barista extraordinaire? well, barista anyway

I'm a bit behind and about to run out for a 2 week whirlwind tour of the North Island, but I'll catch you all up on the excitement this week:

I GOT A JOB! 
At least, I think I did.  I went into No. 7 Balmac and "tried" which I guess is the same thing as an interview/audition since I was trying for the job of Barista.  Sheryl, Vanessa's good friend, works there and, according to Vanessa and others who have followed Sheryl from cafe to cafe, is the best barista in Dunedin.  I'm stoked that I get to work with her.  So Monday, I went into the cafe/restaurant and met the owner, donned an apron and started refreshing my Starbucks taught espresso making skills - with Sheryl as my tutor.  I met a few other people who work there as well: one guy from Long Island who is getting his doctorate at the University of Otago.  We chatted about NYC, it was lovely.  After a few hours, the owner decided she liked my "manner" and the fact that Sheryl says I have potential being a barista.  I maintain it was the fact that I carried a tray with one hand that got me the job.  Either way, when I'm back in Dunedin in January I'll finish my training and start getting paid.  I think this means I actually have a job?  We've all decided it does...yay potential future income!

Wednesday evening wasn't raining (the first time this week) so Vanessa took us to go see glowworms!  They are so cool!  We drove about 15 minutes from the house and walked about 5 minutes into the bush up a wee hill along a stream.  All of a sudden, in the pitch black, it looks like twinkle lights are hanging in the trees like Disneyland, except they're real glowworms!  Coolest thing ever.  A really fun experience to see all these little bluish lights just hanging in the trees.

Nicols Creek - the name of this particular glowworm neighborhood

There are a couple very faint bluish spots - those are glowworms - I need a better camera

I wish I had better pictures of the glowworms because they are really rather surreal.  Maybe I'll get a better camera that I can adjust the aperture and get penguins and glowworms, but until then, here's a picture from elsewhere online:

Waitomo Caves

Thursday night was another big night.  I went to my knitting group first and then I hit the complete opposite of the spectrum and went out dancing and singing karaoke with my new best friend Matt Tucker.  After knitting, we went back to his apartment and met up with 3 other girls who work with him and we all hung out for a while.  Then at midnight, we decided it was a good time to set off some of Matt's fireworks.  So, out in the driveway, Matt set off the rest of his firework stash and Claire, Donna, Harriet and I "ooh"ed and "aah"ed appropriately and kept the lookout for cops.  None came.  Then we set off sparklers and there's this FABULOUS sparkler thing that's called 10 Shot.  It shoots out 10 colored bursts and I totally felt like Harry Potter (or Hermione rather, she has curly hair) casting spells.  Yes, I'm a nerd.  It was awesome!

Friday evening, we started watching the Lord of the Rings since we're going on a tour of Hobbiton on our Christmas vacation road trip.  Every time we saw natural scenery, we all asked Vanessa, "Where's that?"  It's kind of crazy because it switches between the North and South Islands in the same scene and Vanessa seems to know it all.  There was one point where she said, "there isn't a river down there, where they're looking."  I didn't know Murder, She Wrote wasn't shot in Maine, how does she know where ALL the rivers are in the whole country?  Shocking.  And the edge of Fangorn Forest is apparently her friend's farm.  How cool is that?

Saturday we had a Christmas dinner at Michael's house with a bunch of people.  Excellent food, lots of fun people, and to top it all off, I might have made a couple new new best friends since Matt has left me and moved to the North Island.  Fran, a friend of Michael and Vanessa's, loves to dance and stay up till 4 in the morning (score!) and Simon H. also loves to dance, especially Ceroc.  So Vanessa, Fran, Simon and I went out dancing in the Octagon.  We started at one bar with a live band and Simon started leading Ceroc with Vanessa and me.  I picked it up relatively quickly.  Reminds me of hustle with some salsa in there.  So. Much. Fun.  

There was also a stag party (bachelor party) going on and all the guys looked to be under 25 if not barely 16.  The groom-to-be literally had a chain attached to his ankle and was holding the 10 pound metal ball.  We talked for a minute and I learned he's getting married January 15th and is more concerned about giving a speech in front of 100 people than actually getting married.  Priorities, eh?

We barhopped a couple more places looking for good music and finally decided we should call it quits about 2 since Fran had to work at 8:30 Sunday morning.  She might officially be my idol: a married mother of 4 who still goes out dancing late when she has to work the next morning.  Inspiration, truly.  I can't wait until we all get to go out again.

It's now Sunday night and we've finished watching all of the LOTR movies so we know what to look for on our roadtrip.  I'm packed and ready to go; Vanessa and I drive to Christchurch tomorrow morning.  So, blog posts will be on a wee hiatus over Christmas and New Years.  Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all and I'll be sure to post boatloads of pictures when I'm back from this expedition!

