Spring began in New Zealand on 1 September, and this week, our clocks go forward an hour for Daylight Saving. With the imminent arrival of better weather, it's time to start getting outdoors again for some walks. This past weekend, however, my dear wife wanted a lazy Sunday, so I just took our dog Sam for a walk over at the Alexandra Redoubt, near Tuakau.
A short video of the tranquility of the bush - great for restoring your soul!
Classic New Zealand fern
A nice, tidy and colourful rural cemetery about 500m from where we walked
View across the surrounding countryside
Boys will be boys - evidence of some "doughnuts" on the quiet rural intersection!
On the outward trip, I was struck by the attractive symmetry of some of the fields, and stopped on the way back to take a couple of pics
Oranges (above) and Lemons, say the bells of St Clements.....
Existing and newly planted strawberry plants, ready for a bumper crop come Christmas, hopefully!
No toy soldiers tonight but some are painted so will be another post soon I expect!
Finally, I had a late night - well, till 2am Tuesday morning actually - watching the Queens funeral ceremony at Westminster Abbey. I did not see the cortege reach Windsor, I had to get up again at 6am so thought I better have a few hours' sleep! Here are a couple of images from the web
May she rest in eternal peace.
Good to see the weather being good enough to get out for a walk Keith. I really enjoy Autumn here and don't mind cold Winter days, as long as it's not wet, which is not always a given here in Bristol.
ReplyDeleteWe ended up watching pretty much all of the service, only missing the bit between the Abbey and Windsor. Very moving and emotional for all the family as we sat together. A fitting send off for her.
Thanks Steve. We are being told here, based on unusually warm sea water temperatures, that we may be in for our hottest summer ever, which, given what you have recently experienced in Europe, may be a bit too hot. Having said that, the last forty eight hours has seen a fair bit of wind and rain! I would have liked to watch the part at Windsor too, but needed a few hours sleep!
DeleteBeautiful scenics, Keith. Like Steve, I think Autumn is my favorite time of year here in the northern hemisphere.
ReplyDeleteThanks Jon. I agree about the seasons. In Auckland, a nice winters day is often the best...clear, dry and not too hot or cold, like the day of our last walk a few weeks back.
DeleteOf course Spring doesn’t really start until the equinox, which is Friday, but am looking forward to Daylight Saving nonetheless. I managed to last until midnight watching the funeral. While I am hardly an ardent royalist, I like a good parade and the don’t get much better than that, despite the sadness of the occasion.
ReplyDeleteYou woukd have been pleased to see the RCMP leading the cortège parade after the ceremony, Mark.
DeleteNice looking photos, weather has turned here definitely autumn, it was a grand parade, never heard of the archer bodyguard before!
ReplyDeleteBest Iain
It was very fortunate you had decent weather for the funeral, Iain. The Royal Company of Archers is, I think, some kind of honorary appointment. I did see a couple of them changing guard at Westminster Hall and heard the comment that they were a couple of politicians.
DeleteWas just out this a.m. in these parts, where the weather has definitely taken a turn towards autumn, quite the contrast to see your turn of season in "real time" (the wonders of the interwebs!). Enjoyed the tranquility of that vid--very refreshing to not have the hum of traffic in the background!
ReplyDeleteThanks Ed. I was trying to capture some of the birdsong but not sure if it came out all that clearly in the video.
DeleteNice visit, beautiful pics...love the oranges!
ReplyDeleteHaha...thanks Phil! They take A LONG time to ripen, but will be edible soon now.
DeleteBeautiful landscapes sir!
ReplyDeleteThanks Michal, pleased you like them
DeleteSome superb countryside. Nothing bet than going for a walk
ReplyDeleteCheers Scotty, a good walk is certainly one of life's simple pleasures!
DeleteSome nice spring like photos looking colder and darker here 😢
ReplyDeleteThanks Matt, yes, another nice day here today with bright sunshine and temps at about 16c. The Lake District isn't quite the same as London and the SE, of course!
DeleteNice pictures Keith. I ended up watching an hour and a half of the funeral, mainly the procession from Westminster Hall to the Abbey and part of the service. I wasn't going to, but found it compelling viewing in the end. I noticed a piece of paper fell out of one of the clergy's books and landed just behind the Queen's coffin and became transfixed as to how they were going to discretely get rid of that, and sure enough it had disappeared ten minutes later.
ReplyDeleteYes, my wife and I (plus another few million, no doubt!) spotted that too, Lawrence. I did notice that the "slow march" ( more like a shuffling walk at some stages) seemed to make it hard for a lot of the military formations to keep proper dressing, plus quite a few gaps were opening up between sections, the longer the parade went on. Aerial shots in particular made this painfully obvious at some points..... Still a good parade though, as Mark mentioned!
DeleteLovely looking walk Keith. Good luck with the strawberries. Hope the possums don't eat them 😊 - bloody Australian pests.
ReplyDeleteThanks Ben. I don't think we have had possums around here much, I have never seen one, although they do a lot of damage in our native bush of course, and are commonly seen as "road kill" on most non urban roads!
DeleteNice pics of the outside. I like the outside when viewed from the inside of some posh cabin. 😀
ReplyDeleteIt’s turning autumn over here but at least the heat wave broke.
Haha, yes, I remember your aversion to the great outdoors Stew, that's almost " un American", isn't it??? We may be on the cusp of our very own heatwave...will have to wait and see what things are like in January and February , our warmest months ( yes, I realise how counter intuitive that is in the Northern Hemisphere...I have been here over thirty years and still struggle with "hot" Christmas as a concept!)
DeleteBeautiful scenery…as always Keith…
ReplyDeleteWe have been mostly moving into grey sky with grey clouds but it is still just warm enough for me to have a glass of wine or beer in the garden at the end of the working day.
I watched the procession on and off throughout the day… I do like a parade… I was particularly taken by all the different pipers… it’s the sort of thing that would make a fine collection of traditional toy soldiers.
All the best. Aly
Pleased you appreciated the scenic views, Aly. There certainly were plenty pipers in evidence in the first part of the ceremony and the toy soldier parade sounds like a great idea...looking forward to seeing you put it on!
DeleteSome beautiful photos Keith.
ReplyDeleteCheers Ray, I liked the two fields, in particular!
DeleteLovely scenery indeed. I enjoy all the seasons, but but the next 6 weeks or so until the end of October is a favorite time of year, especially for hiking here in New England.
ReplyDeleteThanks Peter. From images I have seen, the Autumnal (Fall) colours of your deciduous trees certainly make for attractive hiking scenery....looking forward to seeing your pictures of same!
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