24: Skating up an Appetite

There's still no snow here, but that doesn't stop the Queenstown Winter Festival. This year Simon Green has organised an ice rink to straddle Horne Creek on the village green. It looks very pretty when it's all lit up at night (I'm a sucker for fairy lights twinkling in the trees) and kids of all ages (yup, that's right - me too!) are having a twirl on the ice. When I say 'twirl' I mean tottering steps followed by solid thwack in my case, but it's fun none-the-less.

Even though there's no snow, it's still cold and the good folk at the food stalls are cooking up bacon butties and steak sammies to keep us all fuelled with 'hearty' fare.

Week Twenty-three: Frost and ice

Well, it is winter and the frosts are hard in our back garden.

Down by the river, none of these runs look particularly appealing in the frost and ice.

Are you feeling cold yet? My hands certainly were by the time I had finished taking these phots, so I was pleased to return to my warm house. Double-glazing is my new best friend. I pity the poor folk who lived here...