OUSA Christmas party, dancing and paua diving - in short, this weekend

Friday night was Laura and Vanessa's work Christmas party.  Todd and I drove down to the aquatic/rowing center on the bay to meet Laura and Vanessa.  We then all settled in for an evening of good food, wine and dancing.  Despite the fact that I knew few of the people who work at the Otago University Student Association (OUSA), I made a new best friend, Matt Tucker.  After the all the food, dancing, and secret santa gift giving was over, me and my new best friend Matt Tucker jumped into a cab with a couple other people and beat feet to the Octagon where the bars and dancing were.  We danced till the wee hours... so nice to be out and about in a new city! 

Saturday was a gorgeous day that I spent doing nothing except lazing in the sun.  Sunday, all signs pointed to the same day as Saturday, but my new best friend Matt Tucker Facebook stalked me to go Paua diving with him.  So, we drove out to Shag Point (Shag is a bird people...sheesh), grabbed goggles and screwdrivers and jumped into the relatively cold water.  I found it about on par with warm summer Maine ocean water so I was fine.  

Paua are shellfish that attach themselves to the sides of rocks and reefs and have a really pretty shell interior.  I was excited to go looking for them, but apparently my new best friend has only been paua diving once... so he wasn't quite sure where we were going either.  So, it turned into a lovely swim through the seaweed and the rocks on a beautiful summer day.  

this is the paua shell in Vanessa's bathroom - the only one i've seen so far...

At that point, we were quite close to the Moeraki boulders, so we decided to play the tourist and hit up all the touristy things in the area just north of Dunedin.  So, here are the boulders, pretty cool, eh?

me in a boulder - kinda felt like i was hatching

me and my new best friend matt tucker

After the boulders, we went to go see a seal colony.  The only seals I've seen here have been comatose and smelly.  This seal colony was actually a colony with probably 40 seals lounging on the rocks.  A couple were fighting each, kinda looked like a thumb war since they just used their heads.  Fortunately, the wind was SUPER strong, so we didn't smell the seals. 

the two in the middle are fighting - but they're still cute (from a distance)

After that, on our drive back to Dunedin, we pulled into the old Asylum complex that happens to be next to a cheese factory.  It's a huge area with all sorts of different, now abandoned buildings, and empty plots of land where there were buildings that got torn down and are now for sale.  I don't know about Kiwis, but I wouldn't want to live on lands of the crazy...

some more pretty around the seal colony

 

Christmas party at the grocery store and... other surprises

So, it's Thursday again and knitting group is on the agenda.  I love that I have an agenda in a new country and a new city.  Tuesday: water aerobics, Thursday: knitting.. 
ok, so it's not an extensive agenda, but it exists.

Todd and I just went for a drive around town.  Hedwig felt like a jack rabbit today.  Todd will insist it's mostly my fault because I release the clutch too quickly.  I maintain Hedwig is in a bad mood.  I'll give her a new sticker and maybe she'll feel better tomorrow.  Anyways, we stopped by the grocery store, they were handing out balloons, a skinny teenager with a Kiwi accent was dressed up like Santa, pushing a shopping cart full of candy and asked (so like Harry Potter) "would you like anything from the trolley?"  I think I love this country.  They announced on the loudspeaker that it was their Christmas party, so in addition to Santa and balloons, there was a free BBQ outside: sausages, wrapped in bread (not a bun) with onions and tomato sauce.  Obvs I had one.  I'm such a good vegan.  

And now for a WTF moment:
A few days ago, I got some mail from the NZ Police.  I didn't think anything of it, but apparently, they mail you speeding tickets.  On our road trip from Auckland to Dunedin, we were caught speeding, in Timaru, around lunchtime.  Great, that's when I was driving...or so I thought.  I drove into Timaru, Todd drove out.  We checked the time stamp on the receipt from lunch.  Speeding ticket was after lunch so it was Todd with the heavy foot.  

Here's the kicker:
Speeding ticket for doing 55 kph in a 50 kph zone.
That's the equivalent of doing 34 mph in 31mph zone... Seriously, NZ? Seriously?

Karitane

This weekend we went to Karitane, about 30 minutes north of Dunedin right on the ocean.  It's a cute little town and we stayed at the holiday home of one of Laura and Vanessa's fellow university co-workers (I don't know the exact relation... check out my sister's blog in case she explains the relationship...or just in general cuz she's been here in NZ longer than I have and has more cool stories).  It overlooks a protected inlet and is a 5 minute walk to a gorgeous beach where you can sunbathe and climb rocks.

