Maerchens Adventures

New beginnings

2012-01-24T01:26:00.000+01:00

2012 is bound to be a good year =D Summer has finally arrived (although last night was so cold that I needed woollen socks and a fleece jacket and there was a bit of frost on the cars parked outside the hostel this morning) and my days as a lazy bum (meaning unemployed) are about to be over *woohoo* Just before Christmas I had a job interview with a lady more or less from the Ministry of Education for a position as Education Support Work (where you work with kids that have special needs in kindergarten).

They told me straight after the interview I was hired and they were going to get back to me with details and my contract. Hadn't heard from then since and was really getting worried. But - yesterday I finally managed to get someone on the phone - and I will start working for them next week =D It will only be part-time and apparently not too many hours yet. I will know more when I sign the contract on Friday.

BUT there is more good news. I just got back from another job interview and if both employers are ok with it I will also start working part-time as a Community Support Worker (which is mostly assisting elderly people with daily chores or caring for injured/disabled people). Since that will be more flexible with hours I should be able to juggle things around and end up with enough to equal a full-time job. At least after a while once igbet more and more clients.

I am really looking forward to these new challenges. I've always enjoyed working with people but being in hospitality full-time just wasn't the right thing for me. I'm still doing the odd hours as a waitress at my old job helping out if someone calls in sick or whatever. But even after having been back there for a few days has confirmed my decision to leave.

Meanwhile I've started looking for a car as I will definitely need one with my new jobs coming up. Haven't found one I can afford, yet, so might have to rely on my own feet, the bike my brother gave me almost a year ago for my birthday (which up to this day hasn't been used) and public transport - bad as it is up here. I'm still confident things will work themselves out. Always have one way or other.

"Über den Wolken..."

2012-01-17T01:34:00.001+01:00

There's this famous German song that translates into "Above the clouds freedom must know no boundaries". And yes, being up in the air is one of the most exciting things ever. I've always enjoyed plane rides no matter if on big commercial Boeings, rusty old Antonovs or shaky Wilgas. Among the aircrafts I've been wanting to go on for ages are helicopters and gliders. The first is still on the list - but thanks to the Whangarei Gliding Club one of my wishes has just come true.

My host dad's father happens to be the president of the club and has told me for months to just come around on a nice weekend and someone would give me "a lift" up into the air. Never been able to make it but the last few days Matt and I were house- and dog-sitting for Philip's brother and his family so we were just around the corner. Then Sunday was finally the day of days =D

One of the club members, Alex, has been flying for over 20 years and agreed to take me for a ride in his two-seater. I was a bit scared, I admit, but mostly excited. As a sports journalist in Germany I had been writing about a major gliding competition for years and watched heaps of them going up and coming back down. But actually sitting in one and getting ready for take-off... let's say I had a few butterflies in my tummy.

After all the checks had been done and everything was set there was no turning back. Within seconds the glider started moving and we went upwards. MAN THAT WAS SCARY!!!! Worse than on any rollercoaster I've ever been on! After only 20 meters or so the glider's nose went steeply skywards. I was screaming all the way and thought I was getting sick. But that feeling didn't last long at all. Once we were actually up there and level all I could think was "How beautiful!".

Alex explained a lot to me, told me what we were seeing - we had free view all the way to the Bay of Islands! He even offered me to take over and fly but I thankfully declined. I was happy enough just enjoying the view and taking pictures. Unfortunately the weather circumstances weren't too good that day so after about 15mins it was time to head back down to the airfield.

Once again I was a bit scared thinking "Surely landing will be even worse than goin up" - but nope, nothing, As Alex had said before to calm me down: "It is just an easy glide." And it was. Before I realized we were back on the ground. What an adventure :-) I've just finished uploading my pictures on Facebook. If you wanna have a look, click here :-) Matt also took some videos which I'm hoping to share with you soon.

The downside of living in a hostel

2012-01-02T23:38:00.000+01:00

So far I've never had trouble with anyone here at the hostel. Until today - when I found out that someone had been stealing my entire box of expensive gluten-free cereal. It had been sitting unopened in the cupboard while Matt and I were gone on our trip. But when I lifted it up this morning to open it it was suprisingly light.

Well, guess why. THERE WAS NOTHING LEFT!!! Someone had opened the box at the bottom, emptied the entire bag, stuffed it back inside the box and put the box back in the cupboard so it looked untouched. BLOODY BASTARD! I'm off to work in a few mins and have nothing left to eat *grrr* We all know who it was - too bad that thieving mongrel has already moved out again.

But at least I was just told that apparently as soon as he left the hostel he got arrested by the police (again!). Serves him right...

Fresh fish is the best!!!

2012-01-01T13:03:00.000+01:00

There's two things I know for sure about being with Matt. 1. Life will never be boring. 2. I will never starve. It's half an hour past midnight and I just had a massive feed - crumbed fish (freshly caught Trevally and Kawai), veges (from Matt's dad's garden) and home-baked chips. Gosh, I'm full... and what a day it has been...

After cutting our camping trip short due to weather conditions we spent most of yesterday and today unpacking, doing TONS of laundry and re-arranging our gear. Close to midnight on New Year's Eve I watched DINNER FOR ONE - it's a British comedy sketch from the 1960s that is very popular at this time of the year in Germany and is normally played by every single TV station at some point during the last night of every year. Matt didn't think it was as hilarious as I do but I guess despite him having a British mom he's just not used to the British humor *lol*

Have a look for yourself... here's the YouTube-video I found...

Anyway... I enjoyed it a lot =D Haven't seen it for a while. The rest of the night we looked at all the pictures we have taken during our camping trip (about 400) and relived the funny and adventurous moments we had. More about the trip including pictures will follow soon as promised.

After finally having finished cleaning etc Matt's first question was: "What are we doing today? Where are we going?" Having a car is really handy - thank you again heaps, Angie!!! Since I'm actually starting to learn how to fish (yes, I really am...), the weather was nice and the sea pretty calm we decided to go back to "my rock". Those of you who read my blog regularly - that's the one where I thought I was going to drown a few weeks ago. But we went when the tide was low so this time I had no problems climbing onto the rock - with a rod in my hand! Here's a picture - you can see a figure in the distance which would be Matt. That is where we have to climb to in order to fish - and where he caught some massive ones today =D

Before that I spent hours and hours searching the sand for little shells, cat's eyes, rocks and whatever crossed my eyes. I love being at the beach. Matt caught heaps of kinna (sea urchins) which I tried but didn't really like. While searching for them he found this huge sea shell for me which will get a special place in my room. I need some more shelves and window sills and containers to store all the things I/we keep finding at the beach :-)

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

2011-12-31T10:20:00.000+01:00

Mattt and I just got back from our camping trip along the East Cape - unfortunately earlier than planned because last night we got flooded in our tent *boohoo* I woke up in a puddle of water this morning and was soaking wet! As was most of our gear. Thanks to cyclone whatever your name is *grrr* Anyway... so we packed up and drove all the way back to Whangarei just in time to celebrate New Year's Eve back at the hostel *sigh*

I'll post more about our mean trip (once again did more than 1000km in less than a week) including some pictures in the next few days. Just wanted to let you all know I'm still alive *heehee*

Wish you all a HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!! Hope wherever you are you're having a hell of a party, heaps of fun and an awesome start into 2012! My thoughts are with you, my dear friends.

Lots of love from Aotearoa...
Mara

Never turn your back to the sea

2011-12-14T09:40:00.000+01:00

I learnt heaps today. About fishing. About Matt. About me. About us. About the sea... Since I get to use a friend's car while she's overseas Matt and I went on a spontaneous fishing trip this morning. Got up at 4.45am and drove out towards Whangarei Heads to one of his favorite spots. The weather, however, wasn't very pleasant. Lots of rain, harsh wind, high waves... so the rock we climbed on was pretty dangerous even for his standards so we decided to go somewhere else.

Well, if I had thought the first place was bad - the second was AWFUL! Or actually... not so much the spot. We climbed down a grassy cliff which wasn't too bad, but then had to climb out onto rocks about 50 to 100 meters offshore. The climb there was already quite adventurous for a city girl like me. I still remember when Pia and Philip took me out to the waterfall on their farm a little more than a year ago. I had a little meltdown then because I wasn't used to balancing over rocks, through rivers and whatever else mother nature beholds...

Anyway... I felt the same today. Climing onto the rocks was hard enough and I recovered while Matt was fishing away (or trying to - not many fish around today...). But then the tide started coming in and the more often I looked back to those rocks I wondered how on earth was I ever going to get back? It was slippery as, the tidal waves were MASSIVE and the rocks that I already had trouble balancing on on the way in were now under water. I could actually see myself either falling off those rocks, banging my head somewhere and drowning - or simply being stuck until the tide was going out again.

Well... it's been a hard return journey, believe me. Once again I had a little meltdown, I was scared to shit and close to weeing my pants (little wuzz...). Matt wasn't sure whether to yell at me, laugh, cuddle me or simply leave me behind. I guess in the end he did a bit of everything - except leaving me behind. He carried my stuff over first (why on earth did I take my expensive camera with me?!?) then waited more or less patiently for me to calm down and helped me make it back to the beach in one piece.

I did manage and now, a few hours later, I am actually proud of myself and what I have achieved today. But man I was soaking wet from head to toe, fuming and crying all at once... I wish I could show you some pictures to share the adventure - but I had a few other thoughts on my mind than getting snapshots today... Got this one though off the rock, nice scenery, isn't it?

Getting closer

2011-12-13T10:09:00.000+01:00

My first week as officially unemployed is not as work-less as I had feared it would be. I'm still helping out at the restaurant a few times so there's still money coming in. And I'm keeping myself busy hunting for jobs. Handed in three more applications today AND I HAVE A JOB INTERVIEW!!!!!! *woohoo* Next Monday... for Education Support Work - which is working with special needs kids. Mostly accompanying them to kindergarten and helping them interact with other kids, helping them learn and grow. I'm so looking forward to it and would love to get that job. A friend of mine has a daughter who's in need for an ESW and they still haven't found someone. Wouldn't it be great if I got her "case" to start with?

I'm also motorized again which makes life soooo much easier and better. A friend of mine who's gone back to Scotland for a few weeks left me Basil to look after *heehee* Already took him out for a little drive today and spend a wonderful girly night with former colleagues. Tomorrow I'm finally seeing one of my dearest friends again that I haven't talked to FOR AGES!!! And on the weekend I'm hoping to go up to the farm and spend some time with my host family. I love it =D

Btw - big event coming up this weekend. Friends of mine are getting married :-) It's meant to be a beach wedding so I hope the weather changes because for the past few days it's been raining and raining and raining *sigh* I thought winter was over, but the clouds still haven't left...

Taking a risk

2011-12-07T08:09:00.000+01:00

I've always been a sensible person, tried to do the right thing, planned ahead, made sure I had an emergency plan for back-up. Well, I don't know what's gotten into me but I've decided to for once in my life leap of the edge. I'm referring to my post from a few days ago... And what I mean mostly is: I have quit my job. There's only two days ago and next Monday - for the first time in my life - I will officially be unemployed.

Am I scared? Getting there. Am I starting to panic? Slowly. Do I feel relieved? A lot. I know with my visa and all that it is a big risk. But I just couldn't commit to something I knew wasn't going to make me happy. And I have been unhappy for too long. I only live once and I want to enjoy my life, make the most of it while I can. And continuing working where I am just to get my visa and stay in the country? It's not worth it if staying meant that I wasn't able to actually live my life, be happy and spend time with the people I love.

So what am I going to do? Right now I'm above all looking forward to having some time off and going on another little holiday. Matt and I have planned a camping trip between Xmas and New Year's. I'm really excited as he's going to show me where he grew up and I might even meet more of his family.

As for immigration... I will do as I was advised by the officer on the phone and apply for a new visa. I'm starting to get some paperwork together and there are a few people I need to talk to. My friend Sandra from Germany was a big help in this. She's been living in New Zealand for a few years now and just got her residency *yay* She's all safe... I first met her in June when Dan and I went up north for a weekend trip. We haven't known each other for long but she's been a dear friend of mine especially when I was going through a rough time after the break-up.

Anyway.. I went to see Sandra and her boyfriend last weekend just before their 4-week-trip to Germany. She's dealt with immigration so many times now and gave me heaps of advice and an actual "To-Do-List" :-) Typical German efficiency... but I've been feeling a lot better since talking to her and know that all is not lost. Nothing that really matters will come easy in life so I will keep on fighting for what I believe in.

Matt has also been a big help just by being there and supporting me, tolerating my moods and lending me his ear. The longer I know him the more I feel that he is my soulmate, the part of me that's always been missing. I know I am hopelessly romantic. But if you don't believe you've already lost. Haven't you?

Jobwise I had to learn that things in New Zealand are a looooooot slower than in Germany. I've sent about 8 applications in the last 4 four weeks - and have only heard back from 2. Unsuccessful :-( But I'm invited to an interview with the one job that I really really want. Unfortunately the lady and I keep missing each other on the phone so we still haven't found a date... but I'm getting there. Haste makes waste. Gut Ding will Weile haben...

A helping hand

2011-12-07T07:44:00.000+01:00

We served an older couple at work today that has been hit hard by destiny. Their 8 year old grandson - mentally disabled - somehow managed to burn down the entire house so the older couple was left with nothing - apart from their lives. They don't even really have a place to stay and were desperately looking for somewhere to crash for the night.

I don't know the full story because one of my colleagues talked to them. But when she came back and told me little bits and pieces I instantly thought about the hostel where I have found a temporary home. So I rushed after them and told them that "we" still have rooms available, furnished and either long- or short-term. The old lady was so grateful she nearly cried. I handed her the detals and told her where to go - and guess who just moved in this afternoon :-) Have to go downstairs and talk to her tomorrow see if everything is alright. It's such a good feeling helping others and knowing that made their day just a little bit brighter...

Signs of desperation

2011-11-29T01:55:00.000+01:00

I'm sitting in front of my computer bawling my eyes out. The last few months haven't been easy and it seems to get tougher instead of things settling down. As previously noted I've quit my job as a waitress/Duty Manager and only have 2 more weeks to go. Unfortunately I still haven't found anything new even though there are a few applications out there where I'm still waiting to hear back from people. However, at this stage, I will be unemployed in two weeks.

There are so many things right now that I need to work out, need to organise and sort out. It just doesn't get less. And above all the biggest worry is back - I might have to leave the country. Maybe even sooner than later? I was just told by an immigration advisor that my work visa is actually not valid anymore and I need to apply for something new. Be it for work or as a visitor or whatever.

Now what am I supposed to do? Why are they making it so f*** hard for a trustworthy, honest, reliable and hard-working person to just live their life? Everything could be so much easier. With Matt I know I have found the man I want to spend the rest of my life with. We are thinking about getting a place of our own and eventually, in a few years time, starting our own little family. All we want is to be happy. But that won't work if I'm oceans away on the other side of the world.

Where is the damn problem? I'm not going to live on government benefit like probably half of the population especially up here in the north! I've always stood on my own feet and will keep doing so. I might be unemployed soon but I know it won't be for long. Actually my current but soon-to-be ex-boss has shown sign of willingness to keep me employed. Looks like they value a good worker after all. And now that some of the staff has left things seem to be changing for the better.

So should I stay there and at least have a little chance of getting a new work visa instead of taking a risk and pursuing what I actually want to do? And am I already illegal anyway? And what about Matt? Right now I feel like I'm torn into pieces. I neither belong to Germany anymore (and don't want to anyway) nor am I at this stage accepted in New Zealand (though Aotearoa feels like home and I do want to settle here with Matt). What the h*** am I supposed to do? Does anyone have some answers for me?!? Please?!?

Kia ora Mr. Strang!

2011-11-19T05:57:00.000+01:00

For those of you who don't use Facebook here's my picture of the day..

That is me with a very special customer I served today who had my heart thumping and me drooling *lol* This is Blair Strang - one of the main actors of my favorite Kiwi TV show Nothing Trivial. It is about a pub quiz team, their lives, dramas and sorrows and everything else life has in stock for you. I absolutely loved it (the first sean just finished a few weeks ago) and can't wait for the second season to start!!!

I served Mr. Strang and his family like any other customer but when I brought over the bill I couldn't resist asking for an autograph and this lovely picture :-) He was more than happy to fulfil my wish and we even had a little talk. Apparently he's been to Germany even before the wall came down!

Thank you Mr. Strang for this unforgetable day =D

What I really wanna do

2011-11-15T12:28:00.000+01:00

I've been quite unhappy with my work for a long time now. Being a waitress was alright for a while, but it's not really what I want to do for the rest of my life. Also with sommer coming up I don't want to be spending all my time at work while my friends are having fun at the beach. Especially since I might be kicked out of the country next year and I realyl don't want to go back to Germany telling everybody I haven't seen much of the country because I've been working all the time. After all that was one of the reasons why I left Germany. And now I was making the same mistake allover again? I don't think so. My body has been telling me weeks and weeks and weeks ago that it's had enough of those irregular hours. It wants a break. As does my soul.

I've been talking about a career change for more than half a year now. Ever since working for Pia and Philip as an Au Pair I have realized working with children is what I really want to do. Being a waitress I just never found the energy or the time to actually pursue that career and find out what my options would be.

Well, during my holiday (pictures and more information on how beautiful the South Island is are yet to come) I realized that I really don't just need a break from hospitality. I am OVER IT! I am ready for a change, ready to move on.

So the first thing I did when I went back to work last Friday - I handed in my notice. Now I have about 3 weeks left to find something new. Otherwise I will be unemploeyed by Christmas. It is quite scary - but on the other hand I feel really relieved. All the sudden all those things that have been bothering me at work don't seem that important anymore. Because I know I don't have to endure them for much longer.

And all the sudden I also find the energy to step towards my new career. I have send 5 applications in the last 5 days. Not all for childcare, but at least 9-to-5-jobs with regular hours and a regular payment. Those words sound like heaven on earth in my ears... Also a few opportunities have arisen to get a foot in the door with early childcare. I will keep you posted. And please keep your fingers crossed that I will find a new job before the new year arrives!!!

Save the dog :-)

2011-11-08T10:37:00.000+01:00

Just a quick note tonight as my free wifi at the hostel isn't working... Milford Sound yesterday was absolutely stunning!!! I'll write about it when I'm back in Whangarei and can show you some pics. But let me tell you it's one of the most remarkable places I've ever seen...

Today I decided to catch the bus and head into Arrowtown - a former goldmining town with a Chinese settlement. You get there via local transport, it takes about half an hour and costs $16 return. There's pretty much just one main street and everything reminds you of a typical western country town. There's heaps of cafes though and shops to spend your money.

Far cheaper are the walksaround the area. The easiest is called the Centennial Walk and takes you in a loop along the Arrow River. It's very scenic and only takes about an hour but there's a few spots to stop and relax. At one little patch of beach I helped an elderly lady rescue her dog *lol* or should I rather say I saved the lady from getting wet? Her dog had jumped into the river and wouldn't come back out and she'd lost the leash. Not sure how long she'd been standing there and shouting by the time I came along but she looked pretty desperate. So I took off my shoes, rolled up my pants and went into the ice-cold and knee-deep water to grab her dog. You should have seen how relieved she was!

Back in Queenstown I treated myself to a proper meal. Can't live on crackers and apples all the time. Found a pub by the waterfront that had steaks for $10!!! Choice :-) Ran into a nice German girl who was so hungry that she finished my leftovers *lol* ended up spending the evening together and then had a huge ice-cream cone from Patagonia. My tummy will hopefully forgive me. I've sinned quite a lot today foodwise and will probably be sick tomorrow

How to save money in Queenstowm

2011-11-06T05:57:00.000+01:00

After having arrived in Queenstown on Friday Matt and I had paid the $25 each to get up on Queenstown Hill via the Gondola. It was worth it but surely you don't want to pay that much money every time you feel like getting a good view over the city. So today after having had a proper sleep in til almost noon I followed the advice of my hostel staff and hiked up the hill.

The guy had told me it was going to be steep - and he didn't exaggerate! It takes about an hour to complete the walk all the way up to the top of the gondola. It's a constant climb in zigzags where you climb over rocks and tree roots. I really had to fight my asthma on this one and of course I have left my asthma spray behind in Whangarei.

But I made it eventually and was able to enjoy the view from above with beautiful sunshine :-) Spent a few hours up there watching people going on the luge or bungee-jumping. You can also go on a flying fox up there or hire a mountain-bike and cycle back down the hill. Heaps of things to do!

Tonight they have a roast lamb dinner at the hostel which you can join for only $8. Tomorrow I'm off to Milford Sound for the day. The hostel staff arranged a special deal for only $145!!! Normally you pay $20 more at least...

New Zealand's West Coast is WILD

2011-11-05T06:48:00.000+01:00

Half of my holiday is already over. After spending three days in the bush along New Zealand's West Coast without cellphone coverage or internet connection Matt and I arrived safely in Queenstown yesterday. I don't even know where to begin to tell you about all the fantastic things we've seen along the way! Until now I never really quite believed people going on about how much more amazing the Sth Island is compared to the Nth. But having been here for almost a week I completely understand their admiration. None of the stories have been exaggerated.

I wish I could share some of the hundreds of pics with you I've taken so far but that will have to wait until I'm back in Whangarei next week. In the past four days I've driven approx. 1000km all the way from Christchurch to Queenstown via Arthur's Pass - New Zealand's highest settlement - Hokitika, Franz Josef and Fox glacier and through the beautiful wilderness of the Haast.

One of my most memorable moments was spotting a little seal right at Haast Beach
Matt's favorite thing was fishing his way along the West Coast lakes but unfortunately our planned trout dinner didn't happen. He did catch a perch though after only 5mins but since we've both never heard of that fish we let the poor fellow go again.

The only thing spoiling our trip a bit was the weather as it was pouring down most of the time. Especially around Lake Wanaka we were freezing!!! But the coldest ever awaited us yesterday in Queenstown. It was SNOWING!!! And not just a little bit. It was enough for me to show Matt how to make a proper snowman :-) he said that was the second time in his life he's seen snow..
Well I honestly didn't think I'd experience a proper winter in Aotearoa. Especially not in November! Last year this time I was sunbathing at the beach *lol*

Dropped Matt off at the airport this morning feels weird to be alone again and I do miss my travel buddy. But I've started exploring the city on my own already and found a beautiful walk from the airport into town along Lake Wakatipu. More information will follow later accompanied by heaps of pictures :-)

Might drive into Arrowtown tomorrow and depending on how much money I have left I'll book a day trip to Milford Sound for next week. I'll keep you updated...

