MEGAKIWI
Mighty Mac Hunter with his awesome silencer. It means that instead of BOOM, the rifle goes 'poof'. Mac scored some more goat last weekend on a hunting trip with the New Zealand Deerstalkers Association. Then he made chili verde with the goat and I promise you, you cannot tell it is goat. It tastes like the most succulent pork ever! My second favourite dish is Mac's Goat Bourgignon. With NZ merlot, bien sur! | Did I ever mention we have a kiwi bush/tree in our yard? Kiwis are more similar to vines than anything else. They are incredibly prolific--we've harvested over 100 kiwis. I've made kiwi salsa, kiwi bread, and lots of kiwi smoothies. One cool advantage to having your own vine is that you get to see all the kiwis that don't end up on grocery shelves--giant kiwis, amoebic kiwis, tiny kiwis. The kiwi above is three in one! |
We took a vacation up to Rotorua a few weeks ago. It was our fourth time to this hot springs mecca and we found two new off-the-beaten-path free hot springs. Just what the doctor ordered after a long trail run that morning!
Introducing Makara. If you haven't been there, you need to go. If you survive the road to Makara, you should stay a couple days there to rest up for the drive back. Hike up the coast to the giant windfarm and check out WWII gun emplacements. Makara is supposed to be one of the best places for spearfishing on the North Island. Mac went diving every day and brought home fish and paua, and yes we fried up some fish the same night. I am a product of my upbringing--fish just tastes so good fried, that I'm reluctant to cook it any other way!
Makara is a lonely village about 45 minutes from Wellington. We rented a house with a wood burning stove and felt warmer than we have for months (zero insulation in NZ houses + inefficient electric heaters = near-constant chilliness). Mac and I went paddleboarding and my heart rate doubled when a sea lion started chasing Mac's board! One nibble on the board and we'd be swimming! But I worried for naught, because I guess he justed wanted to hang with us for a while, before he went back to doing other sea-lion stuff.
Makara is a lonely village about 45 minutes from Wellington. We rented a house with a wood burning stove and felt warmer than we have for months (zero insulation in NZ houses + inefficient electric heaters = near-constant chilliness). Mac and I went paddleboarding and my heart rate doubled when a sea lion started chasing Mac's board! One nibble on the board and we'd be swimming! But I worried for naught, because I guess he justed wanted to hang with us for a while, before he went back to doing other sea-lion stuff.