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Tuesday, 24 November 2009

golden moment -or, it ain't necessarily so...



pocketing windfalls in the Wellington Botanic Garden last week
the firm tramping of sturdy boots alerted me to an invasion
as the tour group drew closer, i heard one of them asking
"was macht sie da?"
["what is she doing there?"]
quick as a flash and
without the glimmer of a smile
the tour leader responded
"das ist eine einheimische, sie sammelt zier blaetter"
[that is a native collecting decorative leaves]

Merci du compliment, m'sieur!
but seriously
this shows that
like a Tequila shot, the advice of tour guides can be improved with a little hit of salt.

and now to the delightful task of reading all your allotment stories
and then finding a suitable hat...

at

9 comments:

  1. Leslie Avon Miller24 November 2009 at 14:55

    Too funny! You native collector you!

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  2. Arija24 November 2009 at 16:25

    Amazing how a native Latvian can produre a native new Zealander in a Melbourne hospital...
    ah well I always thought you had a touch of magic about you.

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  3. A mermaid in the attic24 November 2009 at 16:45

    I wonder what the people near the park I frequent think when they see me wandering there in the mornings. I like to imagine them peeking through the curtains and whispering "It's her again, the odd one who picks up stuff...what on earth is she collecting?" :)

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  4. Martine24 November 2009 at 19:45

    I wonder what kind of hat suits eine einheimische ?
    XXXm

    ReplyDelete
  5. imbi star24 November 2009 at 21:20

    awesomenesslyisms....ahhh so nice to have ya rambling native self back. Hope you had wooked troop soos...i spy harakeke xx

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  6. gerfiles25 November 2009 at 02:04

    It sometimes is a bit embarrassing to be German... :) Here´s a hurray to all Zierblätter-lovers (where ever they come from...)

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  7. india flint25 November 2009 at 08:19

    relax Ger, i maybe Australian by birth and Latvian by 'mother-right' but i'm half German as well, which makes it all doubly entertaining.

    and nothing is quite as funny as the American woman at Neu Schwanstein in 1976 saying loudly "well it's quite sweet but the paintwork on the one at Disneyland is better"

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  8. Anonymous25 November 2009 at 20:50

    Hahah wonderfull story!!!!

    I do admit I pity those "non gatherers of leaves" sometimes... They buy everything in a store, even the leaves we gathered...

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  9. india flint25 November 2009 at 21:13

    i do have to admit that a little while later i wandered past them saying
    "entschuldigen sie bitte, duerfte ich mal kurz vorbei"
    thus possibly shattering a few illusions

    ReplyDelete