Unidentified women on a bicycle made for two, ca. 1910. Source: National Library of NZ
natlib.govt.nz/records/232403…

Some nice finds from the beach at Birdlings Flat (Canterbury) in March. The great thing about looking for interesting stones at a nice spot is that I'm in the moment, I'm not thinking about work or other issues. It's a simple pleasure.

Wondering when the weather will break, wasn't much snow around in mid April when I was in NZ. This photo taken at the Arthur's Pass Cafe and Store late September last year.

A day to remember/reflect.

Granddad, mums side - Didnt serve in WW2 for medical reason. His brother did, but never came back.

Granddad, dads side - WW2, came back with psychological impacts from his experience.

Great uncle, dads side - WW2, never liked our kids toy guns.

A man crouching beside a new inspection jigger for the railways. Photographed circa 5 April 1951. Source: National Library of NZ
natlib.govt.nz/records/232318…

I love churches around Banks Peninsula, Canterbury. In late March I visited St Luke’s Anglican Church. It's perched on a hill in Little Akaloa & was finished in 1906. The exterior caught my eye, it has a roughcast finish using plaster & paua shell from Little Akaloa beach.

Royal train nearing Dunedin, of the tour of the Duke and Duchess of York in 1927. Two steam locomotives pull the train, 'Ub' class 321, and 'Ub' 322. Source: National Library of NZ
natlib.govt.nz/records/232238…

Thought I would try the NZ Listener, never bought one before. A weekly magazine founded in 1939, with a circulation of approx. 45,000. Notable writers to have had their work published in the Listener include James K. Baxter, Janet Frame & Maurice Shadbolt. Info: Wikipedia

This is very much a Christchurch beer, Two Thumb Brewing in Sydenham combining with a city dessert cafe Rollickin Gelato. Recommended by a Two Thumb worker who just happened to be beside me in the supermarket buying beer for himself:)

Stained glass at the Sign of the Takahe, Christchurch. Not often I go for a coffee with my brother, wish I could do it more often. I reckon the Sign of the Takahe is becoming my favourite place for a coffee.

What a lovely night on the Port Hills, Christchurch. Mirror conditions in Governors Bay and Head of the Bay.

Got to camp out along Sudden Valley Stream last night. I love how you can find your own little spot in the Southern Alps. Had a kiwi call out approx. 5 m from my tent last night, such a treat! The photo is from this morning, looking back up the valley to the Polar Range.

Prime Minister Richard Seddon turning the first sod of the Hokitika-Ross railway, ca. 1900. Source: National Library of NZ
natlib.govt.nz/records/224566…

I like going to places where you wouldn't know what day of the week it was. Went to Port Levy for the first time yesterday, one of those places at the end of a road & where you have no sense of time. Port Levy & outer bays on Banks Peninsula (Canterbury) all have that feel to me.

I order large coffees from cafes, I notice most charge between $6-6.80 for a large. Paid $7 for one at the Easter New Brighton Markets. Seems like it wont be long before we see $7 plus large coffees. Maybe I need to go to mediums...

Found some nice old porcelain pieces at a stream draining into the western side of Port Levy, Banks Peninsula, Canterbury. I reckon it was made in the mid 1800s, based on an identical piece found at a 1857 shipwreck site in Scotland. A nice way to spend a Monday:)

An A class locomotive towing multi-unit train coaches for the Hutt Valley electrical rail. Photograph taken circa 12 February 1951. Source: National Library of NZ. natlib.govt.nz/records/230229…

No doubt this has been up for ages on the wall of the Christchurch Central Post Office, but I just noticed it now. I remember the birdman in the Cathedral Square, a nice little flashback of my earlier days in Christchurch.