Right. The last time I spoke to you I believe I was hitching around the South Island...
I then met up with and had a lovely time staying with Rachel, Nick and (still utterly gorgeous) JJ in a beautiful bach overlooking mountains, vineyards and a river. I had a lot of fun babysitting JJ (dream child) and exploring the delights of Cromwell (which extended to enormous corrugated iron fruit and wine tasting. Guess which one was better.) All too soon tho my time was up and I had to bus it on to Dunedin (Rachel forbid me to hitch hike again. Yes mum.) I hoped to cycle the Central Otago Rail Trail, but I guess I got distracted. Another time, I hope.
Dunedin was ugly, I felt, like a Kiwi version of Newcastle. I did however manage to see four films, go on two factory tours (Speight's beer and Cadbury's chocolate), take a scenic train ride, visit the world's steepest street (it was indeed very steep), an art gallery (good), a musuem (I learnt about early settlers and freemasons) and several second hand book stores. All of these things were interesting (tho not overwhelmingly), time consuming (not like I had anything else to do) and by no means inexpensive.
The highlight of Dunedin however was the day I decided I had to go to the peninsula and see Lanarch Castle, NZ's only castle. They have lots of National Parks, lakes, gimmicky towns, native wildlife etc, but only one castle. And it was a pretty awesome castle too, with a suitably dodgy history, some good cake, attractive gardens and eery, well-preserved rooms. However, getting there without my own transport was tricky, tho not impossible. I took a bus along the foggy coast and then embarked on a 5km climb, in the mist, to/from the castle. On my descent, a car stopped and asked if I'd like a lift. Now, I would like to say, hitch hiking aside, I would not normally accept lifts from random cars. But we were on the only road to the castle, so they had to be tourists, and the car was very shiny in a rental car way. So I asked the two gents inside if they were going to rape and/or kill me. No, they said, and we joked about it. I assumed that if you were a serial killer, it wouldn't have been funny. And that you'd've sweated more.
As it turned out, the two guys, John and Neil, were originally from Auckland and worked in television. They were visiting Dunedin to film some interviews and we got on like that proverbial flaming homestead, and so I joined them to see the rest of the peninsula (which I wouldn't have been able to do otherwise) and for dinner and drinks. Great! It was like having friends. Friends who paid. Ideal.
After Dunedin I went on to a tiny place called Oamaru, or something like that. It's on the coast and good for penguins. I stayed a house converted in to a hostel with a lovely but slightly crazy owner called Agra, who was in to reading energies and would say things like 'I could tell by his body language he wasn't right for the house. I didn't want him to stay' or 'if you wash more than your socks I'll kill you! I need those washing lines for my sheets!' Luckily, I was allowed to stay, sharing a room with a 61 year old woman from Anglesea. We bagsed a lift in the very small car of two others staying there to go and see penguins, me literally hanging out the window sitting on the lady's lap in the front. But the penguins were super cool, and came up on to the road from the shore just 3ft in front of us before waddling off again quite happily to their nests.
The last leg of my South Island adventure was spent hanging out with Christchurch chums Rosie, Maisy and Jonny. Rosie, Maisy and I essentially spent the weekend watching more Sex and the City than I care to remember whilst making an incredibly complex and well decorated gingerbread house for Jonny, complete with magic mushroom garden and an icing swimming pool. I'll try to get some photos up soon so you can appreciate how truly awesome it was. The three of us also checked out some of the acts on at the International Busking Festival, which was fun, although the contortionist made me feel a bit sick...
Back in Auckland, as I have been for the last week, I have alternated between the free internet at the University and trailing around the city looking for somewhere to live. A depressing experience, although the weather is glorious with scorching sun that's keeping my tan in check. And today everything seemed to come together. Having seen about ten flats, from the sublime to the ridiculous, I ventured a little further out of town this afternoon to an area called Grey Lynn where a nice older lady who teaches 'graphic textiles' (I think, or something like it) owns a house with a cat (woohoo!) which is shared by a South African, a Kiwi and a French guy. They were all in their 20s and did a range of things and she lived in a small apartment and studio attached to the main house. The house was on two levels with a large kitchen and dining area, it was tidy AND clean, the room was furnished and it got oodles of sunlight, which is my most important criteria. It turns out Grey Lynn is really lovely too, lots of pretty little houses and tree-lined streets. So a bit of a WIN. And I can move in tomorrow.
Meanwhile, earlier this morning I had a very promising meeting with the Supporter Relations Manager for Greenpeace New Zealand, after finding an interesting sounding internship online this week. He and I were both enthusiastic and he seemed to think I was the right person for the job. We discussed when I could work and he said he would put together a project proposal and call me up start of next week. The project would be to look in to why Greenpeace loses so many supporters following their initial sign up and then putting together a report on this and possible solutions to present to key managers. Personally, I think it sounds really interesting, and potentially the work would go on til I leave. The man I met was nice too, and the office was open, airy and laid back, filled with 30 mostly young people in shorts and Converse. Ideal.
