HAPPY XMAS

As I wrote the last mail over a period of days and then had a delay with sending it, it all got a bit jumbled. Dave has now been working for 2 and a half weeks, they seem a friendly lot with a fairly active social life. We are already booked in for the Christmas party. We have also made contact with some bridge players so very soon Dave will be (3 No-) trumping again.

Our move into Wade Street was not completely uneventful as our landlady became a little sticky when she realised that Mark would be staying with us for a bit whilst he found his feet and found a job. She decided that there would be too much wear and tear on her house and demanded more rent. Looking at the furniture here I decided that there was enough wear and tear anyway and refused. A stand off ensued with me prepared to leave with our money to find another place, anyone who really knows me knows that was not an idle threat; so she backed down and agreed to the original conditions. Honestly the furniture is already shabby here and with us being away most weekends what did she think Mark was going to do have wild parties? I ask you! Anyway after she left, we started making it home and a couple of visits to the shops to buy a few little extras that would make my life as a gadget girl more complete and so now we are all set.

On Dave’s first day at work I drove him in to Wellington; after all I had shopping to do and then as I was feeling a little lonely. I decided I was having a bad hair day, so dived into the first hairdressers I could find, well after I blurted out my story, I looked around and decided I must have found the most expensive hairdressers in Wellington. Ah well, trying to look nonchalant about the price of what they were going to charge me I remembered my Daddy’s advice if you have to ask the price then you can’t afford it and with Dave working, I thought in for a penny in for a few dollars. I felt very different when I emerged and a lot happier.

Here in New Zealand they have garage sales like a mini Queens’s day every Saturday. The first time we went, we took too much notice of the time stated in the advert. Wrong. You have to turn up at least an hour before the advertised starting time to get the real bargains. The following week we had learnt, and were doing the rounds just like the natives. We found some bargains for a few cents. Magic. We now have a jolly selection of mugs and bowls and are planning our own sale for when we leave (yes don’t worry we are coming back).

During the first week here, I also got in contact with an agency specialising in my kind of work. I saw the advert in the Saturday paper’s employment section. It was the only one advertising ‘engineering’ work and apart from adverts for cleaners which I have experience and for gentleman’s escorts, I felt a bit unsure as to where else my options lie. Anyway, I had a meeting with the boss of the agency, Rob, which took hours and I had to do a personality profile! He seems optimistic that I would be able to find work doing technical drawing. The biggest challenge is that we are coming up to Christmas and the summer holidays when companies are not so keen on hiring staff. Will just have to wait and see. Rob is very keen to help and was very worried when I told him about plan B as a gentleman’s escort. He thinks I am a saucy lady…though of course the pay is very good.

So that was our first week, I shopping and Dave finding his feet in a new job. During that week we went to the theatre to see a comedy ballet, it was an American company where the cast was all men but it didn’t stop them from wearing the tutus or dancing on Pointe. It was very funny and we had a wonderful evening. The woman sitting next to me also worked for the ACC (which but it goes to prove that Wellington is a very small town) and since then has sent us a mail inviting us round for drinks. We went on the bus that night and braved the massive hill on our return. Dave is definitely getting fitter doing that every day.

I have spent a lot of time exploring Wellington and the Hutt valley, which is where the fault line is visible. It says in the guide books that they are due for a biggy within the next 50 years; so I hope it will not be for the next couple. On the radio yesterday there was news that Auckland had an earth quake measuring 3.5 on that famous Alfred Richter scale.

It is so strange to see Christmas cards with snow selling along side clothes for the beach though last week when we went for a drive around Wellington we could see snow capped mountains on the South Island. Christmas is coming here in a big way despite being told by Terry that kiwis don’t do Christmas! However, this Humfress household are not really doing Christmas so we would both like to wish everyone a very happy Christmas and a peaceful new year. I am not buying any decorations (and that is a first) as we will be away, first to Abel Tasman reserve with all the family, culminating with a swim with seals and hopefully dolphins. Then we will be going are separate ways for a few days; which means that we will be going to Rotourua till the 31^st. The purpose of our visit here is to make memories and we are trying to do that to the full. The TV is getting very carried away with Christmas and all the old favourite songs are playing in the shops but it is summer! Well at least that is what it is supposed to be; the weather here in Wellington is not exactly co-operating. Although we still need our little gas fire in the evening, today the sun is shining and it is very warm. Yippee.

The choice in the supermarkets is amazing; it really puts Albert Heijn to shame.

After we had been here for a few days, it was time to plan the next weekend’s activities. Shock horror; everywhere we wanted to go was booked! This is, of course, because it is coming into summer and the natives are also going away. So we had to give it a miss that first week and booked for the next couple. Last weekend we went to Riversdale Beach. This is on the east coast of lower north island, hope those maps are handy. What you can’t find it?! That’s a surprise because it’s in the middle of nowhere.