The Holiday Home

One with Nature

The Inlet, and the view from the house

The main house has a couple bedrooms and a large lounge/dining/kitchen area.  The guest house has another 2 bedrooms, a lounge and small kitchen as well.  Between the 2 houses is a good size lawn with plenty of space for 6 people and a dog to spread out and sunbathe, we tested it.  And then there's the garage that has bikes, kayaks, boats and a plethora of other things to play with while holidaying.

We arrived on Friday evening after a BBQ in a Dunedin park with the girls/guys who work at the University Print Shop.  At the BBQ, Todd and I learned how to throw a rugby ball (I get it, but i need to practice so there's actually some oomph) and we played some cricket!!  Vanessa figured it was a good idea to teach a couple Americans how to play before Christmas when there will be 4 of us attempting the sport.  Todd did a good job bowling and batting and then I got to bowl.  So. Much. Fun.  I could bowl forever.  And I probably should to get some oomph on that ball as well.  Apparently I'm also supposed to aim at the wicket behind the batter.  I feel like throwing the ball in the batter's general area is accomplishment enough, but I'm in the minority.  Anyways, the spectators started fielding and after some exciting overs (that's what it's called every time you bowl (throw) the ball), we left and drove the short way to Karitane.

Todd Batting

That's me in the front after I bowled to Todd

Vanessa, Todd, Laura, Kitty and I drove up together and met Kitty's husband, Dan, and her dog, Chian, at the house.  Since it was only about 7:30ish and the sun was still bright and shining, we went for a walk to the beach.  Vanessa found a big tricycle with a basket in the back.  She gave Chian a ride for a while.  Chian is so cute.

Chian

Kitty and Dan walking, Vanessa biking with Chian

We got waylaid on our beach-ward quest by a playground.  Todd and I teeter-tottered, Laura went for a swing and then we all tried to get across the monkey bars.  Those bars hurt your hands!!  And it was much easier to get across when you were 8.  I then joined Laura on the swings and we got in sync with each other.  Despite the fact that 7 years separate us in age and school, we both learned the same sayings on the school playground "get out of my bathroom window!" 

Eventually we reached the beach.  I stuck my toes in the water and it was so warm!  Well, I'm used to Maine ocean which is rather cold all the time.  This felt lovely.  We all walked along the beach and took pictures.

The clouds were amazing

soy yo

the sun was awesome

And climbed rocks.

vanessa, todd, kitty, moi

 And finally, the sun started to set about 9ish so we headed back home.

Saturday was GORGEOUS.  Everyone got up early (crazies) but I slept in to a normal hour (read:10am).  We were planning to go to a market in the next town over, but it wasn't until Sunday so we all went home and read in the sun.  

the kindle sisters

And then we slept in the sun.  Vanessa burned her eyelids.  I think this is actually rather impressive.  To summarize thoughts on sun bathing beneath the hole in the O-zone layer:
Pros: 
1. super fast tanning;

2. visitors (like me!) haven't grown up here so our chances of developing skin cancer as quickly are smaller (in Elenaland anyway)


Cons:
...uh...


Later Saturday afternoon, Dan, Kitty, Todd and I decided to go kayaking.  I've never been kayaking before so Kitty and I were going to go together in one kayak.  Dan and Todd pushed us off, but two people were a little much for our kayak.  Every wave crashed over the top of the kayak, Kitty tried to bail but the buckets weren't actually for bailing... so finally, with all the water we'd taken on, it seemed that the front of the kayak was underwater and with the next wave, so were we.  It was a graceful exit from the kayak, and we were worried that we were so far out in the inlet, but then we put our feet down and stood up.  Crisis averted.  We walked the kayak back to the boat landing and tried again.  This time I went by myself and Kitty swam behind Dan's kayak.


Once across the small inlet, Todd and Chian went to explore.  Chian found a stick and kept hitting Todd with it.  Kitty and I went swimming and Dan continued to kayak around.  Todd and I swapped kayaks on the way back cuz I'm short and could get my legs into the opening that his legs couldn't quite fit in.  I did not like that kayak.  It was very long and sleek, but it didn't like to go straight.  With the wind and the waves and the weird balance of the kayak, I kept spinning around.  It probably would have been easier to paddle backwards, but strangely I like to see where I'm going and what I'm going to run into, so I fought the kayak and eventually won.  

Kitty and I - post Kayaking

Chian, climbing a tree.  He's impressive

We got fish and chips which we ate outside on the grass, at 8pm at night, cuz the sun was still up.  Being so close to the other pole is kind of amazing, 15+ hours of daylight and counting!  Finally (and probably thankfully) a cloud hid the sun and we all saw how pink we really were, so we went inside, found some aloe, and watched the World of Wearable Arts Show.  WOW is a really funky competition they have in Wellington.  It's a fashion show that's artsy, design/concept based, and something that Cirque du Soleil (or Lady Gaga my sister suggested) could go shopping at.  They even have a whole category for bras.  Crazy, but so cool, check out the first video Tourism New Zealand to get an idea.


