Lots of these little lizards out sunning themselves.

Visited the art gallery.

Lots of unique plant and animal life so different from Canada. The bird of paradise flower is very aptly named.

Visiting Brisbane for a few days. Tremendous work done on the riverfront to make a place people want to visit.

Just a day at sea yesterday as we head to Melbourne. Can see Tasmania on the distant horizon. Very windy and rough. Challenge to walk around without using the handrails.

We also stopped at the UnZoo to see the Tasmanian devils. It took him about 3:00 mins to devour this wombat hind leg. Bones included. Incredible jaw strength.

Port Arthur is the former convict settlement where the British crept the repeat offenders. It is a hour and a half drive from Hobart where we docked this morning. Great part of the history of Tasmania.

Tides out. The reference photo and my quick watercolour from our trip to Port Arthur today.

This is the sight from the ship the last two days! Lots of sky, lots of ocean. Perfect chance to practice my watercolours.

Views of the sounds and Fjords. Spectacular! One of the highest waterfalls of its type in the world.

Attending the Champagne Art Auction. Definitely out of my price range! Do get some great ideas.

Picture from art class today. Full gay at sea.

No shore excursions today. Just cruising the most southerly coast of New Zealand. Spectacular scenery.

Leaving Dunedin. The pilot boat racing ahead through the narrow passageway. One final look at the nesting albatross’s. Not windy enough for them to fly. Off to the Sounds tomorrow.

This is Baldwin Street. The world’s steepest street. The picture does not do it justice. There is an annual race held once a year. Sprint to the top and back. The record is just under 2:00 mins.

Some of the many flowers. Loved the Scot thistle. Never saw one so big.

Was said to have a 720 degree view from the castle. You had to go around twice. The gardens are award winning.

Incredible craftsmanship. Brought in some of the finest materials in the world and the craftsman to construct the castle.

All the original furniture was sold off. The new owner found an inventory list. 0ver time and diligent work she found many of the original pieces. She had to reassemble the chandelier as it was all in pieces.

Visit to Larnach Castle in Dunedin. Quite the story of the Larnach family who built the original castle and then the Baker family who bought it in 1967 and restored it.

That is my wing span compared to an albatross’s in red. The middle picture shows the real life size compared to our tour guide. The last picture shows the two glands which secrete the excess salt they intact by being at sea for up to a year.

One of the workers was taking chicks out and weighing them. If under weight they will feed them. Also check on the adults to make sure they are feeding.

Our first stop was to the Royal Albatross sanctuary. There are 40 nesting pairs. They like it here because of the food source and the wind. They are too big to flap their wings, they soar and glide. Magnificent to see in the air.

Rainy morning in Dunedin. Another port more pine logs being shipped to China. Many farmers have given up sheep and switched to planting Monterey pine. Grow fast, and they get a carbon friendly credit.

There is a limit of seven stories to any new building being built. Lots of new architecture and murals to bring colour. It has been slow to rebuild. The population dropped from close to 500 k down to just over 300k. Hard to find extra money for infrastructure.

Christchurch was hit by an earthquake in late 2010. In February 2011 a second more devastating earthquake hit the downtown. Almost all of the old building were destroyed. Especially buildings made of stone with just mortar to hold the stones in place.

Here he is bring the sheep right up to the farmer. The sheep were more afraid of the dog than the people.

The first group of sheep were put on pause so that Sam, the black lab, could go out and prevent a second group of sheep from coming through the open gate.

The neighbour came to shear a lamb, its first time being sheared. He explained the difference in wool prices. Merino wool is 15x more valuable. Wool prices are down so many farmers have had to fund other means. The popularity of merino has helped.

I have movies of the dogs working. Need better internet to post. The dogs are a cross between border collies and labs. In the hilly country with many sheep to move they needed a dog that barked, hence the lab.