Happy New Year!

So... hi!! Happy New Year! (Plus 13 days, I know...)

Tardy as always, but I am here with a massive picture post recounting our 10 day holiday on the north island. We flew into Rotorua, eventually drove south through Taupo to Napier, then south again on to Wellington.

Flying north at 8am

Scott and I met friends in Rotorua for 5 days over New Years. We biked, and biked, and biked some more. We averaged 5-6 hours each day, with New Years Day being an 8 hour ride day. Rotorua truly is a mountain biking heaven. There's a shuttle bus if you want it, Southstar Shuttles, who do an awesome job of balancing cost, value, and wait times. There are legal (and possibly illegal...) trails for miles.

We barely took any photos because we were just too stoked to take a break. We literally just got to ride to our hearts content, with 10-15 of our good friends. What a great start to the new year!

My big accomplishment for the new year was hitting a jump that scared me, but that I knew was well within my ability. Scott didn't really expect me to do it, but had the video mode on his phone anyways just in case. The gap was approximately 12-15 feet, making it easily the biggest one I've managed so far. This is a still frame from the video, which is the closest I can get to a photo:

Rotorua is known to mountain bikers for it's world class riding. But it's known to everyone else as the town that stinks! It smells like rotten eggs from the airplane as you descend! Luckily the forest we ride in doesn't have much of an aroma, er... odor, but there are many geothermal pools and mud pits scattered throughout town, making the downtown area (including where the fancy hotels are!) one very smelly place. Scott and I took an afternoon to wander around a community park that has lots of pools. When we go back I'd like to spend the money to see the really colorful ones, but on this trip we just didn't have the time.

Pukeko

BABY PUKEKO!!! 

Steaming mud.

Smelly mud! 

One hot lake!

No color enhancement here. A very green lake indeed! 

After our last day of riding we drove out to a highly recommended spot just out of town. Kerosene Creek is a natural stream that is heated by geothermal activity. At the "top" of the spring (where it comes out of the ground) it is actually too hot to even get in. There is a spot where the creek widens and most people gather, but Scott and I (and our sensitive skin) headed another 100 meters or so down the stream to a spot where it was tolerable to sit. I estimate it was about 102 degrees or so, as I felt like I was inching my way into a hot tub- perfect for sore muscles!

Kerosene Creek 

The day we left Rotorua we drove to Napier, via Lake Taupo. We took the day off of riding bikes and planned to do some touristy stuff in Taupo. Problem was, the people. So. Many. People.

Apparently Taupo is a major tourist trap. Why? No idea.

On the way in we saw Huka Falls. Which was basically a gigantic amount of turquoise water flushing violently down a 6 foot rapid. This would have been sort of cool if we had hiked out to it for a picnic spot... (not nearly as cool as hanging glaciers or 6 meter waterfalls), but it really had no luster for me at all with the carpark being a 60 second walk away and with at least 200 people crowded around the viewing platforms, with their screaming kids and cigarettes. What is it with people and nature within close proximity to the car that just makes you want a smoke?

Anyways, Huka Falls: 

There it is...

We parked in Taupo and walked around for 10 minutes, but felt so claustrophobic and uninspired that we decided to get the hell out of there. If anyone has any off the beaten track Taupo information, I'm all ears.

I would have loved to do the Tongariro Crossing (of LOTR fame), but it's an hour plus drive south, and at this point we needed to head east.

We stopped to eat somewhere close to Napier and I met this little love:

Benji the Ram

Napier is a coastal town that boasts some of New Zealand's finest weather and finest wine. It reminded us so much of Northern California that it was erie. We went wine tasting at a few vineyards, then checked into our spot. 

Napier had a major earthquake in 1931 that killed 256 people and leveled the town. It was then rebuilt entirely in the style of the time: art deco. Walking down the main street and many neighborhoods feels a bit like stepping back in time. It's neat, though not a style I'd pick for my permanent residence. I failed at photos. So... google it.

We wined and dined, played mini golf (I lost by ONE point) and walked by the beach. It was a nice day of rest, followed by a day of biking at Te Mata Peak. Te Mata is a hilly area southwest of Napier, which couldn't be more like California unless it was California. We felt so at home.

Ok, except for the braided river in the background.

Ok maybe not the cabbage trees, either.

I wished we had more time in Napier, to check out Hawke's Bay to the north, and some of the other mountain biking in the area. The weather was amazing, and there were tons of cool bars and restaurants. We'll have to go back.

