One Month in Auckland

I guess I should not brag about my frequent updates because evidently it throws me off.  Alot has happened since my last post but I'll just hit the highlights.  In the past two weeks I...

• Experienced the stressful, hassle-ful task of attempting to transfer money from a US bank account to an international account in order to withdraw said money and hand it over in exchange for a car on a limited time frame.  It sounds relatively easy but believe me it is not.  Let's just say it ended with Justin and I both visiting the ATM every day to withdraw up to the maximum daily limit. 
• Had dessert and drinks with a couple that I met through the blog world.  Jenny writes a blog to chronicle her daily life but also help expats and expat hopefuls through common questions and experiences.  Turns out she is living in Auckland only a short walk from our place.  Funny story...we were meeting over at Jenny's place and I carefully mapped where her apartment is and got directions from our corporate apartment.  We walked over and I didn't realize until we walked up to the building door that I had no clue what apartment number they live in.  I also did not have Jenny's phone number with me as it was saved in my work email which I can't access outside of the office (still trying to get used to that!).  So we walked back to our apartment and I emailed Jenny.  Luckily, Jenny got my email and called right away.  So we walked back over and enjoyed a traditional Kiwi dessert, pavlova, and some conversation! 
• Rented a car to move our luggage from our corporate apartment to our new apartment on Princes Wharf and also look for a car to purchase.  We found a 2003 Volvo V40 wagon in good shape and for a fair price.  So we agreed to come back the next weekend to pick it up.  We then drove our rent car North of Auckland to Orewa and Shakespeare Regional Park.  We saw some kite surfers and some beautiful views.   Unfortunately, we forgot to charge our camera so we only have iphone photos!

Justin on the beach in Shakespeare Park

Kite Surfers on Orewa Beach

Kite Surfers from Above

Lindsay in Shakespeare Park.  I've already seen several of these picture frames in parks around the area.

• Ran the Auckland Round the Bays 8K run.  On Sunday morning, Justin and I lined up in the middle of Quay Street (The street we live on and pronounced Key Street.  It took us a little while to figure that one out.) and ran our first race in New Zealand!  The paper reported that over 40,000 people ran that day!  It felt like the Turkey Trot in Dallas in that you really couldn't run so we slowed down and enjoyed the view. 
• Got settled in our new apartment on Princes Wharf.  We are loving leaving the balcony doors wide open and letting the cool, sea breeze in!  Well, except for during the four consecutive days of rain in the past week.  But I really can't complain since it has been followed by three days and counting of 70 degree, sunny days. 
• Had take away sushi in the park in front of my office with some of the girls from work (on a non-rainy day).
• Went to dinner with some of the ladies from the office at the Britomart Country Club. 
• Picked up our Volvo and then had dinner at a nearby pub, the Occidental.  We really enjoyed our mussels and the atmosphere and will definitely be back!

Our new to us Volvo

• Rode a bus to visit a church that the couple we had dinner with invited us to.  We enjoyed the service and it was great to have a familiar face there to introduce us!

That brings us to tonight...we are watching TV and observing the cruise ship that is docked on our wharf.  Justin wanted to watch it pull away but we will see if he makes it to the 23:59 departure time.

There is a cruise ship where we normally see the bay!

Wait, these are kilograms!

So can you tell by the frequency of my blog posts that I am working less and have far fewer even remotely watchable television shows to choose from?  No?  Well then you aren't paying attention! 

Justin and I started another round of P90X this evening and since our weights are at the other apartment, we went down to the workout room. We were both really struggling lifting the size of weights we normally use.  I even bumped down two pounds and was still definitely feeling the burn.  My thoughts were going crazy!  How did I get this out of shape!  I am never going to make it through the full 90 days if I can't even curl 5 lbs!  These 5 lbs weights feel so much heavier than last time I lifted!  Then out of the blue Justin said, "wait, these are kilograms aren't they"!  Of course they were!  And for those of you Americans out there, 1 kg = 2.2 lbs.  So when I thought I was lifting 5 lbs, I was actually lifting 5 kg which is 11 lbs!  I hate to admit it, but it took us (and when I say us, I mean Justin b/c I had to be told) almost the entire 45 minute workout to realize this.  At least running taught me the km to mile conversion before coming over, although that one could have worked in my favor (for the non-runners 3 miles = 5 km)!

