Bloody lack of pictures

I was waiting to post when I had pictures to put up but thanks to them being HUGE they take too long to upload. For now, tis but textual.

I shall tell you where I've been and whatnot but first, the birds I have seen:
silvereye, pied shag, black swan, puku (or summut), tui, indian myna, red-billed gull, black-billed gull, black-backed gull, wellcome swallow, australian coot, a shellduck who's name I don't remember and a kea behind some bars. And billions of sparrows!
Seriously, sparrows are everywhere! In trees, on the streets, on the bins, in cafes, on my hand almost. I thought to meself 'why could this be?' then noticed I the complete lack of herring gulls. A large city by the sea with lots of food and rubbish but none of the noisy strutting bastards that call themselves larus argentatus. But then, there is also a total absence of chavs so maybe they're to blame. Who knows? Well, I do, but still.

This is what the Liz has been up to:
FRIDAY: The Liz went up the skytower. Oooo it's big. And high! There's a glass panel in the lift floor so you can see the ground disappear as you shoot up. Amazing views though. Thinking of going up tomorrow night to see the fireworks. Had lunch up there too. Mooched about the town for the rest of the day and went back to the hostel early as I was stricken with knackereditis.

SATURDAY: I was skint. Almost and completely doshless thanks to bank-related cock-ups. So I did whatever was cheap, namely sitting in a park and going to the library. Their library is awesome though. Manky weather anyway.

SUNDAY: Was no skint. HURRAH! So I went to the museum. There were some bits about Pacific people and the war and whatnot but I was all 'woteva' and legged it straight to the natural history bit. Ooooo it was good. They had live animals! There was a bit with a rockpool and ENORMOUS crayfish/.lobsters that you could actually stand over on glass. Amezzin. There were also rats called Darwin, Wallace and Huxley. Genius. If I ever get three rats, or indeed cats, I should like to call them Alfred, Russell and Wallace. Genius. Mooched about the Domain (a big park) for a bit then went and saw How to Lose Friends and Alienate People, based on a book which I could have wrotten. How crap is it that I can't really remember what I did. It wasn't that long ago. I'm sure there was something else. Ah nuts and on to:

MONDAY: Was yesterday so I should remember what I did do. And I do! Went to Kelly Tarlton's Antarctic Experience, which is basically the sea life centre ON ACID! First there was a bit all about Antarctic exploration which I found very fascinating indeed being as I am a nerd and love that sort of thing. But then I ventured forth unto the stingray pool. I was expecting your average sized ray, like the ones you used to be able to touch in the pools at the sea life centre. But these bastard were seriously MASSIVE.
No, MASSIVE!
There was a guy in the pool feeding him and how he wasn't fearing for his life I do not know. They must have been 5m long and at least 3m wide. There was also a huge turtle and a snowcat ride with some extremely awesome penguins. J'ame le penguin. Beaucoup. Then back into town and caught a ferry to Devonport where I mooched in bookshops and sat on the beach and read a book about tramping. That’s as in walking, not the other thing.

TODAY: Today I got up a bit late so I didn't do an awful much but I did go to the zoo. Oh I do love a zoo. And I did not see a kiwi (The Liz's new life-long dream is to hug a kiwi. Look at a kiwi. Don’t you want to hug it? Yes, yes you do). But I did see a tuatara, and lions, hippos, servals and whatnot. And some elephants who refused to go the right way when being walked from their enclosure to the keepers but and plonked their arses on the grass.

And here I be. Typing as quick as I can because I’m running out of minutes so I shall bit ye a swift toodle oo.

Toodle oo