Happy Waitangi Day!

Today is some kind of a holiday and we've been warned that not much will be open, even gas stations. I think you would like this country. People at all 3 universities we've visited say that people work hard, but not as hard as in the US. People tend to work till 4:30-5:30, definitely closer to the latter for researchers, but don't take so much work home and don't come back in. Sarah, the chemist from Edinburgh we visited in Christchurch, said that when she interviewed she asked if there was a system for signing in and out of the building after hours like in Edinburgh, and the prof gave her a blank stare and didn't really grasp what she was talking about. He said people just don't stay into the evening past dinner time. Someone said that it's the most child-friendly country he's lived in, and I see that born out in a box of toys in every restaurant and wonderful playgrounds with clean toilets in even the littlest towns. Lots of public libraries with free wi-fi.

We had a big day yesterday, trying to do too much and driving too late, but there is so much to see here and we probably won't be back. 

We're pleasantly out of touch.  I don't know who won the Superbowl. The national news here is a joke: major headlines about the Christchurch Vegemite factory being closed since the earthquake leading to a shortage of vegemite!