Musings on the Rain

In the two weeks since we arrived in Auckland, Justin and I have experienced the Auckland rain, wind, and drastic changes in weather.  However, I had not yet had to walk to work in anything other than a light mist.  Well, it rained all day yesterday with some serious clouds and humidity.  We couldn't see the top of the sky tower all day and our apartment was literally damp all over.  We ended up closing up all the windows and turning on the fan to ward off (no pun intended although I now find it funny) some of the moisture. The rain was still coming down this morning so I geared up in my new silver Hunter "gumboots", my new raincoat, and my relatively unsubstantial umbrella.  I remained dry on my short walk to the office and looked somewhat put together after de-gearing in my cube. 

I am definitely going to have to get used to my new hair style, meaning, accept that in this much rain, my hair is going to be crazy.  I am also going to have to invest in a more substantial umbrella that can withstand high (read 25 - 35 mph) winds and not threaten to blow inside out with every gust.  Also note that a random guy in the viaduct commented on my "gumboots" which confirmed that Kiwis do indeed call rain boots, gumboots.  It also adds to the evidence I'm collecting that wearing metallic, silver boots will solicit at least 3 comments from complete strangers each time they are worn. 

Enjoying the City

Friday after work I finally got to see our new apartment!  I viewed a one bedroom place in the same complex and then Justin viewed the two bedroom while I was at work and promised me I would love it.  And love it I did!  It is on Princes Wharf, literally on the water.  Our apartment is huge for Auckland city center standards with two bedrooms and a huge balcony with views to the bay off one side.  It is a short walk (5 - 8  minutes) to my office and accessible to the supermarket, restaurants, and shopping on Queen Street.  Hopefully we like it as much as we think we are going to! 



View to the bay from our balcony




Dining room into second bedroom




Kitchen and bar with first bedroom to the right




Living room and balcony from behind the bar



We walked around the corner from our new apartment to the festival going on in the viaduct for the Auckland stopover of the Volvo Ocean Race (a sailing race around the world that lasts 8 months).  There are booths set up and entertainment on the main stage.  We had dinner in the viaduct and enjoyed our evening.

Saturday we started out the day with a walk to Parnell. We went in search of the farmer's market which turned out to be very small and disappointing. But we did get to enjoy the shops and cafes of Parnell. In the afternoon, we headed out on the bus to Mt. Eden. It was my first experience on the bus system in Auckland although Justin had used it once before. We navigated perfectly and took a short hike up to the top of Mt. Eden. Mt. Eden is an inactive volcano and the highest point in the city. The crater at the top was very cool and the 360 degree views of the city were amazing! We decided Mt. Eden is a must see for any of our visitors!

The crater





Panorama of the Auckland skyline to Rangitoto Island



View of Rangitoto Island

This way to LA and then on to Dallas

10,500 miles to LA

To complete our Saturday, we headed to the store and purchased all the supplies for what we termed a Mexican feast.  I'm not sure if it truly qualified as a feast but we definitely enjoyed our chicken tacos with pico de gallo and avocado!  After not even two weeks away from the Big D, we are already seriously craving Tex Mex.  Luckily, there are a few Mexican items in our local supermarket and even a Mexican restaurant near my office that is always packed.  So maybe we will not perish from a total lack of Tex Mex!

One Year Ago Today

I'm unsure if today or yesterday marks one year since the car crash that killed my brother.  To me in New Zealand it was yesterday but for my family in the States it was today.  In a way it was comforting to be so far away, nothing familiar to bring the memories of this week last year to the surface.  No definite date to mourn.  So I decided to read a few of the posts I wrote about Ben throughout the year, you know, just to make sure I relived those memories today.  All joking aside, one struck me as very interesting.  I said that I wished it would rain.  That the sunny, blue skies in the week that followed Ben's death defied the feelings of sadness our family was enduring.  Well, today it rained.  For hours.  I'm sure this is not unusual for Auckland but for me it was fitting. 

My family in the States visited Ben's now marked grave, released balloons, sang, prayed, and enjoyed dinner together.  I'm sure they visited Drew's bench with the lone golf ball placed next to it as well.  Me, I scrolled past the pictures I snapped with my iphone of the boy's graves and hoped for healing for our family and a better year starting on March 6, 2012.  I celebrate the fact that Justin and I are living in New Zealand and realizing a dream we thought unattainable.  However, I grieve so many things from the past year. 

Two things...ok maybe three

First, while in Devonport, I bought what seems to be the New Zealand equivalent of girl scout cookies.  The organization is called GirlGuiding here but it appears to be similar.  They sell different types of cookies for $3 a box.  What makes these cookies so fun?  I bought them from a little girl with a New Zealand accent sitting on the grass in a park on the beach! 

