Once we went to Oamaru, a city in north Otago (Otago is a big part of the south island that includes the cities Alexandra, Queenstown, Dunedin, Arrowtown, and Oamaru, out of everywhere I’ve been). Oamaru is in the Guinness World Records for the most old-fashioned steam vehicles. They are Victorian style. We saw a truck, a roller, and a car that were steam-powered. The town also has beautiful limestone buildings. The most interesting is that Oamaru has the biggest penguin colony in the world. They have about 500 penguins that live practically in the city. People built little houses for them an I couldn’t believe it at first but they live in them! Every day, at sunset, the parents come out of the water and into the houses to feed their chicks. We got the best seats so we could see them walk right past us. Unlike Yellow-eyed Penguins, the Little Blue penguins arrive in large groups called rafts. They climb up the rocks and hurry to their homes, and this is where it gets hiLArious. They waddle very quickly as if they are saying: “Walk straight, walk straight, I am so elegant, all these people are looking at me, I am so cute…” – and then they fall on their bellies! It is very funny. They also call each other and make all kinds of noises. So we saw 317 penguins come onto the shore. Then when we were already in the car we saw several penguins walking around town. We saw several crossing the roads and one was in the playground.

It was the best adventure I have ever had in New Zealand. Now I will feel sorry for the penguins in the aquarium!