April 21, 2009

It's Some Kind of Magic (Dunedin, NZ)

Last post in New Zealand. If you’re wondering what those titles are; the car I had for over a month only had a tape deck, and the only three decent cassettes I found were an Elton John greatest hits, Queen’s greatest hits volume 2 (so none of the good songs) and the Forrest Gump soundtrack.

As I write these lines, people are arriving at the airport and as usual (remember, all airports are the same) there’s the whole welcoming committee with balloons, sings and lots of joy in the air. It’s both funny and sad when, as a backpacker, you arrive in a country that you don’t know, you walk through the gates and you see the disappointment on the balloons-and-signs-people’s face because you’re not the person they were hoping to see come out of the frosted-glass door.

If that’s a down part of travelling on your own, there are many ups. Friends hosted me during my stay in the beautiful city of Dunedin, and I really appreciated the comfort of a big bed, the fact I didn’t have to pack/unpack for a few days and most of all, the company.

So thanks to Carrie and Jacob, seen below (natural behaviour).



Here’s a bit of wildlife. Albatross, unfortunately it’s hard to show the scale, but its wingspan is over 10 feet (3m). NZ fur seal (that’s a cute one, some of the other were ugly, as I’ve been told). NZ sea lion yawning (and who named that a sea lion?) these are pretty big too, not scared of humans at all. And a yellow-eyed penguin, the rarest kind of penguins. I’ll let you guess which is which. Those picture were taken in the wild, I had to pay to have access to the private beach where the seal colony is, but those pictures are not from a zoo.







Now, comment-wise, either I’m getting boring or you guys are slacking. So let’s do this:

Since I’m heading to OZ and my time in kiwiland is done, I want to know which picture I posted so far is your favourite (just one).

I’ll put the “winning picture” on the www.veczan.com front-page.

7 comments:

  1. C'est vrai que l'aéroport est un endroit où l'on passe par toutes sortes d'émotions. À chaque fois que j'y vais, je suis toujours émue et très fébrile. Que ce soit moi qui parte ou que j'attendes quelqu'un que j'aime. C'est toujours la même chose, on voit des familles séparées depuis quelques temps qui sont heureuses de se retrouver. Mon moment préféré, lorsque j'ai repéré la personne que je voulais et qu'elle ne m'a pas encore vu. Je la sens me chercher, par la suite je lui envoie la main pour qu'elle me repère.

    Saches Ad, que si tu avais atterri à Montréal, Simon et moi t'aurions fait ce coup-là. N'oublies pas t'es le bienvenue quand tu veux au condo!

    Profites de ton voyage et nous avons très hâte de voir les photos que tu as pris.

    Bisous de Laval

    Annie XX

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  2. my first choice for your front page would be the picture of the dragon kicking the dwarfs in the nuts

    but you my vote also go for either the one of the road (http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_6CtWljZfwBI/Sd6MIYkfcpI/AAAAAAAAAIY/uCP9fgYLsL8/s1600-h/DSC_2588web.jpg)
    or the one with you new friend (http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_6CtWljZfwBI/Sca39dN1pnI/AAAAAAAAAGw/F1R4LMzhDxY/s1600-h/DSC_9289web.jpg)

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  3. Le choix est très difficile. Celle de la pleine lune du début du voyage est particulièrement impressionnante. (http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_6CtWljZfwBI/Sb4sYgdlJbI/AAAAAAAAAFo/xalkPDepunc/s1600-h/DSC_6957web.jpg)

    J'aurais aussi voulu celle du "dragon kicking the dwarf in the nuts", mais je n'ai pas trouvé ses coordonnées...

    V.V.

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  4. Ma préférée, du début du voyage, celle où je crois être à contre-jour... (http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_6CtWljZfwBI/Sb4uHGS9TkI/AAAAAAAAAGI/S9KMMnUMJd4/s1600-h/DSC_7150web.jpg)

    Ghislaine

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  5. Hey Adrien,

    Nice picture of Carrie and Jacob! Caught them in he act..lol :)
    Love the pictures!

    How can I pick a favourite? you have taken so many good pictures!

    My Top favourites (in no particular order) would be:

    http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_6CtWljZfwBI/Sem5x8gU1wI/AAAAAAAAAKA/Fb_4eF0tbCU/s1600-h/DSC_4491web800.jpg

    http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_6CtWljZfwBI/SePApFrgMcI/AAAAAAAAAJI/iu2rGZeTiuA/s1600-h/DSC_2932web800.jpg

    http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_6CtWljZfwBI/SePAoQEjjtI/AAAAAAAAAIw/A9SxbLnJwo8/s1600-h/DSC_3237web900.jpg

    http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_6CtWljZfwBI/Sb4uG3AjKOI/AAAAAAAAAF4/WjBA_iFWvvE/s1600-h/DSC_7179web.jpg

    http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_6CtWljZfwBI/Sb4sX4eLxkI/AAAAAAAAAFY/t5DF2ltG4wo/s1600-h/DSC_6835web.jpg

    I couldn't narrow it down!..lol

    Don't worry.. Matt and i will be at the airport with balloons when you come home!...lol.

    -Sheena :)

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  6. The plankton one from Able Tasman NP, but I would say that...
    Helen

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  7. Other than all the cute animal ones you just posted, (cuz Im a sucker for the cute animal pictures..) my favourite is the one from inside the cave looking out.

    It better win!

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