There’s nothing like feeling dwarfed by trolls to transport a person to Middle-earth, as Diane Mooshoolzadeh discovered on a recent visit to the Shire. The Lord of the Rings landscapes in New Zealand were absolutely “wizard,” she said, and rambled wildly from vivid green fields in which herds of hairy-footed creatures were feasting to the bleak desolation of lonely mountains. What seemed most precious, she observed, was the presence of Maori culture in everyday life, which she found friendly, with nary a shadow. Diane had to ring down the curtain and head home all too soon, but she called it “a fantastic experience there and back again.”