PHOTO-A-DAY CHALLENGE

More Rainbows, Pink Sunrises and Snow

Week 181 of the photographic documentary of my daily life

Did I mention snow? Yes, I did. I thought it was summer down under, but I might be wrong. Either way, this week had a lot to offer.

From one rainbow in the mountains, we went to the next one above our backyard, the vineyard and another mountain range. The weather is like everywhere, unpredictable and ever-changing.

But since I can’t change the weather, I make the best of it. See as my week went…

This week began with an uneventful Thursday. As it was my off day and we didn't go anywhere to explore, I used the time to read and write. And write some more.

When the evening came around, and I hadn't taken any pictures yet, the sky burst into the most amazing sunset colors. I grabbed my camera and walked a few meters to one side of our house and a few to the other to capture the beauty of the peaceful evening as well as I could.

Even though Friday is an official working day for us, I don't think we worked a single Friday since arriving in New Zealand. The weather apparently claims the day for wind, rain, clouds, or all of it at once.

We woke to low-hanging clouds covering the Pisa Mountain Range and creating a rather dull sky. The text soon came in about work being canceled and I simply crawled back into bed.

Looking at those mountains again, it is amazing to think they rise from the back of the vineyard at just around 300 meters above sea level (1,000ft) to almost 2,000 meters in altitude (6,500ft). They certainly don't look that high.

One exotic bush planted next to where we park our car burst into bloom and I took a few shots trying to capture its delicate blossoms.

The magpies are back. They had been keeping us in the unknown during our arrival in New Zealand with a very high-pitched and unique noise they made every morning. Then, they disappeared over December and are back on the property.

While I'm lying in bed a lot these last few days due to heavy winds and even rain, which doesn't happen often, I do not manage to fall into a deep sleep for long as I wake with the first rays of sunshine which happen way too early.

When I got up this morning to head to the bathroom, I was surprised to still hear it raining outside, as it had rained all day yesterday. Anyway, I still found it bright. A little too bright for my sleepy eyes and a little too bright for an overcast sky.

While my eyes were still sleepy, my brain wasn't. Knowing where the sun rises over here, I headed to the glass doors in front and pushed the curtains aside.

My suspicion was confirmed.

A huge rainbow was hanging above the mountain range, and while I didn't even notice it at that moment due to my sleepy eyes, the camera captured its double as well. A faint indication of a double rainbow!

On Sunday late afternoon, I was busy with a gym session, lifting weights and doing push-ups while admiring the lavender bush in front of my eyes.

Yes, if I need to force myself to do a fitness session, I do it outside so that at least I can enjoy the landscape surrounding me and it happened a lovely butterfly was mingling with countless bumblebees pollinating the lavender blossoms. I dropped the weights and headed inside for my camera to take a picture.

Or two.

Maybe five.

Or ten.

If there is something I love about New Zealand I didn’t expect before coming here, it is the abundance and availability of fresh fruits. With orchards and vineyards all around us, we found a lovely local shop on the side of the street selling heaps of fruits, whatever is in season.

Finding avocados and noticing how cheap they were, I was thrown back to my time in Mozambique, where I ate guacamole almost daily. David introduced me to that yummy spread, and ever since, I’ve been in love with it.

Now, see me here in our backyard. Overlooking the vineyard, I dip crackers into the guacamole spread while sipping a local rosé and reading a book.

Life could be worse, I’d say.

The hunter was at our property, and this time, he came late at night and was active around the houses in the vineyard. We stayed inside and didn’t hear many shots, however, I noticed the next morning that we saw a lot fewer rabbits than normal.

I know many of you roll up in tears knowing rabbits are hunted in this country, but any species with animal numbers out of control is a pest, especially if no natural predators are around to control the population.

Either way, the next evening, I remembered I hadn’t taken a picture yet and walked out the door. It was quiet. A few birds were in the bushes, but no rabbits around. Either the hunter caught a lot more than we thought or they were now all scared off.

Rewarded with a bit of patience, I got a glimpse of these two fellas while looking in between the leaves of some thicker bushes.

It was freezing cold this morning, and if I use those words, I’m not lying. A thin layer of ice had accumulated on our windscreen.

Yes, it is Wednesday and our usual off day, but since one instructor resigned last week and another one is on leave, we were asked to come in regardless.

Unfortunately, the work call was at 5:30 am, requiring us to leave for a planned take-off at 7 am shortly after. The sun wasn’t up yet when we drove down the driveway, and once we were on the highway, we were stunned but not surprised to see it had snowed on the mountains overnight.

Only having the phone on hand, I didn’t get a great picture while driving but still managed to capture the pink magic of the morning hour together with the dusting of snow on the peaks of the Southern Alps.

Once we were at the airport, I put another seventeen layers of clothes on (only a slight exaggeration), as my program showed -22°C at 15,000 feet in the air, the height we would be jumping from.

I thought it was summer in New Zealand.

Either way, before putting the parachute on my back and greeting my passenger, I snapped two more shots of the rising sun and the mountains behind the airfield.

When we were driving home from work, I could get a better shot of the mountain range covered in snow and admired the contrast indicating a snow line.

This has been my weekly photo essay. Anyone can join. Once. Or weekly. It doesn’t matter. We welcome everyone! Dennett started this photography challenge in 2020 and many have participated ever since. These are the latest contributors and their essays:

Dennett with “Covid x 2, Hard Freeze, and Too Tired to Care”

Erika with “Regal Mr. Bisou, A Very Pretty Drink, Selecting Paint Colors, “Did I Really Wear One Slipper to the Doctor’s Office?,” Paperwhites, the First Camelia, Bread like A Biscuit, and Uma Tries Caviar”

Susan with “Was That a Cat? That Was a Cat. Wasn’t it? It Was, Wasn’t it? And to Change Things up a Bit — a Tortoise!”

Kim with “Winter Scenes, Sushi With Friends, Snowy Dogs, and Bright Flowers”

Krasi Shapkarova with “Fog, Rain, Sun, Snow, and Ice — Switching Countries and Weather Conditions”

Penny Grubb with “Hoping Week 1 Doesn’t Set The Tone For The Year”

Julia A. Keirns with “My Life In Photos — January 1–10, 2024”