New Zealand holiday, the War Against Swine
Jan. 8th, 2007 07:15 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
tcpipThe holiday with ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
caseopaya to The South Island of New Zealand was, as usual, full of landscapes of sublime beauty and fuelled by a bottle of cognac (courvoisier v.s.o.p.) and chocolate (ferro rocher).
OK, this is a long post but with a mere paragraph per day and pretty pictures I promise it's worth spending a few minutes reading.
The journey over was marred by guy in his mid-fourties with the behaviour of five year-old (that is, childish not child-like). Foley Towers proved to be a pleasant, serene and slightly spartan place to stay, although the 6" mosquito was an interesting addition.
Following day was the east coast journey to Timaru. Passed through Ashburton and visited a delightful second-hand bookstore in the old post office. Otherwise a fairly dull town. At Timaru discovered there was a rather substantial fair, and decided to play in the rather impressive maze. There are two purposes to mazes. One is to engage discover how to get out and the other is end up in isolated dead-ends with a very close friend. We did both ;-)
Third day of the journey was further down to the coat to the beautiful town of Oamaru, where many of the old buildings were made from a limestone that was soft enough to saw, yet hardened on exposure to the air. A mason's delight, obviously. The local art gallery had an excellent exhibition with the imaginative use of brassieres as part of a fundraiser for breastcancer.
By early evening we made it to Dunedin, which is still my favourite place on the planet. Went to see Marie Antoinette at the Rialto, a cinema which is horrendously garish on the outside and very nice inside. The sountrack was full of post-punk favourites (Gang of Four, The Cure, Siouxie and The Banshees), but it couldn't prevent the story an episode of pomp and psychodrama as real history was occuring. Not recommended. Avoided the terrible free concert at the Octagon for New Year's Eve and instead sought beautiful views over the harbour.
On the morning of the following day travelled along the bottom of The South Island through the Catlin's National Park. Visited the Matai and Horsehoe waterfalls, the deep south port-town of Bluff (with its famous signpost) and the delightfully kitsch paua shell museaum.
By late afternoon arrived at Invercargill, and stayed at the charming Gerrard's Hotel (especially liked the Art Noveau features). Took opportunities to visit Henry, the 126 year old tuatara, a thoroughly weird "living dinosaur", with a third eye, and the beautiful Queen's Park gardens.
Next leg of the journey was the the southern route to Lake Manupouri and Te Anua, both right on the edge of Fiordlord, the sort of place which Douglas Adams once described as the sort of place that makes one want to engage in sponaneous applause to the beauty of nature. In Te Anua we took to the lake and visited the glow worm caves, which was rather like astronomy on acid.
The following day's journey was to Queenstown which included a visit to their excellent bird sanctuary. Highlights include the black stilt (the world's rarest stilt), the Chatman Island duck (the rarest duck) and a Maori cultural event with audience participation - doing the "hokey-pokey" in Maori! Following morning watched Ata Whenua, which as very pretty but some (scientific) narrative would be nice!
The next day was a flying visit to Aoraki (or Mount Cook in Pakeha), past Twizel (good lunch stop) and Lake Tekapo to stop off at the little townsh of Fairlie. Nothing terribly exciting there, except for the charming visit of a hedgehog to the spacious garden of our motel.
From Farlie it was returning to ChCh via the scenic route past Peel Forst and Mt Hutt rather than back through Ashburton and stopping at the Colombo Street Lodge (where one gets an entire apartment to stay in). Next day it was a journey through the Banks Penisula to the former French colony town of Akaroa, whose history is much more exciting than the town itself.
On the way back to ChCh I had the bright idea of taking the scenic route over the peninsula mountains. Turned out the road was semi-sealed at best and as the fuel-guage starting blinking red concern started to set in. Making it across the peninsula we were struck however by the lack of petrol stations in on the coastal towns. By some miracle we made it all the way to Lyttleton, a petroleum port with a population of over 3,000 - only be told that they don't have a petrol station either! With a car that apparently can run on the smell of an oily rag we managed to make it through their lenghty tunnel (that would have been a fine place to break down) to a station on the outskirts of ChCh.
Final day was a visit to Orana Wildlife Park, wherecaseopaya fed and pet a giraffe (among others), before dropping off the car. The sting in that tail was that the windscreen was chipped by a rock from an incoming vehicle on the way to Akaroa. Total cost? $155 NZD. Ezy Rentals? Not recommended.
On the way back I jotted in my dairy plans for the coming year on a day-by-day basis. Must make sure this is not interrupted by interesting job offers (for the next few months at least). Return home was to investigate the destruction of our cheap couch by the two grumpy rabbits. Lots of love toseverina_242 for checking on our pets during our absence and warning us of impending lagamorph devastation.
