Monday's blog, chocolate stories

Blogging time is limited, too busy viewing this lovely land. Some stories to share. Kiwis, (not just a wonderful state bird, but the way native New Zealanders refer to themselves) love chocolate. The market cookie shelves are heavily laden with an indigenous product called Tim Tams, chocolate covered wafers that come in at least 12 flavors based on chocolate. The tourists favor them too. So much SUGAR. But most Kiwis are slim, trim and come with broad, toothy Smiles and warm welcomes.

We visited the Cadbury factory and their many varieties of chocolate. Preferred are the many chocolate boutiques featuring home created treats. The dairy products are super rich and creamy, a feature of the nutrients eaten by the dairy cows.

The kiwi birds are fun to watch, chicken size, round and fully packed and creatures of the night. We viewed them at a reserve where their night is turned into day via red lighting so the birds can be seen. Their long beaks feature nostrils at the working end of the beak. The nose is deemed the shortest in the bird world therefore. enabling the bird to smell the prey at the tip of the beak.

Flag stories. The recent referendum to change the design of the flag failed as you have seen in the news. Most Kiwis want a change but not the offered design. It was pushed through by the government to distract the public from scandalous issues, a diversion.

A holocaust story of all things. Stopping in a rest area for lunch, a monument remembered an event in 1944. Polish children were being deported to Siberia. Interference by an agency sent them to Iran then to a small town in north island New Zealand where they flourished.

And lastly, a delightful encounter with a Kiwi grandpa on the ferry to Wellington to pick up his five year old grandson to take back to south island to recover from tonsilectomy, such loving folks. Enough for now. Typing on this tablet is a Chore and off to see the art deco featured in Napier as an answer to rebuilding post the .19I31 earthquake. I cant share photos due to limitted phone data and no photo card transfer from cameras. Be well!