Todd's Birthday and Penguins

Last weekend was busy busy busy.  On Saturday, it was Todd's birthday but seeing as we're a day ahead of everyone, no one in the states was really celebrating yet.  But we did!  We had brunch with Deb and Lynnette (friends of Laura and Todd's after a chance encounter in a jewelry store revealed that Deb had grown up in the same town that Laura and Todd live in in Maryland.  Crazy small world.  

Todd, Lynnette, Deb, Moi and Vanessa

It was a rainy day and was supposed to clear up so after a lazy afternoon at home watching Top Gear, we drove out to Portobello to have Korean BBQ at the house of Laura and Vanessa's co-worker Kitty. 

Kitty!

Todd and Dan grilling

um... self explanatory picture

Anna - the only one who dressed up in honor of the evening's future activities

After we grilled and ate about 6.5 pounds of meat (so much but sooo good) and large slices of chocolate cake, we drove further out on the peninsula to see the penguins come home!  There's an area where volunteers corral visitors (like us!) from getting too close to the penguins so they can get to their nests and feed their babies.  The penguins that nest there are Blue Penguins, which are about 10" tall and ADORABLE!  If you've seen Madagascar, then you'd have to assume that Dreamworks animators looked at these penguins to create the S.W.A.T. penguins in the movie.  

They come in from the water like a dark ripple.  It's rather scary if you don't know they're only 10" tall and weigh 2 pounds.  Once the fast moving ripple reaches the shore, 16 penguins climb out and scamper up the rocks and then waddle up the beach to their meeting point.  Once they've all assembled, they move out, bellies to the ground so they blend with the night.  Here's my picture of them doing that:

They blend really well.

We plan to go back on a clear night with, preferably, a full moon so we can see the penguins better.