So that kind of takes us up to the present moment. I'm not sure what happens next, I mean, I haven't made any new friends yet, but at least I have somewhere to live and quite likely something to do too. And hopefully friends will come out of that. Some money would be nice too, really nice actually, but one thing at a time, eh?
Anyway, I hope you're all well and survived the snow. I miss you all and look forward to seeing you in early July. Less than five months til I leave NZ now! Scary.
Take care, love, A xx
Friday, 29 January 2010
Wednesday, 13 January 2010
Solitaire
So, I felt like my last post was a bit lame. I'm not saying this one will be any better, but I might try a bit harder. Kk, here goes.
Flew down to Queenstown on Saturday. I'm currently 100% homeless, 90% friendless and 50% penniless at the moment. As a result, I am a FREEBIRD, wooooo, who can do whatever the hell she likes. I can't tell you what a joy it's been these last few days to do what I want, when I want, how I want. Of course, I can tell you exactly how freaking tedious it is to have to tell everyone, all the time, what I do, where I've come from, what my plans are... Jeez. Maybe I'll make pamphlets. I like that word.
Any snooch, you've got to weigh these things off against each other. I had a pretty good run the first three or four nights, meeting people with exceptional ease, and cool people too, who were forthcoming and talkative and like, only 5% irritating. I also really liked Queenstown, getting a bit over excited and doing everything you can do - assuming jumping out of a plane/off a bridge/down a river/from tree to tree isn't your cup of tea (as far as I'm concerned, it's coffee all round please).
After that things slowed up a bit, but I've still had a good time. I have to say, world, Milford Sound is overrated, but that won't stop busloads of tourists bussing in every bussing day for like, forever. They've been coming for over a 100 years. Today I hitched back to Q'town from there, which was interesting, my first real hitching experience.
First man: 'are you not afraid to hitch hike?' (Should I be??? I kept my pen knife in my hoody pouch in case he returned from the farm he dropped me outside of with a shot gun and a shovel. Yup. Always be prepared. Failing that, I'd have to hope he had a nut allergy and hit him up with my trail mix.)
Second couple: 'you'll have to share the back with the dog.' Joy. Slobber.
Third couple: 'bonjour! nous sommes... erm, traveling, er... a Queenstown!'
Me: 'Great! Tres bien!'
Lady: 'D'accord. Allons y.'
They were pretty cool, actually, and we had a two hour conversation in Franglais. The husband n'est pas speaking the Englishes, but he did take his collection of short stories to libraries round NZ to leave them there, lest you rock up and realise you'd left Bertrand of Lyon's book at home (or at least, I presume that was why.)
And now I'm off to meet up with Rachel, Nick and JJ and enjoy not explaining myself and not having to stand in a cold, windy field with my thumb in the air, getting frost bite and keeping myself amused by trying to remember all 36 of my classmates from when I was four. I only ever got to 32.
Speak soon, People Who Know Me But Are Far Away. x
Flew down to Queenstown on Saturday. I'm currently 100% homeless, 90% friendless and 50% penniless at the moment. As a result, I am a FREEBIRD, wooooo, who can do whatever the hell she likes. I can't tell you what a joy it's been these last few days to do what I want, when I want, how I want. Of course, I can tell you exactly how freaking tedious it is to have to tell everyone, all the time, what I do, where I've come from, what my plans are... Jeez. Maybe I'll make pamphlets. I like that word.
Any snooch, you've got to weigh these things off against each other. I had a pretty good run the first three or four nights, meeting people with exceptional ease, and cool people too, who were forthcoming and talkative and like, only 5% irritating. I also really liked Queenstown, getting a bit over excited and doing everything you can do - assuming jumping out of a plane/off a bridge/down a river/from tree to tree isn't your cup of tea (as far as I'm concerned, it's coffee all round please).
After that things slowed up a bit, but I've still had a good time. I have to say, world, Milford Sound is overrated, but that won't stop busloads of tourists bussing in every bussing day for like, forever. They've been coming for over a 100 years. Today I hitched back to Q'town from there, which was interesting, my first real hitching experience.
First man: 'are you not afraid to hitch hike?' (Should I be??? I kept my pen knife in my hoody pouch in case he returned from the farm he dropped me outside of with a shot gun and a shovel. Yup. Always be prepared. Failing that, I'd have to hope he had a nut allergy and hit him up with my trail mix.)
Second couple: 'you'll have to share the back with the dog.' Joy. Slobber.