Sunday was cooler and slightly cloudy so we weren't tempted to burn our already red selves any further.  We went for a walk around the peninsula, which was beautiful.

Then we hit up the market in the next town, Seacliff.  Markets here are a mixture of flea market/garage sale/craft fair/baked goods sale.  They're a little whack-a-doodle, but at least now I know where to go if I need to sell anything I don't want.  After that it was back to Dunedin.  Laura and Todd had a friend's birthday party to attend and Vanessa and I had dinner at another friend's house.  All in all, a fabulous weekend.

The holidaying crew: laura, me, todd, chian, vanessa and dan (kitty's our camerawoman)

Fingers crossed that this week someone decides to give me one of the jobs I've applied for so I can mail Christmas gifts.  So, if you want a present from me, send me your positive energy so I get employed!

I DIDN'T KILL ANYONE!!

Just a quick note to celebrate the utter excitement I'm feeling:

I drove alone in Hedwig and I didn't hit anything or kill anyone!!!   
(picture me doing my happy dance)

Todd and I drove around downtown Dunedin in a large circle, several times, before I felt comfortable enough to let him jump out and get a haircut.  I then continued on in the loop to drop something off at Laura's office and after going around the loop twice, I picked Todd up again and all was well with the world.  

There was a fair amount of jack-rabbiting, a couple tire squeals (but it was wet!), and a few odd looks... but Teo Ma Ruru pulled through and together (with Todd's help and a few gasps) we made it in and out of a treacherous car park, avoided several silly drivers and pedestrians and made it back up the large hill, including a wee hill stop that I unconsciously didn't notice so I didn't freak out about it and no hand brake was required.

Altogether a Red Letter Day and I felt like sharing my fabulous news.  

Regularly scheduled blogposts with pictures and actual stories/adventures will resume tomorrow.  :)

Fraser's Gully & Tunnel Beach!

Sunday morning, Todd got up and made Nicaraguan tortillas!  No, he is not Nicaraguan.  Yes, Laura and I both are.  Yes, Todd is better at making them than both of us.  Point?

After a lazy morning eating tortillas and sunbathing on the deck, Todd, Vanessa and I met Vanessa's friend Susan and Susan's dog, Lucky, and we all went for a walk at Fraser's Gully.  It was a lovely, only slighting uphill, walk next to a very loud and pretty stream, but covered from the sun with lots of trees and ferns!!  I had a lot of fun taking pictures of all the Korus. 

"The koru, which is often used in Māori art as a symbol of creation, is based on the shape of an unfurling fern frond. Its circular shape conveys the idea of perpetual movement, and its inward coil suggests a return to the point of origin. The koru therefore symbolises the way in which life both changes and stays the same."  Where I got this info on Korus

I took several pictures.  The big brown ones are rather scary and furry looking.  Vanessa says you can eat certain kinds...but we weren't sure which ones, so we avoided death and just took pictures, not tastes.

Some scale, courtesy of Todd

The much less ugly/scary Korus

Vanessa pointed out the Fuchsia tree whose bark can, and was, used to write letters on and whose flowers are tiny and lovely.

We reached the top of the gully, stopped for a rest and made Lucky fetch her stick while we rested, and then moseyed on home.  My favorite picture from the gully:

Back at home, there was more sun bathing and my first taste of Vegemite on toast.  Don't hate it, don't love it.  But I'll learn to eat it if it keeps mosquitoes away!!

The main event of the day was our trek to Tunnel Beach.  The 4 of us were joined by Michael, Rose and Francis (more friends of Vanessa) and we drove out to walk down the large hill to this gorgeous beach with awesome rock formations.  The story goes, if I remember correctly, that there was a princess who lived in the castle at the top of the hill (now ruins) and she liked to swim a lot.  So they built her a tunnel down to her own private beach so she could swim as she pleased.  I think that's the whole story?  Ask Francis :)

Just pictures from here on down - soooo beautiful! 

The view from the top

My sister, the sneaky photo ninja

The tunnel down to the beach

Comatose seal - good thing they sleep a lot cuz apparently they're fast and mean.  And smelly.

The view back up to where we were

 

Rockin' Band Photo, eh?

We decided to go to the neighboring beach

Laura went through the kelp and a wave knocked her into a rock

So on the way back, she had a buddy :)

Our shoes stayed safe and dry on our beach hopping adventure

The trek back to the top

Going Kiwi - did I mention that Kiwis walk EVERYWHERE barefoot if they want?  Mom, sorry, but I may never leave!

And to finish our fun and sun filled day, we ordered fish and chips.  They wrap the fish pieces in brown butcher paper with the fries, so when you get home you have to dig for the fish, free-for-all style.  So good.