Visit to New Zealand (South Island)

G'day Mates! We are back in Brisbane, having arrived Thursday afternoon, 22 Jan. Gene worked at the hospital Friday, and I unpacked and ironed, so we're settling in. We're staying in the same unit that we've stayed in our previous 7 visits, and this two-room efficiency apartment feels like "home" to us while we're in the Southern Hemisphere.

We had a wonderful 2 week "holiday" in New Zealand before coming to AU. It’s easy to see why NZ was chosen to film “Lord of the Rings” and “The Lion, Witch, and Wardrobe” series. It's an absolutely beautiful country with mountains, rolling hills, rain forests, glaciers, sounds, and fiords. Both "sounds" and "fiords" are deep valleys which later fill with water. A sound is cut by a river and a fiord by a glacier. Oh, and did I mention sheep? Five times more sheep than people and the roads were sometimes blocked by "lamb jams". Locals says, "Just lean out the window and yell, 'Mint jelly!'".
We had good weather but wore "jumpers" (sweaters) most days. Below is a picture of a fiord and a glacier.

One of our favourite days was at an Albatross colony near Dunedin. It was a VERY windy day--just the right weather for these giant birds to soar. They have a 10' wing span and soar like a kite in the sky but sometimes have a bit of trouble landing (our strengths are often our weaknesses). We were told the albatross spends the first 5 years of its life without ever touching land--flying around Antarctica.

In Fiordland we connected with our friend Christie. We had met this Kiwi at our church in Brisbane. Then, last summer she visited us when we were in Nebraska, and later flew back to SC with us. She is an RN but worked last season as a Trekking Guide on the Milford Hiking Track near her NZ home. She and her parents treated us like royalty including a boat trip down the Milford Sound, and a trip to a Glow Worm Cave ("Glow little glow worm, glimmer, glimmer...) The larval stage of glow worms glows to attract food to multiple sticky filaments (fishing lines) which it hangs down from the cave ceiling. When it becomes an adult it no longer has a mouth, so breeds and dies within a day or two. God is so creative and we stand in awe of His wonderful creation!

Another "God thing" (aren't they all?) is that we got onto a 350 passenger train at Christ Church (South Island of NZ) and a former Anderson-based Pathologist and her husband and family came up and said, "Well, isn't this amazing!?" They are Christians too, so we all acknowledged God's sovereignty and omnipresence! They were in Anderson 6 years ago--Dawn and Lynn Nichols (both are physicians working for a year on the North Island and were on a 5 day trip to the South Island!). They had twins while in Anderson and one of Gene's partners called the twins "The Dime" (two nickels--get it?) Our last B&B (farm stay) was at the home of a couple who raise deer--not for the meat, but for their antlers! They saw the antlers off annually (said it's like extracting a tooth) while the antlers are still in the "velvet" stage and before they calcify and fall off. Then they freeze and sell them to Chinese to grind up for artiritis medicine. Want us to bring any back? :)
Well, the last 2 days have been very warm in Brisbane (although we're not in the 40+ degree C areas.) We're having to get used to Australia's summers again and Gene back to 40 hour work weeks, in addition to all the church activities we're both involved in.
Our college friend, Sonia, from China is still here. We went to visit her at the Summer Beach Project on our first weekend back. This is a 4-week camp meeting at Coolum Beach where students study discipleship and evangelism.
Well, for now--"Good on you mates!
Gene and Gini