Third couple: 'bonjour! nous sommes... erm, traveling, er... a Queenstown!'
Me: 'Great! Tres bien!'
Lady: 'D'accord. Allons y.'
They were pretty cool, actually, and we had a two hour conversation in Franglais. The husband n'est pas speaking the Englishes, but he did take his collection of short stories to libraries round NZ to leave them there, lest you rock up and realise you'd left Bertrand of Lyon's book at home (or at least, I presume that was why.)
And now I'm off to meet up with Rachel, Nick and JJ and enjoy not explaining myself and not having to stand in a cold, windy field with my thumb in the air, getting frost bite and keeping myself amused by trying to remember all 36 of my classmates from when I was four. I only ever got to 32.
Speak soon, People Who Know Me But Are Far Away. x
Friday, 13 November 2009
The beginning of the end
Things I have done since November:
1. Got soaked at Mt Manganui, first climbing 'the Mount' then hanging out in its hot pools. It was a fun weekend away with Mark, Andrea, Jessica and Kelsey.
2. Spent three days in a van travelling through beautiful Northland with Colleen and Olga. We played a lot of cards and listened to the only two CDs we had over and over again. One day we went kayaking. It was more fun than I care to admit. Russell was really beautiful too, although the half hour I spent driving on a very windy gravel road in the dark was disorientating.
3. Classes ended, which was weird because it was Kiwi end-of-year. We had a fun last PCL class. Even lecturer Ross Clark was convinced to wear a party hat. Then I did some exams, yawn. They went fairly well.
4. I got some new glasses, had an eat-a-thon with friend Jessica in various nice Auckland eateries and hung out and laughed a lot with Colleen, before she left, which was sad.
5. All my other friends left. Well, almost all. The best ones did ;)
6. I went to Samoa with Stephan and Mark. We explored bush-covered mountains in search of ruined pyramids, sat in little-fronted open beach huts, swam in crystal-clear blue water, went to a Mormon church in local attire, made new friends on a bike ride, saw churches destroyed by lava, helped the Red Cross with their tsunami-relief efforts and drank more beer than you can imagine.
7. I lived in a van in the South Island with Jamie, Amanda, Mark, Stephan and a nice chap called David Graham who was good at packing. We carried with us a type-writer, a machete, 17 pairs of Amanda's shoes, all our sleeping and living gear and some rapidly-rotting food. We also slept in some cool places, like on beaches and in burnt forests, swam in freezing but incredible lakes, battled strong winds to admire mountains covered in mist, visited beer factories and ate a lot of food with grit in it. Crunch. I've never seen so many cool sunsets either.
8. My parents came over and we travelled in the North Island, as well as spending Christmas Day in the sun with Jamie, Amanda and Cat. Mum liked seeing geysers and multi-coloured geological oddities, and Dad liked the strange birds and plants. I liked the Tongariro Crossing, tho it made my legs hurt.
9. After the 'rents left I travelled more with J, A and C. We went to Amanda's farm where Jamie shot a turkey with a crossbow and Cat got thrown off Amanda's nutter of a horse, Gypsy. Blimey.
The future... Well, we'll see. Off down south to explore by myself. Make some new friends. I need to find somewhere to live for next semester and I might look at getting a job or work experience, to pass the time. You should also all know that I'm tanned. But I'm still kinda jealous of your snow.
Hugs xxx
1. Got soaked at Mt Manganui, first climbing 'the Mount' then hanging out in its hot pools. It was a fun weekend away with Mark, Andrea, Jessica and Kelsey.
2. Spent three days in a van travelling through beautiful Northland with Colleen and Olga. We played a lot of cards and listened to the only two CDs we had over and over again. One day we went kayaking. It was more fun than I care to admit. Russell was really beautiful too, although the half hour I spent driving on a very windy gravel road in the dark was disorientating.
3. Classes ended, which was weird because it was Kiwi end-of-year. We had a fun last PCL class. Even lecturer Ross Clark was convinced to wear a party hat. Then I did some exams, yawn. They went fairly well.
4. I got some new glasses, had an eat-a-thon with friend Jessica in various nice Auckland eateries and hung out and laughed a lot with Colleen, before she left, which was sad.
5. All my other friends left. Well, almost all. The best ones did ;)
6. I went to Samoa with Stephan and Mark. We explored bush-covered mountains in search of ruined pyramids, sat in little-fronted open beach huts, swam in crystal-clear blue water, went to a Mormon church in local attire, made new friends on a bike ride, saw churches destroyed by lava, helped the Red Cross with their tsunami-relief efforts and drank more beer than you can imagine.
