, but a healthy representation of American old time tunes and styles. Headbelly Buzzard is one example of the local Melbourne contingent. I'm currently enjoying going through my recordings and reliving the tunes. It was a kick for me to be the 'fiddler from America' that brought some tunes that were new to the Ozzie jammers.

Well, the meter's ticking. Here's hoping for a wireless cafe or some place where I can plug in.

'Til then, stay tuned.

Get it? Stay tuned.

Busy with real life, will blog when I get a chance

Hi all,

<--[Self portrait, reflected in a ferry window.]

We're getting ready to head to the mainland and New Zealand, planning on being back to Hobart in late April. That's the why-I-haven't-blogged-much excuse #1. Then there's taxes, #2. And, we've been visited by some of Liz's old chums, so we've been doing some touring around with them, #3. Most notable, for me, was our trip to Port Arthur where there are preservations of a penal settlement from the early 1800's. It was so well done! I'll try to get some photo's on the Mac webpage soon. In the meantime, there are lots of new pictures there, including some recordings from our music festival trip. Click on the 'Music file' link. Same old password for those who know it. If you'd like the password, just send me an email.