It's All About the Feet (Feat?)
...It's strange, but I seem to be preoccupied with feet. In
California, it was all the Uggs. If you don't know what they
are, then skip to the next paragraph. If you do and want me
to pick some up for you in Australia, let me know (they're
backordered till April in the US and I will only charge a
minor service charge. I saw all varieties in California --
from the traditional boots to some pick scuffies.
And in New Zealand, it's all about your feet -- starting at
Customs, where they inspect your hiking boots to make
absolutely sure that you aren't carrying anything into the
country. And now on the ship, every time we got ashore in
the zodiacs, we have to clean our shoes with chlorine and
brushes beforehand -- again to make sure you aren't carrying
anything onto the land. In two cases, Maud Island and
Motorua Island, we were not allowed to carry anything ashore
except cameras (e.g. no backpacks, etc.) because they are
trying to re-establish the native ecosystems. The ship had
to use rat poison on all the zodiacs for a week prior to
visiting those islands, and then they send someone aboard to
check everything before they let you commence bringing
people on land. Very impressive efforts on the part of New
Zealand. Also, for those of you interested, NZ is one of the
only places in the world that has eliminated agricultural
subsidies, so many of their operations are going out of
business 9and the government is buying them up very cheap to
preserve the land.
We were supposed to go see whales today, but the weather was
too rough (winds too strong), so we're in the town of
Kaikoru where we saw a colony of fur seals. Having a great
time. Can't get to AOL on the ship's computer, so you'll
only hear from me when we're in a town!
Take care...
Oh yes, the FEAT! Went to two of Captain Cook's places
yesterday -- Ship Cove, where he took the ship on four or
five separate occasions on 2 separate voyages. And the the
place where he raised the flag on the South Island -- to
claim it for England of course. |