Amusing gaming news occured whilst I was on holiday. Apparently becausehedgehog39 (really hedgehogs are much nicer than that) didn't like being painted into a corner over the importance of theory to role-playing games, he appealed to a chap who calls himself RPGPundit who has declared war on "The Swine" (i.e., people who think theory is important) with yours truly as the assigned first victim. Already however, it is evident that the attack has faltered. Why? Because good theory produces good systems which helps gamers to become better players.
caseopaya to The South Island of New Zealand was, as usual, full of landscapes of sublime beauty and fuelled by a bottle of cognac (courvoisier v.s.o.p.) and chocolate (ferro rocher). OK, this is a long post but with a mere paragraph per day and pretty pictures I promise it's worth spending a few minutes reading.
The journey over was marred by guy in his mid-fourties with the behaviour of five year-old (that is, childish not child-like). Foley Towers proved to be a pleasant, serene and slightly spartan place to stay, although the 6" mosquito was an interesting addition.
Following day was the east coast journey to Timaru. Passed through Ashburton and visited a delightful second-hand bookstore in the old post office. Otherwise a fairly dull town. At Timaru discovered there was a rather substantial fair, and decided to play in the rather impressive maze. There are two purposes to mazes. One is to engage discover how to get out and the other is end up in isolated dead-ends with a very close friend. We did both ;-)
Third day of the journey was further down to the coat to the beautiful town of Oamaru, where many of the old buildings were made from a limestone that was soft enough to saw, yet hardened on exposure to the air. A mason's delight, obviously. The local art gallery had an excellent exhibition with the imaginative use of brassieres as part of a fundraiser for breastcancer.
By early evening we made it to Dunedin, which is still my favourite place on the planet. Went to see Marie Antoinette at the Rialto, a cinema which is horrendously garish on the outside and very nice inside. The sountrack was full of post-punk favourites (Gang of Four, The Cure, Siouxie and The Banshees), but it couldn't prevent the story an episode of pomp and psychodrama as real history was occuring. Not recommended. Avoided the terrible free concert at the Octagon for New Year's Eve and instead sought beautiful views over the harbour.
On the morning of the following day travelled along the bottom of The South Island through the Catlin's National Park. Visited the Matai and Horsehoe waterfalls, the deep south port-town of Bluff (with its famous signpost) and the delightfully kitsch paua shell museaum.
By late afternoon arrived at Invercargill, and stayed at the charming Gerrard's Hotel (especially liked the Art Noveau features). Took opportunities to visit Henry, the 126 year old tuatara, a thoroughly weird "living dinosaur", with a third eye, and the beautiful Queen's Park gardens.
Next leg of the journey was the the southern route to Lake Manupouri and Te Anua, both right on the edge of Fiordlord, the sort of place which Douglas Adams once described as the sort of place that makes one want to engage in sponaneous applause to the beauty of nature. In Te Anua we took to the lake and visited the glow worm caves, which was rather like astronomy on acid.
The following day's journey was to Queenstown which included a visit to their excellent bird sanctuary. Highlights include the black stilt (the world's rarest stilt), the Chatman Island duck (the rarest duck) and a Maori cultural event with audience participation - doing the "hokey-pokey" in Maori! Following morning watched Ata Whenua, which as very pretty but some (scientific) narrative would be nice!
The next day was a flying visit to Aoraki (or Mount Cook in Pakeha), past Twizel (good lunch stop) and Lake Tekapo to stop off at the little townsh of Fairlie. Nothing terribly exciting there, except for the charming visit of a hedgehog to the spacious garden of our motel.
From Farlie it was returning to ChCh via the scenic route past Peel Forst and Mt Hutt rather than back through Ashburton and stopping at the Colombo Street Lodge (where one gets an entire apartment to stay in). Next day it was a journey through the Banks Penisula to the former French colony town of Akaroa, whose history is much more exciting than the town itself.
On the way back to ChCh I had the bright idea of taking the scenic route over the peninsula mountains. Turned out the road was semi-sealed at best and as the fuel-guage starting blinking red concern started to set in. Making it across the peninsula we were struck however by the lack of petrol stations in on the coastal towns. By some miracle we made it all the way to Lyttleton, a petroleum port with a population of over 3,000 - only be told that they don't have a petrol station either! With a car that apparently can run on the smell of an oily rag we managed to make it through their lenghty tunnel (that would have been a fine place to break down) to a station on the outskirts of ChCh.
