Rain ----- Rain

Well we finally have seen what a few days of rain showers and heavy rain storms can look like.  The sun might pop out and trick you and then a heavy downpour might follow.  Perfect for snuggling on the couch with a movie.  We did sneak in a quick walk at the Macleans Road Reserve which starts in an open field, winds through the bush and ends up at Eastern Beach.  Here are a few photos.

Walking through the bush actually protects you from the rain.

Chris, Carol,  Archie the dog, David, and Rachel at Eastern Beach.  The water was greenish blue with the storm.

Sunday proved to be a perfect day for the Auckland War Memorial Museum.  This is a beautiful museum in downtown Auckland.  David navigated beautifully with  his Garmin giving directions.  The museum has 3 floors with a huge Marine Exhibition, Pacific Islanders history and culture, a beautiful Maori Exhibition,  a Natural History exhibition with a highly interactive gallery on volcanoes, and the top floor is a War Memorial.

David is examining Rajah, Auckland Zoo's famous wayward elephant whose unpredictable behavior led to an early demise.  He has been a resident at the museum since 1930 and is at the entrance to "wild Child" a very interesting exploration of play and routine that transformed the wild colonial child of the 1880's into the modern child of the 1950's.  The clothes and toys of the 50's were very familiar to me. I especially enjoyed a display of puppets used to develop language and reading.

I was fascinated by the Taonga Maori (Maori Treasures).  This was a storage house owned by a leader in the community ---- a sign of prestige.  Red ochre was common in many buildings and statues to signify the blood that was shed.

Maori statues representing ancestors

This is the last great Maori war canoe (Te Toki a Tapiri).  It is carved from a giant totara tree.  It  held 100 warriors.  This picture does not do it justice!

The marine exhibit allowed you to get face to face with New Zealand underwater life and the Natural History exhibit placed you in a small room that experienced a simulated volcano.  Oh Yeah --- I jumped!

One other interesting display was entitled "murder house" -- It was a dental office with a dental chair and "the drill".......

Great Museum and rainy day adventure!