Buying a house in New Zealand II

[Please see buying a house in New Zealand I for more info.]

Yesterday, Nicole and I attended an auction where this art deco beauty was being sold; or more correctly, it was advertised as if it was to be sold...



[Aside: although the guest bedroom does not have an ocean view, you are welcome to full use of the deck, and it is just across the street from the beach (as previously mentioned, not the best beach in New Zealand). Please take a moment to contribute to the Lasko NZ time share over in the upper left corner.]
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

The auction was quite crowded, with at least 30 people in attendance. Aside from a very low bid from a guy in front of us, Nicole and I seemed to be the only interested party in the room. We ended up with the highest bid, though just like an ebay auction, the house was being sold with a reserve. Our high bid got us called into a back room, where the real estate agent/auctioneer tried to see how much we were willing to pay for the place. They would not disclose the reserve price, but seemed to imply that we were $100,000 (NZ) short. Perhaps when we have learned more about Kiwi mannerisms, we will know if this was a charade to get us to greatly increase our offer, or if they were genuinely sorry that they could not sell us the house.

An interesting experience all around.

I met her in the mountains, though I lived down by the sea

Alternative title: The North Island's coldest city

Weekend trip to Lake Taupo, as a couple of weeks ago running a completely off road (read: uphill) half marathon sounded like a pretty good idea. This was our first trip to Taupo, save a couple of pass-throughs on the way to/from Auckland.

As we are now poor kiwi folk, we traveled like poor kiwi folk, and stayed in a backpackers. We sprang for a private room/bathroom ($64 ND--around $40 US). Aside from a rather uncomfortable mattress and a cold room (which was our fault for not noticing that the window was open until morning), the place was not too bad.

There seems to be nothing you cannot do in Taupo. Yes, you can hit a golf ball onto a floating putting green without going to Tokyo.


Brilliant sunshine on Saturday, so we hiked along the Waikato River...

...to Huka Falls (New Zealand's most visited natural attraction). The falls were not what I was expecting, but they were still quite impressive.




I thought I'd start a series called: "Nico on a picnic".


Here are a couple of shots of the lake in winter.



And a quick stop at New Zealand's biggest underground wine cellar (Only one room would fit in the frame).


Sunday was race day. Nico finished her first ever 10K, and had enough time to take a picture of me at the end of the half marathon. Official time 2:06 (hey, it was really steep...and -3 degrees at the start).


After the race, we had a soak in the Taupo Hot Springs. Sorry, no photos.

And another series I have just started: "Nico having a pint".

And on Thanksgiving we'll be lighting fireworks.

She said it's cold. It feels like Independence Day.

Alternative title: The summit where Tamatea, the man with the big knees, the climber of mountains, the land-swallower who travelled about, played his nose flute to his loved one.

We were planning on actually walking up to said summit (2 hours each way, over private land), but all the no trespassing made us alter our plans a little; we settled for a photo of the 10 metre sign.


Instead we ended up at what I dare say is Hawke's Bay's finest beach.



It looked very surfable, though I am confident that even if I had brought my wet suit and surfboard, Nico would not have rescued me were I to be carried off to Fiji.


As Nico is thinking it will be too hot for Thanksgiving dinner in November, she's currently in the process of cooking Thanksgiving dinner today. Except there are no turkeys in New Zealand (aside from the gaggle of wild turkeys I nearly ran over on the way to Taumatawhakatangihangakoauauotamateaturipukakapikimaungahoronukupokaiwhenuakitanatahu)...so she's going to work some magic on a chicken.

We had considered throwing a 4th of July party, but thought it might not go over very well in a country that was rather opposed to independence from Britain.

Freshman Fifteen

Really more like the freshman five, but I've still managed to pack on more weight in New Zealand than I should be carrying. As I would never make a very good dieter, I began marathon training last week. This morning (in the rain), I ran up Te Mata Peak--30 minutes from our place to the entrance, and another 20 minutes to the top...down was a wee bit faster. The view from the top was not stellar today.

The Hawke's Bay Marathon is on September 4th. The start is walkable from our house. You are all invited to run with me.

Aside: New Zealand foods that are making me fat include
1) Fish and Chips (The best of which are found at Village Fish and Chips in Havelock North)
2) Chicken and Chips (Mmmmmn Hot Chick)
3) Pie!!! (These are like pot pies in the US, only generally smaller...bakeries sell them, and you can eat them with your hands.)
4) Probably something Nico is cooking.