Final day was a visit to Orana Wildlife Park, where
caseopaya fed and pet a giraffe (among others), before dropping off the car. The sting in that tail was that the windscreen was chipped by a rock from an incoming vehicle on the way to Akaroa. Total cost? $155 NZD. Ezy Rentals? Not recommended.On the way back I jotted in my dairy plans for the coming year on a day-by-day basis. Must make sure this is not interrupted by interesting job offers (for the next few months at least). Return home was to investigate the destruction of our cheap couch by the two grumpy rabbits. Lots of love to
severina_242 for checking on our pets during our absence and warning us of impending lagamorph devastation.Amusing gaming news occured whilst I was on holiday. Apparently because
hedgehog39 (really hedgehogs are much nicer than that) didn't like being painted into a corner over the importance of theory to role-playing games, he appealed to a chap who calls himself RPGPundit who has declared war on "The Swine" (i.e., people who think theory is important) with yours truly as the assigned first victim. Already however, it is evident that the attack has faltered. Why? Because good theory produces good systems which helps gamers to become better players.![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
System doesn't matter much
Date: 2007-01-11 09:15 am (UTC)Totally crap systems can make for a fun game, so long as the purpose is fun, just like a B-grade movie can be fun, so long as the purpose isn't the study of cinematic excellence.
However, more importantly, the whole question is irrelevant to me and I can't see why there are flame wars over it. I'm much more into board gaming these days, so let me shift to a similar situation in that realm: You get together with some people and split into two groups. Group A just picks up a game from the pile and plays it, while Group B spends 40 mins discussing which game is best and then finally picks one and plays that. You appear to be the Group B type, arguing that the system is terribly important. You are arguing against some people who appear to be the Group A type, who claim that it's best to just play and enjoy. But so what? There is no right and wrong there.
Re: System doesn't matter much
Date: 2007-01-11 11:54 am (UTC)So?
Stuff happens.
Really?
It's not necessarily realistic.
Which makes the game less enjoyable to a lot of people.
Nobody cares.
Actually plenty of people do.
Totally crap systems can make for a fun game, so long as the purpose is fun, just like a B-grade movie can be fun, so long as the purpose isn't the study of cinematic excellence.
No, it's not the system that make the game fun when the system is crap, it's the people playing it who do with a smile and play on warts and all. A good game with good players is an even better experience.
Re: System doesn't matter much
Date: 2007-01-11 12:04 pm (UTC)To many people, to whom the point is to get together and chat and socialise and eat and catch up and do a bit of gaming too, it's still a "yes", but to such a tiny extent that it's not a big deal.
As someone who spends 10 times as much time on gaming as most people (with jobs) can afford, you are at an extreme end of the spectrum. You also enjoy a good argument, so I'm sure you're happy to have found people with the opposite view who are passionate enough to argue with you about it.
Re: System doesn't matter much
Date: 2007-01-11 12:08 pm (UTC)In which case it is isn't the game that's important, let alone the system. They could have the same experience over coffee or at bar.
You also enjoy a good argument, so I'm sure you're happy to have found people with the opposite view who are passionate enough to argue with you about it.
True, but I also hold (quite seriously) that my opinions can be swayed by the better argument.
That is why I didn't simply assert that system is important, but gave examples why.
Re: System doesn't matter much
Date: 2007-01-12 05:16 am (UTC)Re: System doesn't matter much
Date: 2007-01-12 05:55 am (UTC)Whoever you are.... That's so true.
Re: System doesn't matter much
Date: 2007-01-13 06:43 am (UTC)My point was that I know many people who would prefer to simply start playing (out of a decent group of options which do not include Snakes & Ladders) rather than to spend large periods of time in analysis of the features of the possible games. For them, the analysis process is tedious and detracts from the gaming experience to the extent that it doesn't matter if the "perfect" game is eventually chosen.
We can take this into even simpler realms. At one extreme, there's the guy who simply grabs the first apple his hand encounters in the supermarket. He'll probably enjoy it.... unless it's rotten. He should have checked. :) At the other extreme, we have Lev, who wants to taste every type of apple available and then inspects every apple of that type to make sure he buys the best one. Which is the best apple-eating experience? That will inevitably come down to whether you consider the searching process enjoyable or unenjoyable.
As someone who falls somewhere in the middle, I'm not very interested in the specifics, but I'm interested that people find it worthwhile enough to have a flame war about.
Re: System doesn't matter much
Date: 2007-01-13 05:21 pm (UTC)All depends on whether you want to set up an orchid or not I suppose ;-)
Re: System doesn't matter much
Date: 2007-01-15 12:27 am (UTC)Why not? Are those games not fun? No, of course they are fun. They just don't support the fun that that group wants to have. The fact that games that the group doesn't like aren't there says that system does in fact matter. It's just that in a "realistic scenario" most of the weeding out has already been done.
As far as spending 40 minutes planning a board-game choice, sure, that sounds unreasonable. Unless, that is, I'm going to be playing that same board game every week for a year (like many RPGs). Yes, I can probably get by on whatever game, but given the choice, why not take what amounts to a relatively small amount of time making sure that I'm picking the best option? It's a matter of degrees.
Re: System doesn't matter much
Date: 2007-01-15 03:24 am (UTC)Hell yeah.