A city struck by nature's force

2011-11-01T08:13:00.000+01:00

Matt and I have safely arrived in Christchurch. Today we set off to explore the city - or at least what's left of it. After the two massive earthquakes this year you can still see signs of destruction everywhere. The entire CBD is fenced off and there's cranes and piles of bricks everywhere. Reading tourist guides for Christchurch doesn't make much sense right now as the major attractions such as the Cathedral aren't accessible. We've taken heaps of pictures while walking walking through what felt a bit like a cemetery. The only beautiful thing was the little river that winds its way through the city. I couldn't believe how clear the water was! Pictures are to follow soon, forgot to take any with my phone to share and my laptop is back at the Y in Whangarei.

BTW our hostel here in Christchurch is awesome! I found one right next to the beach on New Brighton, only 5mins ffom the pier. We started our day with a stroll along the beach this morning enjoying a beautiful hot and sunny day. Matt got some tips for trout fishing as he's going to take care of our food supply once we get to the West Coast :-)

Picking up our campervan early tomorrow morning. It's been downsized though to a 2ppl one so it will easier for me to drive *lol* Off to bed now got a lot of driving ahead of us tomorrow.
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Cheap as a budgie!

2011-10-11T01:11:00.000+02:00

My little trip to the South Island is getting a face =D Thanks to a friend of mine I have just hired a campervan to get from Christchurch to Queenstown - for only $5 a day!!! It's called relocation. When someone hires a vehicle but instead of going in a circle only drives from A to B the rental company needs to get that vehicle back to A - without spending too much money. So instead of putting it on the back of a truck they give it to poor travellers like me and have them drive it back for them. For very little expenses.

Of course there are a few downsides to it. Limited kilometers (you pay approx. 50 cents extra for each kilometer you're over the allowance) and limited time. We will have 2.5 days to get from Christchurch to Queenstown which doesn't sound like a lot to begin with. But since we only have a week in total anyway that's really not too bad. The few major things we really want to do and see on the way we'll have no problem fitting into the schedule. So all sweet *woohoo*

So one thing I really need to get done this week is getting my Kiwi driver's licence. Gosh I'm excited =D

Oh, it's been too long...

2011-10-06T03:53:00.000+02:00

Guess what - Maerchen will finally be back on the road in less than a month *woohoo* My last real holiday seems ages ago and with all my hours working during the Rugby World Cup I've been able to save a little bit of money. And you all know what I love spending my money on most :-)

I already talked to out Assistant Manager about taking some time off once the crazy times are over and all the rugby fans have left town. She's more than happy to let me go for a week or two before summer season hits. Makes it easier for her giving everybody else enough hours. So I decided to explore this beautiful country a bit more - and go down south.

Thanks to grabaseat I just managed to get a ticket from Auckland to Christchurch for only 59 dollars!!! My plan is to spend a few days there (hopefully without any earthquakes), then grab a car/campervan and "relocate" it to Queenstown. Relocating means you help the rental companies get their vehicles back to where they belong after people have hired it but only drove from A to B instead of going in a circle. It's cheap as!!! You get deals for about 5 dollars and between CHCH and QT they normally give you 4 or 5 days to complete your journey. Doesn't matter which way you go. Found out about this via Dan's cousin who told me about it a few days ago. Thank you Ryan =D Just hoping I'll find a good deal for the time I'm going there.

If everything works out the way I plan it and I find some good couchsurfers to stay with I should be able to get quite a lot out of this trip for little money =D And I might even have someone to join me, at least for part of the trip. But that's another story ;-) I'll tell you more once the trip itinerary becomes more detailed...

Free pizza anyone?

2011-09-24T13:28:00.000+02:00

Do you know that awkward feeling when someone asks you to come along to a party but you neither know the hosts now anyone else except the friend asking? Well, I always get a bit shy around heaps of strangers so when I was asked to come along to a BBQ tonight where I neither knew the hosts nor anyone else apart from my friend I was indeed a little bit nervous. Mixing and mingling has never been my thing, I hate introducing myself over and over again, making a bit of small talk and then standing around on my own again because I am the odd one out.

Well - thanks to Domino's pizza there was no need to worry about that tonight. Why? I was the hero of the evening by pretty much getting free pizza for everone! Unintentionally, but nevertheless it happened...

My friend hadn't prepared anything for the BBQ but instead had the idea of just ordering some pizza and have it delivered to the party. One of the girls at my hostel works at Domino's so I volunteered for calling up and maybe getting a discount. I told her the address and that we will need about half an hour til we get to the party. Turns out she thought the pizza needs to be delivered within half an hour...

By the time we got to the party everyone was already happily munching on pizza inviting us to join them. They were all really happy because the pizza guy had sold them three massive pizzas for just ten dollars thinking that he'd got the wrong address and was never going to find the person who originally had ordered the pizza - me! Of course nobody at the BBQ knew my name so when Domino's had turned up they told him they didn't know anything about pizza nor the person having ordered it. The poor guy must have been extremely confused - and ended up dumping the pizza on their doorstep for a real bargain :-)

We arrived about 5mins after the pizza guy and when my friend introduced me everybody starting laughing! Yep, I was the pizza girl. You're very welcome :-) I've never experienced the ice breaking so fast between people. No need for long introductions and explanations who I was. I was the hero of the evening *lol*

This is crazy!

2011-09-21T15:48:00.000+02:00

Did I actually say sometime last week that I wish it was always Rugby World Cup? Must have been blinded by the heaps of tips I made that day. Now I just want it to be over *uff* Here's just an overview of how this week is going to be like...

Monday - seemed to be a quiet start into the week with me not starting work until 4pm. Didn't get home until after 1am though because we had late-night dining customers and drinkers that just didn't want to leave.

Tuesday - Back to work at 11 o'clock in the morning. No breakfast - because I haven't had time to do grocery shopping in more than two weeks. As the day went on we got busier and busier and actually had to call in more staff to help out during the late lunch rush. By 4.30pm I was officially starving and finally managed to go on a 10 minute break to shuffle some food into my body. Dinner was busy as well with heaps of Japanese fans coming in and for some reason quite a few French people, too. Finally finished work at 10pm - after an 11 hour shift - but hung around the restaurant for another hour or so to wait for my flatmate so we could walk home together. A chocolate bar and a glass of cider helped my body to regain some energy and fall asleep at the same time.

Wednesday - ok, today was probably the worst EVER! Had to open up the restaurant at 8am and Gosh my friends now I'm really not a morning person. At least I managed to have a short breakfast break around 10am - and that was going to be the only food my body would see until about midnight... Once again we got SLAMMED!!! I guess being the official World Cup Bar has its downsides, too. We're just too popular a spot to be...

By the time I was supposed to sign off there were still heaps of people around, all wanting to have dinner before tonight's game: Tonga vs Japan in Whangarei. Dishes needed to be cleaned, cutlery to be polished and rolled, tables to be set, napkins to be folded... so I stayed until 5.30pm, then rushed to the hostel to have a shower and get changed for the game. Because - WOOHOO - I had bought myself a ticket *yay*

The game itself was good. I still don't know that much about rugby but I'm learning. And it was great to be at the stadium, experience the atmosphere. Compared to soccer games in Germany this is a whole different world. You get so close to the players you can almost shake hands! Barely any security around (lots of police patrouilling but apart from that all was easy-going and cruisy...). For 30 dollars me and my friends had perfect view over the field, sitting on picnic blankets on the grass cheering and enjoying ourselves.

Now my original plan was to maybe go for some drinks after the game. But instead what did I do? Went straight back to work. Because one of my colleagues had gotten sick and we were short of staff. And part of me just can't forget that I used to be a worcaholic *sigh* So I worked a few more hours, the chef was so kind as to cook me some steak and potatoes because by midnight I was not only starving but close to fainting from lack of water and energy. Finally got send home at 1am even though our place was still packed, the band still playing and people ordering one drink after the other. It was CRAZY!!!

Do you know the feeling of when you're past the point of being really tired? Your body just goes nuts and even though there's nothing you want more than close your eyes and go to sleep - you just can't. I guess that's why I'm sitting at my computer at 1.30 in the morning when I know exactly I have to get up in less than 6 hours and go back to work. For another 9 hour shift...

So in 3 days I have already worked more than 30 hours. There's going to be 8 or 9 more hours tomorrow - and the week is not even close to over... At least I have Friday off. My only day. Then at least 8 more hours on Saturday and 5 on Sunday. That will get me a new record - and oh my wallet is already singing about all the cash it will see.

I'm just sooo looking forward to this whole madness being over. Even though the rugby crowd is mostly easy-going and cheesy-peasy to handle - I'm yearning for sleep, a nice sleep-in in the morning, going out at night without counting down til you have to be back at work... I'd like to go on a vacation soon. Somewhere warm with lots of sunshine and beaches and cocktails and hammocks and hot guys *heehee* Would love to join a friend who's going to Bali soon but for that I don't have enough money yet and probably no time either *sigh* But soooooooon!!!

When little boys are bored

2011-09-19T15:17:00.000+02:00

Tonight was the second time since I have been appointed Duty Manager that I had to deal with the local police. This time, however, I wasn't really involved but instead did my duty as a loyal "citizen".

One of our customers witnessed some guys smearing graffiti allover the wall right across the street. And you know what those dumbarses did next??? Walk right over to our restaurant and sit down at the outside tables - even gave my colleague an attitude when she walked out and asked what they wanted (to get a better description of them). How bold is that?!?

Well, I called the police straight away and told them about the incident. 20mins later a policeguy came in and told me they caught those little rascals. All of them Maori boys aged 13 to 16 from the way they looked. Wonder what consequences they have to face? Just pity the shop owners across the road they won't be too happy when they come to work tomorrow...

The truth can hurt

2011-09-18T03:18:00.000+02:00

I saw Dan on Friday. In the last two weeks since the final break-up I've done some rather stupid stuff. They say love makes blind. But so does anger. And when are you ever angrier than when someone you truly love hurts you beyond imagination. Well, I've been really really hurt by Dan so no wonder all my anger was directed at him.

Once, however, the anger fades away all that's left is emptiness and sadness. And you wake up realizing how stupid you have been. So I did what I thought was right. I went to see him to apologize. It was horrible, awkward and seemed completely unreal. He didn't slam the door in my face which I guess was a good thing. He even accepted my apology and I got to say my final goodbye.

And while I was there I not only realized that it is really over. I also had to realize that - no matter how much it hurts - he was right. We are not compatible. What we had was beautiful. But we are at different stages in our life and it wasn't meant to last. We want different things in life, have different goals and ambitions. It's hard realizing that now. But at least now I can look back at what we had and remember the good times with a smile on my face.

Now I'm really ready to move on.

It's time to move on

2011-09-09T05:59:00.000+02:00

It's been excactly a week since Dan has dumped me. I'm not using the term "break-up" because for me a break-up requires an actual talk about things - just telling someone it's over without giving him/her at least a reason, an explanation or SOMETHING to work with - that is dumping. And I have been dumped like a hot potato. Why - I still don't know. I can only speculate. Maybe now that he's got a well-paid job he just doesn't need me anymore? After all - even if he doesn't like hearing me say that - I have supported him for half a year, paid all the bills - while he lived of his parent's money and played computer all day long. I have believed in this relationship, it has been special to me. And until a about two weeks ago he has made me believe that he cares for me, loves me and wants to be with me. Well, apparently not. Because he just dumped me.

On Tuesday I picked up my things from his place. Most of it he had neatly stacked on the kitchen table, had put it all out there for me - plates, kitchenware, put my CDs and DVDs in a plastic bag. Ready to go. Like saying "Now get the hell out of here". Hard to believe that not too long ago I thought he was the sweetest guy I've ever met. Maybe that's why I've found it so hard to move on.

But that's over now. It's time to start living my life again. He is not worth even one more tear. Actually I find him quite pathetic now and realize that I am better off without him. Someone who doesn't have the spine to face a problem but runs away like a little child has no place in my life.

So I've moved into my new "home". It's just a hostel for now, but a very nice one. Right in the middle of town so I can walk anywhere I need to go - even for a few drinks without needing to worry about how to get home ;-) I've got my own room - furnished - and awesome neighbors. There're five girls on my floor. One works at Domino's to support her studies, one is a chef at a local restaurant. We haven't cooked together, yet. But we're having slumber parties, DVD nights and are going out together having lots of fun. For now it's just the right place to be. Even the shower is hot *woohoo*

And I'm sure the next few days and weeks will be quite eventful so there's no more reason to pull a sad face. The rugby world cup starts tonight and we've been busy setting everything up at work for ages! There's a band playing tonight and we're showing the games on six or seven TVs plus a large screen. Looking forward to meeting all the sports fans from allover the world =D Should be a fun crowd. Heaps of tips, too - I hope...

Some people should rather stay alone

2011-09-02T13:41:00.005+02:00

A few mins ago this post was a long essay about the asshole who just broke my heart intending to make him feel miserable until eternity. Then I realized it's not going to change a thing and it won't make me feel better on the long run, either. I'd rather just stop caring and move on with my life.

So all I'm telling you tonight is that I'm single again. If you want to hear the bitch in me tell you the truth about what happened - feel free to ask.

And for all you guys out there: Yes, a relationship IS a commitment. Yes, it DOES involve a lot of effort and work. If you just wanna screw around for a while but aren't really interested in anything long-term - STAY AWAY FROM ME YOU BLOODY BASTARDS!!! I've had enough of your lies and false pretends. And one day, when you're old and wrinkly and bald and toothless and fat and impotent I hope you realize how lonely, empty and miserable your life has been AND is.

Arrested, but not charged

2011-08-13T09:38:00.000+02:00

Just before the rugby game started (Mid Northern lost this time) I got another call from the police. The guy who wacked me over the head a few weeks ago has been arrested today. But apparently it's been the first time he's done something like that so he'll get away with an "official warning". At least it will stay on his record for the time being - I hope that'll teach him! The constable said next time he won't get the soft way out...

Oh, and guess what... that guy had the constable pass on his "sincere apologies" for "overreacting" that night... no comment...

The follow-up

2011-08-13T01:20:00.000+02:00

New Zealand police has strange work hours... It took them four weeks to get back to me on the incident that happened at work more than four weeks ago. I would have thought cases of assault are solved faster but apparently not. Anyway... they finally called - 9am on a Saturday morning!!! My first weekend off in ages, I'm sick (of course) and tired in bed - and the police calls... Oh well.. at least they are now following it through and will get back to me shortly. Wonder if I will have to go to court. Here in New Zealand I get to do all these things I never had to do before - and actually could have lived without a bit longer...

Well... I'm off to watch a rugby game. About a year ago Philip's team won the championships (still not too sure which ones, need to update my knowlegde about local/regional rugby) and they made it back into the finals again this year. Should be fun =D

Antsy pantsy or whatever...

2011-07-28T07:05:00.000+02:00

Today really isn't my day. Could it be because I have been working 8 days in a row doing who knows how many hours of hospitality work? It started in the morning when I had to ask our kitchen staff approx 5 times in half an hour to open up the office for me so I could turn on some music (which also attracts customers - but mainly helps me to wake up and keeps me from being cranky all day...). When she finally did open the office I had to discover that the music computer was broken and there was only silence :-( Should have known that was a bad sign...

After work I had an appointment with my bank because I need money to buy a car. Now that Dan has a job again - which is in the opposite direction of town and involves shift work, too - we can't share his car anymore which means I will have trouble from now on getting to work and back (which especially sucks at night because the only way of getting home would be calling a taxi which will cost me a fortune).

I was hoping to either get an overdraft for a while or a personal loan just over 2000 NZ dollars - a bit more than 1000 Euros. Should have known that it's not going to work out - not being a resident makes things SO FUCKING COMPLICATED!!! Excuse my language but why do things have to be so hard for people who are settling in in a different country? I currently neither qualify for an overdraft, nor for a loan - not even for a credit card! Now I have a credit card for my German account - which has no money in it. And the accounts that do have money in them I don't get a credit card for. No more booking of concert tickets, plane tickets nor any of the other thousands of things that nowadays require a credit card. That is SO STUPID!!!

So how am I going to be able to afford a car? I could save up for it - which will only take me a few months. But no - wait - I won't be able to save because I'm broke getting a taxi all the time :-(

And to finish things I just got home to find this...

Looks like the ants have found a new home now that we aren't using the dishwasher anymore. I was just going to pop some toast in when I noticed something black moving around the toaster... there was only 40 or 50 of them around *wäh* even turning the toaster on didn't help they are happy exploring it anyway... so no food right now either :-( guess I should just go to bed and hope tomorrow will look better..

Rugby players like it sweet

2011-07-27T07:54:00.000+02:00

The last few days since I've been granted my new work permit have been rather uneventful. Dan started his new job and seems to be enjoying it so far (just was a bit bored as it was mostly office work to get him started...). For me a 24-hour-week at the restaurant was followed by a 40-hour one where I've been acting as temporary duty manager for the first time *yay*

All my paperwork is filled out now and I've just been to the council today to apply for my General Manager's licence. For all the none-Kiwis - you need that licence over here in order to manage any premises that sells or supplies alcohol... I've already sat a test in May where I was taught about the legal situation involving everything around selling/supplying alcohol to the public and how to be responsible in certain situations.

Been to the council today to hand my application in and they said it normally takes around 2 to 3 three weeks to process the whole thing. I'll also need to sit an interview with a police officer to make sure I am capable of managing our restaurant while on duty. I wonder whether that's going to take them as long as getting back to me on the assault 2.5 weeks ago... Still haven't heard back from the police though I am sure they know who the guy is who smacked me in the head...

Well... like I initially mentioned - with working all the time the last few days/weeks have been almost uneventful - until today... we weren't very busy during the day at the restaurant but all the sudden this massive group of about 20 guys walked in wanting hot drinks. Turns out it was the Taranaki rugby team!!! They are playing Northland tonight, the local team... They must have loved the hot and iced chocolates we made them - even though the coach (?) took away most of their marshmellows. Why? THEY LEFT US FREE TICKETS TO THE GAME TONIGHT - Northland vs Taranaki!!!!! They normally cost around 35 dollars! Not sure yet if Dan wants to come along as he starts work really early in the morning. But I'm definitely going *woohoo*

A moment of joy

2011-07-12T05:05:00.000+02:00

There aren't many things in life that make you so happy you just want to cry. Well, I just had one of those moments today. I went to the post office to pick up a parcel the courier wasn't able to deliver yesterday. And guess what that parcel had inside... MY PASSPORT INCLUDING MY NEW VISA!!! It's really done *woohoo* And guess how happy I was when I noticed that it even includes "multiple entries" meaning that I can leave and re-enter the country as often as I like :-) Not I'm planning on going anywhere soon. But should there be an emergency back in Germany or should we have money to go on a little holiday - it would be possible =D Sometimes there are days in life that feel like Christmas and your birthday all at the same time...

Immigration New Zealand: I THINK I'M IN!!!

2011-07-10T01:00:00.001+02:00

It's not official yet but it seems like Immigration has already finished processing my work visa application!!! How I know that?

After having spent at least another half hour on the phone with an immigration officer on Friday about my interim visa and me not being able to work after Thursday I had received an automated email titled "Your communication with Immigration NZ". All it contained was an attachment - which of course I couldn't open again. So once again I sent it to my friend Jenny in London who transformed it into a proper doc-file and just sent it back to me overnight.

I thought all they had done was sending me the transcript of the phone call I had made on Friday. Which - to be honest - would be kinda studid cos what would I need that for. Anyway - it wasn't. All it was was yet another automatic email saying "Your online status has been updated." HUH?!?

So I went online, logged onto the Immigration Website - and guess what I found...

Work Visa lodged 1 July 2011 APPROVED

- Expiry date 8 July 2012

I tried to call Immigration to confirm what I think it is but of course there's nobody working on Sunday so I have to wait another day. But it sounds like I can STAY!!!

I need a break - or a holiday!

2011-07-08T14:29:00.001+02:00

What a night... We had a function that I was kind of resonsible for. Nice people, lots of fun. They had hired a karaoke guy as well and were dancing and singing the night away. Even made me go on stage and do my favorite song "REM - Loosing my religion". Everyone had heaps of fun!

An hour later I'm questioned by the police about an assault... one of the customers got pissed about me not serving him any more alcohol and the whole thing escalated and eventually he smacked me on the head ;-( I'm alright, just got a headache now and am a bit shaken.

When I look back at the past year here in New Zealand it certainly hasn't been one thing - boring. Though there is one or the other experience I would rather have not had... Like tonight...

Anyone keen on going to Bali with me for a few weeks? I think I'm ready for a holiday... Oh shit... I forgot I can't leave New Zealand for a while or I won't be allowed to come back. Guess Bali has to wait a bit...

Frustration and anger

2011-07-08T07:35:00.000+02:00

I'm not sure how much time I've spent these last few days on the phone with various immigration officers. And how FRUSTRATING and ANNOYING it can be at times... One barely spoke English and clearly had no idea what was going on. Another was giving me a bitchy attitude answering all my questions with "There's nothing I can do for you. That's the way it is." Only one - Vincent - was acutally pleasant to talk to and giving me advice and an update.

So here's what's happening... My current visa expires next Thursday. By now Immigration New Zealand has officially accepted my application for a work permit based on a partnership to a Kiwi. It will take them approx. 60 days to process and decide whether I will be granted such a visa or not. Meanwhile I have received my interim visa which will allow me to stay in the country up to the point where they make that decision.

The problem is: I won't be able to work!!! I told my boss today and of course he wasn't very happy about it. He's trying to figure something out and has made a few phone calls already. We'll see if he is any succesful. If not next Thursday will be my last day at work and then I'll be unemployed :-(

To give you an idea of how competent NZ immigration officers are here a few things I have been told in the past few months...

A: You don't need a police clearance certificate at this point.

That I got told in March. In June my first visa application got sent back to me - because it was missing a police clearance certificate.

B: You will automatically be granted an interim visa. That will extend your current visa up the point when we make a decision about your application. Since you already have a working visa that means you will be able to continue working.

Well, at least the first part was right. As for the other - I just got told today I will only get a general interim visa which does NOT allow me to work.