7. I lived in a van in the South Island with Jamie, Amanda, Mark, Stephan and a nice chap called David Graham who was good at packing. We carried with us a type-writer, a machete, 17 pairs of Amanda's shoes, all our sleeping and living gear and some rapidly-rotting food. We also slept in some cool places, like on beaches and in burnt forests, swam in freezing but incredible lakes, battled strong winds to admire mountains covered in mist, visited beer factories and ate a lot of food with grit in it. Crunch. I've never seen so many cool sunsets either.
8. My parents came over and we travelled in the North Island, as well as spending Christmas Day in the sun with Jamie, Amanda and Cat. Mum liked seeing geysers and multi-coloured geological oddities, and Dad liked the strange birds and plants. I liked the Tongariro Crossing, tho it made my legs hurt.
9. After the 'rents left I travelled more with J, A and C. We went to Amanda's farm where Jamie shot a turkey with a crossbow and Cat got thrown off Amanda's nutter of a horse, Gypsy. Blimey.
The future... Well, we'll see. Off down south to explore by myself. Make some new friends. I need to find somewhere to live for next semester and I might look at getting a job or work experience, to pass the time. You should also all know that I'm tanned. But I'm still kinda jealous of your snow.
Hugs xxx
Monday, 2 November 2009
Uniquely Kiwi
Top 10 things that are peculiarly unique to this these twin isles:
1. Being so far away from literally everything, even the next town, let alone the majority of the world's population. As a result, you get things like Afghan biscuits, a sort of chocolate cookie that has a walnut on top, thus making it look like an Afghan (in one of those hats). The Kiwis get away with this because as far as I can see, there are no Afghan people here. It's too far to come.
2. Self-deprecating humour. 'Moro: probably about the 4th best chocolate bar in NZ.' L&P (fizzy drink): 'World famous in NZ since ages ago.'
3. L&P, Pineapple Lumps, kumara chips: food stuffs the rest of the world just don't give a shit about, because they already have something better (Coke, normal chocolate, potato chips).
4. EFTPOS. Stands for something like 'electronic f-something terminal point of sale'. Means a cash card, but that's what everyone uses instead of cash or a card. It's not like a debit card tho, cos you can't buy things online. The Kiwi banks have only just introduced those.
5. A strange array of place names. From Coromandel to Mangonui and Whenuakite ("fen-oo-ah-kee-tay").
6. A misplaced sense of irony: 'we're going tramping in the bush this weekend.'
7. False pride: 'NZ's premier theme park!' No, NZ's *only* theme park. 'The only ... in the southern hemisphere!' That's because there's fuck all in the bottom half of the globe.
8. A curious love of reggae, despite no Jamaican heritage and no easily discerned punk movement.
9. The worst TV and radio ads in the world, particularly the healhy eating, DIY and sheep dip info-mercials.
10. Single lane motorways. Want to get somewhere fast? Nope, sorry, State Highway 1 isn't even a dual carriageway most of the way.
Hmmm... A x
1. Being so far away from literally everything, even the next town, let alone the majority of the world's population. As a result, you get things like Afghan biscuits, a sort of chocolate cookie that has a walnut on top, thus making it look like an Afghan (in one of those hats). The Kiwis get away with this because as far as I can see, there are no Afghan people here. It's too far to come.
2. Self-deprecating humour. 'Moro: probably about the 4th best chocolate bar in NZ.' L&P (fizzy drink): 'World famous in NZ since ages ago.'
3. L&P, Pineapple Lumps, kumara chips: food stuffs the rest of the world just don't give a shit about, because they already have something better (Coke, normal chocolate, potato chips).
4. EFTPOS. Stands for something like 'electronic f-something terminal point of sale'. Means a cash card, but that's what everyone uses instead of cash or a card. It's not like a debit card tho, cos you can't buy things online. The Kiwi banks have only just introduced those.
5. A strange array of place names. From Coromandel to Mangonui and Whenuakite ("fen-oo-ah-kee-tay").
6. A misplaced sense of irony: 'we're going tramping in the bush this weekend.'
7. False pride: 'NZ's premier theme park!' No, NZ's *only* theme park. 'The only ... in the southern hemisphere!' That's because there's fuck all in the bottom half of the globe.
8. A curious love of reggae, despite no Jamaican heritage and no easily discerned punk movement.
9. The worst TV and radio ads in the world, particularly the healhy eating, DIY and sheep dip info-mercials.
10. Single lane motorways. Want to get somewhere fast? Nope, sorry, State Highway 1 isn't even a dual carriageway most of the way.
Hmmm... A x
Saturday, 31 October 2009
Wanted.
So I've just been to see that film 'Julie and Julia' with Amy Adams and Meryl Streep (LOVE) about a woman who cooks all of Julia Child's recipes in a year and writes a blog about it.
