Pete's Probiotics- Tauranga Farmers Market

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Mum is not the only family member who has a regular stall at a market (as mentioned in the last blog post). David's son Peter has a stall at the Tauranga Farmers Market which is held every Saturday morning in the grounds of Tauranga Primary School on Cameron Road. Pete can be found there most market days selling his probiotic products and often with his little helper- our granddaughter Maddie (7), by his side. 

We called in to say goodbye last Saturday morning (with only my phone to take photos, so excuse the quality) and unfortunately Maddie had already been and gone for the day. You can see a photo of her on the stand in the Market's latest newsletter here. Pete was as busy as ever filling sample cups, talking to customers and replacing stock as fast as it was disappearing off the shelves. He has a large number of repeat customers who come each week to get their supplies and an ever growing group of probiotic convert-ees.

                         

Probiotics are live bacteria and yeasts that are good for your health and especially your digestive system. Usually we think of bacteria as something that causes diseases but your body is full of bacteria, both good and bad. Probiotics are often called "good" or "helpful" bacteria because they help keep your gut healthy. 

Probiotic products contain natural living strains of healthy bacteria as a result of the fermentation process, ie- sauerkraut, kimchi, miso, buttermilk, sourdough bread, along with many others, are all probiotic foods.    

So if you're in Tauranga and visit the Farmers Market, don't forget to say hi to Pete for us. Along with Pete's 'ProBio' range of probiotics, there are many other fantastic stalls selling fresh products and produce, straight from the grower or producer. But, as with any farmer's market, get there early if you don't want to be disappointed, many stalls sell out quickly.

Sea Walls: Murals for Oceans- Napier, Part 2

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Continuing on from Part 1

I needed a wee (literally) break from shooting the murals so parked up on the Parade and headed...

...along to see Mum at the Sunday Market. Mum has a long history with crafts and markets. She was a potter (and a very good one) right through my childhood and teenage years, supplying shops nationwide. We, that's Mum, my sister and I, were once regulars manning her pottery stalls at A&P Shows, craft markets, street markets and anything else that came along.

Mum has long given up pottery and many of the markets, she now sells pre-loved clothing at the Napier Market, and she loves it.  Yes, she sells a few items and makes a little pocket money, but that's not as important as the fun and friends she has at the market. Mum is a people's person and she loves the personal contact and enjoys the weekly banter with stall holders and customers alike. I can tell you she has way more energy (and patience) than me, that's for sure. Do say hi to her if you're visiting the Sunday Market.

I sat in on her stall for awhile so she could grab a coffee and say hello to 101 other stall holders, and then I helped her pack up before I headed off down Marine Parade to the National Aquarium of New Zealand...

....where, as expected, over half of the building was covered in stunning murals. All in shadow. Oh well Shellie, make the best of it.

National Aquarium, Marine Parade- Marine Protected Areas- Interrelationship Between Species & Habits- there's a few!

Aren't they just amazing? But wait, there's more. All the storm grates around the building have paintings on them too.

After the aquarium I headed back into the city to tackle the remainder of the murals.

Council Building, Hastings Street- Climate Change/Ocean Acidification

Nearly my most favourite mural (except for the mottled look)- Station Street, Napier CBD- Plastic Pollution

The penguins touched a soft spot in Dickens Street, Napier CBD- NZ Endangered Sea Birds

And this was my favourite I decided; I love the colour and the way the artist has incorporated Napier's Art Deco theme into the painting. 

Look at the way the ladies morph into birds...or maybe the birds become ladies, and the touch of naughty nakedness too.

Dickens Street, Napier CBD- Plastic Pollution- Cigarette Butts in Coastal Marine Environments (although I can't see any relation to cigarette butts here, only beautiful seahorses, I'm thinking this artist just loves colour and painting!)

And down the same alleyway, a slight detour from the theme, older paintings on the wall alongside the Police Station.

Then it's a final drive to the other side of the city, just as the sun is dropping behind the hill. It's been a long day.

Cathedral Lane Carpark, Napier CBD- Coastal Development/Level Sea Rise/Lonely Whale, a painting in 3D. What you can't see is a professional photographer, model and minder in the left hand corner doing a photo shoot...

