My host at the bed and breakfast, Gail, is one of twelve Christchurch city councillors. She brought me in to work with her this morning, and even let me unseat the mayor for a photo. I was able to listen in on the session for a little while, first a discussion about insurance (maybe?), and then a presentation from the fire chief who is, oddly enough, American.
Later I wandered around the city center, Cathedral Square, and toured the Southern Encounter Aquarium and Kiwi House (no penguins).
The aquarium was quite small, and the Kiwi House was more like a Kiwi Prison - two terrified kiwis rooting around in the straw behind plate glass in the pitch dark. Kiwis are small flightless birds, about the size of a chicken, native only to New Zealand. Most species of kiwi are endangered. They are nocturnal birds, very sensitive to light and sound, and when we went into the kiwi "house," we were sternly warned not to speak, move suddenly, or take pictures. We crept in and silently encountered two skittish kiwis in the dark, who promptly tried to bury themselves in the straw in the farthest corner of the enclosure. I think this is what they looked like.mmr
No comments:
Post a Comment