Sunday Stills-Birds (January 26th)

This gives a good introduction to the birds in New Zealand.







I am showing the Godwits again, because this was such a rare occasion that you see these birds from Siberia in flight.

I have to show the Godwits, in case you see them, and they tell you about meeting me in New Zealand. The Bar-tailed Godwit (Limosa lapponica) is a large wader in the family Scolopacidae, which breeds on Arctic coasts and tundra mainly in the Old World, and winters on coasts in temperate and tropical regions of the Old World.[2] It makes the longest known non-stop flight of any bird and also the longest journey without pausing to feed by any animal, 11,680 kilometres (7,258 mi) along a route from Alaska to New Zealand.[3]





The gannets are migratory birds from Australia.







http://sundaystills.wordpress.com/

FSO: Glass

a 1920s house has many glass windows, This is a recess. Sometimes, rainbows form from the different angled glass pieces.



To add to my nest of Russian Matryoshka Dolls, I was given a drink glass bottle Matryoshka doll. It was empty when I got it.





I went to Australia, at Surfers Paradise, at the market, I was delighted to see a New Zealander Glass blower artist. I bought a kangaroo and a grand piano.




I went shooting for photos without realising that this week's challenge is glass. I was approaching a senior citizen's retirement village. I chanced on this bus shelter. What a fantastic idea, the bus passengers can look our for the bus and feel dry and warm.

January 20 - Glass: Interesting Windows, Unique Displays, Beautiful Collections...what glassy things can you find to share from your town?






link to Mr Linky at the Friday shoot out link below.
http://mytownshootout.blogspot.com/

outdoor wednesday/save our world: People watching over us in Summer

It is summer, and the surf guards are out there volunteering to save our lives.



Surf Life Saving is the leading water safety organisation in NZ. We have been providing surf lifesaving services to New Zealand communities for nearly 100 years.100 years of an iconic volunteering movement.

Whether patrolling swimming areas or rescuing in heavy surf, every Surf Lifeguard knows the powerful motivation of saving or protecting a life. It's a motivation that marks Surf Life Saving as more than just 'something to do' at the weekend.





A different kind of save our lives, Green Peace Benn Hanns was out there teaching us how to save the world.

Today, the Greenpeace website has gone dark in protest of the U.S. Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and PROTECT-IP Act (PIPA). The U.S. Congress is about to censor the Internet.

If SOPA/PIPA become law, sites like Greenpeace.org could go dark simply because one of our corporate targets files a claim that its intellectual property rights have been violated. No proof required, no court hearing. Don't let corporate interests censor the internet.






http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com



http://reducefootprints.blogspot.com/

My world Tuesday: Asian Games Mascot

In 2010, the Asian games was held in China. The water engineer was there on work assignment before the games started.

The last Asian Games was held at Guangzhou, People's Republic of China last 12 November – 27 November, 2010. The next games will be held at Incheon, South Korea.

Guangzhou is the land of my ancestors. My great grand father left Guangzhou more than 100 years ago. I am thinking, it is about time I should be " Daughter, for the return home!"






http://ourworldtuesdaymeme.blogspot.com/

Sunday Stills-Corners

To go to Omaha bird sanctuary, you go down this many corner bridge to the beach.

A trap to catch rodents before they eat the chicks and the birds. Reminds me of an old fashioned school desk.


A sea gull was sitting on top of this 4 cornered bird sign.

This is a million dollar sight, the Godwits fly from another corner of the world, from Siberia to visit us.

The shape of this trailor attracted me, Pete of the Surf school stores his sails and boards.
Surf sails have lots of corners, and they don't shape the sa,me.


I had a great day yesterday at Omaha beach, and the coastal engineer went to see the sea wall, and I found the birds. It was a fantastic sight. Not something you see everyday. I wrote to the Omaha Shorebird Protection Trust and they replied the same morning. I had watched on TV about the Godwits, and never in my imagination would I think I will see them, especially when it wasn't a planned journey.

Ka Pai and Paki Paki to these lovely people at the bird trust who answered me so quickly.

Hello Ann,

The birds in your photograph are bar-tailed godwits, or kuaka. They are easily identified by their very distinctive beaks, which are clearly visible in your photo. We have a very large group (perhaps 600-700) that roost on the spit at Omaha at high tide from late spring to early autumn. They feed on the mudflats of the Whangateau harbour at low tide and rest on the spit for a few hours each high tide. Although the birds look black against the sky in your photo, they are in fact speckled brown. Towards the end of summer the godwits begin to develop their breeding plumage of dark orangy-red. This is a sign that they are preparing for their long migration back to the Northern hemisphere where they breed. You can find out more about these birds on line, for example at the following address.

http://www.nzbirds.com/birds/kuaka.html

In some cities in NZ the godwits are formally welcomed back to NZ in spring. It would be nice to have a similar ceremony for our Omaha godwits. They are sight faithful, with the same birds returning to the same feeding grounds year after year.

Best wishes,
Marie Ward
OSPT shorebird monitor


Sunday Stills-Corners
Posted in Helpful Hints?, Sunday Stills, Sunday Stills Challenge of the Week on January 9, 2012 by Linda

This weeks challenge it to photograph corners…..corners on buildings, boards, streets…..just find yourself a corner and play with light and shadows.

http://sundaystills.wordpress.com/

Sunday Scans: Foreign Students in New Zealand.

Flatmates Simon Wong and Desmond Chiong.

I recall Simon came from Binatang.

Paul Chee is a Roman Catholic Priest.

My Uncle John Chan Kok Fei came to visit New Zealand. Many ex Sacred Heart students knew him as Master Kok Fei. He taught Sacred Heart Primary school, but he was very supportive of the whole school's sports. Even those who joined the school in Sacred Heart Secondary School at various stages knew him as Master Kok Fei. I was told he trained some of them and was present during the sports meet. When he came to New Zealand, ex students in Wellington and Auckland came to entertain. The bulk of the Sibu students were in Christchurch, and it was a pity he didn't go there.


In the 1960s, the crème de la crème of the Sarawak students were given Colombo plans scholarships to study in Canada, Australia, New Zealand. One of my neighbours went to Canada and became a doctor. I really wanted to go to Canada, but when I grew up, they changed the systems, and there was no more Colombo Plan scholarship, and I wasn't crème de la crème, so I don't think I would get the scholarship.

In the next decade, a group of self financing students went abroad. Initially on what we dubbed as our parents' scholarship. They worked very hard, most of them worked in the summer holidays, and some of them worked in the weekends.

I was one of them, and here were photos of my friends and flat mates in 1979. I have not seen many of them since they graduated. Some went back to Sibu, and then to other countries. Paul, is a priest and posts on Facebook a lot.








http://sundayscans.blogspot.com/

FSO: January 13 - Arms and Legs

Surfing lessons at Omaha beach. It will certainly be useful if you have arms and legs to surf.
My 15 year old was so happy with Simon the instructor that he wants to go back for more lessons. http://www.surfaris.co.nz/


























Jessie is my sister Grace's daughter. She lives in Singapore. Thomas is my other sister Helen's son. He lives in Australia. Every few years, they visit. Here they are playing a touching game.







January 13 - Arms and Legs





link to Mr Linky at the Friday shoot out link below.
http://mytownshootout.blogspot.com/