Questions answered

Dear all , thanks for the comments on the previous post, Sue is currently typing like crazy so we could nearly be up to date soon. Anyway questions posted....its is great to get them.

1.Have we tried the birds nest soup? No, this soup is very expensive and generally not even eaten locally. The soup however is meant to have many powerful properties genuine or not I cannot tell, among this impressive list is that it can help with asthma, impotence, provide general longevity and health. However going by the market price it is certainly not good for your wallet!

2.Cheeky Monkeys, tell Sean, Adrain and Iseult that the best way the best way to frighten off a cheeky monkey is to open and shut an umbrella in there direction, it was are only effective defense. There were people sitting around the cafe at breakfast time who had their boiled eggs stolen off the plate in front of them while they were not watching! One the monkey has stolen the food he then has to protect it from the other monkeys who want to steal it from him!! an aggressive chase begins that goes up and down trees, along electric wires and crashing through the bushes at great speed with lots of screeching.

3. The mangrove crabs are very small, a big one complete with claw is about the size of a two euro coin.

4. Right now, we are sitting in an Internet cafe in a town called Takaka, Golden bay, the north end of the south Island, New Zealand. It should be on an atlas or Google World. Today we are driving back south to Arthurs Pass (east of Christchurch) to do another climb or two in the alps.

Thanks Sonja, Vasco, Cillian and Tess for the cards and parcel at Christmas.

Love to you all and thanks for the comments,

Joe