Week 10

Monday 4^th July

A very frosty, cold start to the week. Went for a run in the morning before heading off for an interview at Garin College. It is a modern secondary school which opened in 2002, so it only has about 400 students. The interview is a relaxed affair where the principal and VP ask questions and then ask questions following on from what you say. All very real and very different to the interview processes we have to put up with in education in N Ire. It concluded with a job offer!!!! It will be a gentle intro to NZ education as it is only 7 hours per week for one term (9 weeks).

In the afternoon we went to view another house. Then we went back to view one we may put an offer on.

Tuesday 5^th

Another cold and frosty start. I headed off to see the principal of another school that had a job advertised. I quit liked the look of the job, but decided to take the other one. Just as well as he proceeds to apologise as they have had a rethink and the job no longer exists. Relief all round as he felt bad and I felt bad that I would withdraw my application. At least another contact has been made with a local school.

After that meeting I went to meet with the planning consultant about our prospective house purchase. Lots to think about. We need to assess the possibility of being able to run a B&B from the property. We decide to set up a meeting with the planning dept at the local council.

In the afternoon I went to Sport  tasman to work. While I was in the office an earthquake shake was felt (but not by me and a few others). I was in the process of dropping a large roll of carpet when it happened and I thought that was the shudder on the floor !! Within seconds of it happening people were on the internet looking up the location etc. It turns out it came from the north island (and 150km below the ground). This area has not suffered from earthquakes, so it made the news in the local paper, as well as the national tv news. Lisa was at home at the time it happened and didn’t know it had happened, so nothing alarming at all.

Wednesday 7^th

Sunshine and not as cold as the last few days. Went for coffee to the Wharfside in Mapua (our usual place). One of the owners was working there. She asked us what we would like. I said 2 trim flat whites and Lisa said “and a job please”. The reply was an immediate OK, here are the hours we need covered. We went and sat down to have our coffee while mulling over Lisa’s career move. Lisa started training/working the next day ! Two of the most experienced front of house are leaving in 2 weeks, so rapid promotion could be on the cards !! It is an idyllic location for a restaurant/café/bar. Lisa can also cycle to work as it only takes about 10 mins to get there.

By lunchtime we were in a meeting with our lawyer, discussing the purchase of the house.

In the afternoon I had an interview with The EDA for a part-time youth advisor job. Another real interview that is more like a chat.

A busy day (and not over for Lisa as she goes to her business class in the evening)

Thursday 8^th

Lisa goes to work (10am to 1pm)

I go to Nelson where Sport Tasman are doing a big 100 days to go promotion for the masters games. Local radio etc are there. We have fun mini games (putting for prizes etc) and staff encouraging people to sign up for events or volunteering. I am amazed how generous businesses are in donating prizes (that was my job) and how keen people are to volunteer to help. I was looking after the mini games and I had so many prizes to give away, I had to award them to anyone who just attempted to have a go at something. It was all good fun, then the rain came and no one was around. We kept the rest of the prizes for the next promo event.

I went home and collected Lisa who was home after her ‘day’s’ work, we went for a swim.

Friday 8^th

Met up with the cycle group. A breezy day, but a bit milder.

Got an email to say I wasnt successful with the EDA job, but they told me to give them a call as they may know of other work options in the area. Will follow this up next week.

Lisa went to work at 5pm. I dropped her off and had a Friday eve drink (shandy) and listened to the live music. The place is usually quiet this time of the week, (what Lisa was hoping for), but it was really busy as a 40^th birthday gathering was going on. In kiwi fashion it had all gone quiet by 7.30 pm. I went bak and picked up the worker at 9pm. I had spent the entire evening on the phone trying to get my UK bank to complete a transaction. After several attempts they said they would call back.I had to wait for a call that could happen up until 12.30 that night. It didn’t happen so I had to call them and start all over again. They said they would call back. That meant it would happen anytime during the night. I didn’t sleep very well, and they didn’t call.

Saturday 9^th

7am, no call during the night, meant I had to start the process for the third time. They eventually said they couldn’t confirm the transaction until Monday. A great start to the day.

A wet day, so went and bought some groceries. We also called with a woman, Belinda. We met her last week at the Friday cycle. She invited us round to see her holiday cottage she rents out, as well as some 7 week old Labrador puppies. Their house was lovely, located right on the water’s edge near Rabbit island. They Kayak from their door to the wharf for coffee. Her husband, Graham, had designed and built the house. He is an ex outdoor education teacher! The puppies were Andrex types, black ones and golden ones. They were so cute and needed a home, so we……..hope they find good homes (with someone else). Belinda did point out that the one who cuddled up beside me was the one who really liked cats!!! As we don’t have a home (yet) we will resist.

Around 10pm, my phone started to ring. It was my bank, at last and exactly what they said wouldn’t happen. At last the transaction was confirmed.

Sunday 10^th

A wet and cold morning.  I am contemplating not doing a cycle race. Lisa opens  her emails to find that the race is cancelled due to the weather. I am happy as my decision has been made and Lisa is happy as it means she is not going to miss it as she is having to work today.

Lisa goes off to work and I do some catching up with house chores.

Late afternoon the rain stops and we go for a walk along the beach.