C: Immigration sent me my interim visa via email attachment.

Which is good and fast- only I couldn't open it. Had to send it to a friend in LONDON via email who could transform it and sent it back to me in the right format.

So... gotta get ready for one of my last days as an employee. I'll keep you up to date...

How not to treat your customers

2011-07-04T13:41:00.001+02:00

How often, I wonder, do you actually have to cancel a contract before the cancellation becomes effective? I am now sending the THIRD notice of termination to Vodafone Germany hoping they will finally realize I don't want their service anymore... The first one that I sent almost half a year ago has simply been ignored - at least I never got the affirmation letter/mail saying they received my cancellation and will not automatically renew my cellphone contract sometime later this year.

I almost forgot about the whole business until I saw the recent automatic payment to Vodafone from my account. So last week I tried again - this time using the "24 hour phone hotline that helps you fast". What shall I say - I called and called and called, ended up on hold every single time but nobody EVER answered the phone! Thank you, Vodafone.

So I sent them a message via their online custover service center. And guess what - still no answer. So today I've sent yet another letter telling them to terminate my contract once it runs out and NOT to renew it. And would they please send me a message back (not via phone because I haven't been able to use that for months which is another story) confirming my cancellation... Surely my first attempt should have been enough? Before I know it my cancellation period will have run out and I'll be stuck with them for another two years... any idea what else I can do from the other side of the world?

Immigration New Zealand: Getting there - slowly...

2011-06-22T05:49:00.001+02:00

After the latest problem with my work permit in order to stay in New Zealand I am slowly making progress. I would say I'm about a week from sending my paperwork back to immigration. Since I still have a bit more than 20 days to go (as an email sent by the immigration office reminded me off yesterday) everything should work out fine in the end.

I received my police clearance certificate from Germany yesterday - it only took a week in total to process it :-) Thank you once again Mrs. Schmidt @Bundesjustizamt! YOU WERE AWESOME!!!

Unfortunately once again I was kind of let down by the immigration officers. Because what they hadn't told me was that I also need to have that certificate translated - by a certified translator, of course. I wouldn't have known if I hadn't visited Sandra this past weekend...

Sandra is another German girl that I've only known via Facebook for about half a year now. Just like me she came over here on a Working Holiday Visa, worked as an au pair, fell in love with the country, fell in love with its people - and didn't want to leave anymore. She's been applying for new permits a few times now and is currently going for her permanent residency. I got her contact details a while ago from a mutual friend, we talked on Facebook a few times but never actually got to meet each other.

When I ended up having a long weekend a few days ago I thought it's about time to change that. So Dan and I packed our things and drove up to Kohukohu where Sandra and her boyfriend live. We had a short but fun time together and what amazed me most - Sandra has been living up there for almost three years now and she doesn't sound German at all anymore. Nope - she sounds like a Maori!!! Unbelievable how strong her accent has become in those few years.

Anyway... Sandra told me about having to have the police certificate translated. Of course there is no certified translator in Whangarei but I found the website of the Department of Internal Affairs in Wellington. They are translating heaps of different papers from or into heaps of different languages. They are fast (2 to 3 work days) and rather cheap (I pay 55 dollars including returning my papers via courier) - and friendly!

I called them yesterday to tell them I have an urgent request. They told me to send my document in via email attachment so they can get started on the translation. I still had to send in the original but just to get it certified. Did that via courier today, cost me another 5 dollars and a bit but it will be in Wellington tomorrow and hopefully everything returns to me early next week...

Here is all the information about the Department of Internal Affairs...

I don't want you here!!!

2011-06-22T05:15:00.001+02:00

Apparently this creepy fellow was hiding in the firewood we got last week and is now living in the garage downstairs. Dan just found it an hour ago and couldn't resist taking picures. Does anyone know what kind of spider that is?!? It's about six centimeters long, a bit hairy and has red and black legs as well as a rather big body...

All I know is - if that thing finds its way upstairs - I'M MOVING OUT!!!

Immigration New Zealand: Green light from Germany

2011-06-16T09:33:00.000+02:00

I just got off the phone with the German Bundesjustizamt (BfJ) - the ministry that is responsible for issuing police clearance certificates. As you might remember this little document is currently standing between me and my next visa to stay in New Zealand. When I spoke with Mrs. Schmidt from the BfJ last week she already helped me a lot by allowing me to send my application via email with all important documents attached. She told me it would take between four and five work days to process - which was a lot better than the six weeks it said it would take on the website of the German Embassy.

Well, those four to five work days are up and there hasn't been anything in the mail so I gave them another call today. Once again it was Mrs. Schmidt who was talking to me and this time she completely made my day. Her colleague, she said, has been processing my application and will post the police clearance certificate tomorrow. Air Mail.

That still doesn't mean it will get here on time but the chances have just increased by at least 50 percent!!! I've had letters that got here within three days, on average they take about a week from Germany to New Zealand. That still gives me "heaps" of time to send my COMPLETE visa application back to immigration on time. I have 28 days left...

My return flight to Germany in the meantime has been cancelled. Should everything go wrong and I do have to leave I've decided to go to Australia for a while. It'll be a lot easier to get back to NZ from there than from Germany.

By the way... this is my 300th post since I've relaunched my blog in December 2008. Definitely reason enough for a small HOORAY (ok, that was a bigger one...). And I have more reasons to rejoyce today - WE HAVE FIREWOOD!!! After we've been let down by our deliverer TWICE we finally managed to organise something today. Now I'm sitting in front of our fireplace enjoying the warmth and will probably allow myself a glass of wine later on to toast to all the good things that have happened today.

Immigration New Zealand: There is still hope!

2011-06-09T14:33:00.043+02:00

What a day... it started really bad, got even a bit worse but took a very unexpected turn towards a happy ending in the end. What has happened?

Last week I finally sent my visa application to immigration New Zealand. Tuesday I got an email saying that they received all the papers and will get back to me soon. Well - soon they did. Today. Before heading off to work I checked my mails as I always do and there was another one from immigration. And what did it say? "Lodgement failed."

WHAT?!?

So I spent all morning trying to get someone on the phone who could tell me what that meant. Of course the line was busy, I was number 13 in the queue (what a lucky number...) and the calling back option took forever. My phone finally rang when I was just about to leave for work. 20 minutes later I was devastated! The guy told me my papers weren't complete and that's why they were sending it all back to me... What was missing? My police clearance certificate.

I COULDN'T BELIEVE IT!!!

When I first called immigration in March I was told that at this stage I did not need to provide such a certificate. Because it wasn't sure whether I would stay in the country for two years or longer (which is when you need to proof you're a good character). Well, all the sudden I needed one anyway. "We will grant you a work permit for 12 months", said the guy this time. "But only if you include the police clearance certificate."

The problem is - I have to apply for that certificate in Germany and apparently it takes up to six weeks to process it - and send all the paperwork back and forth from New Zealand to Germany and back. So the good news was - my application wasn't denied and I didn't have to pay for it twice either. The only problem was - if I don't send my COMPLETE application back before 14 July 2011 (which is when my current visa expires) I have to leave the country. What a mess!!!

All day I've been thinking about that... troubling myself with the thought of having come this far only to fail at the very last step... During my 10-hour-shift at the restaurant I had a really hard time not starting to cry or lose concentration to an extent where the customers would get bad service. I finally lost it when I told my boss about it. "There's no need to panic" really wasn't helping me that moment.

To cut the long story short... in the end it is actually Germany who keeps my hopes up. I called the Bundesamt für Justiz (thank you Skype!) and told them my story and how I don't have six weeks to wait for that certificate. The lady at the other end was just laughing. "Six weeks? No way it takes that long!"

I was actually able to scan all the necessary paperwork onto my computer, send it off via email - and within four or six work days (so hopefully by the end of next week) I will have my police clearance certificate. And since the worst crimes I have ever committed were stealing a magazine at the hairdresser when I was about 14) and getting ONE single speeding ticket in my entire life (in New Zealand) that shouldn't be a problem.

Thank you sweetie for having so much patience with me today. It wasn't an easy day but you gave me strength *kiss*

So... and now it is 1.11am in the morning and I think I can finally go to bed without worrying my head off... G!ood night y'all!!

Immigration New Zealand: Patience, please...

2011-05-31T13:47:00.000+02:00

IT IS DONE!!!! I finally sent probably about a kilogramm of paperwork to Immigration New Zealand. Now all I can do is wait for them to process it - and patience really isn't something I've come to understand in these past 29 years... I have exactly 45 days left on my current visa. But as I was once again assured by a justice of peace I will automatically be granted a so called "bridge visa" that extends my current one up to the point when immigration makes a decision about my application. Since it takes them approx. 60 days I should have at least two months left in my newly chosen home.

Meanwhile there is some sad news - Dan's grandma passed away last week :-( The funeral is tomorrow - it will be the first one I attend since my beloved grandpa died a little more than 10 years ago. The whole family will be there. The good part is - since Dan's parents came over from Australia for the funeral I got to meet them a lot earlier than we'd thought. They are currently staying with us and though I haven't really seen much of them so far - with work and everything - I already like them lots. I just wish the circumstances to get to know each other would have been happier.

Also just got off the phone with my grandma. Since she's been in and out of the hospital for the last few months I am pretty worried about not seeing her again. She wants to make it to 90 which would give me a few more years but unfortunately she's not the only one making that decision... I guess I can only hope that I'll see her again despite my decision to stay in New Zealand much longer...

Immigration New Zealand: The countdown has begun...

2011-05-26T03:34:00.001+02:00

I may not always acknowledge it but I think I actually do have the best brother in the world. He not only sent me a wonderful letter of support for my immigration application - along with it also came this picture that he took during his visit to New Zealand in March/April.

As for now I have done pretty much everything I can in order to make my application as perfect as possible. Now it is probably really down to good luck whether I will get a new visa or not. Counting yesterday I have 50 days left until my current Woking Holiday Visa expires and I would have to leave New Zealand to go back to Germany.

I made a final "adjustment" to my application today. By passing my Liquor Controller Qualification I have enabled myself to apply for a Duty Manager's Licence - a position that has been offered to me and will hopefully play an important role in my application showing immigration that I am a reliable, honest, hard-working and trustworthy person that will be a valuable addition to the country...

On Monday we will hopefully get an appointment with a justice of peace to certify all the relevant documents and then I can FINALLY sent the whole package off to immigration. And then all I can do is wait... and wait... and wait... that's going to be a horrible time...

Immigration New Zealand: Almost ready

2011-05-19T12:39:00.000+02:00

Just giving you all a little update on how my immigration process is going. In the last few weeks I not only passed my medical examination. I have also filled out about 50 pages of documents, burnt a CD with a few cute shots of Daniel and me and have received some wonderful letters of support from my friends over here. There is still a few things at work that need to be taken care of - which I will talk about once everything is settled - and then I should finally be able to send that huge and expensive package off to immigration.

Wish me luck!!! I have less than two months to go...

Immigration New Zealand: Good news!

2011-05-03T14:00:00.000+02:00

Once again I went to the doctor's today to see whether the second blood test for my immigration medical was reason to worry, too. But I got a green light from the medical staff: This time the test didn't show any abnormalities.

I HAVE PASSED MY IMMIGRATION MEDICAL!!!

What a relief, I can tell you. I think (and hope!) this was the biggest obstacle on the way to my new visa. Now I "just" have to fill out an approx. 40 pages long application - it's only four pages for Dan - and gather enough proof and evidence that Daniel and I actually are in a "stable" relationship, living together and more.

I have already received two supporting letters from friends and was quite overwhelmed about what they had written. My boss, too, keeps asking me for update because he really wants me to stay - especially with the Rugby World Cup coming up later this year. It feels really good knowing I have all these people behind me. Now all I need to do is convince immigration that there is no other option than letting me stay...

Immigration New Zealand: problem!!!

2011-04-29T04:39:00.000+02:00

I've spent approx. 500 NZ dollars (270 Euros) in the last two weeks just to get my immigration medical done. That's probably the most vital part in the whole process because if the immigration guys think that you don't have "an acceptable standard of health" you don't even need to apply for anything. They'll just decline you.

My chest-x-ray was all good, no problems there. The blood test was my biggest worry. First of all - I HATE NEEDLES! Second - I know that there are so many things that can influence blood results and make them look bad even though you're perfectly alright.

Well, my worry wasn't completely unnecessary :-( I had yet another doctor's appointment today to complete the questionnaire for the medical, do some more tests like eyesight, weihging, measuring, ... the list ist ENDLESS!!!

Anyway - seems that my blood test wasn't 100 percent ok. My kidney function was a bit too high which according to the doctor could relate to some antibiotics I have recently been taking. So I had to go back and have some more blood taken today (at least for free this time). If the results turn out bad again I'm seriously in trouble.

I don't know what I'm going to do if I have to go back to Germany in July. The thought alone makes me wanna scream and cry. I left that country for a reason - and have found more than I could ever wish for here in New Zealand. It's my home now. I have found love here... Who thinks they have a right to take that away from me again?!?

Shouldn't every human being have the right - the FREEDOM - to chose to live wherever they want? Just because you're born in the wrong country shouldn't mean you're stuck there your entire life! Coming from former East Germany I know what it means to be denied the freedom of going where you want - and I also know what it can do to people. It can destroy you!

Yet another recipe: White gluten-free bread

2011-04-14T02:49:00.000+02:00

I'm still on the hunt for nice bread recipes. Requirement: gluten-free AND dairy-free. The Irish Soda Bread I made last time was very delicious - but it doesn't last very long. Even after a day or two it gets a yucky taste to it :-(

Earlier this week I found a recipe for white gluten-free bread after asking google for help. I had to make some minor changes to the recipe and the dough is not the easiest or fastest to prepare. But it turned out quite good. I had some straight away which was alright - the rest went into the freezer. Just had some of if - microwaved for about 30 seconds then slighty toasted. YUMMY =D So I'm sharing this one with you as well... (ATTENTION: You do need a breadmaker for this recipe!)

Ingredients

1 egg
1 1/3 cups water
1/4 cup melted butter (I used Olivani - a dairy-free spread based on olive oil)
1 teaspoon (tsp) lemon juice
1 tablespoon (tbsp) honey (didn't have any, so left it out)
1 cup tapioca flour
2 cups rice flour
1/2 cup cornflour
1/2 cup potato flour

--> I can't be bothered buying ten different flours so I normally use the Healtherie's baking mix or like this time Orgran's self-raising gluten-free flour mix

1 tbsp Xantham Gum
1 1/2 tsp powdered gelatine (didn't have any, so left it out)
1 1/2 tsp salt
1 tbsp sugar
4 tbsp powdered milk (as a dairy substitute I used 4 tbsp soymilk instead)
1 tbsp dried yeast

Preparation

* whisk egg and water together in a bowl and put in the breadmaker
* add melted butter, lemon juice (and honey)
* in a separate bowl combine the flours, Xantham Gum, (gelatine), salt, sugar and milk
* add mix to the breadmaker
* sprinkle yeast on top
* set breadmaker to "Basic" mode

Once the bread is ready let it cool down in the breadmaker for about 10 minutes, then take it out and let it cool down further on a rack. Brush the top with melted butter for a nicer crust.

Immigration New Zealand: Step II

2011-04-14T01:23:00.000+02:00

It's been a few weeks since I managed to talk to an Immigration Officer about my plans to stay in New Zealand. I didn't have much time to organise things while my family was here. But now that my brother and my mom have returned to Germany and I'm getting back into my daily routine I finally started taking some actions.

Number one: I went to the doctor's today to set up everything that's needed for my medical. We filled out some of the forms and the first few tests that she took were all good.

Number two: The worst part will come next week. I need to have a few blood tests done, that's what I'm dreading most (needlephobia *wäh*). I hope I'll get the same lady who took my blood last time - she was finished before I could even think about starting to panic!

Number three: Also on the list for next week is a chest X-ray. I don't see any problems with this as I'm 100 percent suer I don't suffer from tuberculosis.

The good thing is - I don't need appointments for either of those, just show up and get it over with. Also the results should be back within one or two days the doctor said - which is great! On the medical form they talk about WEEKS! But I guess that's the good part about being in a rather small neighboorhood everybody knows everybody and things get done a lot faster...

Number four on the list will be another visit at the doctor's to talk about the results and fill out a questionnaire for Immigration. If everything goes well I should have completed this part by the end of the month *woohoo*

Keep your fingers crossed for me, folks! Because if it turns out that I don't have an "Acceptable Standard Of Health" (official immigration language!!!) I don't even need to bother with a visa appllication.

By the way, the medical form also says this: "If you intend to give birth in New Zealand you are not considered to have an acceptable standard of health." So no more hints or recommendations of that sort, please...

A family holiday in New Zealand - part II

2011-04-13T04:37:00.102+02:00

After leaving Rotorua we made our way to the last part of our journey: Coromandel. I'd already been here in January and absolutely loved the peninsula! Once again we got to stay with the Couchsurfing couple in Thames that last time made our journey such a wonderful experience.

Before, however, entering into Coromandel there was yet one stop the two "bros" in our group had to make: The Giant Bottle of L&P - New Zealand's national drink. It is made of lemon juice and mineral water from Paeroa - and of course nowadays belongs to Coca-Cola... Anyway - my brother fell in love with that drink and thinks about introducing it to Germany. So watch out!

Once again Christiane and Patrick had a full house. Staying with them at the same time was Isabelle, a French girl. She wasn't couchsurfing but used HelpExchange where you work for someone approx 4 hours per day and get to stay with them for free in return. Anyway... since Isabelle didn't have a car we thought it'd be nice to take her along and the five of us went up Paaku Hill near Tairua. You can drive almost all the way up and then it's just a tenn minute climb to the top. The view is worth it!

Next stop on the itinerary: Cathedral Cove. Unfortunately one of the last cyclons had destroyed the last bit of the walk (or more the staircase was gone) so we had to abseil down with the help of a rope. What an adventure! It was quite slippery and muddy but we all made it.

Hot Water Beach wasn't as nice as last time, either. Mostly due to the rain and cold wind. But at least there were enough spots for everyone to dig up their own spa pool. Only this time the tide was still very low and the hot springs right under the surface. We burnt ourselves a few times and couldn't really relax that much. It was a constant "who's getting the next bucket with cold water to cool this down a bit?"

The last day we spent mostly in Coromandel Township. My mom wanted to go to the Driving Creek Railway. There is that old guy who spent 30 years of his life building train tracks into the Coromandel mountain range with tunnels and sculptures along the way. At the very top he built the Eyefull Tower from where you have really good views over Hauraki Gulf. The journey takes about an hour, is a nice experience - but costs 25 dollars! Not sure if that's worth it but the guide said they have replanted thousands of native trees and are still helping native forest to grow back. That's what most of the money is obviously for which is a good cause.

My highlight that day was this "little" thing that was hiding - of course - in the train compartment I had chosen to sit in. It's a weta, one of New Zealand's oldest native animals. The Department of Conservation calls it a "creepy-crawly" and that it is indeed! It took Daniel quite a while to get it out of the train but it was either the weta or me. I guess he loves me more ;-)

Three weeks seem like a long time but they went by quite fast. So all the sudden it was time to drop my folks off at their hotel from where they had to take the airport shuttle quite early in the morning. It took us only a couple of hours to exchange pictures and put them from one computer onto the other. I guess the guy at the reception downstairs thought we were never going to leave.

Daniel and I stayed the weekend in Auckland to relax a bit before going back home. Sunday we watched the Red Bull Trolley Race at the Domain - but I wasn't that impressed. Some of the guys did have some pretty good ideas for their trolleys and it was fun watching the first couple ones go down the hill. But it wasn't really a race since they were all going down one by one. There were barely any crashes, either, and therefore little excitement.

A family holiday in New Zealand - part I

2011-04-12T02:50:00.101+02:00

It's amazing how many pictures some people can take in as little as three weeks. That is how long my mom and brother were here from Germany to visit me and find out why I'm so much in love with New Zealand. In those three weeks the two of them, I and Daniel managed to take approx 4300 (!!!) pictures in total. Anyone who has met my family will know who took the most...

You can imagine it took me a few days to sort through that mass of fotos. But somehow I managed and "downsized" my harddrive to about 300 pictures. Here's a few of them showing the highlights of our trip. After my mom and brother had hired a car to see most of Northland's beauties Daniel and I then took them south to explore the rest of the North Island. It was a similar trip to the one I had just done in January but this time we let my family decide where to go and what to see and do.

My mom loves birds. She even brought her binoculars along to spot as much wildlife as possible. After the Hamilton Gardens (awesome!!!) and a - rather disappointing - stop at Waitomo Caves we therefore stopped at Otorohanga where her guidebook suggested a really neat Kiwi House.

Unfortunately it had just closed a few minutes before our arrival. So what did my mom do? Pretty much beg the lady behind the glass door to let her in. "I've come all the way from Germany just to see a kiwi", she said. And you know what? It worked! For half the usual administration fee my mom was let into the Kiwi House and even spotted the kiwi before it was going to sleep. That was one of her highlights I think :-)

Not really a highlight but something we all won't forget was the funny noise somewhere on the way to Taupo. It was only the second day of our trip - and already we had a flat tire. It started raining at that point, too, but Daniel was quick enough changing the tire and we could get back on the road.

When he went to the mechanics the day after (of course it had happened on a Saturday and there was NOTHING open on Sunday so we were actually stuck in Taupo one night longer) they found a nail approx. 5cm long that was stuck in the tire! Daniel kept it as a souvenir *lol*

However, Taupo wasn't the worst place to get stuck. We were only meant to go to Napier the next day and skipping that part didn't feel too bad. Instead we went to Huka Falls which has a special meaning for Daniel and me. First of all Daniel LOVES waterfalls and second - when we made the trip to Rotorua, Taupo and Huka Falls last year in december during the Rotorua Triathlon it was the first time Daniel introduced me as his girlfriend *woohoo*

After Taupo we made our way to Rotorua. There I sent my family to Wai-o-tapu (sacred water) to explore the thermal mud and hot pools. They really enjoyed that.

Since Rotorua is also supposed to be a good spot to expierence a traditional hangi (the way the Maori used to prepare their food - underground) we decided to join a tour and booked ourselves a hangi and concert at the Tamaki Maori Village. That was definitely worth every cent ($NZ 105)!!!

