More fun in the sounds, and on Anzac Day

This weekend in the sounds was VERY, (let me say that again!) VERY cool... It was a beautiful, sunny day, the water was calm... and unexpectedly we got to see many, many dolphins. They like to play in the wake behind the boat, so we got a great closeup view, as you can see!! It was so fun watching them jump around and play!! I also attach a photo of a very cool looking thresher shark who was surprisingly unthreatening looking- for a shark.

When I first arrived in NZ I remember being offended that there was no mention of Remembrance Day. What I didn't realize at the time (bad Kelly!) was that NZ commemorates their vetrans on a different day - that day being Anzac day- April 25. Our friends at wikipedia note the following:

"In 1915 Australian and New Zealand soldiers formed part of the Allied expedition that set out to capture the Gallipoli peninsula to open the way to the Black Sea for the Allied navies. The plan was to capture Istanbul, capital of the Ottoman Empire and an ally of Germany. They landed at Gallipoli on 25 April, meeting fierce resistance. The date, 25 April, was officially named ANZAC Day in 1916." (see more at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anzac_day)

I bought my poppy the other day. They don't seem to sell them everywhere here, like in Canada- but instead it was actually people set up on the street. They are also made out of felt, with a little sticker saying something to the effect of "welfare fund" and vetrans.

Something interesting about Blenheim- for a city of 20,000- there are no traffic lights. Traffic is controlled by roundabouts... which are, by the way, great inventions!!!