Betik

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Ipoh has a reputation for good food. Apparently people drive up from KL especially to have lunch or dinner in Ipoh. There is an abundance of restaurants here, ranging from street stalls, where you can get a meal for a few ringgit, to high-end establishments. A lot of local dishes are extremely spicy and many are too mushy for our taste – bowls of soft noodles floating with overcooked vegetables do not appeal. Even a salad will be served so saturated with dressing that there is no crunch left in the lettuce or cucumber. The local food I like the most is the fruit, particularly the papaya (betik in Malay), but also the melons, mangoes and pomelos. We each eat a bowlful for breakfast every morning and, even after living here for two years, view it a treat. When I was cutting up the papaya this morning, I was struck by its beautiful colour and the star shape made by the seeds, so I took this snap.

Walking uphill

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We’re in training for our tramp up Mount Kinabalu in Sabah (east Malaysia) at the beginning of June. Because that will involve walking uphill for many hours, we’ve been trying to do some walks that involve going up and down stairs. One of these is a route up Ipoh’s highest hill, Bukit Kledang, which has various flights of stairs in various states of disrepair and no handrails anywhere! (The photo is of stairs I regularly went up and down while in Auckland and is about as far from the Kledang conditions as possible). We went up early yesterday morning while it was still dark so that we could test our headlamps and also take advantage of the cooler temperature. I never know which is worse – going up or coming down! Both seemed really hard yesterday and when we got back to the car at 8am, the temperature was already 31 degrees. I’m trying to remain optimistic about my chances of completing the Mount Kinabalu climb.

Cloud cuckoo land

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In an attempt to keep up the daily activity I enjoyed while in Auckland, I have been going out early most mornings for a brisk walk around the area of Ipoh in which we live. The other day I came across this house – yes, it’s a house, not a hotel! I think it is meant to resemble a chateau in some mountainous region of Europe, hence the steep roof to cope with heavy falls of snow. The grounds are embellished with a fountain complete with cupids and the postbox is beyond my powers of description.

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I guess whoever built it wanted a house big enough to conspicuously display his/her extreme wealth but also wanted a design that no-one else would have. I think they succeeded!

We’re back

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Back to high temperatures, to one’s shirt sticking to one’s back, to being covered in a film of perspiration almost all the time. It’s uncomfortable. I went out for a walk at 6.30 a.m. It’s not so hot I thought. But by 7.30 when I got back to our flat, I was flicking the sweat off my forehead before it could run into my eyes. Did I mention it’s uncomfortable? I guess I’ll adjust given time but on balance, I’d rather be in Auckland!

Finishing as we began

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When we arrived in New Zealand just before Christmas, we spent a week in Raglan. We’re back here this week. I’ve been in New Zealand all along, enjoying a glorious summer, as those of you who follow this blog know. Jim came back a couple of weeks ago and we have these few days in paradise before going back to the tropical heat of Malaysia at the end of the week. The summer weather is hanging in. Although the mornings and evenings are cooler, the days are beautiful and the surf is inviting. Right now the clouds over the harbour are pink with the light from the setting sun and soon we’ll have a glass of wine on the deck. How will we tear ourselves away?

Tui

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Since I came to live in New Zealand 20 years ago, I’ve noticed a proliferation of tui in urban areas. In the mid-1990s it was rare to see a tui in a built-up suburb. Now wherever you walk in Auckland or Hamilton (or anywhere else I’m surmising) you hear the distinctive trills, croaks and squawks they make. One day a couple of weeks back I stood in a small copse of trees in the middle of a park and looking up I saw six tui. I managed to snap this photo before a dog came running down the path and they scattered. I’m sure I’m not the only one who finds their tuneful presence a delight.

From sea to shining sea

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On yet another perfect summer’s afternoon I walked through Churchill Park, entering it from the east. From the top of the hill I looked back to this view of the Tamaki estuary shining in the sun. I then walked west, all the way over to St Helier’s bay. From the top of Cliff Road, I could see “with a lift of the heart” the glittering waters of the Hauraki Gulf, from the beaches of the bays all the way to the harbour bridge in the distance. Fitting to use an Anita Brookner quote today – she died last week.

Country in town

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In two of the parks through which I have been walking during my stay in Auckland, there are herds of cows. In Churchill Park (in the photo above) there is a small herd of dry stock, which migrates from one paddock to another. One or two lift their heads as I walk by, look at me unconcernedly and then go back to their grazing. Cornwall Park is a working farm and has a larger herd of cows and a flock of sheep. I’m not sure why but seeing these animals in the middle of New Zealand’s biggest city always makes me smile. I guess it may be because farming is so central to New Zealand’s identity, even in Auckland, which is denigrated in rural areas as “the big smoke”.

Brown’s Island

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I have been exploring the area around where Jim and I have our Auckland bolt-hole and where we hope to retire if and when we can afford to. It is on the coast, along the Tamaki estuary and there are numerous bush and beach walks in the immediate vicinity. It is another perfect summer’s day today so I walked along the beach right to the end of the Glendowie spit, which you can only do when the tide is out, as it was this morning. From the beach I got this splendid view of Brown’s Island, which is the nearest island in the Hauraki Gulf to this part of the coast. One day we’ll kayak out there on the outgoing tide, fish for our dinner and then paddle back in with the incoming tide to assist us. It’s a lovely dream!

Grey warbler

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As I work at editing a thesis this morning, I can hear the distinctive song of a grey warbler outside the window. This tiny bird is endemic in New Zealand and there is a huge population of them all over the country. Yet I have never seen one. Hence the use of this wonderful Forest & Bird image instead of a pic of my own. Apparently it is only the male riroriro that sings so beautifully – amazing that such a loud sound can emanate from such a small body. It is delightful to hear and a welcome accompaniment to my work.