The following day we headed south, nearly a 4 hour drive to Levin. On the way, we found a great spot for wine tasting at Junction Wines, and naturally we met the owners. He's a former All Black! They had a beautiful country setting and were still set up for a wedding from the previous weekend... it was so lovely. And, best rose I've had in a long time!

Levin, or more specifically, Ohau, is a seriously middle of nowhere town on the Kapiti Coast, about an hour north of Wellington. There's no reason whatsoever to stop there, unless you fancy staying at the Brown Cow B&B with 2 kunekune pigs, 2 goats, 2 sheep, several ducks and chickens, 3 rabbits and one big brown cow! I was in heaven!!

Oh, and one duckling!

Beauty sleep

I got drenched today (sprayed for flies, lice, etc.)

View from our bed :)

I'll admit, I had a hard time leaving after just one night in this little slice of heaven! I mean, how could you leave this face??

Our first day in Wellington we met up with a friend of a friend and rode at Makara Peak, a purpose built mountain bike park just a few minutes out of town. Those guys have put some serious work (and funding!) into their mountain bike trails. Impressive. 

We were amused to see their sign post at the top of the hill with none other than Mt. Tam as a destination (among all top mountain bike destinations). This is Scott's home mountain, and the irony is that most trails are illegal! But still, the birth of mountain biking was on Mt. Tam.

Our second day in Wellington, Scott headed off with some fast chaps to ride and I took the day to myself to explore. I went to a marine reserve and checked out tide pools, I went to the Otari-Wilton Bush and hiked through non-disturbed native bush and saw an 800 year old Rimu tree, I drove to Mirimar, home of the Weta Cave Workshop (Lord of the Rings central) and I was unimpressed. Then I had a cappuccino on the 'beach' (aka: sand barged up from Nelson). It was lovely.

Baches along the southern coast, Wellington.

Fern grotto, Otari-Wilson Bush

800 year old Rimu tree

Tui.

Native beauty.

Afternoon coffee stop.

Our last day we did the touristy thing and went back to the amazing Te Papa to check out any new exhibits (T-REX!), then quickly left when we discovered the entire city decided to go that day as well. We cruised around town and did a little shopping (post-Christmas sales!) and had an amazing lunch in the hipster area of Cuba Street. It was a nice, calm end to an awesome if not slightly exhausting biking vacation!

"New Zealand" in Maori is Aotearoa: Land of the Long White Cloud. 

6 months!

Wow. We touched down in New Zealand 6 months ago today. Mostly, it's gone so fast. I sat down to write about how it has met our expectations (or hasn't)... and then I sat here for several minutes trying to figure out what our expectations were. Did we even have any? I should have written them down... Ha. And where do we want to be in the next 6 months? What's next?

Note: All photos are from around Wellington, but weren't sweet enough to make it into my last post.

On top of the Sea to City Bridge

Expectations

We were well informed of how expensive it is to live in New Zealand. But we still may have underestimated it just a teensy bit.... But it doesn't really bother us these days. We're a tiny island, southeast of the middle of nowhere, just north of Antarctica. As a few of my friends and our parents are aware... shipping to this place is expensive. (Why the wool is so damn expensive is still a bit of a mystery, but never mind.) So all of the goods are going to be expensive too.

Thankfully, when it came in regards to Christchurch, we didn't know what to expect. Absolutely no one told us it was back to normal. Good thing. Christchurch is a mess. Part of me braced for something worse. Part of me was idyllic. (Part of me still is). For the most part, it doesn't really bother me. I have my favorite cafes and pubs. We can go to the movies or out dancing. Most importantly, the bike trails, the beach, and the mountains are still there. But Christchurch is still very much in the process of recovering.

I knew there would be cultural diversity in the sense of the Maori population and the white population here in NZ. What I didn't expect was the diversity of other cultures. It may be partially because we're in Christchurch, and people are coming from all over the world to help with the rebuild. But wanderlust souls also seem to gravitate to New Zealand as well. Combined, Scott and I both work with folks from about 14 different countries. And currently my closest friends are British and Finnish, as well as Kiwi.

Te Marae, Te Papa Museum

Unexpectations: What didn't we expect?

The traffic! I hate to say it, but we didn't see it coming! Christchurch, pre-quake, was quite easy to get around. So in theory, all this congestion is temporary (and it really is just bad at peak commute hours)... but still. We didn't move to a place roughly the size of California with roughly 1/7 the population, to be stuck in traffic!

