Christmas in Paradise with dolphins and kiwis

Last light, Doubtful Sound © Caroline Fraser

As you know, I am working in New Zealand for a few months, in order to do some photography and get paid enough to stay here for longer than the average 2 week holiday.

I am not one to sit in a plane for 36 hours twice within two weeks.

But my lovely family are doing just that, in order to spend Christmas in Paradise with me.



The road to Paradise was sunny and busy with people carrying selfie sticks.

people in Paradise

But if you looked the other way it still looked like paradise to me.

Paradise and the Dart River © Caroline Fraser

The waters of the river were cool and crystal clear.

Dart river water

But I don't want to rub in the beauty of this place.

Other Half is waiting for some words from yours truly.



I hesitate to write this next part for I have just discovered that he ( my other half)  has only 3 months left on his life insurance policy, and I will be a much richer widow if he pops off before his next birthday.

We discussed together a few ways that I could hasten his demise ( in jest, of course).

I will name a few;

• heart attack climbing Ben Lomond. .............FAILED ....... it was me that nearly had the heart attack due to extreme heat.

• falling off a cliff on the road to Paradise......FAILED........ people with selfie sticks would have heard the screams

the road to Paradise

Nice place to die though.

everybody loves a selfie

• death by helicopter ride over the mountains.............FAILED

• death by great white shark.......... not attempted, but a fairly gruesome way to go. And what if he was only maimed?

shark cage divers

death by sand fly attack...........quite possible..........probably both of us........which is not the point....

death by chocolate..... not allowed.....




So we carried on with our adventures and it seems to be the wildlife that is taking most of our attention right now.

We have found albatrosses at Doubtful Sound and Stewart Island

albatross

Seagulls of the friendly variety

Crayfish of the most delicious kind;


lunch

lunch

A stray octopus;

not lunch

octopus

Blue cod;

dinner

blue cod

OH wants you to know that he caught 5 fish..........they were used as bait...... pacific perch not considered fit for lunch or dinner

bait for fishing

he is now complaining that you can't see his fish properly..........


So here he is....

OH caught a fish

And most exciting of all we had a baby dolphin along with many others, also on Doubtful Sound, swimming alongside our boat.




everybody say 'ahhhhhhh"

baby dolphin

and for the grand finale



THE NEW ZEALAND KIWI!

kiwi on Ulva Island

rarely seen in daylight, or even at all.


OH nearly tripped over it on Ulva Island having been out for 3 hours in the dark the night before on a guided 'find the kiwi at great expense' tour and come back with a photo in which there may have been a kiwi, but neither you nor I could really tell.


We have a few days left of exploring this paradise together, and then it will be back to work and there will be time for a different kind of photography.....the kind where I am allowed to stand in one place for more than 2 minutes before the next hill or mountain has to be climbed.