In Maori tradition we were received at the marae by warriors and the chief and after accepting the token of friendship were welcomed into the marae by the women singing songs of welcome.

We learnt a lot of about Maori customs and protocol that night, "ancient" free-time activities such as carving and how the Maoris used to tattoo themselves (and still do in some places as far as I know - with the help of a sharp bone the tattoo is "hammered" into the skin). We watched a very entertaining performance of cultural dances and songs followed by the hangi - earth-smoked chicken and lamb with heaps of veges and pavlova and fruit salad as desert. What a feast!!!

Speaking of tattoos - my brother did not want to leave New Zealand without a proper tattoo (the European way, not the Maori one *lol*). So he went to a tattoo shop in Rotorua and got his very first tattoo done - a silver fern. It only took about half an hour, did hurt a bit - but he was proud as afterwards =D

My personal highlight of the entire trip was of a different nature. Since we had booked our cultural experience with Rotorua Hot Deals we had also received vouchers for the Paradise Valley Springs Wildlife Park (normally the entrance fee is $NZ 25). And guess what they had - a lion cup!!! And you could pet it!!! I adore wild cats and have always wanted to do that. Having it happen on my birthday made it even more special!

This is Ella, a 10-months-old lion cub already weighing about 40 kilos. You won't be able to pet her for much longer as she is growing soooo fast! The keeper told us she eats about 5 kilos of horsemeat PER DAY! That's almost twice as much as an adult lion would have. What was surprising, too, is that her skin is not cuddly at all... more like leather, very hard.

If you want to pet a lion, too, check out the Park's website regularly. They have two female lions breeding and are hoping to have more cubs soon. For only $NZ 25 (approx. 13 Euros) that is definitely worth it! At other places (for example the Whangarei Zion Wildlife Park) it is a lot more expensive!

A flat tire and other obstacles

2011-04-03T04:52:00.001+02:00

It's been three days since Daniel, my mom, my brother and I had set off to a little adventure trip around the North Island. Apart from some minor misunderstandings and arguments things went alright - until yesterday. Dan's car is definitely not made for four people plus heaps of luggage. Every time we encountered a little bump in the road in sounded like the car was scraping along the pavement. Not a very good sound.

And then it happened - somewhere between Waitomo Caves and Taupo there was a big BANG - and one of our tires said goodbye forever. Luckily we had a spare one in the back and it didn't take too long for Dan to fix it. We made it into Taupo alright but since we had a huge trip planned for today - driving towards Tongariro National Park and then over to Napier - with unsealed roads as well there was no way we would do that without a new spare tire.

Unfortunately today is Sunday. And not only is nothing open. One of the tire places had an after-hours-phone-number - which we called - just to be informed that they don't operate on Sundays. GREAT!!! So what now? Well... the atmosphere wasn't the best for a while as different opinions and demands clashed.

In the end we decided to stay in Taupo one more night. The YHA luckily had space for us again despite a Warriors Game in town tonight. We'll get the tire problem sorted out tomorrow and then just go straight to Rotorua. There's more to see and do there anyway than in Napier.

I was also quite lucky to get a refund from Wotif.com where we had booked our accomodation. Normally they don't accept cancellations within 48hours or less. But I had spoken to someone at our Motel in Napier this morning and explained the situation to them. They were happy to give us a refund but said we'd have to talk to Wotif. To make it short - the Wotif-guy ended up calling the Motel in Napier, they confirmed that the cancellation is ok and now we get our money back *woohoo*

Everything else about our trip including some really cool pictures I'll share with you later... We're going to the pools today to relax a bit and "cool down"...

The family is reunited

2011-03-31T04:47:00.001+02:00

It's been ten days now that my mom and my brother have arrived in New Zealand. Keeping them happy and entertained wasn't easy at first. My brother's initial plan had been to cycle New Zealand - but since he came here with an ear and throat infection that was out of the question. Daniel showed them around a bit while I was working but still after a few days they got pretty bored. So they finally agreed to rent a car and have been exploring Northland for the last couple days.

They should be back tonight and then we're starting on a trip south (of Auckland) showing them the beauties of New Zealand's north island. It's going to be a similar trip to the one I've just done in January but that gives me the chance to lay back and relax a bit this time instead of playing busy tourist *lol*

Here's a few pictures of the things we've done and seen in the last few days...

Me, my Mom and my brother near the Waipoua Forest Visitor's Center.

Daniel and I in front of Tane Mahuta...

... and going for a swim at Kai Iwi Lakes while those Europeans are busy taking pictures ;-) (I think they were just chickening out thinking the water was too cold for them!!!)

How to make Irish Soda Bread - gluten- and dairy-free!

2011-03-20T04:35:00.003+01:00

Shortly after deciding to go gluten- and dairy-free (for health reasons) almost half a year ago I signed up for the Living-Without-Newsletter and am now receiving recipes for gluten- and dairy-free meals on a regular base. This week the following recipe caught my eye: Irish Soda Bread! Since I've been yearning for some yummy bread for ages I thought I'd give it a try. It sure looked very delicious!

And you know what? IT TASTES EVEN BETTER THAN IT LOOKS!!!!! So I'm going to share it with you and hope you'll enjoy is as much as I did. Since Living Without is an American based publication all the measurements are given in cups. If you're used to grams etc. just use a free online-converter...

ingredients

2 cups gluten-free flour (I used Healtherie's Baking Mix)
1 teaspoon (tsp) baking soda
2 tsp gluten-free baking powder (e.g. Edmond's)
1/2 tsp xantham gum
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup gluten-free oats (available at Bin Inn's)
1 egg
1 cup soymilk (or ricemilk)

preparation

- preheat oven to 180°C
- lightly dust baking paper with flour
- mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, xantham gum, salt and oats
- add egg and milk
- form soft, sticky dough
- place on a lighty floured surface and knead a few times
- shape dough into a flat circle approx 15cm in diameter and place it on prepared baking paper
- sprinkle with flour and mark the top with a big X
- bake until goldenbrown (the recipe said between 30 and 35mins but it took almost an hour to finish mine)

Enjoy :-)

One step closer...

2011-03-17T04:26:00.000+01:00

I finally got hold of an immigration officer yesterday and my hopes of being able to stay in the country have been raised considerably. Though two of three options I kinda had were basically ruled out. Going for residency under the Skilled Migrant Category as a journalist? Very unlikely to succeed without a job offer in New Zealand. Getting help from my current boss at the restaurant? Very unlikely to succeed. "He'd have a hard time convincing us why a foreigner is needed as a waitress and why no Kiwi could do that job." That's what the guy on the phone said anyway...

And then he asked me "Don't you have a partner who has a New Zealand passport?" - They actually ask you that!!! And obviously the partnership-based work permit is the best option I have. So what does that mean? Both, Dan and I, need to fill out a couple of forms. I to apply for the work permit, he to state that yes he is my boyfriend and yes he would support me.

I will also need to get a full medical done including a chest x-ray and heaps of blood tests. That kinnda freaks me out because me and needles are not exactly on good terms ;-/ I will probably need a week to recover from that...

We also need "evident proof that we are in a stable relationship". There's heaps of different documents and things they'll accept so we'll have to start collecting stuff now. But if I don't fail the medical it shouldn't be a problem even though we've only been together for three months now. Because according to the immigration guy they don't really give a damn about how long you've been seeing each other.

Well, I have four months left on my current visa and it will take about two to process my application for the next one. Doesn't sound too bad, ay? Plus once my application is accepted I'll get an interims permit that allows me to stay AND work in the country until a decision has been made. So all good for now, my back feels a lot lighter now that I have all this information...

Has anybody been in the same situation before?

Hora Hora!

2011-03-17T04:11:00.000+01:00

Nope, this has nothing to do with Greek mythology or the Spanish language or whatever. Hora Hora is simply the name of my new soccer club. Unfortunately my days at Tikipunga were numbered. Only eight girls showed up to the first training of the season last week and numbers dropped to six on Monday. So when it was time to go to practice again yesterday I wasn't very surprised to receive a call from our coach telling me Tiki won't have a girls' team this year :-(

So what to do? Most of the girls went to Kamo to see if they still needed players. But what I've heard about Kamo so far wasn't very pleasant so I decided not to join them. Instead I went to a friend's team - in town and therefore a bit further away but a wise decision.

I instantly felt "at home" in Hora Hora. Not only was the majority of the team closer to my agge than in Tiki but the coach also maintained a good combination of fun and serious stuff. The warmup was very efficient followed by some intense tactical exercises. Gosh that felt sooo good! Finally being back on the ball and seeing that I hadn't forgotten it all! I think my coach back in Germany would be proud of me...

I did get a bit worried once we started the sprinting session. But once again I was positively surprised about how the coach handled things. I had told him about my exercise induced asthma and it seemed like he had encountered that before. He could see me starting to struggle just when I could feel my breathing becoming harder. I was allowed to take a break without any fuss and none of the other girls had a problem with it either.

So yeah, I'll definitely go back to training next week and I'm looking forward to kicking some ass this season *woohoo*

Kiwis love to go camping!

2011-03-14T02:57:00.004+01:00

I think I can actually count with both hands the amount of times I have been camping in my life until today. It's not that Germans don't like it - just my family didn't. I guess that's what you get for growing up with your mom only. Adding my fear of spiders und dislike of bugs I've come to the conclusion long ago that I'm just not made for camping.

Well, now that I'm in New Zealand I'd better get over it. Because Kiwis LOVE camping. Most of them anyway... So last weekend Daniel and I joined four of our mates and went on a short adventure. And you know what? Apart from me burning my lip trying to roast a marshmellow on the bonfire (don't ask me how I did that...) AND the fact that there was no "proper" toilet - just a longdrop (Plumpsklo) - I actually enjoyed it.

We went for a swim, got ourselves a free mud-treatment and feasted on all the yummy food we had brought along. Roasted potatoes, steaks, roasted marshmellows, chocolate covered heated bananas and then baked beans, bacon and eggs for breakfast. I think I gained two kilogramms in just 24 hours ;-/ Better get back to my fitness programm now...

Is it true?

2011-03-10T12:34:00.000+01:00

I had a late night at the pub tonight (WORKING! - til midnight) and as soon as I got into the car and drove off - I got stopped by the police. Alcohol test... All good of course. But then the cop asked me what driver's licence I was on - (German one plus the International one which is valid until 2013)... And then he told me that my International Licence is only valid in New Zealand for one year. If I stay in the country longer than that I need to get a Kiwi licence. Does anyone know if that is true? Because why would my international one be valid for three years if I'm not allowed to use it anymore after one???

What is good service worth to you?

2011-03-10T01:25:00.000+01:00

I've been working as a waitress in Whangarei for almost a month now - and there's but one thing I really have to get used to: New Zealand has no tipping culture!!!

When I was waitressing in Germany while going to uni I would make about 30 Euros in tips per day - sometimes more, sometimes less. But it was definitely something I was relying on in order to pay my bills and maybe go to the movies or do something fun.

I still remember having served one customer... he only ordered a cup of coffee. But our coffee machine was somehow mal-functinioning that day. Not only did he have to wait for about half an hour to actually get his coffee. But when he finally did get it - it was cold. Yet when he paid his 2.50 Euros for the coffee he gave me a 5-Euro-note and said "Keep the rest". Because obviously despite that bad experience I had still made his stay with us pleasant.

In my opinion tipping helps you become a better waitress. You are more alert and really want the customers to feel as good as possible. Because good service normally means generous tips. In Germany you tip anyone from waiters to hairdressers.

Not in New Zealand. Here I sometimes have customers who keep telling me over and over again how satisfied they are and how much they appreciate my service and blablabla... and when it's time for the bill they get their cards out, pay their bills - and walk off. Leaving not a single extra penny behind. Being accustomed to the German hospitality culture this still makes me feel very bad. Because in Germany when someone doesn't tip it means your service must have been really bad.

So I should probably change my way of thinking. Though in this case that is extremely hard to do. But at least now whenever I do get the odd tip (on good days about 10 dollars - 5 Euros - that I share 50/50 with the rest of the staff) I appreciate that even more. I just have to learn not to rely on tips.

What is strange though is that even people from countries who do have a tipping culture (many European countries, the US) do NOT tip anymore when they come here. So my question to you today is: What is good service worth to you?

When you're satisfied with your waiter/waitress and the service you receive - do you tip? How about when you're travelling - do you go by the country's tipping culture?

Better late than never

2011-03-03T03:12:00.000+01:00

Today I had a long expected "visitor" knocking on our door. The courier - carrying a parcel from Vodafone. Our modem! I couldn't believe it... So I spent all morning trying to set it up and get ourselves connected to the internet again. Wasn't that easy - because instead of only 5mins that stupid thing took about 2hours to configurate itself. But I won in the end - and now we're back online *woohoo* Just give me a few days to sort through my emails I will be back in touch with you all soon :-)

I'm still alive - just a little speechless

2011-02-28T21:51:00.000+01:00

Now you might think - speechless? Me? Well, let's call it a hardware-related speechlessness. For almost two weeks now Daniel and I have been waiting to get set up with internet and a phone line through Vodafone. Our phone line is working and we actually have a phone, too =D But we're still offline and there's not too many places in Whangarei to surf the web (for little money). And I'm kinda sick of going to McDonald's all the time taking my laptop for a walk..

Anyway - I still hope to be back online and more active again soon. Just got a message from Vodafone today (or at least I just saw the email today) saying that even our broadband is now set up - all that's missing is our hardware. However, that might take just a little longer to arrive due to the earthquake in Christchurch last week. Of course that's where they focus on right now - but we signed up with Vodafone a week BEFORE the quake hit... so no further comment on that.

As to what I've been up to... Daniel and I had a little welcoming party last Friday. It was heaps of fun and due to some spontanous visitors German girls were quite a majority that night *lol* Nina, a girl that I had travelled with in January, came back up north to spend her last days with me before heading back to Germany. She had just been on her way to Christchurch last week when the quake struck and was then struggling hard to get back out. She made it here safely and I'm very grateful for that. She was quite shaken (why is there no other word for that in the English language?!?) was I think coming here helped her get some distraction. Another friend of ours that we travelled with was also in Christchurch, had just started uni there. She, too, is well, thank God, but away from the city now deciding what will be her next steps.

There's also another au pair in town that I'm spending some time with now. Another youngster *lol* but she's really nice. Might come to play soccer with us *yeah* Practice for Tiki starts next week. Time to go running again and get back in shape.

Twilight soccer this year was awesome! We only lost the very first and the very last game and the best thing: I SCORED!!!! Daniel finally kept his promise and set me up and I slammed the ball into the goal *woohoo* what a great feeling - especially because that meant no nudy run for me *lol*

Work is also good. Last week was crazy, though. I worked 40 hours (which I know is normal in Germany anyway but considering as a part-timer here I'm only meant to do 30 hours per week...) and only had one day off. This week is better though I'm working lots of night shifts. Now I finally understand what couples mean when they say now that they live together they actually see each other less than before.

Well, time is almost up. But don't worry, I'll be back soon =D

I'm moving out - or in?

2011-02-13T21:05:00.000+01:00

Today is Valentine's Day. A day I have quite detested in the past few years. This year, however, everything is different. I am not spending Valentine's Day alone. And with not alone I mean that in the most literal way possible. What happened? I moved in with Daniel yesterday...

But to start from the beginning... A lot of things have changed in the last few weeks. I couldn't really tell you about it, though, because nothing was official and nothing was definite. Well, now it is. I am no longer working as an Au Pair - though I already miss the kids and felt a hint of sadness when I left the farm yesterday.

Now before you start worrying about what on earth might have happened - don't be alarmed. Pia and Philip have been the best host family any Au Pair could wish for and we'll still be in touch regularly. There has been no fight, nothing bad that forced us to part before our original agreement had run out. It was simply a matter of circumstances having changed.

For various reasons Pia is not working on the farm full-time anymore. To cut the story short that means that she spends a lot more time at home so that there is nothing much left for me to do. It was a little shock at first because I really enjoyed working for and with them. But sometimes there are changes in life that you just have to accept - and go with the flow.

So I went job-hunting in town last week, handed out a few CVs to cafés and bars and restaurants and instantly got a few trial days set up. One of those places basically hired me from the spot after only one hour. I'm already on the payroll and have my first official work day in a few hours.

Because it's quite a drive from the farm into town and I don't have as much access to the car anymore it made more sense to move into town - and in with Daniel. I'm still not sure whether it's been the right decision considering we've only been together for 2 months. But I guess we'll find that out sooner or later...

Right now there's only one major problem - we have neither internet nor telephone at the moment (I'm sitting at McDonald's right now surfing for free) so I won't be available for a while. So please don't worry if you don't hear anything from me for the next couple days or weeks. We are in the process of setting ourselves up with a connection it might take a while. Be patient :-)

Discover the beauty of nature at Tongariro

2011-02-04T02:16:00.000+01:00

I've been back on the farm for almost a week now and been slacking a bit with writing. There was one more thing I wanted to tell you about my holiday - probably the highlight of my entire trip: the Tongariro Alpine Crossing. It's New Zealand's most recommended one-day hike (19.4km) taking between six and eight hours. And after doing it I totally understand why.

I had signed up for doing the Crossing weeks before my trip because it was one thing on the list I absolutely wanted to do. Why? Because somewhere in the middle of Tongario National Park "arises" Mt. Ngauruhoe - better known as Mt. Doom from the epic motion picture Lord of the Rings. It was this 2287m high volcano that drew me to the National Park.

Because the Alpine Crossing is no circuit route you need a shuttle to get to the starting point and pick you up later on from the "finish line". During some research and looking for cheap accomodation I stumbled across the Erua Crossing Backpackers - a very cozy and atmospheric hostel a few kilometers away from National Park. It's run by a friendly couple, has some neat furniture and other icons AND a cupboard that leads to Narnia!!! But you have to look closely to find it...

Anyway... during the summer months they have a special offer: for $69 you get 2 nights of accomodation AND a shuttle bus to and back from the Crossing. There are two options in the morning - either you take the 6.45am shuttle and are dropped off at 7.30am or one hour later. Since I wasn't exactly sure how long I would take to do the hike and the last shuttle in the afternoon left at 4.30pm I chose the earlier option.

I wasn't as hard to get up that early as I had thought it would. Plus I had good company. I had shared the room with Emma, an American girl, and we decided to walk off together. So at 7.30am we reached Mangatepopo car park, our starting point. The sun was just about to rise behind the mountains and it was still nice and cool - perfect weather conditions.

Even though it was that early in the morning there were already busloads of people there. Not too many, but 50 at least I'd say. We found our own pace and started the hike.

Mangatepopo car park to Soda Springs - 1 hour

The first part of the track is rather easy. It's mostly flat with a few boardwalks inbetween. The Springs are a nice little waterfall only a short detour from the main track (15mins to and back). We decided to have breakfast there which was good because there wasn't anyone around. Take that first bit easy and safe your strength and your breath - for it won't be that easy from here.

Soda Springs to South Crater - 1 hour

After Soda Springs we had to start ascending - and it's quite a steep climb up to the South Crather. I had to take quite a few breaks to catch my breath (and of course I had forgotten my asthma inhaler...) - but that gave us enough time to admire the scenery.

Once we got to the South Crater (which is the flat part you can see in the picture in front of Mt. Ngauruhoe and the lake) it got a bit easier for a while. Lots of picture-taking here =D There is no real track across the crater but poles stuck in the ground lead you along to the next part.

South Crater to Red Crater - 1 hour

To get to the Red Crater we had to master another very steep climb. This probably was the hardest part for me during the entire track. I really wondered what I had gotten myself into and who on earth had forced me to do this. But Emma stuck to me like glue and helped me go on, motivating me and allowing enough breaks for my lungs not to collapse. Once I did make it to the top I was stunned. I don't know if I have ever seen such a magnificent view!!!

By the way - the Red Crater (1886m) is a still active vent of one of the volcanoes and if you put your hand down on the ground you can feel the heat underneath. There is lots of steam coming out here and there and there is a sulphite odor in the air just like in Rotorua.

Red Crater to Emerald Lakes - 15mins

From the Red Crater it was a long but very fast way down. You had to dig your heels into the sandy slope to keep from rolling downhill straight into the Emerald Lakes. It was quite fun though and a welcome diversion from all the uphill climbing.

Emerald Lakes to Ketetahi Hut - 1.5 hours

After the Emerald Lakes we had to cross another flat part followed by the LAST bit of uphill before reaching the Blue Lake (Te Wai-Whakaata-o-te Rangihiroa). There we made our lunch stop watching the lake and the clouds come across the water. All the sudden we couldn't see anything anymore so intense was the band of clouds covering us.

But it slowly faded away again and we could continue our walk - from now on more or less downhill through a plain-like vegetation zone that was suddenly so different from all we've come across before that day. It's amazing how many different vegetation zones you can cross in one day. Before there was no vegetation at all.

Ketetahi Hut to Ketetahi car park - 1.5 hours

And after the hut we even came across some native forest! Amazing. Though this last but seemed to have no end at all. The sign at Ketetahi Hut said 6.3km and since it was quite steep downhill we did the first 2km in 10mins. GREAT! We thought... back to the car park soon and way earlier than we thought we'd be able to finish.

Well - it did take us a bit longer than intended. For some reason these 6kms were the longest of the entire track. We were both getting tired, Emma had blisters on her feet, my energy level was about to reach a point far beyond its borders. At that point we didn't care about scenery or pictures or breaks anymore either. All we wanted to do was get it over with, make it to the car park and rest.

19.4km and 7h later we finally reached it. We were both very proud of ourselves and happy to have done it - and finished...

