Some beaches

Spring is coming to the southern part of New Zealand. The Saturday newspaper told us the best evidence of this fact is that the fiordland crested penguins have begun to come ashore to nest on the west coast. I've never measured the arrival of spring by this indicator before. Perhaps inspired by this harbinger of spring, we decided to do some exploring to the north of Dunedin along the coast. Our first stop was Palmerston, a town about 45 minutes north, where we found a delightful statue of Zealandia, a traditional personification of New Zealand. From a distance, we wondered what kind of odd torch she was holding in her hand. The fifth photo has fur seals in it. Dave says there are five seals on the rocks, but I can only see three.