New Zealand - Blenheim - The photograph shows the business area (centre) at the junction of the Opawa and Omaka Rivers. #603002 Blenheim - The most populous town in the region of Marlborough, in the north east of the South Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of 31,600 (June 2018). The surrounding area is well known as the centre of New Zealand's wine industry. It enjoys one of New Zealand's sunniest climates, with warm, relatively dry summers and cool, crisp winters. - The sheltered coastal bays of Marlborough supported a small Māori population possibly as early as the 12th century. Archaeological evidence dates Polynesian human remains uncovered at Wairau Bar to the 13th century. The rich sea and bird life of the area would easily have supported such small communities. As the Māori population of the area increased, they developed the land to sustain the growing population. In the early 1700s canals and waterways were dug among the natural river courses, allowing for the first forms of farming in the area including that of fish and native water fowl. A total of approximately 18 km of channels are known to have been excavated before the arrival of European settlers. Māori in the Marlborough Region also cultivated crops, including kumara (sweet potato). (source - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blenheim,_New_Zealand) Whites Pictorial Reference of New Zealand: Representative Airviews of New Zealand Cities and Boroughs - Whites Pictorial Reference has been produced to tell a new story - a modern story. Aerial photography has been utilised to show where New Zealanders live and the countryside from which comes their wealth. Most important, it also illustrates most vividly the Dominion's growing cities and towns, but perhaps more to the point it shows that there is still plenty of room for further development... Author: White Leo (compiled) Click the link provided at the top to purchase the book through the MAD on New Zealand Shop - Supporting New Zealand Authors and Artists