My verdict: The Alpine Crossing is doable, even in the given amount of time. It is, however, quite exhausting and needs some time and preparation and shouldn't be done out of the blue. BUT - and that is the most important thing - IT IS WORTH IT!!! Every single step of it. You probably won't see anything like it again! And hey - I'm already thinking about doing it again. In a couple of years *lol*

Here a few more things to keep in mind when doing the Tongariro Alpine Crossing:

toilets: There are facilities at the Mangatepopo car park (starting point), the Mangatepopo Hut (30mins), Soda Springs (1h), Ketetahi Hut (4.5h) and Ketetahi car park (6h). There won't be any chance of going anywhere else along the track as the terrain is either flat and open or too rocky and inaccesible. Besides you're not supposed to leave the track anyway.

weather protection: BRING IT!!! Especially in the summer time the sun can get really strong and therefore sunblock, hat and sunnies are an absolute MUST! Check the daily forecast for current conditions as you might also need a raincoat and - definitely in the winter time - gloves and warm clothing.

water: Bring plenty! At least a 1.5-liter bottle if not more. I had two of those and finished one and a half. There is no chance for you to refill your bottles along the way. The water from the streams is not suitable for drinking and even that at the huts needs to be boiled and cooled down before drinkable.

rubbish: Take it with you! There are no rubbish bins (unless maybe for the huts) and you wouldn't want to pollute this beautiful land.

huts: If you want to split up the hike and stay overnight in one of the huts you need to pre-book them through the DOC (Department of Conservation).

summit walks: Both, Mt. Ngauruhoe (2287m) and Mt. Tongariro (1967m), can be climbed (at least in the summer time). However, there is no poled route up Mt. Doom, you have to find your own way up to the crater. It adds another 2h to your trip. Mt. Tongariro is easier accesible and there is a poled route from the Red Crater. It's a 2h return journey from and back to the main track.

transportation: Depending on the shuttle company you're using (and there are heaps around) make sure you don't miss the last bus from the car park. Most shuttles leave every half hour until 4.30pm. Calculate your time for breaks, picture-stops and maybe even the summit hikes.

For more pictures of the Tongariro Alpine Crossing click here to my album on Facebook.

More blisters ;-(

2011-01-25T01:21:00.001+01:00

If my mom had seen me this morning I wonder if she would have been proud of me, completely shocked or simply surprised. Why? I was doing gardening work!!! Yep, I'm talking about me. I was swinging a hoe clearing out weeds and grass in Beverley's backyard. 1.5 hours! Now my hands are covered in blisters because there weren't any gloves ;-/ But who's complaining...

Staying at the pet animal zoo turned out a bit different than I had thought it would be. I never got to meet Beverley because she actually had to go to the hospital the day I arrived ;-/ But Joe, another couchsurfer currently staying with her and helping out, said I could come anyway and so this morning I helped him a bit in the backyard.

It was still quite an experience. Bev has sooo many animals - sheep (one is blind), a lovely dog named Honey, heaps of cats, chicken with babies, ducks and ducklings, guinea-pigs, rabbits, goats (baby goats due to arrive any day). If you are in the area, have a bit of time and would like to help her out I'm sure she'd appreciate it as she might not be able to do anything for a while when she comes back from the hospital. Check out Zippity Zoo online...

Well, it's time for me to get back on the road. My next stop tonight is Erua in Tongariro National Park. Tomorrow is the big day - I'm going the Tongariro Crossing, a six to eight hour day hike to "Mt. Doom" from Lord of the Rings.

WISH ME LUCK!!!!!

A rainy day in "Windy Welli"

2011-01-24T00:51:00.024+01:00

Yesterday probably was the worst day of my whole trip so far when it comes to weather conditions. Sometime during the night the rain had started and it didn't look like it was going to stop anytime soon. The sky was hidden behind a thick layer of clouds and it was pouring down constantly. So what better thing to do than go to a museum?

Te Papa is supposed to be New Zealand's best museum ever. I've heard you can spend days in there - and now I can tell you: IT IS ABSOLUTELY TRUE!!! The museum is right on Wellington's waterfront and offers a wide range of exhibitions starting from how our earth has evolved over millions of years - focussing on Gondwanaland, the continents driftign apart and how New Zealand finally was "founded".

You learn a lot about the tectonic movements of the plates especially those that affect NZ and cause daily earthquakes and volcanic eruptions from time to time. Other areas tell you about NZ's wildlife and how introduced species have influenced the native flora and fauna.

My favorite section was the one about passports. It tells the stories of hundreds of immigrants over the past 200 years, why they came to New Zealand, what they were hoping for and what life brought them once they arrived. Reading some of the stories I almost started crying because they are so personal, so full of emotions. It was overwhelming and thinking about my own plans to become a permament resident of NZ in the future really gave me goosebumps.

I spent six or seven hours in Te Papa yesterday and hadn't even seen half of it. That's how huge that place is. So I joined Johanna and Nina today to try and see the rest - which of course I didn't manage but at least I was able to look at a few more exhibitions.

What is even more wonderful about the musum - IT IS FREE!!! And that really amazes me because there is so much work and effort that's been put into the exhibitions. There are lots of hands-on activities, an outdoor bush city, some games you can play, an earthquake simulator, 3D-movies and heaps more.

The only things that cost money are two other simulators ($10 each), big brochures with more information of the museum including maps and all (from $3) and the audio guide ($5). I chose the audio guide and can really recommend it. It enables you to walk the museum at your own pace and block out the crying children and whatever else might be disturbing. It also gives you very interesting background information and helps you to find your way around the various exhibitions.

Also the store at Te Papa has the best postcards I have seen so far throughout NZ!!! So if you're looking for some nice ones, buy them here. They're $1.50 but you get stamps, too. If you're hungry there are two cafés at Te Papa. They are a bit expensive but have interesting stuff like Spirulina juice ($3.90).

I left the museum around 3pm, went with Nina to the Mt. Victoria Lookout for some spectacular views over the city (the rain had actually stopped this morning and the sun was as strong and beautiful as ever). After saying goodbye to all the girls I finally went back on the road and started my journed back up north. Tonight I will stay near Levin with a woman who's got a little animal pet zoo. Should be interesting =D

How to spend a Saturday in Wellington

2011-01-22T08:45:00.001+01:00

Had a great night out yesterday with the girls. Headed down to Cuba Street – one of the hippest places in Wellington. Found a pub called Duke Cavaller's which I swear had the weirdest cocktails ever. I got a Devonshire Mary – with a cucumber in it, some cherry tomatoes and spicy tabasco. It was kind of like Virgin Mary but way cooler... Johanna and I went back to the hostel sometime after 1am while Nina and Shir actually rocked the clubs until 5am!!!

Well, today unfortunately started a bit frustrating – at least for me. Johanna and I had planned to leave the hostel around 10am to enjoy a full day in the city. The other two girls were supposed to leave and join some other people on a hiking trip. Obviously that wasn't going to happen so we waited for them to get ready to head out together. It took FOREVER!!! And when we were finally about to leave Nina got a call from the hiking people saying they'd pick them up at noon.

By that time it was already 11.30am – and Nina and Shir still needed to get some money to pay me pack for petrol etc. To make a long story short – Johanna and I finally left the hostel at 1pm!!!!! More than half the day was gone. I was pretty pissed but what can you do. I had my money so at least that made me happy.

In the end the two of us still had a good day, we saw a lot, spend a lot of money and did lots of walking. We got a good idea of how the city feels like and I must say – I like it a lot better than Auckland!!! Wellington is full of vibes and music and cool places. You just can't feel bad here no matter if you're strolling along the waterfront or through the Botanical Gardens. It is beautiful!

Here are some things that I already would recommend anyone to do (more coming tomorrow):

1. On Saturdays go to Frank Kitt's Underground Markets. It's close to the Civic Square on Jervois Quay in an underground parking area. Here you'll find local arts and crafts, jewellery, clothing and some food and coffee stalls. It's not very big but still definitely worth a visit.

2. Wander along Cuba Street and enjoy the vintage stores, pubs and shopping opportunities. Also on Saturday the pub The Fringe on the corner of Cuba and Vivian hosts a little flea market.

3. Take the Cable Car ($3.50 one way, $6 return) up to the Botanical Gardens and enjoy the view over the city. You can either take the Cable Car back down or chose the 40mins walk back to the city center. You'll end up at the Parliament Buildings.

4. Walk up Hill Street to the Cathedral of Sacred Hearts (past the Wellington Cathedral of St. Paul). On the left hand side opposite the nice looking brick church there is a tree of which one branch is completely covered in bubble gum. It was such a weird sight! We had no idea what it was until a woman came by and told us the story. Obviously when the girls of St. Mary's Junior College start their senior years they put a bubble gum on that tree as some kind of ceremony. Her own daughter had done it a few months ago. Johanna didn't tell her that she had wanted to contribute to what we thought was a piece of art by adding yet another bubble gum to the tree...

5. Stop at Duke Cavaller's and try one of their funky cocktails. They may sound weird and are a bit pricy too ($12 - $17) but it's something your mouth will not forget.

Plan for tomorrow: Visit Te Papa (New Zealand's most popular museum, admission free), go to the Sunday Markets next to the museum and see what else NZ's capital has to offer.

Every girl's dream: shopping, wine and chocolate

2011-01-21T08:39:00.008+01:00

The last two days were days of sheer indulgement. After leaving Rotorua we headed south and after a quick stop at Huka Falls, where I had been with Daniel only a month ago, we arrived at the increasingly adventorous city of Taupo. If you love getting your daily dose of Adrenalin this is the place to be. Bungee-jumping, skydiving, jetboating, white-water rafting – you name it, they have it.

We chose the more relaxing path and went on a shopping trip. Taupo is not the worst place for that. In fact there are heaps of neat stores especially when it comes to secondhand and vintage clothing. I ended up buying a new backpack (didn't want to risk the old one breaking again when hiking Tongariro next week), a really nice and warm fleece jacket and a bunch of CDs for the car (each for $12 / 6 Euros - can you beat that???). The girls also got some new CDs so now we have a larger variety and can chose between Beach Boys, U2, Kings of Leon, Mamas and Papas and more...

I also found a fantastic gluten-free café in Taupo. The Fine Fettle (Paora Hape Street) is very central, their menu ranges from pastries, muesli, fish to mushrooms, pies and salads. If a menu has one smiley it means they can make it gluten-free. Two smileys tell you «Hey, I'm gluten-free, no matter what». I had mushrooms on home-made bread for $13.50 and they were really delicious!!! The place also offers free WI-FI. Just purchase something (i.e. one of their yummy looking smoothies) and you'll get the password to surf.

After Taupo we went straight down to Napier as that was quite a long drive to do and the weather wasn't the best anymore. We stayed with Max, a 54 y/o couchsurfer who's travelled half the world, lived in many different countries and has now heaps of stories to tell. It was very interesting talking to him. Unfortunately he didn't quite know when to stop. Even when he was giving us some travel advice it was hard to make him understand – though we appreciated his tips – that our time and budget was limited. Visiting 38 wineries in one morning is as impossible as doing a two-day-cycling trip when we only have one day to spend in town.

Anyway... we did have a very yummy dinner because Max recommended a fantastic fish & chips place where I tried fresh grilled gurnard. Before we could leave this morning we helped our host to get a heavy cabin in the garage (girl power!!!) as he is selling his house and planning a big garage sale on the weekend.

We finally managed to get back on the road by 10am. First stop was the city center of Napier. The town is «famous» for its Art Deco buildings and we found a few very intersting looking ones indeed. But the really cool stuff happened after leaving town. On the schedule today: WINE-TASTING!!! And even better – FOR FREE!!!

We had picked two wineries that were on the way and had been recommended by local wine guides. Mission Estate Winery is in fact New Zealand's oldest winery dating back to the 1880s. It looked quite majestic standing up on the hill with beautiful gardens and lots of walkways. Unfortuntely we couldn't enjoy the scenery that much as by the time of our arrival the rain was pouring down :-( So we just hopped inside and lined up for some wine tasting – for free...

They had three whites and three reds plus a desert wine on the menu that day. I only liked their Cabernet Sauvignon – and was looking forward to the desert wine. And hey the waiting was worth it. What a great flavour in your mouth. Couldn't resist and bought a bottle – for just $16.50 it's almost like it was free...

Just down the road was Church Road Winery. Not as classy but more expensive. Since I was driving I only tried their white wines and can definitely recommend their Pinot Gris. Both wineries offer tours through their cellars, but unfortunately only at certain hours and we didn't happen to be there on time.

After all that alcohol it was time for something sweet. Max had told us about Silky Oak, a chocolate factory a little further south towards Hastings. Would they have tastings, too? THEY DID!!!! Normally you can even watch them work but today the factory was closed. Didn't matter, the shop alone was worth a visit. MOUNTAINS OF CHOCOLATE!!! In every shape and color and flavor. And the best thing – their chocolate is gluten-free AND they have a good variety of dark chocolate that is dairy-free as well. I was in heaven. Literally speaking. We tried and bought and ate... and because that wasn't enough we hopped into the café as well and helped ourselves to some delicious hot chocolate. Do I have to mention that we all felt kinda sick after that – but wonderfully happy?

We almost ended up doing one more tasting. But the Tui Brewery was closed. Instead I found a street named after me =D Mara Road – pictures will follow in the next couple of days...

The only downside (besides the weather) of today was – we couldn't find a couchsurfer in Wellington that would take four girls in :-( Most of the people I had sent replies to didn't even bother to answer. One guy told me it's probably because of the national holiday in Wellington on Monday. Everybody was either booked out or gone away for the long weekend. Great... what about us? Luckily we found ONE hostel that still had enough space.

So after about seven hours of driving we finally made it to NZ's capital and checked into Rowena's Lodge, a backpacker on Mt. Victoria, very central and only ten walking minutes away from the city center. Going out in a minute, let's see what the city has to offer...

Why couchsurfing is so great!

2011-01-19T21:24:00.031+01:00

One reason why we are having so much fun on our trip are the people we're staying with. In Thames/Coromandel we were spoiled by Patrick and Christiane in every possible way. And in Rotorua it's Gabriel and his friends who make life so much easier and better. Initially we only wanted to stay in Rotorua for one night, then decided to extend that for one more night to have a bit more time exploring the area and have less driving.

Last night Gabe was throwing a pizza party. He had invited 20 friends or more from allover the world (there was only one true Kiwi around - a journalist I instantly started talking to) and we all made our own pizzas, had a bit of wine and lots of music. It was such a nice atmosphere, we so enjoyed ourselves. And we met Heiko, a German who has immigrated to New Zealand about 15 years ago. Talking to him and checking the weather report (more rain, cyclone coming) we decided to stay yet another night in Rotorua as I didn't want to drive all day in the rain and there were probably more things to do in the rain in Rotorua than in Whakatane where we initially wanted to go to next. But whale-watching probably wasn't possible in the rain anyway.

Well, when we woke up today the sun was shining, it was hot and humid and no sign of any cyclone at all. Did we regret our decision of staying? NOT AT ALL!!! Because Heiko took us out to Lake Tarawera with his little boat - built in 1935 and completely restored by him. The lake is about 30mins away from Rotorua but soooo worth a visit. Crystal-blue water, stunning scenery around with a few extinct (?) volcanoes and beautiful houses of the upper class. We went for a swim and tried fishing, unfortunately without success.

Later in the afternoon we drove to Tauranga and Mt. Maunganui in the Bay of Plenty to have some seafood. You can climb Mount Moao (that's the Maori name of the mountain in Mt. Maunganui) which we didn't do because - believe it or not - our legs are STILL HURTING!!! Will it ever completely go away???

Anyway... We went for a little walk and enjoyed the scenery, stopped at the beach - awesome waves and perfect for surfers - and took some pictures. Then we drove to the neighboring town of Tauranga - heaps of little shops and bars and restaurants along the waterfront. A typical tourist town, could have been in Greece or Spain or anywhere near the Mediterranean Sea. But ut was nice. We had dinner at "The Crown and Badger" and the fresh snapper was relly worth its $20.

Driving back in the sunset we were happy to have spent yet another great day in New Zealand. Tomorrow it's off to Napier via Taupo and whatever else catches our eye on the way there...

Take it slow – and stinky...

2011-01-18T09:12:00.001+01:00

After having hiked so much and been out and about from dusk til dawn these last few days none of us felt quite energetic today. Especially not since all the other ones had actually stayed up until 3am!!! The only thing on the schedule today was the Thermal Wonderland in Wai-O-Tapu approx. 20 minutes south of Rotorua. It does cost $32.50 but it is worth the money...

First thing in the morning was picking up Shir, a couchsurfer from the USA. She is the new add-on to our party and will join us all the way to Wellington. But we do have to leave Cecilia behind - whom we will meet again in Wellington though...

After having picked up Shir we went south to the geothermal area. Bought our tickets - and guess who I did run into... VICKY!!!!! Another Au Pair from Germany who's working in Whangarei... this place is so small...

The Wonderland itself was really cool! We started our tour by watching the Lady Knox Geysir erupt at precisely 10.15am. It does that every single day - because the staff puts washing powder in to stimulate the geysir. How freaky is that??? But it was really cool watching the bubbles get bigger and bigger until that huge water (steam) fountain shot high into the air.

The Wonderland itself is huge but you can walk it easily in 1.5 hours (the paths are 3km long). Our legs still weren't better - even seemed a lot worse!!! But we enjoyed the quiet and solitude of the rocks and craters. The coolest thing was the Devil's Pool - a neon green (!!! - pictures will follow) hot pool. Amazing!

Didn't do much the rest of the day besides sleep, eat and chill out. Right now there are about 30 people at Gabe's house having a pizza night with music and drink and talk. Once again we have changed our original plan - this time due to the weather. There's a cyclone coming which brings even more rain than we had today. So going to Whakatane hoping to see whales and dolphins is out of the question ;-(

Instead we'll stay in Rotorua one more day and then head straight to Napier after that. Hopefully by then the sky is clear again and the sun will be shining...

Dig your own spa at Hot Water Beach

2011-01-17T09:02:00.002+01:00

Waking up in the morning wasn't as bad as I would have thought it was going to be. I felt a bit stiff from yesterday and my thighs and calves were close to cramping but I've had worse. Looking back at the hike up to the Pinnacles I can now say it has been worth it. But does that mean I would do it again? Probably not...

Anyway... Our last day at the Coromandel Pensinsula had come and we thought we might take it a bit slower and relax. So after a nice sleep-in we made our way to Hot Water Beach at the east coast which is famous for its hot springs. If you bring a bucket and a spade (or hire one for $5 per two hours) you can dig a hole and if you get the right spot hot water will come up - et voilà – you have your own private spa =D

It took us about 1.5 hours to drive from Thames to Hot Water Beach. Low tide started around noon so we made it just in time. Because – and this is very important to keep in mind – it only makes sense digging for your own spa two hours before and after low tide. Once the high tide sets in the water will cover the area where you're supposed to dig.

It took us a while to find the perfect spot. There were heaps of people already at the beach digging and enjoying the water. But most of them actually didn't have hot water. Same thing happened to us – we digged and digged and digged but only found cold water. What kind of joke was this?!?!?

So I went to ask a lifeguard and the girl told me there are actually only two hot springs. One is right in front of the first big rock about 400 meters along the beach and the second one about 20 meters after that one. So we found the rock and started digging. And guess what – minutes later we had to watch out so our feet wouldn't get burned!!!

Now we knew what the bucket was for – to get cold water from the ocean. Otherwise it is soooo hot that you just can't bear it. We had so much fun and it was very relaxing just to sit there and spoil ourselves. Many people were looking at us quite envious because their pool was not even close to warm...

When the tide set in we packed our stuff together and had a picnic close to the beach. The sun was burning really hot... After that we headed north to Cathedral Cove. There's a nice little walk down to the beach where the cove and some interesting rock formations are. It's supposed to be a 45min walk one way - but the Lonely Planet already said anyone who's not on a ventilator will do it in 20mins.

Even we made that - though our legs by this time were killing us. I was so close to getting cramps, walking downhill was almost impossible. Gosh that hurt... So once down at the cove I went straight back into the water for another swim though it had started to rain quite a bit.

We made it back to our wonderful hosts in time for dinner and to say goodbye. We also had to leave Anita behind because she had decided to stay in Thames for a bit longer. So it was just the four of us heading down to Rotorua. We got there just after 11pm - and for the first time I during the trip I really hated being the only one driving all the time.

I didn't have any energy left to get to know our current host, Gabriel (Brazilian), and went to bed after the initial small talk.

You'll find heaps of pictures of Hot Water Beach and Cathedral Cove on Facebook. Just follow this link...

How I survived the Pinnacle hike...

2011-01-16T12:13:00.083+01:00

Me after a four-hour-hike at the top of the Pinnacles at 759m.

... I honestly still don't know. I'm not made for hiking. And I certainly wonder why on earth I decided to do this once again. Yesterday's hike was not too bad, quite steep and exhausting, but we had heaps of breaks so it didn't bother me that much. But today???

We had chosen to hike all the way up to the Pinnacles, a 759 meters high rock formation near Thames. It took us half an hour to drive to the tourist information and another half hour to get to the car park at the bottom of the hike. The guidebooks say this walk is "the most popular" hike on the Coromandel Peninsula. The Lonely Planet also calls it a "challenging six- to eight-hour return journey".

Well, let me tell you. It definitly is challenging. The first half hour was alright with a nice pathway leading slightly steep uphill. Then the steps started. And when I say steps, I mean STEEP steps. And HUNDREDS of them. And definitely not designed for normal humans as some of them were up to 0.5 meters tall. You really had to climb the steps rather than walk them. Don't believe me? Look at this picture...

Now with my exercise induced asthma this kind of stuff is exactly what's killing me. I managed to hike for another 1.5 hours before I got really close to an asthma attack. Lucky me I had my puffer with me - not knowing though that it had expired three months ago ;-/ After taking a deep breath I didn't feel any difference at all. My whole system felt like it was collapsing. My ears were ringing, my head was pounding, my stomach got queasy and my legs turned into a wobbly mass. Still I went on. Going back just wasn't an option...

Eventually I simply ran out of energy and turned into auto pilot. Walk, walk, walk. That was all my brain kept telling my legs. And I walked. I took one step after the other. For another whole hour. Time just didn't seem to pass. And whenever we met some people coming down the hill we got different answers to our question "How far away is the hut?". Some guys said another easy hour. Half an hour later we had a couple saying at least another hour and a bit. Very unreliable...

Finally we came to a sign that said "Pinnacles Hut 20mins". What a relief. That is where I wanted to make it to. Screw the final climb to the top. The hut was my goal, my last straw. There I could finally sit down, have a long break, get something to eat (we all had some snacks and sandwiches prepared). I was sure as I would stay behind, let the others do the final 50mins to the top. I would wait at the hut for their return and then just go back down again.

Maybe I should have done exactly that. But after having had something to eat and taking a break I felt wonderfully refreshed and was stupid enough to join the girls on the final climb. This is where we were heading to. Have a close look at the picture and you will see the millions of stairs leading to the top of that rock formation...

