Blue is the colour I most associate with New Zealand. The sky here is a deeper, more brilliant blue than I have experienced anywhere else, particularly this summer during which we’ve enjoyed week after week of fine weather. And then there’s the “deep, blue sea” in which the islands of Aotearoa are anchored to their place in the south Pacific (acknowledging Don McLashan here). The  photo above was taken at Hamilton’s Gap on the Awhitu peninsula. Although the sky is blue, the sea here is not. This is because of the river that runs through the gap to the ocean. The black sand offsets the blue of the sky and efficiently absorbs the heat of the sun. This special place will be an abiding memory of our 2014/15 trip home and help keep away the blues now that we have to leave.