Second, I had lunch with three staff girls in the cafe (the breakroom) at work today.  I was glad to meet some more people at work even if they are quite a bit younger than me!  It is hard to judge what level and age people are and they were the only ones eating in the cafe when I walked in.  They were very nice.  In fact, Nicole was trying to plan a get-a-way camping trip with me and Natalie wanted me to borrow her car for the weekend so we could get out of the city.  All that in a 30 minute lunch! 

Third, I am loving getting to leave the windows/sliding doors open all the time!  The sunlight streaming in during the day is great and then the cool night air is so refreshing.  In our temporary housing, our view is of the sky tower which is great!  I am sure I will like our permanent view just as much!  We have been warned and read of the impending winter rainy season so I intend to soak up as much of this perfect weather as possible while it lasts. 

First Weekend in Auckland

Justin and I took full advantage of our first weekend in Auckland. We knew we wanted to get out of the city centre and see some of the famous landscape. We were warned by more than a few people that a huge storm was coming through on Saturday. So we planned to stay in on Saturday and venture out on Sunday which was forecasted to be sunny all day. Saturday turned out to be rainy on and off but overall not too bad. We headed out for a few hours and I got to try out my new gumboots and rain coat. I stayed relatively dry although we did have to hide behind a silo at one point to escape the rain on the dock. We explored an area down by the viaduct that we had not yet seen and visited the Auckland Fish Market. We plan on many more trips to the fish market for fresh seafood to cook up at home! We both tried the fish and chips at a small stand in the market but I did not have a good experience. So far my "I will eat and like fish" plan is not going so well! Luckily there is sushi literally on every corner and plenty of shrimp as well. We also did a little window shopping on Queen Street and some actual shopping (I bought a hairdryer).

On Sunday, we slept in and headed down to the ferry dock around 10:30. In less then a 15 minutes ferry ride, we arrived in Devonport, a quaint Auckland suburb. We absolutely loved our first Auckland excursion! We walked down the beach and then climbed a small mountain, North Head. North Head has several trails you can take to the top and the one we choose highlights the bunkers and remains of WWI fortifications. The views from the top were amazing and I just kept thinking how unreal it is that I live 15 minutes from such paradise! We climbed back down and I took a few minutes to stick my feet in the ocean! In true Kiwi style, I left my shoes off while my feet dried and we took off down the street. We explored the small main street area and stopped at a local cafe for a snack. I persuaded J to try a flat white which is the preferred local coffee choice. We had a wonderful day and cannot wait for many more adventures!

L and the Auckland City skyline from Devonport

North Head from Devonport beach

View of a beach from about halfway up Northhead

L in front of Auckland City skyline from top of North Head

Auckland City skyline from top of North Head

Auckland Day 5

My second day in the office was rather uneventful but I did snap a few shots to show the view.  You can't tell very well from these but it really is a nice view.  You can see the working harbor but beyond that when you are in person, you can see the green islands in the distance.  Our office has open air shopping and restaurants on the first floor and a unique design.  The big news of the day was that we found an apartment!  Hopefully, we get it because we love it!  I'll post more after it is finalized.

View from the 7th floor

Another view from the 7th floor

The open air lobby

Auckland Day 4 - In the Office

Today was my first day in the Auckland EY office.  Justin walked me down to the office which was nice since I was nervous to start work in a new place.  It has been a long 7 years since I have done that.  My computer was ready for me but that was about it.  They did not have my desk, phone, or even my internet password ready.  Everyone I met was very nice although a little different. 

The office is an entirely open plan so no one has an office.  The cubes are set up in a 4 cubes to a "pod" arrangement and in the "pods" by the windows, a partner and/or senior manager sits by the window.  It is a little odd to be sitting in an open 4 cube area with a partner but it also seems to lead to an even more open door policy than we have in the US. 

The office has views of the harbor and surrounding islands on 3 sides which is pretty cool.  The office is decorated with inspirational quotes on the wall and  yellow beams just like home!  As Crazy Uncle said, it is familiar, yet different.  I didn't have much to do today but read up on the history of the NZ tax code. 

I had tea at a nearby cafe with Aaron, the lead people partner, and lunch with my peer buddy, Claire.  I was also introduced to a few of the partners and managers.  I met a woman from the UK, a woman from Scotland, and a woman from Russia today.  They all transferred with EY to the Auckland office.  I also met a guy on rotation from our San Antonio office.  Claire told me that the office is actually about half international and half Kiwi.  That seems to fit the population of the city as whole as it is not uncommon to hear several different accents/languages while walking down the street.