There are places in the world that scream with color. Where in the middle of a pale blue sky pops a stark white cloud, against a red ridge. Where azure lakes appear over the horizon, turning milky turquoise, and rimmed with yellow and purple lupins.

New Zealand is one of these places. Last southern summer (February), I spent a few weeks pedalling around the South Island of New Zealand, stopping first in Christchurch to pick up a rental bike, and then pedalling through what seemed to be page after page of the calendar that I’d make if I were in charge of New Zealand’s PR.

There were reds, oranges, yellows, greens and blues all together:

 

 

 

 

 

 

And paths of dark red snaking through frondy overgrowth:

 

 

 

 

And blue and white and gold:

 

 

 

 

 

 

and purplish:

 

 

 

 

 

 

and blue on blue:

 

 

 

 

 

 

red against grey:

 

 

 

 

 

 

and even the brown bits were curly and undulating and dotted with green:

 

 

 

 

 

 

And then, at the end of the day, this opaque blue would descend:

 

 

 

 

 

 

I really enjoyed my trip to New Zealand and would love to head back sometime soon. Wishing the Kiwi people strength, and lots of tourism!

More photos on my Flickr set (and way more on my hard drive). New Zealand is terribly easy on the eyes. Go visit!

For more Bearshapedblabla on New Zealand, there’s lots more in the archives. And please don’t hate me because of my formatting. All will be fixed, someday!