Auckland Day 3

Justin and I sat out today to conquer the apartment dilemma.  We started the morning by calling as many apartments as possible to set up viewings.  However, it did not take long for us to realize that we seriously needed a phone number that people could call us back on.  So we took a break and headed down to Queens Street to get cell phones!  We visited three different cell stores and ended up getting prepaid plans and $59 phones.  You better believe these phones are cool :)  On Justin's plan, he gets a NZ best mate.  We set me up as his NZ best mate which was an easy choice as at the moment I am his only NZ mate.  Visiting cell stores is very different than in the states.  We were able to visit three stores getting only the information on prepaid and cheap monthly plans within probably 15 minutes! 

We were able to set up four viewings for today and have only one more apartment we are wanting to see.  I think we are going to go ahead and apply for the best apartment we saw today.  Although true to my nature, I am having trouble committing with such a short decision making period!  The apartment has everything on our "must" list but is smaller than we were hoping. 

As we were setting up viewings, one agent said he could meet us at 12:30 and I said yes without looking at the time....it was 12:10.  We rushed out the door with directions written down but couldn't find the second turn!  So we headed in the right direction and hoped for the best.  About half way there, the agent called and said he would wait for a few minutes but to walk as fast as we could.  After a few calls to Dennis (the agent), we made it to the viewing.  We didn't have time to go back to our apartment between any of the remaining viewings.  We were completely exhausted by 5:30! 

I start work tomorrow but at least I know who to meet and where!

Auckland Day 2

Justin and I woke up very early this morning...trying to adjust to the time change!  We lounged around for a while and then set out to find a bank and an apartment.  We went to Westpac bank in the same building as my office.  We set up an online bank account with Westpac before we came over.  We were told to bring several forms of ID and 2 forms of proof of our US address in order to activate our account.  However, we were able to activate the account with only our passports.  It was way easier than expected.  We walked away with a checking and savings account, 2 debit cards, and free online banking.  Our debit cards do not have our names on them but we were required to sign them.  One thing that has been great is that Westpac is a partner bank with Bank of America and as such, we are able to use our Bank of America ATM card in the ATM and withdraw cash for free. 

Our bank representative mentioned that the supermarket was just around the corner and we were very curious.  So we walked a block or so and found the Countdown which is a grocery store similar to what you find in the US.  We were beyond excited to find out that Kiwi's do in fact eat!  We seriously walked around the store exclaiming at the different items we recognized!  I'm not sure this is a good thing or not...but I'm pretty sure this was the highlight of our day.

We spent the rest of the day looking for an apartment.  We walked around town writing down potential buildings and then googled them when we returned home.  It is proving harder than anticipated to locate potential rentals.  We have a good list for tomorrow and plan on calling a number of open rentals in hopes of getting to view some apartments. 

We had dinner down close to the harbor at the Britomart Brewery.  It was a typical open air restraurant and we enjoyed our dinner with some nice US 80's music in the background.  Justin had fish and chips which he enjoyed and I had some sliders that may have been pretty good if not overcooked. 

Auckland Day 1

First, I promise not to blog about every day in Auckland in this much detail!  I just wanted to write down some of our first experiences so I can remember! 

Justin and I are safe and sound in Auckland!  We left Dallas at 6:40 pm on Saturday and landed in LA at 8 pm.  In LA, we had to exit the airport and walk to the terminal for Air New Zealand.  We had two hours until our next flight and we needed every minute of it.  We ended up getting our Air New Zealand tickets, made it through security and had only a few minutes to grab some food before boarding.  The flight from LA to New Zealand was 12 hours but was not as bad as we expected.  Air New Zealand service was excellent and the plane was very nice.  We upgraded to the skycouch which was well worth the $350.  We arrived in Auckland at 8 am to a waiting corporate cab that took us directly to our apartment. 

We settled in quickly, unpacking and showering in a few hours.  Our apartment is a 1 bedroom with a large balcony and a nice view of the sky tower.  We explored the city in the afternoon.  We found my office which is a short 5-10 minute walk from our temporary housing.  The only problem is it is straight down hill to my office which means straight up hill on the way home.  We ate lunch at a take away sushi bar before heading back home for a nap.  After our nap, we set out to find a grocery store or market.  We found a small (read maybe 5 aisles with no "normal" food) market and bought some breakfast and lunch essentials.  We were concerned that perhaps Kiwi's are skinny b/c there is no food to eat in the country!  But seriously, we were worried we would not be able to find any familiar food for a decent price!

 We were able to skype with my parents (2x) and Justin's mom and grandmom which helped me to feel a little closer than 7,000 miles from home.  We called it an early night and turned in at 9:30 after struggling to stay awake while watching our sling box. 

The Last Time

The last time I saw my brother was on February 13, 2011.  We had a Valentine's Day celebration lunch at my parent's house for the whole family.  My mom wanted to get everyone together to express her love for us all and hoped it would become a Walker family Valentine's tradition.  As usual my mom gave favors to all in attendance but I only remember that all the girls got fun Texas themed nail polish in various shades of red and pink.   Ben brought his girlfriend to meet the extended family for the first time.  She talked about the thoughtful gifts Ben bought her and their plans for the next evening.  Justin and I were excited about the possibility of transferring to London on a rotation with my firm.  Ben seemed excited for us and I know he would have been even more excited about New Zealand.  Kara and Aaron announced to the family that they were hoping to plant a church in Colorado and that they had officially started that process.   Our family was understandably upset with the news that their family could be moving within the year.  Ben told my mom not to worry because he would never move away.   

That is all I remember of the last day I spent with my brother.  I'm not sure if we hugged or said I love you when we left although we had exchanged those gestures plenty of times in the past.  That day didn't seem of consequence until March 6, 2011 but now, I suppose, it is a day I will never forget. 

Kindred Spirits

As I was reading Bossypants (Tina Fey's book) last night, I came upon the following passage.  How eloquently she voices our shared understanding of the animal kingdom.

"I have no affinity for animals.  I don't hate animals and I would never hurt an animal; I just don't actively care about them.  When a coworker shows me cute pictures of her dog, I struggle to respond correctly, like an autistic person who has been taught to recognize human emotions from flash cards."

Form your own opinion of me based on this admission, but I hope most of you know me well enough to realize, I am actually not a mean person....I just don't enjoy animals in general.