...although I could have captured him in a more flattering position, while he wasn't looking. I think he's moving the stones the model is standing on. 

And on an opposite wall the 'cigarette butt' lady has another mural. I told you she must love painting although I can see cigarette butts in this painting. Plastic Pollution- Cigarette Butts in Coastal Marine Environments

In the same carpark- Overfishing (and another half shadow)

We use over 1 million plastic bags per minute worldwide- tag line

The final one in Herschell Street, Napier- Plastic Pollution Affecting Sea Turtles

And that was the Napier's Sea Walls project; all 31 'Murals for Oceans'. What a fantastic collection of amazing artworks by some very talented artists. Click on the link if you want to know more about the PangeaSeed Foundation, the organisation behind the worldwide 'Sea Walls' movement.

Sea Walls: Murals for Oceans- Napier, Part 1

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The busy time has continued, with a couple of hiccups along the way. I writing this from, would you believe, Sulphur Point in Tauranga. Yes, we're back in town for a few days. We had a repair job on the van that needed to be done and it worked out better to fit it in after our Napier visit rather than in the middle of it. And it's given us another chance to see the family and catch up with friends again. Only trouble is, the rain heard we were visiting too!

As mentioned previously, I did a photoshoot of the 'Sea Wall' murals dotted around Napier and Ahuriri before I left. And I managed to capture every one of the 30 plus paintings, quite a mean feat if I must say so myself. The large murals were painted on walls around Napier during a street art festival back in March. Their aim is to highlight marine environmental issues relevant to the local community. 

I started at the Napier Sailing Club, with the furthest west mural and then worked my way around Ahuriri, along past the Port, down Marine Parade to the Aquarium and then back to the many tucked down alleyways and on back walls of the inner city.

It was a lovely sunny day which was nice for me but not so good to shoot some of the murals which were in the shadow or even worse, half-shadow. I did think about returning to re-do a few later in an afternoon but decided, it is what it is (and by the time I'd finished I'd seen enough of 'muriels' for awhile!)

I'll try and keep the chatter brief; another one of those, 'I'll let the photos do the talking' blogs.....

hopefully. So here we go...

Napier Sailing Club, Ahuriri- Responsible Consumption 

Plastic; The Modern Miracle That Never Breaks Down

Pandora Pond, Ahuriri- Industrial Runoff

What's a Profit Today is a Debt for Tomorrow

The next few murals are located on a number of the historic Ahuriri Port restaurant buildings around the Iron Pot.

Three murals by the same artist at West Quay- Global warming & rising sea levels  (and half shadows!)

West Quay, Ahuriri- NZ Endangered Sea Birds

Shed 2, West Quay, Ahuriri- Shark Finning

West Quay, Ahuriri- Hammerhead Data Translation

And on the same wall- Ocean Pollution

This one's not in the Sea Walls project, it's been there for a few years but it joins the one above and the one below together quite nicely.

Customs Quay, Ahuriri- Ingested Plastic Pollution/Lonely Whale Mural

West Quay, Ahuriri- Endangered Seabirds (reminds me of my other favourite wall)

A short distance from all the other Ahuriri murals is this lonley mural on the wall of Aroha & Friends- Ossian Street, Ahuriri- Sustainable Fishing Methods

And then on to the seaside village & cafes of Ahuriri itself and this rather relevant (or ironic) mural, which I'm sure was carefully selected for the site- Shark Conservation

Waghorne Street, Ahuriri- Ghost Nets/Marine Debris

This one is just around the corner from the one above. Some of you will be thinking 'I've seen that one before', I decided to include the ones from the earlier blog so they're all shown together- NZ Endangered Marine Animals

And another repeat in Waghorne St, Ahuriri- Bryde Whales & Fishing Ships Colliding Over Resources

Perfume Point Lighthouse- Marine Protected Areas

And then it's along the waterfront...

...to Napier Port- NZ Endangered Sea Birds

Napier Port (another repeat)- Endangered Maui's Dolphins

And the final one for this blog as I head down Marine Parade to the National Aquarium where, for obvious reasons, there's sure to be some fantastic murals.

Te Pania Carpark, Napier waterfront- Shark Conservation

To be continued....Part 2