Well, it wasn't millions of stairs - but 530. Nina counted them. But you know what? They weren't the worst. Because after those 530 steps there were two ladders - no problem - and then it was FREE-CLIMBING!!! At an almost 180° angle it was finding stones and roots and whatever else you could find, push yourself up and make your way to the top. That was too much me.

And when all the sudden one of the straps on my backback broke and the whole thing almost fell down more than 700 meters into the abyss I lost it. I scared Cecilia by yelling a few obscene words - poor girl thought I was falling down... But no, someone must have been watching over me very closely and kept me from just doing exactly that.

Instead Cecilia and I switched backpacks and she carried my broken one to the top while giving me a hand climbing up and trying to cheer me up. Must have worked because after a while I actually found myself on the very top of the pinnacles. And then I just cried and cried and cried. Like I said - I am not made for things like this. And worse - I had no idea how I'd ever be able to make it back down.

But of course I somehow managed to do that as well. After having spent more than half an hour at the top and time getting closer and closer to sunset even I gathered enough strength to start the descent. Made it to the car by 7.30pm - not without me getting a cramp in my toes only meters away from the carpark. What a day...

So in the end I realize I have a lot of things to be grateful for:
- First of all my guardian angel who not only helped me finish this hike but come out of it alive. I not only saw my backpack fall down 750 meters but me follow it straight away, too.
- Cecilia for carrying my broken backpack up the last few meters while freeclimbing and giving me a massage when I was crying out of sheer exhaustion on top of the mountain.
- Nina for fixing my backpack as good as possible so I could carry it back to the car.
- Anita for staying with me most of the time on the way down lending me a helping hand and keeping me company.
- All the girls for their patience and understanding.
- Our couchsurfing hosts Patrick and Christiane who awaited us with dinner and refreshments, listened to our stories and even let me have a hot bath to relax body and soul.

Guys, this trip is only so great because of you!!!! I feel really sad for having to part with some of you tomorrow. It was a wonderful time with you!!!

Now the only probem is: How am I going to conquer Tongariro? I've signed up for New Zealand's most popular hike for next Wednesday. You're supposed to be able to do it in about eight hours. However, after today's experience, I'm thinking about splitting it up into two days with spending one night in one of the huts. Will probably talk to the people at the hostel since I've already booked my accomodation. We'll see what happens...

Nina has already done it and she said it is even steeper than the Pinnacles - but easier to walk since there are barely any stairs (mostly the path just leads evenly uphill) and definitely no free-climbing. So what should I do?

Here are a few tips for anyone who wants to do the hike to the Pinnacles:

1. Start early enough to allow yourself time for breaks and picture stops. We didn't start until noon and not only had the sun shining strong above us but also pushed it quite far coming back down before sunset. Including breaks and picture-stops the complete hike to the top and back took us aprrox. eight hours.

2. Wear appropriate shoes. Of course hiking boots would be best. But sneakers are ok, too, depending on how comfortable you feel in them. I chose mine over trekking sandals today and was happy I did. It gets too slippery and uneven at points and you might really hurt yourself with the wrong footwear.

3. Think about hiking up to the hut the first day, then stay overnight and do the climb to the top the next morning when you're still fresh and full of energy.

4. Take at least two 1.5-liter-bottles of water! We only had one bottle each and most of it was gone by the time we made it to the top. There is no chance to refill your bottle anywhere along the treck.

5. Apply sunblock before you leave and remember to reapply it while you're walking. Part of the track is in the bush and you'll be safe from the sun. But especially during the last parts you'll be exposed to the sun without any shade at all.

6. Bring your togs! Once you've completed the hike and are back at the car park drive back towards the tourist information center and stop at Hoffman pools for a quick swim to refresh yourself.

7. If you want maps they have heaps at the tourist information center. Most cost between $1.50 and $2 but they have a free one for the Pinnacles as well. Jusk ask - the staff is very friendly and will also give you heaps of advice on other tracks around New Zealand.

You'll find heaps of pictures of the Pinnacles on Facebook. Just follow this link...

Finding inner peace

2011-01-15T12:39:00.006+01:00

The first full day of our trip started with some bad news. The car was definitely broken and needed to be taken to the garage. I'm not a mechanic but our couchsurfing host Patrick used to work as a mechanic and according to him the exhaust pipe was broken near the engine. That's what was causing those nasty sounds yesterday (like a roaring elk).

Though the news was bad especially since we had just started our trip it could not have happened at a better place. Patrick helped Johanna and me find a mechanic that was open on Saturday morning while his wife Christiane took the other girls into town for the farmer's market. We soon joined them afterwards having dropped off the brokencar and walked up and down the main road in Thames. The markets are lovely!!! They are on every Saturday from 7 to 12am and you'll find anything from food to antiques to clothing...

Thames is especially great for people with "weird" or out-of-the-normal eating habits. Heaps of offers for vegetarians and vegans, lovers or organic food and even I got very lucky. Since going off gluten and dairy there are only a few things I really miss - among them or probably top of the list is decent cheese. But New Zealand, being a dairy country, does not have a single offer of lactose-free cheese. You can get goat cheese in the supermarket but that's about it. So today I was in cheese heaven =D Though quite expensive I bought some sheep gouda and some other cheese that is perfect on bread or crackers and I indulged myself in a very delicious lunch.

Just after noon we got a phone call from the mechanic - car is fixed and ready to be picked up. Cost: $150. I think that's a greaet price considering the problem AND it being the weekend. So after lunch we could finally set off to our first hike on the Coromandel Peninsula.

Thanks to Christiane and Patrick we found one of the most stunning places on earth! And I am not exaggerating. The walk we did can not be found in any guide-book (at least none of us had heard or read about it). We drove about 40mins north of Thames along the Highway to a place called "Mana Retreat". It's a huge area mainly for spiritual purposes with huts and cabins and differents walkways. This is where we went to.

It took us about an hour to climb the steep path through the bush. Nina was leading the way getting rid of all the spiderwebs for the cowards to follow... we had good fun though it was hard work but working together and helping each other along the way made the hike a lot easier. And once we made it to the top and stood on a rock called Crystal Guardian we knew it had been worth it. The view from up there is magnificent! You feel free, at peace with yourself and the world in general and you can spend hours just admiring the scenery.

Me on top of the Crystal Guardian at the Mana Retreat.

I couldn't believe I even free-climbed one of the rocks. I felt the queen of the world =D We spent at least half an hour up there and then made our way down to the sanctuary - a building that looks like half church, half temple, half whatever... in fact it is a non-denominational place for any religion. You're supposed to be silent in there but dancing and singing is allowed (they just don't want you to chit-chat all the time while in there instead of bringing your mind to rest). So Nina, Anita, Johanna and I did exactly that. We sung.

The Sanctuary at Mana Retreat.

The accoustic inside the sanctuary is amazing. We started with Amazing Grace and each of us gut goosebumps from the sound. I also walked the mythological labyrinth thinking about the pathways my life is currently pointing me to and trying to answer some vital questions.

All in all it was a wonderful day with lots of exercise yet very peaceful and relaxing. Tomorrow we're off to the Pinnacles a six-hour-hike in the northern part of Coromandel. Should be good practice for Tongariro - the one-day-hike I'll be doing in 1.5 weeks.

The Sanctuary in front of the Crystal Guardian.

You'll find heaps more pictures on Facebook. Just follow this link...

Back on the road

2011-01-14T11:25:00.000+01:00

Johanna and I have finally started our trip around New Zealand's North Island. We left Whangarei at 4.30pm today heading down to Auckland first to pick up some couchsurfers. We ended up having a car with five girls!!! It was tough fitting all the luggage in but it worked :-)

With a short dinner stop along the way we made it to Thames at the bottom of Coromandel Pensinsula just before 10pm. What a drive... I have to admit I almost fell asleep on the way but our guardian angel was keeping an eye on all of us. Thanks for that!!!

We then had a warm welcome by our couchsurfing hosts Christiane (also German) and Patrick. We haven't quite decided yet what exactly we're going to do tomorrow. Probably have a quick stop at the farmer's markets in town - I want to buy some goat and sheep cheese - and we might have to have the car checked. The exhaust pipe didn't sound too good for the last hour of our trip and I think there was a bit of a petrol smell in the car for a while. Keep your fingers crossed that it's nothing serious!!!!!!

Depending on the outcome of our morning's activities (and me sleeping in!) we might do a short hike somewhere nearby tomorrow afternoon. The area is perfect for walking and there are lots of recommended hikes... Christiane and Patrick told us about a nice one that you won't find in any guidebook. It's only two hours and leads you to some kind of sanctuary. Looking forward to that!

We've got the Pinnacles planned for Sunday - a long but very scenic walk to the top of the mountains - and then Hot Water Beach (dig your own mud pool at low tide) and maybe another walk on Monday before heading down to Tauranga/Rotorua. I'll keep you posted. First pictures are following soon!

I'm going on a trip :-)

2011-01-09T22:52:00.000+01:00

It's almost half-time. I came to New Zealand July 14 and in the past half year have done lots of weekend trips to the north. I've seen the northern most part Cape Reinga (for which the post is still missing I'm sorry) where - as the Maori believe - the souls of the dead go to to start their very last journey to Hawaiki where everything begun. I've been to Kai Iwi Lakes, Waipoua Forest with Tane Mahuta, seen many beaches along the east and west coast of Northland, the northern most region (kind of like a province) in NZ.

I've also been to Auckland a few times, the nearest major city. The furthest south I've been so far was a weekend trip to Rotorua where Daniel and a few of our friends were participating in a half-ironman.

So there is still a lot to see and do in this wonderful country that I'm hoping to make my new home. Since the school holidays won't be finished until the end of January I'm able to take a few days off (thank you Pia & Philip!!!) and explore. Johanna - a Swiss Au Pair - and I are leaving on a big trip this Friday *woohoo* We'll go all the way down to Wellington at the very bottom of the North Island. There Johanna is probably deserting me while I'm heading back up to Whangarei.

Here are a few things we (I) will see on our trip...

Coromandel: This peninsula in the northeast is known for some of the most beautiful white-sand beaches in New Zealand. There a few former gold-mining towns, muddy wetlands, forest and mountain ranges. We're going to start our trip here with a few awesome walks experiencing nature at its best. Must-do-stop: Hot Water Beach (dig your own thermal pool!).

Tauranga: Good spot for swimming with dolphins and probably a good chance to spot whales too! A walk up Mt. Maunganui (232m) is on the list as well as the views should be spectacular. The mountain is surrounded by beautiful beaches :-)

Rotorua: I've been here before, but only briefly. We'll definitely stop at the geothermal wonderland with its geysirs and hot/mud pools (not to swim in - a few days ago an 8 y/o boy died because he fell into one of the pools which can be up to 100 degrees Celcius hot!!!). Beware also of the slightly rotten egg odor that lies in the air. Comes with the sulphite from the geothermal activity that makes this area such an attraction for tourists.

Whakatane: Another great spot for sighting dolphins, seals, orca and other whales. Kepp your fingers crossed for us (I'll share the pics with you!)...

Gisborne: "It proudly claims to be the first city on earth to see the sun." - That's what the Lonely Planet says. It is definitely blessed with heaps of sunny days throughout the year. The city on the east coast also has an interesting mix of architecture with Edwardian buildings next to five-story skyscrapers, "modern" buildings from the 1950s and some Art Decó houses. Important historical fact: Captain Cook - British explorer and the first European to discover Aotearoa - first set foot to New Zealand right here in October 1769. Also the area is famous for its wines and we might have the chance to do some FREE wine-tasting =D

Napier: Further down the east coast are the twin cities of Napier and Hastings. The latter is not supposed to be that spectacular so we'll skip it and just have a look at Napier which was almost completely rebuilt after a deadly earthquake in 1931. Lots of Art Decó buildings around and some more wineries that offer free tastings *yummy* Lucky me we are staying over night because I'm the driver and I surely don't want to miss out on that...

Wellington: It's the capital (with 164.000 people!!!) so of course we're stopping here... Obviously Wellington will be a bit like Chicago - windy. At least the city is also called "Windy Welly". It's the major travel crossroad between the North and South Island and Johanna might hop on a ferry further south. I'll just take a few days to explore the city , probably hop into Te Papa - the "Museum of New Zealand". It has huge Maori collections, its own marae (the traditional meeting house of the Maori) and some high-tech exhibitions.

Wanganui: Well-known for glas-blowing and art studios. Other than lots of activities are available here like kayaking, canoeing or jetboating. After all Whanganui River is the longest navigable river in New Zealand.

Tongariro: There are heaps of walks and hikes throughout New Zealand. The Tongariro Crossing is supposed to be the easiest of the one-day-hikes and by far offering one of the most amazing views ever. So I've signed myself up for it! It's going to be loooong day though. The shuttle will take me from the hostel to my starting point at 6.45am (!!!) and then I'll have between 8 and 9 hours to do the track. If you want to read more about Tongariro here's the official website with all kinds of information. I'm still looking for someone to join me so if you don't have anything to do Jan 26 let me know!

Hamilton: After my hike I'll just take it easy and make my way back home. Probably will stop in Hamilton on the way, relax at a few beaches and see if I can find some small gemstones along the way that are worth a visit...

I'm the toothpaste monster...

2011-01-05T09:17:00.000+01:00

.. or: How to keep yourself from going insane over nasty itching mosquito bites...

I've always been a favorite victim for any kind of sucking insect. No matter whether it's a mosquito or a sandfly, they LOVE me - and my skin sometimes reacts with huge marks as big as my mobile phone. It's hard to keep yourself from scratching all the time. And if that wasn't annoying enough - some bites are in rather uncomfortable areas (such as your butt) so pants or other clothing items do the scratching for you. Whether you want them to or not.

So what to do? In Germany I would normally use a soothing balm like Fenistil. But first of all I usually don't have any around and second it normally doesn't really help either.

So what to do?!? There's gotta be something... A friend of mine told me today that her husband actually tried HOT WAX!!! He said it helped - but I'm not that sadistic... So what else is there? She had another good suggestion: TOOTHPASTE. You normally have THAT at hand so at least it's a practical solution.

I just applied some toothpaste on the biggest mosquito bites - and it actually feels better. It really does have a cooling and therefore soothing effect. The only problem is - I shouldn't go out now cos I smell like dentist...

How do you treat itchy bites - what are your secret weapons?

That was my 2010

2010-12-31T23:49:00.073+01:00

Similar to last year I'd like to take some time to look back at the year that's passing and take a glance at the one ahead. Simply by answering a few questions...

Main feeling when looking back at 2010?
It started out rather horrible with more downs then ups. But towards the end joy and pleasure were the feelings my heart was experiencing most =D

What did you do for the first time in 2010?
Went fishing. Went swimming in the winter (in the ocean!). Made myself homeless and unemployed at the same time. Watched a rugby game.

Lost or gained weight?
Lost a lot of psychological burden, probably gained a few pounds working at the computer all the time ;-/

City of the year?
Whangarei - my new home (temporary or loing-term?) where I've already met lots of great people!

Hair shorter or longer?
Slowly letting it grow again.

More short- or near-sighted??
Still short-sighted.

Spent or gained more money?
Definitely spent more just by coming to New Zealand.

Fallen in love?
Positively! *kiss* to you know who you are...

Drink of the year?
Caipirinha.

Food of the year?
Fresh scallops and oysters.

Spent the best times with...?
Finishing the season with my soccer girls - GO TUB!!! Still having heaps of fun with all my friends here in NZ.

Spent most time with...?
My host family :-)

Song of the year?
Leonard Cohen - In my secret life.

Book of the year?
Warum die nettesten Männer die schrecklichsten Frauen haben (Sherry Argov).

Movie of the year?
Ghostwriter.

Concert of the year?
Leonard Cohen and Bon Jovi in Auckland.

TV-show of the year?
Haven't been watching much this year.

Realization of the year?
Home is where your heart is.

Three things I could have lived without?
There are a few things I would definitely put on the list - but then those are things that brought me where I am now. And I am happy. So all is good :-)

Neighbor of the year?
Family Günther :-) Thank you so much for the lovely Christmas card!

Best idee/decision of the year?
Quitting my job, selling my stuff and coming to New Zealand.

Worst thing that happened?
Getting an email from my brother telling my my grandma is at the hospital - intensive care!!! Thank God she's well again. Love you, Oma!!!

Best thing that happened?
I'm enjoying life again :-)

2010 in one word?
Exciting.

Looking ahead

Resolutions for 2011?
Stop hurting myself! Too many injuries and accidents towards the end of the year... Want to do sports more regularly.

What's on the agenda for 2011?
Travel New Zealand and find a way how to stay in this beautiful country long-term. My mom and brother are coming over in March/April - would love to show them some of the places I've seen and make them see why I don't want to come back.

What do you want to change?
Not much right now. I'm pretty happy with the way things are =D (Wow when did I actually say that last?!?)

What do you want to stay the same?
I hope friends and family stay in good health and have a great year 2011!!!

Belated surprise

2010-12-29T21:59:00.001+01:00

There are some traditions that I really love. Christmas calenders for example. Year after year my mom keeps asking me "Surely you're too old for that stuff now, aren't you?" - But of course I'm not. For some things you never get too old.

So year after year I would hang up my very special Christmas calender that my mom had previously filled with all kinds of chocolate and sweets that she knew I liked. No matter if I lived anywhere near home, further away in Germany (I'd make her come and visit me before December to make sure my calender gets to me on time) or even overseas (like the US). My calender was always there.

Not so this year. My mom had earlier tried to send chocolate to New Zealand - the parcel took EIGHT WEEKS and by the time I received it the chocolate had gone all manky :-( And she didn't even ask about me wanting a calender this year. Some people suggested I just buy one for myself - but see, you just don't do that. You buy Christmas calenders for someone else. But you don't buy them for yourself. It's just wrong...

Christmas has been over for almost a week now. I did survive without a calender, of course. But imagine my surprise - and my pure joy - when I received a letter yesterday from my former neighbors in Leipzig which also included A CHRISTMAS CALENDER *woohoo* Sometimes it's amazing how much pleasure small gestures like this one can bring =D Thank you so much, lovely ex-neighbors!

Meet the family

2010-12-27T10:32:00.000+01:00

Christmas 2010 is officially over. I had a wonderful weekend though it never really felt like Christmas should feel like. At least when it comes to the atmosphere, the cold, the snow, ... you know what I mean.

But it surely felt like Christmas in the sense of spending time with loved ones, bringing each other joy and happiness. After all Christmas is the season of love. So what did I do? I started Christmas Day with a yummy sparkling-wine-and-salmon-breakfast with my host family. After that the kids finally got to open their presents. Gosh were they excited! So many wrapped parcels under the tree...

But you'll never guess which of their presents the kids actually liked best... Just look at this picture...

Pia and Philip got me a beautiful necklace that perfectly matched my outfit for the day...

Of course I also had something for them. Since they've been really awesome host parents I had wanted to say thank you in a special way - and decided on a piece of art. I'd taken a picture of a shell where I'd written something upon... put that on canvas... then with the help of my soccer friend and local artist Kathy Mortimer added some more personal touches to the picture. et voilà - here is the result :-)

The rest of the day it was not "Meet the parents" but "Meet the family". Since Daniel's parents and sister with family are in Australia there was "only" the less immediate relatives to meet. We started with his mom's side for lunch. How awkward... After being single for so many years I had completely forgotten what a terrifying feeling it can be to meet the family. But I think it didn't go too bad...

The afternoon was a bit easier because I already knew someone - Dan's cousin Ryan an his fiancé Amy whom I also play soccer with. The two of them had even got me a birthday present - as had Dan's grandpa. He gave me a piece of Kauri gum which might be about 1000 years old? He turns that into pieces of art like jewellery and such. I'll have to have a look at his collection and show you some pictures!

With our tummies full we finally came back to the farm for dinner at Paul's and Helen's place. It was "only" leftovers but HEAPS of them... Daniel fit in really well I'd say. Philip's brother Noel told me today that he thinks Dan's a really nice guy. Isn't that sweet :-)

Also managed to talk to my family back home on Skype for the first time since I left Germany! So far it's only been phone calls. Everyone seems to be doing fine back home and they are looking forward to coming over here next year. Yep, it's true - my mom and my brother are actually flying to New Zealand in March. I still can't believe it!

German Christmas Eve vs. Kiwi traditions

2010-12-24T11:03:00.000+01:00

Every country has its own traditions during holidays such as Christmas. In Germany Christmas Eve is the most important day of this festive season. We'd put up the Xmas tree in the morning and decorate it. When I was younger my mom would actually lock herself into the living room and not let anyone in until the job was done. I later adopted the same routine - I would lock her and my brother out until the tree looked exactly as I wanted it to be :-)

If we hadn't already done so the days before we'd bake some Xmas cookies - "Vanillekipferl" - and of course prepare the food for the same night and the following days.

Christmas Eve we'd always have potato salad and Wiener Würstchen (Vienna Sausages) at approx 6pm. We couldn't wait for dinner to be finished - because afterwards finally Santa would come and deliver our presents. Yes - in Germany (and many other European countries in fact) Santa already comes on Christmas Eve. And he doesn't slide down the chimney either. We get to see him in person =D As kids we always had to recite a poem, sing a song or do something like that in order to get our presents.

And guess what naughty kids get instead of presents: a sack of coals and a whip on their bottom with a brach of the Christmas tree. So you better be good =D

Today I had my first Christmas Eve in New Zealand. Normally in Germany by this time I'd be anxious and excited and full of Christmas Spirit. But I'm afraid Christmas in the summer time just doesn't feel like Christmas. More like a summer party - but then that's just what it is down here...

I spent my morning at the physiotherapist to work on my whiplash/concussion problems that I've had for a while now. Went to town after that to get my last presents sorted out, then back home to do some more cooking, clean the house and spend the afternoon with the kids, watching the puppies and relax a bit.

Then we headed over to the gliding club for a Christmas BBQ with family and friends. It was really nice. We had mussels *yummy* and steak of course, sausages AND POTATO SALAD (which I just had to make to not break with tradition entirely). Then there was cake and ice cream afterwards. So much food... and it's just the beginning...

I didn't open a present today. Not sure if I'm getting any *lol* But I got a nice card from Daniel and have another one to open tomorrow... Only one more hour til Christmas Day *woohoo*

Playdough Adventures

2010-12-23T00:10:00.000+01:00

The last few days the weather has been rather awful in the mornings so I thought about some fun stuff for the kids to do. We all kinda got tired of playing "The Amazing Moa/Mammoth Hunt", "Monopoly" or "Muumin Lotto" all the time. So today I made my first ever playdough with a recipe that Pia always uses.