The first-worldism. I mean, New Zealand is a first world country, so I knew we would have the luxuries of cars and drinkable water. But no one drives a new car, and insurance is optional. And frequently sheep are roadblocks. So who knew that everyone would be totally caught up on Games of Thrones and The X-Factor? And the tabloids are alive and well. You really can't not keep up with the Kardashians, even on the other side of the freaking world. I could do with a little more media isolation in my life, but apparently we'll have to get way more remote than New Zealand to find it.

We had no idea Scott would end up working as a geologist on the rebuild. But this is a good, no, great "unexpectation". Getting to be outside every day and getting to be part of a massive city renovation are pretty big perks of a new job in a new country.

View from the farmers' market

Becoming Kiwi

Driving on the left side of the road is no big deal. It was weird for about a week. It felt like everyone was driving at WARP SPEED. And then we just got used to it. And now sometimes we complain about how leisurely the Kiwis drive. Don't they even try to be at work on time?

Sticker shock is wearing off. Sure, almost everything still seems expensive. But since we expect it, only the really pricey things raise an eyebrow. A $4.50 cappuccino or an $8 pint of beer is just the norm. $25 for my normal mascara seems ridiculous though and therefore I haven't bought any (hint...).

We find ourselves using more Kiwi-isms every day. Scott will mention his bike is munted (per usual), or that his ride last night was sweet as, and I don't even blink an eye. Usually I internally acknowledge that he said something Kiwi... but then I'll ask for just a wee bit of milk in my tea without even noticing that 6 months ago I neither would have said wee, nor put milk in my tea. Bizarre.

When we moved, everyone told us winter is cold here. By the numbers, it's really not that much colder than where we're from in Northern California, but there's a vital difference between the two places. Americans use insulation and double-glazing. Kiwis do not. Sure you have a heat pump in one room, and an electric blanket on your bed... but a jacket, socks, and sometimes a beanie is totally cool indoor wear in these parts. And you just harden up.

We have lived now for 6 months without a microwave, dishwasher, or blender. (Ok, we bought the latter a few weeks ago, but it's been too cold to make smoothies!)

Botanical Gardens

What's Next?

So 6 months from now... where will we be? For one, we will be in summer! Yipee! But what else?

We hopefully will have sorted out our immigration situation by then. We will have applied for, paid for (ugh), and hopefully been accepted for residency. (Don't worry moms, that doesn't mean we're staying. It just means better health benefits and the capability to move around the islands freely, not tied to our jobs.)

We will have moved flats. Yes, we're moving again. The EQC (Earthquake Commission) decided it was time to fix the place we're in right now. After some house hunting and soul searching, we decided to move, and found a flat that we're super excited about. More on that in a few weeks.

We are hoping to visit Australia for our anniversary in September! Warm beaches, Great Barrier Reef, and rain forest exploration are all on the menu. It will be a fabulous break from the long New Zealand winter.

Lastly, and no surprise here, I'm sure we'll be traveling, riding, and racing our bikes all over the country. We're hoping to hit as many MTB races as funds and full-time jobs will allow.

Looking for tuis

Jeez.... how's that for a disjointed, very incomplete and almost confusing compilation of thoughts? Should I even proof read it? Delete it? May as well just post it.... and 6 months from now I can look back at how much my writing has (hopefully) improved, as well as how our acclamation to New Zealand has progressed!

Oh yeah, I also hope in 6 months time I become a better photographer (and therefore better photo-blogger). I know you guys hope so too!

Birthday Weekend in Wellington

Man, Wellington is a cool city! It may just be all the craft beer and my empty wallet talking, but Welly is a neat place. It's got the nickname Windy Welly, and I know it's a well deserved reputation, but we got lucky. Minimal wind. Lots of sun. Some clouds. A few light drops of rain on Saturday, but for the middle of winter- it was fantastic.

Day One: View of the harbour from the wharf

The Waterworld-esque "City to Sea Bridge". I know, you're squinting trying to figure out what the heck is going on here.

Locale of Lunch #1 

I see no reason not to put a floating fern orb above Parliament, either.

A bit of old Welly architecture

We spent Friday afternoon just cruising around doing two of my favorite things: shopping and eating (actually, reverse that order). Not pictured above is the massive brownie I devoured. After a bit of this, we actually went back to our hotel for a wee nap. I worked 6 days straight last week, remember? Wahhhh. So I needed a nap.

We stayed at a spot called the Gourmet Stay. I can't say enough positive things about this place. The rooms are attractive and affordable. It's situated above a really nice little cafe, and if you organize your day so that you return in the evening, but not too late, you'll be one of the lucky ones to snap up a leftover scone or treat.

