Hotel Willis Lodge Wellington

... supermarkets. It's a bit like the Northerners or Scottish in the UK calling the wimpish southerners (like me) "Southern Softies!"

Leszek has an appointment Tuesday, organising volunteering & then we're planning a road trip before the hard work starts. We think Rotorua, Lake Taupo & possibly the Coramandel... Getting to know the North Island quite well now, which is ...

... now with driving on the left side and we have incorporated some new
words into our vocabulary: rubbish (trash), takeaways (carry-out),
sealed (paved) as in “is the road sealed?”; choice (adj. meaning
good). We're even getting used to the kilometers versus miles but
we're still not used to Celsius v. Fahrenheit and other aspects of
the metric system: getting liters of gas, ordering deli meat in
grams? Whatever – too confusing to try to convert.

... suing them in the event of injury (in case the parachute doesn’t open!) and got kitted out. Flew on a 4 seater plane and headed to the skies……truly breathtaking views of mountains, glaciers and forests. All I can say is that it was the best thing I have ever done……..the feeling is awesome……bloody scary though went the door of the plane opens and you have to dangle your legs!! 45 seconds of freefall and a 5 minute ...

... a great bar and cafe scene, has a cosy feel to it. Someone described it quite aptly as like Galway but with a parliament and a lot of Government departments. Seems like a great place to base myself for the year, if I can find a job, and in this current climate that is a big 'if'.

... was on my first bus and I hadn't seen her since Raglan, was great to catch up with her actually!) and get the greatest view of Wellington (there was no way I would be staying in bed and not seeing any of Wellington!!.. I'll have time to slow down in Abel Tasman ...). It's well worth going up there - only 30 min walk up the hill and you can see the whole of Wellington. I also get to see the Ferry to the South Island fighting its way through massive waves ...

... d'informacio... al vespre, de compres i cap al camping! 18.02.2009 Wir fahren zum Te Papa Museum in Wellington. Hier gibt es jede Menge Ausstellungen von Maori Kultur, Flora und Fauna Neuseelands, Riesentintenfisch, Vulkane Neuseelands, Immigration und vieles mehr. Das Museum ist toll, man kann vieles selbst ausprobieren, Knoepfe und Schalter bewegen usw. Den Nachmittag laufen wir ein wenig durch die schoene Stadt Wellington und fahren dann wieder zurueck ins Top Ten.

On the drive from Oamaru to Dunedin, we planned to make three side trips, the Moeraki Boulders, Penguins and Sea Lions. But we got stuck at the penguins and didn't even make it to the sea lions! The Boulders are natural, carved out of the cliffs by the sea. It must be a harder rock that the sea does not breakdown. We had a lot of fun, and got a little wet at this site. Then we drove down to the penguins. This was a beach that was difficult ...

... Matt Larkin - just graduated from university in NY, Declan who was on break from serving in afghanistan, Matt Lima from canberra who i found out that night that works with the husband of a manager i used to work for....small world, but yeah that night was quite enjoyable getting to know various people from different backgrounds while playing a few games of pool. Then it was off to bed for a "fresh start" to milford sound.

Kia Ora, jetzt habe ich bereits fuenf Arbeitstage hinter mir und auch schon mein erstes Gehalt kassiert:-) Das Gehalt wird in NZ spaetestens am 15. jeden Monats gezahlt. Ein Standortnachteil, Siemens hatte sich ja bemueht das Gehalt spaetsmoeglichst im Monat zu zahlen um den Zinsvorteil zu kassieren... Zunaechst war ich ja positiv ueberrascht, wie organisiert alles ablaeuft. Hatte einen Arbeitsplatz, einen PC, Telefon und einen Einarbeitungsplan fuer die erste ...