The film is a bit too long and the blog lady Julie is a whiny, self-absorbed bitch, but Meryl is of course splendid and all the food (and Paris) looks absolutely delicious.
Now I am sitting at home in my beige, IKEA-furnished, studenty apartment on an unassuming street in Auckland's CBD, listening to drunk Asians yelling and wishing the following:
1. I was in Paris, or at least Europe. Anywhere with cafes tucked along cobbled streets, or a place with more "cul-cha" than some over-blown reggae and a love of biodiversity (except for you, possums. Fuck you).
2. I was the kind of person who felt inclined to cook tasty dishes rather than having an essentially raw diet of vegetables, gratefully complemented by the heat from my liquid-staples of tea, coffee and beer (tragically room temperature).
3. I had a (preferably attractive, single, male) friend who was doing an apprenticeship in cooking ("Chefery"? "Cheffing"?) and needed someone to taste all his work and whom he would still find curiously alluring despite their consequently ballooning waistline.
Know someone like that? Give them my number. Now.
This is Amy Brewer. Bon appetit! x
The film is a bit too long and the blog lady Julie is a whiny, self-absorbed bitch, but Meryl is of course splendid and all the food (and Paris) looks absolutely delicious.
Now I am sitting at home in my beige, IKEA-furnished, studenty apartment on an unassuming street in Auckland's CBD, listening to drunk Asians yelling and wishing the following:
1. I was in Paris, or at least Europe. Anywhere with cafes tucked along cobbled streets, or a place with more "cul-cha" than some over-blown reggae and a love of biodiversity (except for you, possums. Fuck you).
2. I was the kind of person who felt inclined to cook tasty dishes rather than having an essentially raw diet of vegetables, gratefully complemented by the heat from my liquid-staples of tea, coffee and beer (tragically room temperature).
3. I had a (preferably attractive, single, male) friend who was doing an apprenticeship in cooking ("Chefery"? "Cheffing"?) and needed someone to taste all his work and whom he would still find curiously alluring despite their consequently ballooning waistline.
Know someone like that? Give them my number. Now.
This is Amy Brewer. Bon appetit! x
Thursday, 15 October 2009
Work hard, play harder.
So the last month has been spent principally in Auckland, mostly because the weather's pretty crap and rainy (REALLY rainy) but also because there's loads more work here than in Edinburgh (I've probably written more essays in the last four weeks than I have since I've been studying at the 'burgh). But they're mostly on interesting topics, and not too long, and of course the more work you do the less you have to worry about final marks, because there's more opportunities to learn from mistakes etc. S'all good bro.
Anyway, in between all that work malarky, here's what I've been up to:
I've been exploring the city more, checking out K Road, which is like the Camden/Carnaby St (of the old days) equivalent, with some art-school/indie cool coffee shops and vintage stores, and I also went down to the viaduct last weekend, which has some nice Southbank-like attempts at bars and restaurants. The last time it was sunny Mark and I went to the island of Rangitoto (half an hour away on a ferry) which is basically solidified volcanic vomit, if you will. There's no shops or anything but you can easily clamber up to the summit over a load of black volcanic rocks and get an awesome view out towards downtown Auckland and other suburb-y bits. We got sunburnt doing so, and enjoyed Tim Tam-wiches at the top.
So I've spent a fair bit of time with Mark, and also a gang of Europeans who live in his building, as well as with Colleen (we just seem to get on really well, despite being fairly opposite kinds of people: Colleen has this charming, magnetic personality, is super skinny, likes writing children's literature and stops to smell road-side flowers, whilst I look on with one eyebrow skeptically raised). We've been to art galleries (Colleen and I disagreed with NZ on what it had voted its favourite painting), formal dinners (I'm still unclear on why we were subjected to a recorder recital), done a lot of drinking (wine in a box = inevitable disaster), done kareoke (Colleen and I were marvellous as Oliva Newton John and John Travolta respectively) and won pub quizzes (Mark's obsession; last week the team came 2nd and 3rd...).
Lovely friend Carlton has also been in town for the last month with Mamma Mia!, and it's be awesome to see so much of him and to meet and hang out with his friends in the cast and crew of the show. Carlton, his marvellous friend Mick, Mark and I have had several heavy Sunday nights (Monday being Carlie's day off) that have been a lot of fun, and Carlie has also been regularly feeding us poor studends on Monday nights (cue large amounts of beef and potatoes, oh yes). I went to Kelly Tarltons, a sort of underground, faux-Antarctica with penguins, with Carlie and his equally lovely friend Darren a few weeks back, and last night was 'band night' where the cast of Mamma Mia! did some non-Abba numbers in the pub opposite the theatre, which was great. Carlie is a lot of fun, plus it's nice to have a familiar face in town, tho at times it's made me a bit homesick.