It's rather easy - just mix up the following ingredients:

1 cup flour
1/2 cup salt
1 cup water
2 tbs oil
2 tbs cream of tatar

Cook it in a pot on medium heat and stir around until it's stiff. Let it cool down, knead until the dough has the right consistency and add some food color. Ready to play =D

Just make sure you use gloves while adding the color otherwise your hands will end up like mine...

There are more playdough pictures on Facebook...

Tub, Spotty-Wotty, Rascal & Co.

2010-12-20T23:36:00.020+01:00

Our puppies are now a little more than four weeks old and getting bigger every day. After moving them into the garage where they have more space we started letting them out a few days ago. And they are LOVING it!!! They're very adventurous and exploring their surroundings. But we have to watch out - they now have teeth and are using them whenever possible. Toes, ankles and anything else they find will be licked and then chewed on...

Oh - and we started feeding them too because Tip's milk is just not going to be enough anymore. Look how they are enjoying that...

You'll find heaps more puppy pictures on Facebook...

Name and address, please...

2010-12-16T11:25:00.001+01:00

What happens when two foreigners join two Kiwis for a pub quiz night where most of the questions are New Zealand based? Right - they lose... Tonight's quiz night was far from successful, but at least Johanna and I actually got a few answers right AND our team scored 9/10 in the geography round. WOOHOO!

Had another first tonight, too: On the way out of town I actually got stopped during a routine police control and had to give my name and adress for the alcohol test. That was exciting =D I did pass by the way...

And I'm slowly getting into the Xmas mood. Started some baking yesterday after my mom gave me her recipe for traditional German Vanillekipferl. They turned out so yummy I had to make heaps more today. Since Eliza is already on holiday she helped me make them and did such an amazing job!!! Here's the proof...

And here is the recipe for Vanillekipferl - try it, it's soooo yummy!!!

400g butter
560g flour (it works perfectly with gluten-free flour mixes, just use approx. one teaspoon of Xantham gum for every 100g of flour)
120g sugar
200g ground almonds
120g vanilla sugar (4 packages in Germany)

* knead the dough until all the ingredients are combined
* roll out little mountain-shaped Kipferl as shown in the picture below
* bake for 15 to 20mins in the oven at 180°C until golden yellow
* let Kipferl cool down, then roll in a mix of icing and vanilla sugar
* enjoy :-)

Oh Du Fröhliche...

2010-12-14T11:23:00.000+01:00

There is a saying in German called "Die Vorweihnachtszeit ist die schönste Zeit" which basically means that the time right before Xmas is the best of all. Well true - somehow. It gives you enough time to get yourself in the right mood for Christmas, think about the year that's about to be over and make wishes for the one to come.

However, the pre-Xmas-season is also one - if not THE - busiest time of the year. How on earth could I ever think things are slowing down now? They are not - actually the opposite is the case. That's one of the reasons why I've been slacking a little with my writing lately.

Another reason is - life *lol* Or kind of like a friend of mine said today. "Rather fill your life with wonderful experiences than just writing about them." So I'll just tell you briefly what's been going on around here lately. The kids had swimming lessons the last two weeks. Funnily breast stroke is not the first style they learn.

I also went to another pub quiz night and guess what - no, we didn't win again. But we came third *heehee* got us a 10-dollar-voucher for dessert next time. Which will be this Thursday. After that - as basically all the activities I've been doing in the past few weeks and months - there's no more quiz nights until whenever. Soccer finished last week too, we lost again ;-/ I didn't play...

That reminds me of another reason why I haven't been writing much lately. I had to go the doctor's again last week after spending yet another two days in bed. My personal goal - seeing less doctor's over here - hasn't worked out so far as I've needed medical aid five times in the last five months. That's actually worse than in Germany!!!

But at least this time I actually have reasons to go. What happened this time? I woke up last Tuesday and my whole world was spinning. No matter if my eyes were open or closed. I felt like having emptied three bottles of whiskey - only there had been no alcohol involved at all. Yet that condition lasted for several hours and only slightly got better. I couldn't get up without getting really dizzy and queasy and sick. When walking I was staggering along having to hold on to the walls for balance. My neck really hurt too and felt sore and stiff.

The diagnosis: concussion and whiplash (for the Germans: Gehirnerschütterung und Schleudertrauma). And all from a soccer injury that is almost 1.5 months ago ;-/ Now I'm swallowing a couple of different pills and get physiotherapy hoping it'll soon be better. I still feel dizzy most of the day but at least I can walk normal again. Just feel constantly slighty drunk - only without the fun of consuming any alcohol... doctor said it could take up to a couple of months for all the symptoms to disappear. Hallelujah ;-/ But I guess I can be happy nothing worse happened!

Well, it's getting late and I should head off to bed. Just a few more short things before I go. We decorated our Xmas tree last weekend and the kids asked me to put the star on the top. That was sooooo sweet :-) Also Eliza had prize-giving at school last night and she won a cup!!! She's the best artist in her entire class *proud* She also got a very good end-of-year-report and will be in year 3 next year *woohoo*

Will be going to Rotorua next weekend with a few friends who are doing part or full triathlons. I'm just watching just so you know *lol* Will stop at the mud pools there and probably go to Lake Taupo on the way back. So next week I might have some more adventures AND pictures for you. Still have to upload a few from last week. Will let you know once they're published...

News on the puppies...

2010-12-06T08:59:00.001+01:00

Tipi's puppies are now 14 days old and they have grown sooo much! Some of them started to open their eyes so I thought it's about time I took some more pictures. They are so cute and cuddly and adorable and I can't wait for them to start crawling around and be old enough to play with.

This is just one snapshot...

You'll find heaps more on Facebook.

Bon Jovi live in concert!!!

2010-12-06T07:42:00.000+01:00

Went back to Auckland this weekend to see Bon Jovi live in concert *woohoo* The tickets were only 100 NZ dollars (approx. 50 Euros) so I didn't have to think about it much. And what shall I say - IT WAS WORTH IT EVERY SINGLE CENT!!!!!

Of course the concert at Vector Arena was completely sold out. And thanks to YouTube I can give you an idea of what it was like... The video was taken from near where I was sitting so you see what I see. Here is Bon Jovi's final song of the concert - Living on a prayer...

Considering that Jon Bon Jovi is getting close to 50 (less than 2 years to go!!!) it was AMAZING how he rocked the stage. Looking at his face you can tell he gets older - but man that guy still has the moves and the groves and he can jump and shake and wiggle... I really enjoyed the show and he did all his great songs like Bed of Roses, Runaway, Shot through the Heart, Keep the Faith, It's my Life, We weren't born to follow and many, many more. I've never considered myself a big fan, but I sure do love the music and don't regret going to the conert at all.

By the way... would you have thought that the first time Bon Jovie ever played in New Zealand was already in 1987?!?!?!?

Christmas in Kiwiland

2010-12-05T07:17:00.000+01:00

Usually when I think of Christmas I have pictures in my mind of building snowmen, having snowball fights, Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas Markets) with Glühwein (mulled wine) and Feuerzangenbowle (basically flaming spiced rum), woolen hats and scarves and gloves and the permanent wish to snuggle up in front of a fire to escape the cold. When I think of Christmas I certainly don't associate that with beach, sunblock and BBQs.

Yet that is exactly what the Christmas Party I've been invited to on Saturday was all about. We played cricket at the beach, went for a swim, later had a BBQ with sausages, steak, salads and lots of sweets. it was FANTASTIC!!!!!

We also did a secret Santa. Everybody was supposed to bring a present worth 5 to 10 NZ dollars. Since there were mostly girls on the list of attendees I got the following...

Too bad there was actually one little girl participating. She must have been two or three, not more than that. And guess who got my secret santa present ;-) That was SOOO hilarious! She actually got to keep it - only they filled it up with juice instead of whiskey *lol*

I got a few little things in my present - among it a little teddy bear which found just the right new owner. Since my last stuffed animal is still somewhere between Germany and New Zealand I was really happy to receive this one. I didn't think I'd miss Wuschel that much... but how did a friend at the party put it? "It's nice to have something familiar in a strange bed." How true...

Anyway... even though Pia has put most of the Christmas decoration up and the kids request Christmas songs almost every single day it still doesn't feel like Christmas. And it's less than three weeks away... At least I've bought most of my Christmas presents AND I'm planning on making some Vanillegipferl - typical German Christmas cookies. Just waiting for my mom to send over the recipe as her's are the best =D

By the way... did you know that New Zealand has its own version of Jingle Bells? The chorus goes like this...

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle all the way
Christmas in New Zealand on a sunny summer's day, ah!
Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells, Jingle all the way
Oh what fun it is to have a Kiwi holiday!

I love my kids!

2010-11-25T09:47:00.000+01:00

Pia and Philip are in Auckland tonight for the U2 concert so for the first time I'm all alone with Lukas and Eliza over night. I wasn't afraid of it but I surely didn't expect it to got that smooth =D I had a soccer game in the afternoon so Louise took the kids along with a kilo of chicken nuggets, a pot of pasta and some cinnamon cookies I had made earlier.

2.5 hours later I picked them up (we've won the soccer game 9:3 - we absolutely trashed them *heehee*). They were just finishing Toy Story 3 and were already in their pyjamas. Took them home, they brushed their teeth and hopped into bed. We read one chapter of their current bedtime story and got some reading time on their own afterwards.

I was going to check on Tipi and her puppies in the meantime, feed her and let her out for a little walk.

Ten minutes later I come back inside to turn off the light and send the kids to bed. And what do I find? The light is turned off and both kids are fast asleep. It was not even 8.30pm.

Lukas and Eliza, you are absolutely adorable *kiss*

I'm planning my future

2010-11-23T10:16:00.000+01:00

It's been a little quiet around here lately. That is not because nothing has happened. On the contrary. Life has been full of events, everyday adventures and problems. But I didn't consider most of the things extraordinary enough to be mentioned. Who cares whether we've lost at soccer or won a pub quiz, whether I've been drunk and sick as at a friend's place or am going for a swim in the Pacific almost every weekend.

My mind has been preoccupied these last few days and weeks. If you're reading my blog regularly you already know I have fallen in love head over heels with this country. Sometimes when I'm at the beach or even just driving around I could not only jump for joy but almost cry or scream out loud because it so feels like coming home, having arrived. It's hard to explain this feeling inside.

The longer I am here the more I come to understand - as I have already done in the past - that Germany is not a happy place for me. I don't fit, I feel out of place there. I've always longed for something else, like my most favorite quote explains perfectly:

Every dreamer knows it is entirely possible to be homesick for a place you've never been to. Perhaps even more homesick than for familiar ground.

Now that I'm in New Zealand I don't feel "homesick" anymore. I feel like I have finally come home. Sounds weird, doesn't it? Thinking that I've only been here for 4.5 months. Yet that is exactly the way I feel.

A friend of mine is just trying to extend her stay here and has applied for a work permit. But the conditions are very tough and I'm not sure whether she'll make it. I've put a lot of thought into that lately wondering if I can stay here, under what circumstances and what kind of life I'd want to live. And I've come to some interesting conclusions that might suprise, maybe even shock some of you.

Ever since I was ten years old I wanted to be a journalist. I've done heaps of internships, freelance work, got my university degree and worked a few years in what I always thought was not only my favorite profession, but a passion. Realizing - and accepting - that this might no longer be the case was tough.

Being an Au Pair and working with kids almost full-time has changed a lot of my perspectives. I am seriously considering a career change - and to become an Early Childhood Teacher here in New Zealand. The last few days and weeks I have spent researching online, talking to people, weighing my options, calculating, making phone calls... and I'm slowly seeing light at the end of the tunnel. Meaning there really might be a way to make this work.

Studying over here is very expensive - especially for foreigners who sometimes pay more than three times as much on fees as kiwis would. Getting permits - to study and/or work - is just as tough and requires lots of paperwork. I downloaded probably 40 pages of information brochures, application forms and whatever else today and am still fighting my way through it.

Luckily I have eight more months to work things out. But my decision is made. Let's see if I am meant to walk this path...

Kua whānau mai tōku kuri i ngā kuri pēpi i tēnei rā

2010-11-22T09:28:00.023+01:00

For all of you who are not familiar with the Māori language - that means: "My dog just had some puppies today". I know, Tipi isn't my dog - but we haven't learnt the word for "our" yet so this will have to do.

Anyway... YAY WE HAVE PUPPIES =D I think it's only a week ago that Lukas said Tipi is probably having babies soon. And that clever little boy was right. Yesterday just after noon Pia and Louise found our two year-old bordercollie with nine little baby doggies in the shed. Six girls and two boys. Can't wait to see them grow up. Their eyes are still closed and it will take up to two weeks for them to open them up and start crawling around. But they are already the cutest things ever!!!

It's like Old McDonald's right now with all the baby animals around...

You'll find more pictures on Facebook.

Why housework should be banned!

2010-11-09T10:25:00.000+01:00

Originally today's (second) post was supposed to be about baby animals. Because of those I had seen a lot today. First of all Louise (my host mom's sister in law) has bought a kitten on the weekend and Ozo is such a cute little thing =D I want a kitten, too *lol*

Today Noel (Louise's husband and my host dad's brother) has also brought home a little baby rabbit that almost got run over with the motorbike on the paddock. They'll try to keep it and hopefully it will survive...

Another baby animal that still isn't safe is Piepsi, a little chick that was found at a friend's place this morning. It's born too late, way after its siblings, and therefore probably too weak to survive among the other chicken. So now it's found a new home with Katrin and she'll try to coddle it up.

But anyway... the post was only MEANT to be written about baby animals. Instead I'd like to write about Guardian Angels today and why housework should be banned... I've always been a bit clumsy but lately there have been too many incidents that make me wonder whether my Guardian Angel is taking a vacation right now.

Just last week I bumped my head (and my butt) real hard while playing soccer. Could barely move my neck for a few days so stiff were the muscles from absorbing the fall.

And then today...? I was vacuuming the house and was almost finished when somehow I managed to drop one of our heaters right onto my foot. Oh I don't know if I have ever felt such pain... It was so bad I got all queasy and thought I had to throw up. Luckily Pia was already home. Don't know what I would have done with just the kids around. Though Lukas and Eliza were really sweet - fighting over who can bring me a glass of water, some pain relief... Lukas brought me a stuffed animal to squeeze and Eliza took my hand. They are soooo adorable!!!

Pia took me to the doctor so I could get an X-ray, see if it's broken. Lucky me it isn't =D It'll just be sore for a few days until the swelling goes away. So now I wonder whether my Guardian Angel is actually a really good one because I'm just too clumsy in general and he prevents me from getting seriuously hurt. Or whether he is taking a short vacation right now because all these things happen in the first place...

You've got mail!

2010-11-09T01:11:00.000+01:00

Today one of Pia's friends came over for lunch and guess what she held in her hands... MY MOM'S PARCEL!!! The one I have been waiting for for almost a month now! I didn't think it would appear anymore and now it's here =D

Anne said she had it delivered to her mailbox yesterday. Now the funny thing is - Anne lives about half an hour away from here on a farm just as remote as ours. Her last name doesn't match Pia's, the roads don't sound similar... what on earth was that mailman or maillady thinking?!?!?

Anyway, it't here now - and I can finally have my yummy Uelzena cappuccino again =D

It's time to...

2010-11-07T22:08:00.000+01:00

YEAH!!!! I made it... Sometime last night (New Zealand Standard Time) my blog welcomed its 5000th visitor!!! Therefore I would like to thank all of you for following me, reading my posts and every once in a while even recommending it to others. That's the pure joy of writing a blog like this - to know that it's being read and appreciated =D

That is me sausage!!!

2010-11-07T09:58:00.002+01:00

Just got back from another great weekend exploring beautiful New Zealand. This time we (Gritje, Sophie and I) went to Kerikeri where Gritje's host mom's brother David lives who had "invited" us to a BBQ and let us stay at his place for the weekend.

Unfortunately I missed Sunday dinner with my host family because it had been rescheduled to Friday this time due to Guy Fawkes Day. Back in 1605 a group of "terrorists" tried to kill the British King with a bunch of gunpowder barrels. The plot failed and Guw Fawkes who was supposed to be its leader was executed. Since then every year on November 5th there are huge bonfires all over Britain (and obviously New Zealand as well) remembering that day when the King was saved.

I missed the fireworks with my host family because we were leaving for Kerikeri Friday Night. But we had our own bonfire (mostly lit with the help of diesel, diesel and more diesel) and David had supplied some fireworks which to German standards are rather weak I have to admit. But we had heaps of fun anyway roasting marshmellows over the diesel fire =D

We spent Saturday in Paihia, called "The Jewel of the Bay of Islands". There's heaps of stuff to do: kayaking, horse-riding, skydiving, walks, helicopter rides, ... Paihia is one of the first settlements in New Zealands and nearby you find historic Russell and Waitangi where the treaty was signed that led to the country's "birth".

We spent all day long at the beach looking for beautiful shells, going for a swim and doing some shopping. Life can be so wonderful down here. Makes you wonder how anyone would ever want to leave again! The same thought occured to me again today when David took us on a boat trip to Cape Brett and the "Hole in the Rocks".

The night before I had asked David how the chances to see some dolphins are in the area. His answer wasn't very satisfying: "They swim around, sometimes they are here, sometimes they are not." The happier I was when Gritje actually did spot some dolphins while we were cruising around! THEY WERE SO BEAUTIFUL! Quite huge, too. It was an unforgettable sight seeing those graceful animals floating through the water, playing with the waves. At times they were as close to the boat as maybe five meters!!! What a joy =D

Once they were gone we went to Urupukapuka Beach for a swim and do some kayaking. The water at first seemed quite cold but after a while it was actually a lot more comfortable being in the water than out with the wind blowing stronger and stronger.

The water was getting a bit rough, too, when we made our way back to the coast. David was enjoying himself on the wheel going quite fast so our bodys were shaking around with each wave. I wish I had a boat - I'd be out on the water every free minute! I so enjoy it and lucky me I was allowed to drive for a bit. Of course David turned the speed down before he handed over the wheel. Too bad ;-/

We also did some fishing today - or at least Sophie and I tried to. Unfortunately the only thing we caught were two unhappy seagulls that somehow managed to get tangled up with the hook ;-/ David and Gritje were trying to help them which wasn't easy because those poor fellows were fighting for their lives hacking and biting anything that came close. But in the end both were freed and I hope are by now happily munching on fish again...

By the way for all of you who understand a bit of German... We were thinking about a few German idioms this weekend and translated them into English word by word. I put my second favorite down as the headline for this post. Can't tell you my favorite as it's a bit naughty *heehee* FYK would be the abbreviation for those who want to know send me a message :-)

P.S.: I didn't take any pictures this weekend but Sophie did. You'll find them - as always - on Facebook by clicking here...

Back on the field

2010-11-04T10:21:00.000+01:00

Back in Germany I had promised my soccer coach I would try to find a team down here to keep in shape and don't forget how to play. Well - unfortunately soccer season in New Zealand only lasts during the winter months. There is, however, a less serious league where anyone can play during the summer months. And I have found myself a team *yeah*

A few weeks ago when I went to the prize-giving of Tikipunga Soccer Club - where I played the last two games of the season - I met one of the guys who plays for Tiki and he let me join his team "The Llamas". They lost the first game last week 3:4 - I wasn't there because I had been in Auckland *lol* This week I finally made it and was looking forward to kicking the ball again =D

The field we play on for this league is quite small and each half is only 20mins. Each team needs to have at least one woman on the field (or two?), there's five players each on the field all together. We didn't start too good and were soon one goal behind. BUT we were getting better and better. In the end the score was 7:3!!!!!!! We kicked ass =D

Even I could have scored - but I was too busy tripping over the ball when trying to shoot from what seemed to me a perfect position ;-/ Landed very hard on my butt and then on my head. Didn't know what hurt more... Still feeling a little dizzy.

And as if that isn't enough humiliation I ended up in a typical "stupid female"-situation after the game. I was sitting in the car wanting to go home - and that stupid key wouldn't turn to start the engine. I tried for about 10mins... nothing worked. Unfortunately my host family was about half an hour away - so what was I supposed to do? Of course - call a guy for help... One of the players came to my rescue - it turned out the wheel was locked, that's why the key wouldn't turn.

I feld SOOOOOOOOOOO stupid ;-/ Couldn't believe it - like in a really bad movie. What a day...

Getting to know your animals

2010-11-01T01:25:00.000+01:00

School in New Zealand is quite different from Germany. Not only do you start school the day you turn 5 years old - no matter if your birthday is in January, August or November... learning (from what I understand so far) also is a lot more individual.

When I started school in East Germany many many years ago (I was one of the few ones who started school at 6 rather than 7) we had our "Fibel" - the book that contained your letters and taught you how to read - we did our maths and biology, ... everybody learnt the same stuff at the same time. If you weren't fast enough you were just out of luck.

It's amazing to see Eliza who just turned 7 read book that have 20 pages or more, containing words like "gradually" or "hippopotamus". Lukas who will turn 5 in February knows how to write his name, can count at least to 20, often higher than that, and does easy maths (like 1 plus 1). Even Rachel who is only 2.5 can count. Was it like that when I was young? Can't remember...

Anyway... last weekend I experienced something else I've never come across at any school in Germany. Ag(ricultural) Day - or Calf Club Day. For weeks and weeks all the kids had to practice with a pet animal at home - either a calf, a lamb or a little goat. Learn about it - what it eats, how to feed it, how to clean it, when it was born, ... Lukas and Eliza spent a few afternoons leading their calves around, making the animals get used to them, brushing them, feeding them.

On Ag Day the whole school gets together. My family including Philip's brother Noel, his wife Louise and their kids Matthew, Ryan and Rachel plus two calves for neighbors' kids went here with seven calves!!! The kids all got a number to identify them for the jury and then everyone started preparing the animals.

Eventually all the kids gathered in groups to start the competition. They each had to lead their animal around a show course making circles, turns and stops to show they could handle their calf. A jury judged the performance and also tried to find out how well the children knew their "pet". Prizes were also given for good breeding.