We set off fairly early and managed to fit in a couple of garage sales in Lower Hutt on the way. We had been told that it was fairly remote, so we took all the food and wine with us, Anyway we traversed two sets of mountain ranges, going well above 1500 feet. It felt higher though and Dave was a bit of a scaredey cat (I was driving around some amazing bends with big drops! Can’t understand what the problem was.). We stopped at a couple of places on the way. We are getting a bit ‘scenic view’ed out because there are just too many. We think “Gosh that is amazing”, stop the car take a photo and then round the next bend there is another amazing view. Don’t think they will be done justice; you will just have to visit and see for yourself.

Anyway back to the beach. We arrived early afternoon and found our little bach (that’s NZ for bachelor pad). It was made from corrugate iron, but delights; in the back deck there was a spa Jacuzzi pool. So it was unpack, then undress and jump in. Bliss.

Having gone all that way; we thought we should really go for a walk on the beach but the weather was not very kind and soon started raining. So it was back to the bach. There was no mobile phone reception there watsoever and no TV stations in range but the owners had left a huge pile of DVD’s so we got stuck in with them. Dave got a fire lit in the outdoor brazier which, despite the rain, did very well and when it was really dark we jumped in the Jacuzzi again. Because the place was so small there was no light so when we turned off the house lights and got into the very warm pool and looked up the sky was full of diamonds there are so many stars up there you feel so insignificant. Just as we were about to become prunes it started to rain again; so we jumped out of the pool. God, it was cold and went back inside.

On Sunday, we awoke not too early, and having had brekkie, we decided to go home via nearby Castlepoint. It is slightly bigger than Riversdale Beach and we had a walk up the rocks to the lighthouse. It was amazing because of the wind; and also the way the waves go over some rocks when it is high tide. After that, we retired for a coffee and started the drive home. We managed to find one of the LOTR sites (Rivendell - where the Elves lived) fairly close to Wellington, so we made a very short tramp round there and it was amazing! All in all a good weekend.

Last week, we also managed some social engagements; in fact I had 2 on the same day. First I went to a Tupperware party through Liz, the owner of the boat house. I bought a pair of kitchen scissors at vast expense, and then, that same night, we met up with the Wellington Mensa crowd. We had a Thai meal, which was nice, but the highlight was a trip across the road to Strawberry Fayre which specialises in puddings. Gosh, it was hard to choose. Anyway the surprising thing was that Devon, who runs it, is very young, Somehow I had thought that all Mensans, or at least most of them, were heading for their dotage, but this is not true The Mensan lot arranged a karaoke for this week, first meeting at a Korean restaurant, well the karaoke didn’t happen and the meal was awful but I managed to meet someone (Ginny, short for Georgina) who can maybe find me a job so you just never know.

On Monday Dave Try (from Holland) who is now here, came to call and we had a few (hic!) drinks.

We are off again for the weekend, this time to Martinborough, a wine area not far from here and where we are staying they drive you about 4 km and then you sample, sip, walk and wobble home, or they collect if you fall in a big heap. Just hope the weather is good. I keep expecting to find quaint, but I don’t think they do quaint in New Zealand, all the towns have the same format of bungalow type housing, quite jam packed really and the high street more American looking than anything else.

Air New Zealand had an internet sale for flights so we have booked some tickets for the coming few months. We are going whale watching and dolphin swimming at the beginning of March in Kaikoura and for Easter we are going to the Bay of Islands right up in the North. Also we are off to OZ at the end of March so it is go go go here. What with Terry and David arriving very soon and then the boys it is all getting quite busy. Our diary is getting nicely filled and the cupboards are pleasantly full which gives me a lovely glow. I found it very strange those last months in Holland trying to eat everything in the cupboards. It will happen here later, but not for the moment and as Mark will be spending time with us I hope to fatten him up a bit. Seems strange that Parky will be living with us but we are both looking forward to it too.

Sitting here writing this I can look out of the window at a hill (or is it a mountain?) opposite with so much vegetation and the odd house here and there. When we started looking at property we noticed what must be the absolute ultimate in status symbols, your very own cable car to take you from the street to your front door. Wow I want one, however rental property doesn’t come with them or at least not in our price bracket, but I mean to say how cool is that? Other funny little quirks is that pay days come a lot later here. Here it is normal to get paid well in arrears. 3 months if you are permanent. Luckily Dave only has to wait until the end of December for his first pay (only two weeks and three days though for November!).

Of course Dave did his editing bit on this so hopefully it’s all in English now!

All our love

Lizzie and Dave

PS They put the Christmas tree up at work today!