Excerpt from an email to my mom:
Well, we're heading to sleep somewhere a bit more peaceful tonight. We're both really excited. We won't miss the kitchen at our former hostel, which was home to cockroaches and quite a few flies. Yuck. I bet you love the thought of that huh? The kitchen also had this really loud fan that disturbed any attempt at conversation. I don't have great ears anyway, so the fan particularly bothered me.
The place we found to park ended up being a great deal! For two whole days, totally safe, very close, in downtown Auckland: only 10 bucks. Wow. We haven't yet ventured out to the left side of the road today, but later we'll head to a little place called Tekapune (I think) to look for somewhere to camp. Don't worry, we'll be smart and safe.
Super Bowl Monday is coming up. Yep, it's on Monday for us! I think we're gonna try to catch it at a bar, since we'll still be near Auckland. We have to stick around until Monday to run a couple of errands, so it will work out.
Today we bought a duvet and duvet cover, because Betsy wanted to make sure we slept like civilized people - even if we do sleep in the car. We bought it at a pretty good price, at a store called The Warehouse. We also bought some sweets, perhaps more than our budget should allow! Oh well, we've got to keep our tummies happy!
End excerpt
New Zealand is very practical is some nifty little ways. For example, when parking in a parking garage, you may tear off a little slip, smaller than but similar to a post-it note, near the elvator that has your parking spot's level/location on it. Just a little slip, but so helpful! I'll see if I can remember to note other examples as our travels continue.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Friday, January 30, 2009
Driving on the Left Side
An excerpt from an email to my sister Courtney, with added comments in brackets:
Things are good here, if a bit crazy. We bought a car today! After evaluating our options in relation to our desires, we decided that buying a car we could sleep in was a smart move. We paid NZ$ 1850 for it. It's a Mazda, and the same color as the little Mazda I drove in high school (and called Betsy!). We're very excited, and a bit in shock. This development means we can head off in a day or two, look for work picking fruit -or something similar- to settle in even more. I'm ready to leave Auckland.
We also opened a bank account, which I believe I mentioned in my blog. Along the same lines, we bought a phone. We're on a plan, have a SIM card, and have a number. We were allowed some input on the number, and Betsy couldn't care less, so I chose 3212 as the last four numbers. 32 was Sandy Koufax's old number, and the length baseball bat I prefer. 12 is basically my favorite number, the jersey number I wore, and Wade Boggs' number when he played for the Yanks. I'm sure these details are very important to you. Getting back on track... we have a phone! Craziness. I'm starting to feel like we live here. These major steps -car, bank account, phone- are driving the point home. I'm also starting to feel poor, as our money dwindles.
Not only did we buy a car, but I drove it today... on the left side of the road! ...from the right side of the car! ...with the turn signal on the right side of the steering wheel ...in downtown Auckland! It was totally unnatural [discombobulating]. I kept hugging the left side of the lane, because of my instinct to orient myself a small distance from that side of the lane. When the steering wheel is on the left side of the car, this works! It was nuts. On top of all this, we had no idea where to park. Betsy had a map, but had no idea where to direct me; the blind, leading the blind, driving on the left side of the road. After a bit, I pulled into a parking garage beneath the Sky complex, which is a bit like the Denver Pavilions downtown. It ended up doing the job quite well, as parking is only $NZ 10/day on weekends. Phew! What a hilarious, nerve wrecking, fiasco.
I got a haircut! An actual, barbershop, sit in the chair, haircut. I believe it is the first one of its kind in about 5 years or so [generally cut my own hair]. Betsy thinks it looks pretty nice, and I'm pleased with the result. The catch, if there is one, is that it was free. It's one of those shops for barbers in training, so they advertise at hostels. My barber was a nice old man, and I was surprised when he confirmed that he is in training.
Things are good here, if a bit crazy. We bought a car today! After evaluating our options in relation to our desires, we decided that buying a car we could sleep in was a smart move. We paid NZ$ 1850 for it. It's a Mazda, and the same color as the little Mazda I drove in high school (and called Betsy!). We're very excited, and a bit in shock. This development means we can head off in a day or two, look for work picking fruit -or something similar- to settle in even more. I'm ready to leave Auckland.