I've also been hanging out in the flat with my flatmates too, the American girls mostly, despite their high-pitched giggling and squealing, which is kinda fun. They decided they liked me because I'm British and therefore funny...
I went to little JJ's second birthday party, which was cowboy themed, and helped Rachel ice cactus-shaped biscuits and a boot-shaped cake. They had a real pony which was awesome too, tho JJ seemed most excited about the helium filled cow-print balloons...
My band has got itself back together after our singer was in hospital for a while, and it's fun to hang out with the guys and jam again...
I've done yoga at this Hare Krishna (!) place a couple of times with friends Olga and Jessica, the latter of whom is unfairly flexible (like most of the other people who like to balance and bend on coloured mats in a hot dark room of a Thursday night). Let's not pretend, my favourite part is lying in the dark at the end and the free meal afterwards...
I went to an 'alumni host family dinner' the other weekend, where a woman who used to go to Auckland Uni fed three of us international students, which was jolly, a bit like dinner with yer grandparents but never say no to a free roast, eh?
So there we go. But y'know, although all these things have been fun, I won't lie, I'm pretty damned bored of Auckland and wonder what I'll do next semester. I'm sad that most of my friends will be leaving in the next couple of months and just feel like NZ is a pretty average place. I know there's lots of beautiful scenery, and I shouldn't judge until I get to the South Island, but the things I really like - good food, art galleries, museums, movies - are kinda lacking. Everything's very spread out here so you can't bar-hop, for instance, or there's only one good thing of its kind. I'm a city girl, I don't care about scenery!
I also think I'm struggling a bit because I haven't really got my teeth in to anything - no Bedlam, no Fresh Air, for example. I find it hard not having a centre of focus like that. But that's probably my own fault. Here's hoping there are some bloody exciting people arriving next semester, or I'll need a really engrossing job or something. I wonder also what summer will bring... (more on that next time.)
Anyway, enough whining. I hope you're all well. A x
Anyway, in between all that work malarky, here's what I've been up to:
I've been exploring the city more, checking out K Road, which is like the Camden/Carnaby St (of the old days) equivalent, with some art-school/indie cool coffee shops and vintage stores, and I also went down to the viaduct last weekend, which has some nice Southbank-like attempts at bars and restaurants. The last time it was sunny Mark and I went to the island of Rangitoto (half an hour away on a ferry) which is basically solidified volcanic vomit, if you will. There's no shops or anything but you can easily clamber up to the summit over a load of black volcanic rocks and get an awesome view out towards downtown Auckland and other suburb-y bits. We got sunburnt doing so, and enjoyed Tim Tam-wiches at the top.
So I've spent a fair bit of time with Mark, and also a gang of Europeans who live in his building, as well as with Colleen (we just seem to get on really well, despite being fairly opposite kinds of people: Colleen has this charming, magnetic personality, is super skinny, likes writing children's literature and stops to smell road-side flowers, whilst I look on with one eyebrow skeptically raised). We've been to art galleries (Colleen and I disagreed with NZ on what it had voted its favourite painting), formal dinners (I'm still unclear on why we were subjected to a recorder recital), done a lot of drinking (wine in a box = inevitable disaster), done kareoke (Colleen and I were marvellous as Oliva Newton John and John Travolta respectively) and won pub quizzes (Mark's obsession; last week the team came 2nd and 3rd...).
Lovely friend Carlton has also been in town for the last month with Mamma Mia!, and it's be awesome to see so much of him and to meet and hang out with his friends in the cast and crew of the show. Carlton, his marvellous friend Mick, Mark and I have had several heavy Sunday nights (Monday being Carlie's day off) that have been a lot of fun, and Carlie has also been regularly feeding us poor studends on Monday nights (cue large amounts of beef and potatoes, oh yes). I went to Kelly Tarltons, a sort of underground, faux-Antarctica with penguins, with Carlie and his equally lovely friend Darren a few weeks back, and last night was 'band night' where the cast of Mamma Mia! did some non-Abba numbers in the pub opposite the theatre, which was great. Carlie is a lot of fun, plus it's nice to have a familiar face in town, tho at times it's made me a bit homesick.
I've also been hanging out in the flat with my flatmates too, the American girls mostly, despite their high-pitched giggling and squealing, which is kinda fun. They decided they liked me because I'm British and therefore funny...
I went to little JJ's second birthday party, which was cowboy themed, and helped Rachel ice cactus-shaped biscuits and a boot-shaped cake. They had a real pony which was awesome too, tho JJ seemed most excited about the helium filled cow-print balloons...