Our kids did really well =D Matthew got third for Rearing and Eliza third for Leading. Even Ryan who attented Ag Day for the first time did a very good job. Here are the proud calf owners:

Matthew (7) and Sarah

Ryan (5) and Canada

Eliza (7) trying to convince Crystal to accept her ribbon :-)

The cutest thing, however, was to watch our little ones Lukas and Rachel handle their animals. Pre-schoolers are usually not allowed on the show course but Lukas wanted to have a go anyway. So he took Mustikka (Finnish for Blueberry) for a walk in front of everybody. Unfortunately Mustikka is more than stubborn and was dragging Lukas along the course rather than being led. But Lukas was very brave - he didn't let go of the leash until the calf had dragged im around a corner and ran off ;-/ Still he - and all of us!!! - was very proud when in the end he got a special rosetta for giving it a try.

Lukas (4) and Mustikka

And how about little Rachel? She dragged chockie (? - short for chocolate) around the course being determined to be the boss. What a little rascal =D

Welcome to Auckland =D

2010-10-29T10:36:00.015+02:00

Usually I only have weekends off to go travelling or do whatever... Last week, however, I left the farm on Thursday already to head down do Auckland. I was going to see Leonard Cohen live in concert!!! For those of you who don't have a clue who he is - this is a small excerpt of his bio from the official Leonard-Cohen-Website:

For four decades, Leonard Cohen has been one of the most important and influential songwriters of our time, a figure whose body of work achieves greater depths of mystery and meaning as time goes on. His songs have set a virtually unmatched standard in their seriousness and range. [...] His first album, Songs of Leonard Cohen (1967), announced him as an undeniable major talent. [...] Part of the reason why Cohen’s early work revealed such a high degree of achievement is that he was an accomplished literary figure before he ever began to record. His collections of poetry [...] and his novels [...] had already brought him considerable recognition. His dual careers in music and literature have continued feeding each other over the decades – his songs revealing a literary quality rare in the world of popular music, and his poetry and prose informed by a rich musicality.

To be honest, until about two years ago I had no idea who he was either. Then one day i heard that song in some series I watched. And it deeply touched me. I had to google it, find out who's voice can give you such goosegumps. The song I heard was called "In my secret life" and is still my favorite.

The concert was more than worth it! It lasted almost 4 hours and the range of songs Cohen provided was unbelievable. But I enjoyed every single one. His voice is unique and though that man is 76 years old he still knows how to entertain. I am glad I got to see him and will definitely get some of his CDs.

Being in Auckland of course I also played tourist and had a look at the city. With 1.4 million people more than a fourth of the whole population of New Zealand lives here. But the most impressive fact is that Auckland is built on 48 volcanoes. Not all of them are dead - just sleeping. From the top of those volcanic cones you get an amazing view over the city. This picture was taken from Mt. Eden:

I started getting to know Auckland by hopping on the Auckland Explorer, the typical double-decker tourist bus that takes you across the city and stops at all the major attractions. The commentary tells you some interesting bits and pieces and you get a small discount e.g. to the Auckland Museum and Kelly Tarlton.

The Auckland Museum is definitely worth a visit.

It has some interesting exhibitions about New Zealand's past, how the country has developed over hundreds and thousands of years, where its people come from, ... You can wander around a Marae, the traditional meeting house of the Maori and for an extra fee you can watch a cultural performance.

Another must expecially if you have children is Kelly Tarlton's Arctic Encounter and Underwater World. You not only learn a lot about NZ sealife. There is an actual Arctic Station where you can hop on a snow mobile ride and watch all sorts of penguins up close. Or why not watch the sharks and stingrays being fed? An interactive area makes this a great experience for little (and big) adventurers.

Aucklands most famous landmark is the Skytower. You can go up to the top for pictures (haven't that this time), do a 360 degree walk on the outer ring of the tower or bungee jump to the bottom. Which one would you prefer?

The city also has some very nice parks. I spent a few hours in Albert Park near the university buildings just reading a book and enjoying the sun. However, in the end Auckland is just another big city that offers party, adventure and sights on the one hand but on the other hand lacks the beauty of areas like the Northland with its green hills and mountaintops... It's nice to have been there and experience the flair of the city. But I am glad to be back on the farm where things a a lot more peaceful and quiet :-)

You'll find more pictures from Auckland on Facebook.

Homework? What is that?

2010-10-25T23:19:00.000+02:00

After a long weekend (yesterday was Labor Day) the kids were back to school and kindy today. Usually for Eliza she gets a bunch of homework on Monday that is due back at school on Friday so she has a few days to complete it. Plus there is a book or a short story to read and some spelling to practice every day. But there usually isn't any homework during the weekend. So I found this little conversation we had this morning just before we were about to leave quite funny...

Mara: "Eliza, do you have everything you need for school in your bag?"

Eliza: "Yes."

Pia: "Did you get your praisebook back over the weekend?" - A praisebook is like a Hausaufgabenbuch in Germany where teacher and parents comment once a week on the student's progress, behavior, ...

Eliza: "No, I didn't. But we got some homework."

Pia and I: "Homework? Over the weekend?"

Eliza (happily nodding): "Yes. Some reading and spelling words"

I: "Why didn't you tell us?"

Eliza: "Oh, I forgot."

SUMMER IS HERE!!!

2010-10-25T02:25:00.000+02:00

It's Labour Day Weekend and finally summer seems to have found New Zealand. I spent most of the time outside enjoying the sun and a clear blue sky. Saturday a friend took me out on his boat with a few buddies and we headed to Whangarei Heads. The guys went diving while the rest of us stretched lazily on deck, getting a tan and going for a swim in the still cold but refreshing water. I even got a go at the wheel AND I went fishing - for the very first time in my life. Even caught something!!!

My Friend was laughing and making fun of me saying what a shame to take a picture with this tiny little thing. He's probably right - but hey, who knows if I'll ever go fishing again let along catch something. So this might have been a once-in-a-lifetime-chance *heehee* Anyway... we released the poor little fellow back into the sea after he had posed so nicely for the camera.

The most impressive thing that day was - once again - the landscape.

I just can't get enough of this country no matter where I go. The sea is soooo clean and a clear blue you think you can almost see the bottom. There were hundreds of birds - seagulls and another native NZ bird I've forgotten the name of. And there were litttle penguins just floating on the water. It was so cute. And then the hills, majestic and covered with trees that have such an intense green color... I know this sounds cheesy but I could have cried so happy was I just being there. How could anyone ever want to leave this place!?!

For dinner we had scollops the guys had caught - had some raw ones on the boat, didn't know you could eat them like that but they were soooo yummy! Sunday I went to the beach with some girls and we just let our souls and bodies rest in the sun. The beach (Pataua South) was surrounded by a nice scenery but we didn't feel like going swimming there. Too many sharp shells all over the place, little crabs and seastars...

Turned out we weren't actually on the right beach ;-/ Took a wrong turn somewhere and missed the right spot by maybe 200 meters. What a shame!!! Will go back though cos the beach IS supposed to be a lovely one.

Thursday I'm going to Auckland for a Leonard Cohen concert =D I'll be staying at a girl's place that I've only met a few days ago. It's amazing this network of Au Pairs. Somehow we're all connected and someone always knows someone else that you know, too. Friday I met four Au Pairs from Auckland - I'd spoken to one of them on Facebook for a while. Now they were in the area and we had a greaeat night out in Whangarei. I bought another bag at the Night Markets and we had some yummy food at a place called "The Fat Camel". Looking forward to meeting the girls again in Auckland later this week =D

Happy Birthday, Eliza =D

2010-10-22T01:38:00.039+02:00

Today was a very special day - because a very special girl was celebrating her birthday. Eliza turned 7 and had invited heaps of kids. For lack of space (and to safe the house from being turned upside down) the party was relocated to the Whangarei Gliding Club which is just next door. Pia had bought lots of party food hoping to satisfy the needs and fill the tummies of 19 children (!!!). There were chicken nuggets, sausage rolls, marshmellows, chippies, lollies, ... and cupcakes which the kids could decorate themselves as a highlight.

It's unbelievable how much noise 19 kids can make *lol* But as long as there was food on the table they were happy as can be. I remember my birthday parties in the little tiny appartment where me, my mom and my brother were living in when I was young. Sometimes it was so hard to think of something to entertain everybody. We usually ended up playing blind man's bluff or hit the pot.

But here there is so much space and the kids can just run around and explore - as long as they are not touching hot wires or possum traps... no need to worry they might break something or get bored too easily. They all had heaps of fun and I think the cupcakes really were the highlight of the day for many of them :-)

Lukas wasn't too happy though because Eliza kept getting all those fantastic presents ;-( He still needs to wait 15 more weeks (we count in Sunday dinners because it's still hard for him to understand the concept of time) until he finally turns five, gets lots and lots of presents - and starts school!!! Yep, over here you start school at the age of 5.

So while in Germany being 7 years old usually means you're about to start school or have just recently done so depending on when you're born Eliza has already gone to school, learnt her ABC and numbers for two whole years! Amazing... And she's getting so much better at reading, can can count to 100 and above, does easy multiplication... it's neat to see her making progress in different areas :-)

I am not Bear Grylls

2010-10-15T00:12:00.030+02:00

There is a polular show over here on TV hosted by Bear Grylls, the youngest Briton who ever climbed Mount Everest when he was only 23. The TV show is about is numerous expeditions through the wilderness in any possible place on earth. He gives advice on how to behave, how to survive and does the most extreme stuff out there.

Well, I'm a city girl - and in no way fit for the wilderness at all. As I had once again to acknowledge when Pia und Philip took me and three other guests staying at the farm on a "hike" to the waterfall that's on one of the paddocks. I had no idea at all what I was getting myself into. I knew it was not going to be a relaxing walk through the grass - but neither had I expected to have to balance over slippery stones to cross a river, getting wet and muddy all the way up to my knees, almost crawling through the forest, climbing uphill...

Of course I was neither wearing appropriate footwear nor the right jacket oder clothes at all to go on an adventure like this. I was worried sick about my camera getting soaked that was dangling from my shoulder, my feet were aching from the sharp stones I kept stepping on. Most of the time I had no idea where to step next because I couldn't see the ground anymore.

Let's face it - I'm a wimp. At some point I was close to breaking down. I sent my boots flying along the river not giving a damn about anything anymore. I was ready to sit down where I was and wait for a helicopter to pick me up again. Sounds pretty lame, doesn't it? If it wasn't for Pia who stayed with me and gave me a hand every now and then I probably would have done just that.

But - in the end I made it. All the way to the waterfall. And looking back (at the time I was there I was too mad at the world to appreciate anything) it was definitely worth the "hike". Or what do you think?

Now that I know what I'm getting into I might actually do it again. But just maybe... Wanna see more pictures of the Falls and the farm? Follow this link to Facebook :-)

I won't miss you...

2010-10-14T10:53:00.000+02:00

Lukas is full of surprises and though he can be quite a troublemaker sometimes he's somehow the cutest four-year-old I've ever met. Lately he's been talking a lot about his last au pair Marie - also from Germany - and that he misses her. So I asked him today whether he'll miss me when I'm gone. His answer came straight away: NO!

*Humpf* was all I thought at first, but when I asked him why, I was really touched: I won't miss you Mara, because you're coming back. That's what the little boy said. For my birthday he's going to give me a biiiiiiiig present (because I told him if I don't like my present I'll leave early) - it's going to be a bike as big as the house all the way up to the sky. So that I can fly to Germany and then back to New Zealand whenever I wanted to. Also I wouldn't have to pay that much with that bike.

Oh, and while I'm in Germany I have to buy some soccer shoes for him and Eliza. In the right size of course - size 4 for Lukas and size 7 for Eliza. Because she'll be seven soon. And then I am to come back to New Zealand to give the shoes to him and his sister.

I don't know what else to say to this. I'm speechless =D

GO ALL WHITES!!!

2010-10-09T00:33:00.034+02:00

Being a soccer fan and player myself I was so happy when Vicky asked me to join her on a trip to Auckland with her host family to see New Zealand's national team (called the ALL WHITES) play live at the stadium. The opponent was going to be Honduras and even though none of them are "big players" on an international level I thought it would be quite interesting to see just how teams in the southern hemisphere act on the field. And I was in for a few surprises.

First of all the stadium was rather small. Compared to German/European standards at least. 18.000 tickets were sold - I don't think the stadium would have fit more than 20.000 people anyway.

Second - there was barely any security! You could walk all the way down to the fence and in fact just open the gate and walk right onto the field. Well, I guess you weren't supposed to do that. But you could have, since the gate was not locked and were no more than ten security guards all along the fence.

We had really good seats and both of the teams were seated only a few meters away from us. The game itself was interesting - but frustrating, too. New Zealand had so many chances. They just couldn't bring the ball into the net. I was so reminded of my team back home (no offence girls, I know you're having a hard time right now).

They finally did score in the very last minute (second?) of the first half. Honduras managed to even out during the second half. For some reason both teams were allowed to substitute more than three times. I know it was a friendly game. But I did think certain rules applied anyway. Maybe not down here *lol*

New Zealand had the biggest chance to turn the game into a victory when they got a penalty kick - once again at the very last minute. But to the disbelief of all the 18.000 people THEY MESSED IT UP!

Yet it had been worth watching and the best thing happened after the game was over. Something that I don't think would ever be possible seems to be normal in New Zealand. For all the All White players came to the fence to shake hands with their fans, give autographs AND even have their pictures taken. Unbelievable! I got a few signatures, too. Even that of the president :-) What a nice souvenir!

There are a few more pictures of the game on Facebook.

Exploring the Northland - Just me, myself and I

2010-10-06T05:03:00.001+02:00

Last weekend I spontaneously decided to go on a trip. The last bigger one has been a while. Wasn't sure yet though where to go so I found some Couchsurfers in the Northland region, texted two of them and thought - if one is answering me on such short notice, this is where I'm going to. Took only an hour until Graham told me he'd host me. He lived on Karikari Peninsula about half an hour northeast of Kaitaia so I took my Lonely Planet and wrote myself a trip itinerary.

Since I spend the night at Gritje's place who lives close to Highway 14 that leads to Dargaville this is where I was starting at. My first stop was Baylys Beach on the West Coast.

According to the Lonely Planet it belongs to Ripiro Ocean Beach which stretches along the West Coast for as much as 100 kilometers. It's a nice spot, there were some people on horseback enjoying the sand and others on motorbikes. You can also drive along the beach in your car but should only do so if you have a 4WD. So I stayed at the edge where the road just ended and the sand was still hard and firm. It's said to be New Zealand's longest drivable beach and there are supposed to be many shipwrecks just off the coast.

Maybe half an hour north along Highway 12 are three freshwater lakes called Kai Iwi Lakes.

It didn't look as nice as the guidebooks said when I was there but then it's not summer yet. It might also have looked a little rough because there was a lot of construction work going on. A lot of the pine trees along the shore had been taken down probably because they were too old and about to fall down. Also for that reason the campsite at Lake Taharoa, the biggest of the three, is closed until further notice.

Leaving the lakes going further north I eventually entered Waipoua Forest. It houses some of the oldest and largest Kauri trees in New Zealand. The road winds through the forest for about 18 kilometers - most of the time you can't go faster than 30 or 40 kilometers an hour because it is so steep and windy that everything above that would throw you off the edge.

There are a lot of walks you can do in the forest and signs will lead you off the Highway to any of them. The shortest I did was to see Tane Mahuta - the Giant Kauri.

It might not look like it because the picture lacks another object to compare sizes... But this tree is more than 50 meters high and the trunk's girth more than 13 meters. Yet, the most impressive fact of Tane Mahuta (The Lord of the Forest): It is probably more than 2000 years old!!! That makes it the oldest Kauri tree in NZ.

This giant stands at the northern end of Waipoua Forest. Further south is a lookout and a carpark from where several other walks lead, such as the Four Sisters - four giant Kauri trees grown rogether at the bottom - or Te Matua Ngahere (The Father of the Forest), the widest living Kauri.

You can also stop at Trounson Kauri Park just half an hour inland from the Highway. There is an easy half-hour loop walk starting from the car park that leads you through the forest. I even saw a wetter there - one of New Zealand's ancient bugs. They are quite huge, look a bit like a long-legged spider with antlers... NASTY!!! Wouldn't want to come across those in the wild...

After tiring myself out with all those walks I kept going north to Hokianga Harbor. At Opononi I saw this huge sand island (or was it just the other side of the harbor?)...

Later I was told by my host family that you can do all kinds of fun stuff over there: sandboarding (which I've done in Australia and absolutely enjoyed!), hire a quad, ... So I will definitely go back there later on.

In Rawene, a cute little seaside town, I took the ferry over to Kohukohu which cost me 16 dollars but saved me lots of driving time and petrol. Via Highway 1 I made my way up north via Kaitaia to Karikari Peninsula. To some of you that might sound familiar - that's where those 60 and more whales stranded just a few weeks ago ;-(

Finally arrived at my couchsurfer's place who took me to a family BBQ. Turned out to be what we called a "United Nations Barbeque" cos there were so many nationalities present! Besides me there was another German couchsurfer and two German girls woofing, two Czech couchsurfers, lots of Maoris, one "true" Kiwi, one with Irish ancestors, one Samoan and a little boy who was half Australian. What a mix =D

Sunday started rather lazy as we all didn't get much sleep. Were eating and drinking and talking until sometime in the morning *lol* The boys were thinking about going to Cape Reinga or collect some mussels at a nearby beach. I was happy to join them no matter what - but they just couldn't make up their minds! And I'm still too much German to just sit around and "go with the flow". Besides I had to be back in Whangarei in the evening and didn't want to waste my time just hanging around doing nothing. So eventually I took off again on my own.

Stopping at a few beaches I made my way back home along the East Coast.

This beautiful beach is called Cable Bay and belongs to Doubtless Bay - a popular spot for boat trips, fishing, diving, dolphin sightings...

In Kerikeri I stopped at the town basin and visited Rewa's Village.

It's the replica of a Pre-European Maori Fishing Village that also houses the Discoverers Garden with lots of indigenous plants. There is a 5 dollar entrance fee which is alright I guess. You get to watch a 12 minute video first that tells you about the early English settlements in the region and the interactions between Pakeha (White people) and Maori.

My last stop before heading home and getting ready for our weekly Sunday dinner was Kawakawa. There's nothing really there as it's just another small town. However, they do have one thing that's worth visiting - a TOILET!!!

Art fans among you might have recognised the typical design. And yes, you are right. The public toilets in Kawakawa are made by Friedensreich (Friedrich) Hundertwasser! In 1997 the Austrian architect was asked to design and build those. Since he'd been working on projects in New Zealand before of course he didn't say no to this one either.

By the way - did you know Hundertwasser became a Kiwi (a New Zealand citizen) in 1986? He's also buried in New Zealand - somewhere near Kawakawa where he had purchased a farm. The toilets were one of his last projects to finish.

You'll find more pictures of my trip on Facebook.

YIKES! - When your cookie comes alive

2010-10-05T09:50:00.015+02:00

Last night I was enjoying some cookies - until I came to the last one in the plastic box. I'd already eaten half of it when for some reason I turned it around - JUST TO FIND A COCKROACH UNDERNEATH!!!

The cookie went flying across the room and it's a miracle no one woke up from my screams. Took me a couple minutes to leave the state of shock and disgust.

I'm going to send a letter to the company selling those cookies because I surely didn't pay for that extra portion of protein...

Every kid loves holidays =D

2010-09-28T08:31:00.000+02:00

Friday was the last day of school in Term 3. Lukas didn't have to go to kindy and instead joined us all at the local Marae (the traditional meeting house of the Maori) where we attend Eliza's and of term assembly. It was very interesting being at the Marae and watching a proper Powhiri (meeting). I could even understand a few words the local Maori people used in their Mihi (Speech) to welcome us.

The weekend was rather quiet. On Saturday I got to feed Gritje's little lamb which she called Shaun-David. Shaun is a famous TV character («Shaun the Sheep») and David her host mom's brother. Unfortunately little Shaun-David will only have a very short life as he'll be Christmas dinner in a few months :-(

We also checked out the new club in town – Malbas, formerly known as danger danger. Wasn't really enjoying myself which is mostly due to the DJ. He really sucked, played one bad song after the other and wouldn't even play songs the audience requested. What a loser! If it wasn't for the pool tables I wouldn't go there again but Gritje and I had a good time playing some balls – I won ALL games *heehee* Only lost when Vicky's boyfriend played against me and Gritje – I guess she just was bad luck that night *lol*

Vicky's boyfriend was here for the weekend. We picked him up from Auckland airport Thursday night. That was a drive... Four girls in a little tiny car driving at night after a long day of work... We got to Auckland around midnight but Hussam's plane was delayed. By the time we had picked him up and were ready to leave it was 1am!!! Tried to get some sleep on the way back but qith five of us squeezed in one little car there was not much space to sit comfortable. Was back at my room by 4am so I got a little more than host hours sleep that night *uff*

Now the kids and I are enjoying two weeks of school vacation. Yesterday we went with Denise and her five kids to the beach (Whananaki South) and enjoyed the sun. The weather is getting better and better and you can tell that summer is coming closer. We had maybe 24 degrees, lots of sunshine and blue sky. The water still was too cold for the kids to go in but they had heaps of fun building sand castles and messing around in the sand.

I also finally wore the dress that Jenny has sent me from the UK a few weeks ago. I absolutely LOVE it!!! What do you think?

Today we went to see the Kiwi House and Museum where they were hosting a Butterfly exhibition. Unfortunately the Kiwis tend to exaggerate because when I hear the word butterfly I think of live ones flying around that you can see and observe. But no – no live butterflies here... just a little tiny section in the back of the museum with two or three dead ones pinned to the wall and lots of stuff to read. Very interesting for children... Waste of time and money...

At least we really did see a Kiwi bird so that was worth it :-) Little fellow was right behind the glass window enjoying his food. But still I don't know why I would have to pay 10 dollars (5 Euros) as an adult and 5 dollars (2.50 Euros) as a child just for that.

There are lots of walks there and old houses but overall I would say if you have little children save your money and -

... go to the Town Basin instead =D That's where we spend the rest of the day. Kids had some fish and chips and afterwards just ran around the big playground having the time of their lives.

Tomorrow we're going to the pools but I don't know yet whether that's a normal swimming pool or hot pools like the one in Ngawha. But I'll find out :-)

You'll find more pictures of our holiday adventures on Facebook...