We also opened a bank account, which I believe I mentioned in my blog. Along the same lines, we bought a phone. We're on a plan, have a SIM card, and have a number. We were allowed some input on the number, and Betsy couldn't care less, so I chose 3212 as the last four numbers. 32 was Sandy Koufax's old number, and the length baseball bat I prefer. 12 is basically my favorite number, the jersey number I wore, and Wade Boggs' number when he played for the Yanks. I'm sure these details are very important to you. Getting back on track... we have a phone! Craziness. I'm starting to feel like we live here. These major steps -car, bank account, phone- are driving the point home. I'm also starting to feel poor, as our money dwindles.
Not only did we buy a car, but I drove it today... on the left side of the road! ...from the right side of the car! ...with the turn signal on the right side of the steering wheel ...in downtown Auckland! It was totally unnatural [discombobulating]. I kept hugging the left side of the lane, because of my instinct to orient myself a small distance from that side of the lane. When the steering wheel is on the left side of the car, this works! It was nuts. On top of all this, we had no idea where to park. Betsy had a map, but had no idea where to direct me; the blind, leading the blind, driving on the left side of the road. After a bit, I pulled into a parking garage beneath the Sky complex, which is a bit like the Denver Pavilions downtown. It ended up doing the job quite well, as parking is only $NZ 10/day on weekends. Phew! What a hilarious, nerve wrecking, fiasco.
I got a haircut! An actual, barbershop, sit in the chair, haircut. I believe it is the first one of its kind in about 5 years or so [generally cut my own hair]. Betsy thinks it looks pretty nice, and I'm pleased with the result. The catch, if there is one, is that it was free. It's one of those shops for barbers in training, so they advertise at hostels. My barber was a nice old man, and I was surprised when he confirmed that he is in training.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Devonport
Hello my people.
Betsy and I are now the proud owners of a bank account at the Bank of New Zealand, or BNZ. I am quite pleased about this development, as it means I no longer have large amounts of cash to watch over. A nice young gentleman named Declan opened the account for us. Having worked at a bank for a while, I know how these things typically go; Declan was a delight. A sweet, genuine young guy, he walked us through our options quite cleanly, never attempting to… steal our money. He alerted us to common theft methods in NZ, such as devices placed over ATM card slots to record card data, and how to avoid them; make sure you see a green light just below the slot. Experience number 1 at a NZ bank: a success. Good work Declan.
We saw Gran Torrino. It was typical Eastwood (in my opinion), crisp and clean, no unnecessary characters, good dialogue, no fairy tale ending, beauty and pain, smart, well written, plenty of heart. Seeing it in NZ was interesting. Seating was “allocated” (assigned). As a result, the mostly empty theatre was home to a bunch of strangers, bunched together. Also of note was the absence of pre-show theatrics, if you will. No commercials, no ads, only 3 previews.
Betsy and I also now have IRD numbers. IRD = Internal Revenue Department. You want to work? You need an IRD number.
A ten-minute ferry ride across the bay, and we were out of the city. Thank goodness. I’m not a huge fan of big cities, even in NZ. Devonport was a delight. It was a cute little town with houses you dream of living in, and gardens Betsy dreams of tending. One such house/garden had a pretty sweet tree house in the front yard. A tree house in the front yard? Only in NZ. I took a picture of it for Blake (my nephew) Devonport is small, but not tiny. I could live in a town like this… if I could find one in the U.S. (breathe easy Court). It was fantastic. In the middle of town is a gigantic hill that offers 360-degree views of the Auckland area. We scaled the hill, and feasted our eyes on the gorgeousness. Wow.
Oh yeah, and we went to the beach. Our first beach outing went with the slow, systematic approach to entering what I consider to be cold water. Today, I went with the kamikaze approach. In both cases I was very cold, and immediately retreated to the beach. As I told Betsy, I’m working up to it.
Betsy and I are now the proud owners of a bank account at the Bank of New Zealand, or BNZ. I am quite pleased about this development, as it means I no longer have large amounts of cash to watch over. A nice young gentleman named Declan opened the account for us. Having worked at a bank for a while, I know how these things typically go; Declan was a delight. A sweet, genuine young guy, he walked us through our options quite cleanly, never attempting to… steal our money. He alerted us to common theft methods in NZ, such as devices placed over ATM card slots to record card data, and how to avoid them; make sure you see a green light just below the slot. Experience number 1 at a NZ bank: a success. Good work Declan.
We saw Gran Torrino. It was typical Eastwood (in my opinion), crisp and clean, no unnecessary characters, good dialogue, no fairy tale ending, beauty and pain, smart, well written, plenty of heart. Seeing it in NZ was interesting. Seating was “allocated” (assigned). As a result, the mostly empty theatre was home to a bunch of strangers, bunched together. Also of note was the absence of pre-show theatrics, if you will. No commercials, no ads, only 3 previews.
