The Brat Pack

My story on Bratislava, the European Union's youngest capital, was published in yesterday's Sunday Star Times' Escape section (click here to read).

The amazing Birgit Krippner

My story on this super talented photographer, and her exhibition of Kiwi firebrand Tame Iti, which opens next week (and yes, I've been invited to the opening, which should be good) is published in the March issue of North & South Magazine (click here to read).

Visitors from Bristol

Sorry for the radio silence - we've had a couple of mates from the UK staying and evenings have been swallowed by eating, drinking, gossiping and mutual admiration for Bristol the Wonderdog.

I first met Joe three and a bit years ago when we both had the misfortune of working for the dodgiest company you can ever imagine (let's just say the sales boys were paid their bonuses in Class As and ladies of the night and you'll have some idea how bad it was). After about eight months, we returned to NZ and Joe went to New York for a year.

He's since been back in London where he met the lovely Ally. They've been travelling the world for the past six months and were more than relieved to have a nice house to stay in.

It has been lovely having them here and hopefully next time we see each other it will be on their side of the planet.

What we did this (long) weekend

Happy belated birthday, Aoteaora, and thank you for the three-day weekend.

We spent it at the bach/beach house, painting up a storm. But the 50 shades of peach are slowly disappearing and the cool beach-house kind of vibe we're after is starting to emerge.

This is my favourite corner of the kitchen/dining area, with the cool-as workbench we found in the garden and all the crockery and cutlery left to us by the previous owners (including the fab Agee jars that now hold flatware and ingredients - score).

I spent most of Saturday arvo applying layer upon layer of white paint to this kitchen unit.

And here's a couple of the living room, including the blow fish we found on the beach a few months ago and bleached to get rid of the nasty inner bits and the fishy smell. Our friend's greyhound took a particular shine to it on Sunday when she visited.

Like cute crack

The second day of a new part-time contract and my head is swimming.

Instead of words you shall have this year's Budweiser Super Bowl advert. Adorable doesn't even come close - although if pushed, I have to admit last year's advert was even cuter. Want one of these puppies NOW.  

Happy Feet

I promised cute baby penguins and here they are.

These images are from the Pohatu Penguin Tour we did on Friday night, when our French guide Benoit (I could listen to him saying the word 'arbour in his cute accent all night) drove us about an hour from Akaroa to Pohatu, the largest little penguin colony in New Zealand.

There we donned camouflage gear (yes, I did feel like a twat) and grabbed binoculars before heading out into the gloaming to watch the tiny blue and white penguins come out of their protected boxes to get a breath of fresh air.

And you probably heard our sighs from your place as the penguin guardian angels tried to release one wee fella to the sea for the third night running. As we watched, he stood there shivering and trotting back to his human mama who'd hand fed him since he was left behind by his own mother a few weeks ago. I swear to god, everyone watching wanted desperately to pick him up and take him home but, eventually, he got the message and after a few retreats back up the beach, he swam out to sea. Here's hoping the bloody great seal we spotted a few minutes later didn't have him for dinner....

Here he is having a last feed before he was taken to the beach

And here is is, being encouraged by a load of tourists to turn around and get into the water  

Which he eventually does...

And here are a couple of others penguins, their moult not quite complete and so not ready to follow their plucky mate out to sea,

What I did this weekend

It has been a frantic day of words with some 5, 000 written so far (and I am on deadline for another corporate piece so there shall be no rest for me this evening).

Instead of words here are some pics of our glorious weekend down south - Christchurch and Akaroa, thank you for a lovely weekend.

Our visit to remote Flea Bay Friday night to see the cutest blue penguins who haven't yet followed their mamas and papas out to sea deserves a post of its own; will get to that later this week.

Instead, here are pics of Saturday's class at the Akaroa Cooking School (a fun group, especially the hen party, many of whom had flown in from London) and a visit with the creator and owner of Akaroa's Giant's House, the lovely Josie Martin.

Sunday we drove up into the hills for spectacular views over this volcanic region - and slowly melted as the temperature hit 30 degrees.

The pics, as usual, courtesy of the Animator.