Which way to The Shire?

I don't normally post blogs on a single destination, but this movie set for scenes from The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings (LOTR) was among my top priorities for this trip (see a film clip here from LOTR of its first appearance). As a short person with hairy feet (yes, the truth comes out), I have always identified with halflings. For the past ten days, our friends Michael and Lyna (from Fran's California days) joined us for our exploration of the North Island, including Hobbiton, the Movie Set. We were grateful for the gorgeous weather that has graced our entire trip.

The mill and stone bridge that can be seen in the movie

The big fans, in front of Bag End, Bilbo's house

Even if you are not a fan of the J.R. Tolkien books or Peter Jackson's work, you might just appreciate the design, attention to detail and adorable whimsy of this 5.5 hectare (14 acre) creation.

The scale is awe inspiring: 44 hobbit holes, at various scales so as to make the actors either look small or big. We had opted to begin with the "Shire's feast" (a delicious buffet lunch), followed by the tour of Hobbiton. It is so big that you must travel with a tour guide, and even then she said that people get lost.

Our gang, including "Uncle" Michael and "Auntie" Lyna, visiting from the States. We are coming out of one of the Gamgee doors.

The tour was full of wonderful stories about the selection of that particular sheep farm (because it had a large tree by a pond and no evidence of other human habitation), and the creation of some of the scenes. It now takes a grounds staff of two dozen hard working people to maintain the site for tourists, including gorgeous plantings, all real (except for one detail, see below).

One of my favorite stories was the filming of the touching very last scene of the LOTR's trilogy, which takes place in The Shire. In it Sean Astin, the actor who played Sam Gamgee, Frodo's loyal companion, is "coming home" to a wife and two small children. This is presumably a few years after the big return, to show that he finally had the guts to ask his crush of many years to marry, and we can see in everyone's faces how grateful they are to be together, even the four-ish year old daughter. The actress who plays his wife actually had a baby, so that part was easy. For the older child who was to run to him, they decided to use Astin's actual daughter, which was kept as a surprise from him. He had not seen her in months because of the filming schedule, so the joy in seeing her is real, as is his interest in the new baby of his acting companion. They only needed one take (it's worth watching again with this in mind).

Bag End, Bilbo Baggin's house, with the sign featured at the beginning of the Lord of the Rings series. Note the realistic but fake tree above.

Another interesting fact was that the oak tree above Bilbo's house is completely realistic... and completely fake. This was because they filmed The Hobbit after The LOTR, which is the wrong order chronologically. Thus, they had to replace a real tree with a younger, smaller version for the second trilogy. I hate that they cut down a majestic old oak but had to marvel at the artistry of its replacement.

The detail of the set was staggering- each hobbit hole was distinct and identifiable by hundreds of tiny props: the small bee-boxes and jars of honey, the doll-size ceramic mugs, the real leather saddle fit for a hobbit, and on and on.

Jeremy at the cheesemakers house

Notice the tiny chess set!

In fact, the miniaturization was a large part of the appeal, reminding me of my doll-house days.  I delighted in every detail. But this was nothing compared to Jeremy's excitement. He said, "I never thought I would get to see this in my lifetime!"

Perhaps the town drunk's house, the carpenter's or both. See the tiny tools!

Jeremy in front of the Green Dragon Inn, in heaven.

The final stop of the tour was the Green Dragon Inn, where we were treated to ale in ceramic mugs; we all passed on the beer, I had the hard cider, and most others had the ginger beer, all delicious.

At the Green Dragon Inn, behind the bar

The Inn also features a guest book with plenty of recognizable names!

Legolas!

Gandolf!

 In all, it really was a dream come true, at least for Jeremy and me.

Close Encounters of the Bird Kind

Jeremy, age 10, is our guest blogger as a homeschool assignment. He chose the topic- his new favorite type of animal, the dominant native fauna of New Zealand. Make sure you view the movie of our scary encounter with a kea. Enjoy!

Jeremy and a paradise duck visitor

This blog essay is about the birds I have learned about here in New Zealand. I have learned about birds in existence, and I have also learned about extinct birds. I have learned about land birds, flying birds, and even water-dwelling birds.

Model of Haast eagle

 First let’s talk about extinct birds. One of the main extinct birds that I have heard about is the Haast eagle. The Haast eagle was gigantic. It was the largest bird ever recorded. It had an average weight of 500 lbs, and an average wingspan of 10 ft. 

Stuffed South Island giant moa at the Aukland Museum (with Jeremy for scale)

Another extinct bird is a moa. A moa is another huge bird. I think that moa look a lot like ostriches because of the fact that they are both big and flightless. Now I will tell you how they became extinct. The way that moa became extinct was the Maori. The Maori are the native people of New Zealand. They were the ones who hunted the moa to extinction. And that didn't work out so well for the Haast eagle because --fun fact-- Haast eagles ate moa so you can imagine that the eagle didn’t have so much to eat and... yeah.

Three of the five species of kiwi, at the Aukland Museum. They are strictly nocturnal, so it is hard to photograph them. Jeremy gets upset when he sees a photo of one taken during the day, saying that "it's cruel to the kiwis."

Next let’s talk about land birds. New Zealand has a lot of land birds. The main reason is that New Zealand doesn't have any [native] mammals. This is because New Zealand became an island before mammals evolved. The reason why it's so hard for these birds is because of the new, introduced species of mammals.

I will now list some of New Zealand's birds: kiwi, takahe, kakapo, pokeko, and a lot of others.

 

Now let’s talk about flying and gliding birds. There is the gliding albatross, the cheeky kea, the playful fantail, the singing bell bird, and many more. 

Fantails are super friendly- this one followed us on a walk

As I said earlier the kea is very mischievous. I will now list some of the mischievous things that keas will do: they will destroy your windshield wipers, and your hiking boots. They will also steal your car keys and your wallet.

 

And last let's talk about water-dwelling birds including penguins. New Zealand has two types of penguins: little blues and yellow eyed penguins (YEP). The little blues are slightly shorter and have blue back feathers. 

The YEP have yellow crowns of feathers. 

There are also paradise ducks, black swans, and shags. 

Jeremy with young shag (also known as a cormorant) 

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In conclusion, I hope you liked my essay about what I have learned about birds in New Zealand. New Zealand has changed my perspective on birds forever.  I LOVE BIRDS NOW!

model of New Zealand giant penguin, now extinct