My band has got itself back together after our singer was in hospital for a while, and it's fun to hang out with the guys and jam again...
I've done yoga at this Hare Krishna (!) place a couple of times with friends Olga and Jessica, the latter of whom is unfairly flexible (like most of the other people who like to balance and bend on coloured mats in a hot dark room of a Thursday night). Let's not pretend, my favourite part is lying in the dark at the end and the free meal afterwards...
I went to an 'alumni host family dinner' the other weekend, where a woman who used to go to Auckland Uni fed three of us international students, which was jolly, a bit like dinner with yer grandparents but never say no to a free roast, eh?
So there we go. But y'know, although all these things have been fun, I won't lie, I'm pretty damned bored of Auckland and wonder what I'll do next semester. I'm sad that most of my friends will be leaving in the next couple of months and just feel like NZ is a pretty average place. I know there's lots of beautiful scenery, and I shouldn't judge until I get to the South Island, but the things I really like - good food, art galleries, museums, movies - are kinda lacking. Everything's very spread out here so you can't bar-hop, for instance, or there's only one good thing of its kind. I'm a city girl, I don't care about scenery!
I also think I'm struggling a bit because I haven't really got my teeth in to anything - no Bedlam, no Fresh Air, for example. I find it hard not having a centre of focus like that. But that's probably my own fault. Here's hoping there are some bloody exciting people arriving next semester, or I'll need a really engrossing job or something. I wonder also what summer will bring... (more on that next time.)
Anyway, enough whining. I hope you're all well. A x
Friday, 11 September 2009
A hard, hard rain's a-gonna fall...
Hi friends.
Since we last spoke I've been to Tonga, Fiji and, erm, Hamilton, to see the final of the Tri-Nations rugby.
So here's a few words on all that then, in case you're interested... (And because I should be editing an essay on Tahitian negation.)
Tonga.
Tonga was pretty cool, overall. I stayed mostly on the main island of Tongatapu, at first with friends Ben and Kelly, at a place called Tony's Guesthouse. It was run, as you can imagine, by a man called Tony. Tony was in his 60s, and was from Lancashire. Despite living in Tonga for 20+ years, he had managed to retain both his accent and a typical Northern attitude. He took us on a tour of the island and the coolest thing we saw were some blowholes, which ran along the coast and every minute or so would blast huge spurts of water in to the air, a bit like geysers, but by the sea. I also went to a (touristy) Tongan feast in a cave and hung out a lot in a cafe (the only decent one in Tonga) called Friends, drinking wine and coffee and playing cards with Ben and a kiwi girl that we'd met, Katie.
A few days after arriving in Tonga I went with Katie to a nearby island called 'Eua, in the hope of seeing whales (they come to have babies this time of year). Sadly, the whales didn't want to see me, but our little trip was still the best part of my time in Tonga, offering the most authentic experiences. It involved a brief visit to a school and a family home, dance lessons with our hostel owner's daughter, the whale outing lead by the local fisherman (who was also the plumber and the electrician), puppies, an evening at the local high school's prom, some gorgeous weather (and some very heavy rain), exploring the island on bikes, many fresh coconuts, and a couple of near-death experiences, first on the ferry over to the island and then with a machete-wielding, free-roaming prisoner. (We were on a cliff top. He just wanted to talk. Great.)
Fiji.
I won't lie, Fiji wasn't what I expected. I suppose, like many people, I'd envisaged a few days of sun, sea and sand, during which I would magically transform in to a sarong-wearing, skinny, bronzed woman with a care-free passion for over-priced cocktails. What Ben and I got instead was four days of failed objectives, but quite a lot of laughs as a result.
Firstly, our hostel was like Fawlty Towers, and then our attempts to get to a tropical island to realise the ideals outlined above were meanly foiled by the most torrential rain you can imagine. Who the hell sits on a Fijian beach drinking tequilla sunrises wishing above all else they were by a radiator wearing their jeans and a hoodie? Anyway, as a result the rest of trip was characterised by us trying to find indoor activities, or another beach with less rain. We found both, in the end - a beach yes, although one with large, gravelly sand and sea so shallow you could walk out a good 500m and not get your waist wet. Needless to say my new bikini did not see action. Our indoor activity (yes, just the one possible) was Fiji's only museum (who goes to Fiji for museums anyway??), and we went there the only day it happened to be sunny from morning til evening. Good. (Actually, it was quite interesting...)
But still, I was glad to have been to Fiji, and it was interesting to see: I didn't know, for example, they had such a large Indian population.
All Blacks v. Springboks.
