> In New Zealand, they also have "end temporary speed limit" signs that explicitly indicate when the permanent speed limit comes back into effect. The sign is a white circle with a thin black border and a thick black diagonal slash through it.

To clarify, though, these aren't for ending the corner-type temporary speed limits. They're found after you go through a small town, indicating that you've passed through the town and can go back to the open road speed of 100 kph. By "small town", I'm referring to the one-road, blink-and-you'll-miss-it collections of buildings which cluster around the main highway to break up otherwise rural areas. You slow down to go past these, then back to normal when you pass the black and white diagonal sign.

> That afternoon, the four of us piled in the car and drove around the Waitakere mountain ranges, which are just on the north side of Auckland.

West, in fact.

> So as we were driving around, we were noting all the extraterrestrial birdlife. And by and by we came to a spot in the road that crosses a stream. No, the road did not cross the stream; the stream crossed the road. No, the road was not washed out by the stream due to neglect. The road was actually designed and built so the stream, maybe six feet wide, would flow over the surface of the road. In America, I told Brunnen-G, we build our roads OVER our streams, with technical innovations such as bridges and drainage systems.

The ford was in the town (for want of a better word) of Little Huia, which is one of my favourite places on earth. It's a tiny collection of houses, which I have never counted but are almost certainly in single figures, clinging to what looks like about two square metres of flat land between a rugged, rocky coast and rugged, steep mountains. The one-lane road to Whatipu Beach goes through there before turning back into the mountains. Little Huia always reminds me of those little Scottish fishing villages I've seen in pictures. I want to live there. If I really did, I'd probably go nuts fairly quickly, though.

> From there we went to another western beach, the name of which I do not recall

This was Huia. The big smoke. The bustling metropolis, as opposed to Little Huia along the road.

> Maybe we call beets "beetroot" here; I don't know. I was too busy wondering what a slice of beet was doing on a burger.

I would like to add that, having been born in New Zealand and having lived here all my life, I *still* think the practice of putting a slice of beetroot on a burger is weird and sick and just generally wrong in every way. Ick ick ick ick ick.

> We reached a third west coast beach

Piha Beach, one of the main surf beaches on the West Coast. There were a few people surfing, but it looked a bit cold. Dave and I found a flounder trapped in a tidal pool, and chased it around for a while, while Sam jumped over things trying not to get his shoes wet. It would prove to take more time than we had available to train Sam to take his shoes off on a beach.

And yes, they *are* exactly the same in person as they are in chat. Which is to say, totally insane in the most cool, funny and fascinating way possible.