In other news: I am now a fully registered New Zealand pharmacist.

View from Te Mata Peak (take 2)

[You must click the picture for full panoramic effect.]

Tramping

Alternative title: Laughing at the sunrise like he's been up all night.

Technically, tramping requires an overnight stay, but as we were walking to a hut where most people were staying overnight, this certainly felt like a tramp.

Sunrise Track seemed like a good place to start exploring the Ruahines, as the government website recommends the walk for those of low to moderate fitness. Once again, I am reminded that "low fitness" is much fitter in NZ than in the US.

The entrance to the Ruahines is through private farm land...which is what most of New Zealand looks like today. Beautiful, but only if you try not to think about all the native forest that was slashed and burned to make room for the sheep.


Just a few steps past the gate, and things get even greener.



One of my better pictures on the day:


This is Sunrise Hut. These huts are all over New Zealand, and basically allow you to tramp around the country without carrying a tent. Sunrise Hut is on the posh side (and costs $14 NZ a night). You get a bunk/mattress (in a room with a bunch of other bunks), a heater, a kitchen...probably a pit toilet somewhere.


We couldn't figure out why there was ice on the ground, as we were burning up from our 2 hour (and 1300 metre) climb.


I could post pictures from the top all day long; here are a couple of especially good ones:

Roosters

Alternative Title: Goodbye to new friends

I suppose if I had seen the classic Kiwi Movie "Once Were Warriors" (or read the book), I would recognize Roosters as a classic Kiwi bar. But I haven't, so I'll just call it the most townie of all townie bars I've ever been in. We've been trying to stop by once a week, to get a feel for the real New Zealand, and are hopefully not gentrifying the place too much.


Nico and I are a bit of an oddity in New Zealand, in that we've moved here with the intent to stay forever. Such is not the case with out friends Aoife and Conor, who are just about to return to Ireland. Farewell pints last night at Roosters; goodbye Conor and Aoife, it was nice to have met you.


And an early morning wakeup to catch the bus that my coworker Sarah had chartered. Nothing better to do in the rain than ride around in a bus and taste wine.


Here's our very large party at Triangle Red. Either I was starving, or they make the best pizza in Hawke's Bay.

The continuing journey of the PT Cruiser

Nico and I took the bus to Auckland last Saturday with the hopes of picking up my PT Cruiser and driving it back home; flying would have been preferable, but on the short notice given to us, the bus was far, far more affordable. Also, we got to see all kinds of interesting things during the 8 hour bus ride.


Arriving in Auckland, we were treated to several hours of stunning weather on Saturday afternoon/evening. [Moored boats in Okahu Bay, if you're interested.]


Unfortunately, Sunday was more of what I'd expect from Auckland (which claims to get more rain annually than Seattle).

The blue sails belong to either NZ40 or NZ41...hard to tell which from the top of Mt. Victoria. [That's Nico manning the largest gun in NZ--fired only once because it shattered windows miles away.]


Our travels then brought us as far as Orewa Beach, which like many places on the north end of the North Island, reminds me of Hawaii.



Monday morning was car pickup day. It was supposed to be ready at 7:00 AM, and finally appeared at 10:15 AM...out of gas and with a dead battery. Sometime around 2:00 PM, AA installed a battery that almost fit, and we were off to the North Shore Compliance Centre. [In case I've neglected to mention it here, my car took so long to get here that they changed the law, and a left hand drive car can no longer be registered; the place in North Shore had agreed to certify my car under the old rules.] Sadly, they were about to close, and said it would take them a couple of days to complete the process.

Since I had to be at work the next day, we decided to drive to another compliance centre (in Napier). None of the many cops we passed during the 5 hour trip seemed bothered by our California plates. And in two weeks, the compliance centre in Napier says they'll have time to look at my car...

PS: If anyone's curious, driving an American car on the left side of the road is no big deal. In fact, if you're used to the steering wheel on the left, it will probably be easier for you...with two exceptions: 1) if you have to yield to car coming from the right (as at a roundabout), it's a little hard to see (you're passenger and the front pillar are in the way) and 2) if you're trying to pass someone on a two lane road, it's impossible to see around them from the left side of the car.

Does this make me a Kiwi?