Some Things I Have Learned This Week

1. Ostriches have enormous ear-holes on the back of their heads, and are obsessed with shiny objects. And they are fun to pet.

2. Noah's Ark probably housed baby dinosaurs.

3. A zealous donkey's bray sounds like a hurricane alarm.

4. Competitive gumboot tossing can be both tricky and dangerous.

5. Peacock feathers go for a lot of money in Dubai. Oh, and that possum-fur cape will cost you $1500. And yes, those possums were trapped in our back yard.

6. Tails are popular in New Zealand. Whether they have made a comeback or never left is unclear to me. And yes, by tail I mean the popular 90s rattail hairdo, not the potentially prehensile appendage.

7. Tug-of-war is a serious and difficult business.

8. It is possible to get sunburned through two shirts here.

9. A vat of Porridge for breakfast everyday is as tedious as it sounds.
Praying over it does not help.

10. Swimming in the ocean is so, so good. And the saltwater makes you float like a buoy. I guess I already knew that, but it is a pleasure to be reminded.

11. The Maori Haka dance is a damn soul-stirring thing to watch.

12. New Zealand men like their shorts short. Really short. 

13. The Pelorus Sound is the green-lipped muscle capital of the world. This does not change my opinion that they look like and have the texture of chewing gum.

14. Composting toilets are less effective when near overflowing.

15. New Zealand has bad coffee. Instant coffee. Bad. Baaad.

16. Group philosophical conversations (in English) between multiple people of different nationalities are usually hilarious. Especially when you are the only native English-speaker.

17. Powdered milk is better in New Zealand. As in, it is actually palatable. Who knew?

18. Kawa-Kawa leaves are delicious to munch on or drink in tea.

19. Sandflies = devil spawn.

20. There are some really odd places in the WWOOF directory.