Betsy and I also now have IRD numbers. IRD = Internal Revenue Department. You want to work? You need an IRD number.
A ten-minute ferry ride across the bay, and we were out of the city. Thank goodness. I’m not a huge fan of big cities, even in NZ. Devonport was a delight. It was a cute little town with houses you dream of living in, and gardens Betsy dreams of tending. One such house/garden had a pretty sweet tree house in the front yard. A tree house in the front yard? Only in NZ. I took a picture of it for Blake (my nephew) Devonport is small, but not tiny. I could live in a town like this… if I could find one in the U.S. (breathe easy Court). It was fantastic. In the middle of town is a gigantic hill that offers 360-degree views of the Auckland area. We scaled the hill, and feasted our eyes on the gorgeousness. Wow.
Oh yeah, and we went to the beach. Our first beach outing went with the slow, systematic approach to entering what I consider to be cold water. Today, I went with the kamikaze approach. In both cases I was very cold, and immediately retreated to the beach. As I told Betsy, I’m working up to it.
Saturday, January 24, 2009
The Brothers Karamazov
Betsy is on page 21 of The Brothers Karamazov. She brought it along because it will take her forever to read (although it will surely be a shorter "forever" than it would be for most people), and she feels comfortable leaving it behind when she finishes it. Betsy is the real deal; page 21, The Brothers Karamazov.
We have relocated to a cheaper hostel. It is a block away from the Auckland City Library, where we have sniffed out free internet access. We simply opened a temporary "Akozone account," and here I am blogging free of charge. Also a block away is a gigantic, labyrinthine Borders book store. I believe it is four levels in all, with multiple sub-levels, one of which houses a Gloria Jean's Coffee. While traversing levels one may find themselves taking the stairs, escalator, or lift (Kiwi for elevator). The layout vaguely resembles that of a playhouse at most McDonald's, which is appropriate if one thinks of a bookstore as a grownup's playground, as I do. Of course, next to Borders is an oversized movie theatre. No, I'm not making this up.
There's a really loud typer a few computers away. She is thwacking away at the keys, and seems particularly angry at the space bar.
We have relocated to a cheaper hostel. It is a block away from the Auckland City Library, where we have sniffed out free internet access. We simply opened a temporary "Akozone account," and here I am blogging free of charge. Also a block away is a gigantic, labyrinthine Borders book store. I believe it is four levels in all, with multiple sub-levels, one of which houses a Gloria Jean's Coffee. While traversing levels one may find themselves taking the stairs, escalator, or lift (Kiwi for elevator). The layout vaguely resembles that of a playhouse at most McDonald's, which is appropriate if one thinks of a bookstore as a grownup's playground, as I do. Of course, next to Borders is an oversized movie theatre. No, I'm not making this up.
There's a really loud typer a few computers away. She is thwacking away at the keys, and seems particularly angry at the space bar.
Friday, January 23, 2009
"Even the road work is tidy!"
We made it! It's great to be back.
We're sitting in a cafe called "Esquires" that offers an hour of internet access with any purchase. Our purchase was two bacon and egg sandwiches. We've become internet hounds, sniffing out free net time wherever we can. We just met a very nice couple named Matt and Louise. Matt is a Kiwi, Louise is from England. "You guys visiting?" they asked us. They proceeded to answer all of our questions, give us numerous useful web addresses, even the name and number of a man that may be able to get Betsy a job on a dolphin tour boat of some kind. Kiwi's rule, just as I remember. Very friendly folks.
New Zealand is clean. As Betsy said on the bus ride into Auckland from the airport, "Even the road work is tidy!"
We're sitting in a cafe called "Esquires" that offers an hour of internet access with any purchase. Our purchase was two bacon and egg sandwiches. We've become internet hounds, sniffing out free net time wherever we can. We just met a very nice couple named Matt and Louise. Matt is a Kiwi, Louise is from England. "You guys visiting?" they asked us. They proceeded to answer all of our questions, give us numerous useful web addresses, even the name and number of a man that may be able to get Betsy a job on a dolphin tour boat of some kind. Kiwi's rule, just as I remember. Very friendly folks.
New Zealand is clean. As Betsy said on the bus ride into Auckland from the airport, "Even the road work is tidy!"
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