So here we are in the land of mountains and fjords, glaciers and volcanos, Hobbiton and Middle Earth, kiwi fruits and kiwi birds, and many, many sheep! It's now the 10th May and we're stilll looking for a hobbit, but we've been having a fantastic time. We bought a sassy 1988 white Ford Telstar in Christchurch, named her Delilah, and have travelled around half of the South Island so far. The scenery has been spectacular, with bright blue skies and autumn leaves in every shade of gold, copper and red colouring the mountainsides. We saw fur seals in Kaikoura, tasted fine vintage wine in Marlborough, went tramping (kiwi-speak for hiking) in Abel Tasman National Park, and even slept one night in a red indian tipi! Bit nippy, but a great experience! We are now at Franz Josef Glacier on the west coast... brrrrr!! Since we got on the road, the weather has been fantastic. Unfortunately today it is weeing it down so we have had to postpone our glacier hike and seek refuge in the hostel instead. Thank God for DVD players and the 'Lord Of The Rings' trilogy... at this rate we may have to watch all three films back-to-back! Please pray for sunshine tomorrow! Now, where did you put that ring, my precious....???