NewZealand

Two weeks ago, on 27th April Repin and I took off for NewZealand. It was a two week trip covering both North and South Islands. New Zealand is really beautiful - every where you turn you can see something splendid and gorgeous- the sea, lakes, mountains and rainforests, even the sheep. And there are millions of them.
We started from Auckland in the north, also the largest city in New Zealand.

Auckland is almost surrounded by sea, being on a peninsula.

Since we landed quite early in the morning of Sunday we managed to seethe city on our own before the tour proper began the next day. Armed with a map of the city and directions from the hotel staff we walked around, rather aimlessly at first until we saw the Auckland Tower. So we decided to go up to get a bird's eye view of the city. The Auckland Sky Tower as it is called is 328m tall and is one of the tallest buildings in the Southern Hemisphere, according to the brochure they gave us.

After wandering around and looking at shops, we both decided we had had enough and walked back to the hotel. That evening our tour director cum driver, Brian Tregoweth, met us and introduced us to the rest of the group - a charming couple from the North Carolina in the US. Dinner was grilled fish which tasted delicious!

Auckland seen from the Tower

Little dynamos

Tommy - always alert for some fun

Yukie and Tommy are my new kittens, though they are not so little anymore. I think they are about 5 months old now. Yukie is beautiful and very feminine looking and Tommy is cute and very like a boy cat. He is also naughty - very mischievous, always hungry and full of energy. Poor Yukie just can't keep up at times with his frantic energy - running, climbing and forever chasing after something.

Yukie at 4 months

Since they came I have had to keep all my flower vases away -last month Tommy climbed on to the piano and as he was jumping down knocked one of my beautiful blue vase. So since then I have learnt my lesson. Keep all things on the floor and if they can break, put them away until they know not to climb and run everywhere!

A new kitten in the family

Yukie playing with Mulan 

My sister Jasmine gave me a new kitten, white in colour and only two months old. We named her Yukie which my daughter says means snow in Japanese. Yukie is hyperactive : climbing, running, teasing and chasing after the older cats. She does not seem to be afraid of any one, not even Mulan who is the class brat and bully. To see her chasing after poor Ginger I could break down laughing. Ginger is my 6 year old fat ginger tabby. It's good to see her running, being chased by this tiny dynamo. At first I worried that Ginger would smack her but I need not have feared - she is so gentle the little one bullies her. Mulan however is a different kettle of fish or rather cat. Mulan plays with her but sometimes she 'accidentally bites' the little one and she scampers off and hides under a cupboard or the bookcase. 

see how cute I am!

Yukie the dynamo

Now we have a total of seven cats!  Here is a picture of some of the others.

Ginger, Mulan and Bear Bear having a meeting and deciding who can be allowed outside!