Thanks, RR, Cc & tlk! Such beauty, all in one place. Now I need to go back and watch LOTR (not a problem, I assure you) to see--but I think you're right, it is the 2nd movie in which they open with those incredible panoramas. Made me glad to be here on the planet. My sister bought, and I borrowed, the 7,083 disc DVD set (OK, maybe it was only 6 DVDs, but it went on and on and on...), and one fun feature was the discussion of how they picked locations. I am curious about how you'd bike around Mt. Doom. I'd think the tires would melt. I mean. It looked pretty hot in the movie. I'm just saying.

So tonight I was driving to meet friends for dinner, and as I passed downtown Chicago, all lit up, so beautiful, I thought..."yeah, but it's hardly New Zealand." Sigh. You've ruined me. Seriously, though, this happens whenever I go to the east or west coasts of the US. Such natural beauty. Then I come home, and it's hard to live in Chgo for awhile. I love it, it's my home. But still. It also occurred to me that you all have NZ accents (or, Cc, are actually Canadian?), and that I "hear" you in my head with American accents when I read your posts.

If I ever make it to NZ, I know I've got riding partners! Thanks for a little tour of your beautiful country. L.