This weekend, to conclude the mid-semester break, ever-chirpy Mark and I went to Hamilton to stay with Rachel, Nick and JJ (now capable of whole sentences) and to see the Tri-Nations match. Naturally, the Springboks completely trounced us (by which I mean New Zealand) but the pre-match entertainment of strange dances, fireworks, the haka and enormous fireballs was neat. Plus the weather pretty much held out (phew). Afterwards we met up with some other Auckland chums for drinks, and ripped it up Hamilton-stylee.
On Sunday we also enjoyed Hamilton's themed gardens (India was our favourite, with China a close second and England seeming eerily familiar) and hearing Rachel's exciting plans for JJ's cowboy birthday party, admiring cactus cookie cutters, sampling gold-bar lemon cakes and photographing young JJ in cowboy regalia for the invitations.
Anyways, that'll do you. Consider yourselves in the loop. I hope you're all enjoying the end of your summers, as we begin to enjoy the start of ours.....
Speak soon, Brewstar x
Since we last spoke I've been to Tonga, Fiji and, erm, Hamilton, to see the final of the Tri-Nations rugby.
So here's a few words on all that then, in case you're interested... (And because I should be editing an essay on Tahitian negation.)
Tonga.
Tonga was pretty cool, overall. I stayed mostly on the main island of Tongatapu, at first with friends Ben and Kelly, at a place called Tony's Guesthouse. It was run, as you can imagine, by a man called Tony. Tony was in his 60s, and was from Lancashire. Despite living in Tonga for 20+ years, he had managed to retain both his accent and a typical Northern attitude. He took us on a tour of the island and the coolest thing we saw were some blowholes, which ran along the coast and every minute or so would blast huge spurts of water in to the air, a bit like geysers, but by the sea. I also went to a (touristy) Tongan feast in a cave and hung out a lot in a cafe (the only decent one in Tonga) called Friends, drinking wine and coffee and playing cards with Ben and a kiwi girl that we'd met, Katie.
A few days after arriving in Tonga I went with Katie to a nearby island called 'Eua, in the hope of seeing whales (they come to have babies this time of year). Sadly, the whales didn't want to see me, but our little trip was still the best part of my time in Tonga, offering the most authentic experiences. It involved a brief visit to a school and a family home, dance lessons with our hostel owner's daughter, the whale outing lead by the local fisherman (who was also the plumber and the electrician), puppies, an evening at the local high school's prom, some gorgeous weather (and some very heavy rain), exploring the island on bikes, many fresh coconuts, and a couple of near-death experiences, first on the ferry over to the island and then with a machete-wielding, free-roaming prisoner. (We were on a cliff top. He just wanted to talk. Great.)
Fiji.
I won't lie, Fiji wasn't what I expected. I suppose, like many people, I'd envisaged a few days of sun, sea and sand, during which I would magically transform in to a sarong-wearing, skinny, bronzed woman with a care-free passion for over-priced cocktails. What Ben and I got instead was four days of failed objectives, but quite a lot of laughs as a result.
Firstly, our hostel was like Fawlty Towers, and then our attempts to get to a tropical island to realise the ideals outlined above were meanly foiled by the most torrential rain you can imagine. Who the hell sits on a Fijian beach drinking tequilla sunrises wishing above all else they were by a radiator wearing their jeans and a hoodie? Anyway, as a result the rest of trip was characterised by us trying to find indoor activities, or another beach with less rain. We found both, in the end - a beach yes, although one with large, gravelly sand and sea so shallow you could walk out a good 500m and not get your waist wet. Needless to say my new bikini did not see action. Our indoor activity (yes, just the one possible) was Fiji's only museum (who goes to Fiji for museums anyway??), and we went there the only day it happened to be sunny from morning til evening. Good. (Actually, it was quite interesting...)
But still, I was glad to have been to Fiji, and it was interesting to see: I didn't know, for example, they had such a large Indian population.
All Blacks v. Springboks.
This weekend, to conclude the mid-semester break, ever-chirpy Mark and I went to Hamilton to stay with Rachel, Nick and JJ (now capable of whole sentences) and to see the Tri-Nations match. Naturally, the Springboks completely trounced us (by which I mean New Zealand) but the pre-match entertainment of strange dances, fireworks, the haka and enormous fireballs was neat. Plus the weather pretty much held out (phew). Afterwards we met up with some other Auckland chums for drinks, and ripped it up Hamilton-stylee.
On Sunday we also enjoyed Hamilton's themed gardens (India was our favourite, with China a close second and England seeming eerily familiar) and hearing Rachel's exciting plans for JJ's cowboy birthday party, admiring cactus cookie cutters, sampling gold-bar lemon cakes and photographing young JJ in cowboy regalia for the invitations.
Anyways, that'll do you. Consider yourselves in the loop. I hope you're all enjoying the end of your summers, as we begin to enjoy the start of ours.....
Speak soon, Brewstar x
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