The rooms: simple, clean and bright. Exactly as pictured on their website.

Never mind the photographer... this photo is supposed to be of the cool copper paneling in the stairwell...

On the second night we had the problem of people partying in the hotel room next to ours. I was surprised by the party people in question- why choose a small boutique hotel to get totally wasted and loud in? I mean, the good folks down at the El Cheapo NZ Motel (so just made that up) certainly aren't gonna shut ya down. Anyways, we were totally those people and complained to management, who responded quickly and efficiently. Not only that, they were so gracious and apologetic the next day- as if it was their fault. They upgraded our room for free, to the top floor suite with the über cool hot tub.

Note: My review of the Gourmet Stay is completely unsolicited and these are my genuine feelings regarding this place. I am not being paid or otherwise reimbursed for my plug. Psh, I wish! So you should totally stay there. Also, check out my Trip Advisor review of this hotel, and others, here: Bike Wife's Review of Gourmet Stay..

Moving on... we spent Friday night sampling the local breweries and cocktail lounges, much to dismay of my bank account. Indulging in a little libation is just expensive in New Zealand. There's no way around it. Even the cheap stuff is pretty pricey, but life is too short to drink crappy beer. Or wine. Or tequila. Etc.

Inside Scott's new favorite bar: Hashigo Zake

Hashigo Zake: promise to the people

On Saturday we spent the morning at the Te Papa museum. It's a massive, free museum open to the public all year round. It's got everything from native plant/animal exhibits, to NZ culture and history. There's even a sheep cam. Basically a Go Pro was strapped to a sheep, and the more interesting things were recorded and displayed for your viewing entertainment. One of the two of us was entertained...

There was also a 5 year old decaying giant squid from Antarctica. That's cool, right?

In all seriousness, it was quite cool. And totally gross.

Te Papa Museum

Saturday night we got all fancied up to go see The Great Gatsby in this cool little theatre called The Light House on Cuba. Unfortunately we spent a bit too much time gussying up (and sipping champagne...) and didn't leave ourselves much time for a nice dinner. So we grabbed pizza and beers at a funky little place near the theatre called the Rogue and Vagabond Craft Beer Bar. Was ok.

The Light House theatre was cool though- we ordered drinks and sipped them until we were called for the movie. Then we went to our (assigned) seats, which were love seats, and settled in like it was our own living room. Example: I took off my murderous high heels for the entire flick. Classy, huh? The Great Gatsby was pretty good- fabulous party scenes and lots of high drama. Pretty much everything the book was, with a bit of Leo on top.

The Havana Bar... which is where we wanted to go for dinner

But it was crazy busy, so next time. Isn't it cute??

The Rogue and Vagabond, where we did go for dinner. .... eh.

The theatre sure looked cooler in person!

Sunday we cruised around town a bit more before heading back to the Te Papa to check out one or two exhibits we'd been too tired to see on Saturday. (A few hours at any museum at one time is pretty maxed out for my attention span). We may have learned more on Saturday, but we took more photos on Sunday, so that's something. Before going to the museum we found the closest thing yet to a taco truck! It was a real Mexican guy making food at the farmers' market. Of course we got burritos there... but unfortunately they just weren't like the ones we are missing. Oh well, the hunt continues...

My "real" Mexican food being prepared by a real Mexican... I mean, look at his hat!

Tired museum goers. Wellington city in the background. We really don't know what was happening with Scott's hair.

Is this museum approved behavior??

Being more civil on the bridge.

Sunday night we checked out the Circa Theatre, and their improv show. We saw improv recently in Christchurch, and actually thought it was pretty damn funny, so we figured we would see how Wellington stacked up. Sadly, not as good as Chch. But watching live comedy is always a good time.

On Monday we checked out Wellington's botanical gardens. This may sound like the itinerary of an 80-year old, but I enjoy... no, love looking at flowers and ducks and such, and since it was my birthday trip, it was a must-do. Plus, I'm another year closer to 80 now, so it's not that weird.

To make it more interesting to the rest of the world, a cable car is available to tram lazy weary walkers up the hill. It's pretty cute, and offers beautiful views. And it's cheap (well, NZ cheap) at $4 for a ride up!

Scenic, no?

The patience of a saint...

This guy is a tui... aka the R2D2 bird I wrote about when we first got here. Definitely one of my top 3 favorites.

Historic old house in the ferns... so cute!

Beautiful native forest

Did you really think I'd go a whole blog post without a duck picture? I'm sparing you with just this one.