 It was a week of job developments.

What caught my eye this week in the press was a for sale add.

It was for a child’s bike, good order, 45 years old. !!!!! I cannot work out how that could be a typo.

Week 9

Monday 27th June
Went for a swim in the morning, then back to the house to do some job applications (for part-time teaching jobs for term 3).

Tuesday 28th
The day started with sharing the sun with Claire and Susan, as we have a skype call. I say sharing the sun, because as they sat in their kitchen with the setting sun streaming in, we sat in our room with the sun getting higher in the sky. For a while we shared it! I then went for a run before going to the local town to meet with a planning consultant to dicuss a house we might want to buy. After that Lisa and I went to the mall to help promote the Masters Games. We signed up some participants as well as signing up some very willing volunteers. People seem to be so keen to throw themselves into community volunteering. We returned home, briefly before going to a meeting in the village about the new cycle trail which is going to go through the area.
Wednesday 29th
BIG DAY, we opened our emails in the morning to find that our Portrush house had sold and the new owners had moved in. We could now move on. This coincided with notification that our container was arriving into Nelson. When it gets through customs and biosecurity we still cant get it until we have somewhere to put it. Our possessions have gone to Dublin, Rotterdam, Singapore, Auckland and now Nelson, and it arrived exactly on the date we were quoted in April...amazing. We went for a cycle to celebrate !
We went to see the ship in the port (but we didnt see our container....only because there were so many, not because it wasn't there).
I then called in to the two local schools to drop off the applications. When I callled in to Garin College, by coincidence, I met the guy whos classes the job would cover. I then had an impromptu interview/chat.

Thursday 30th
For years this has been a red letter date in my diary...summer holidays. No longer, it is winter and in term 2. The schools here have  4, 10 week terms with one or two weeks off. The new red letter day would be in December.
We went to do some more research on a prospective house at Tasman District Council. Information is very accessible. You can get a file on any property and see all the documents belonging to it.
I then went to Sport Tasman to do some work, while Lisa studied in Richmond Library.

Friday 1st July
Went cycling with the friday group and met some new people, one of the guy's grandfather had come from Coleraine and he had a company named after, Coleraine. He thought it was a small town of a couple of hundred people. He was interested to know it had more than that, as well as a university !
We treated ourselves to a house sale celebration lunch.
Got an email asking me to come in for an informal interview at Garin College, on Monday.


Saturday 2nd
A quiet coffee at the Wharfside. We were sitting there when a kayak with 2 women paddled up to the beach. We had met Belinda for the first time yesterday  and she was delighted to see us as she had paddled up here with a friend to have a coffee, only to realise that she had forgotten her money.  Her house is a couple of miles away(by sea) and she can paddle from the bottom of her garden to the wharf. We sat in the sun and chatted for a while before we went to get ready for cycle race number 2.
The race started and finished at a local pub in the country. The course was shorter than last week but it had a few long hills on it, so would be challenging. Our group split on the first long hill and Lisa cycled off in the lead. I continued in another group and when I got to the finish line I quickly was told that Lisa had won again. If she wins again, she has to move to a higher grade. We all sat around afterwards in the weak winter sunshine and then had the prizegiving....Lisa won a pair of socks, as did the winners of all the other grades. Socks dont pay the rent !


Sunday 3rd
 Enjoyed a bit of a lie in, then  to the wharf for a coffee, where lots of people were enjoying brunch. We stood beside a young boy who was fishing. We asked him had he caught much, he said not much but "it is better than sitting on a couch". That is a what NZ is about. We then helped with some gardening around the property. Lisa then did some businees stuff while I prepared for tomorrows interview.

Another week has just flown by; this one had some big milestones in it.

The news the last few weeks has had nothing to write home about and the found items are a bit boring (but still lots of them).

Week 8

Monday 20th
Went to see a lawyer in preparation for buying a house (when ours completes maybe this Friday)
Queued for over 2 hours at a ticket outlet for the quarter-final super 15 rugby match, to be held in Nelson on saturday eve. The computers went down so that is why it took so long. As we waited the staff of the place gave us all water, crisps, sweets. A coffee shop  waiter from next door ,came in and took orders. The time passed quickly as we enjoyed the chat with Vern and a couple of other kiwis we had never seen before but, felt like life-long friends by the time we all got to the front of the queue. Needless to say we knew a few people they knew (just like N.Ire).
I went for a run in late afternoon, along the sea front, watching the sun go down.

Tuesday
Went for a cycle in the morning then off to'work' at Sport tasman

Wednesday
Cycled in the morning, then sat at the wharf in the sun for a coffee.
Found out that our house would not be handed over this week (admin mistake). Will have to wait a bit longer (next week hopefully)
Afternoon, did some work for sport Tasman from the house and applied for a job.

Thursday
Lisa and I were on a Treaty course all day. It was an excellent course and we now have a greater understanding of the treaty and the history of NZ as well as the importance of the treaty for today and the future.

Friday
Went for swim in the morning.
Afternoon went and viewed 3 houses
Evening, went to a hangi at a local primary school. A hangi is a traditional way of cooking food in the ground. A large hole with hot rocks, potatoes and meat (pork thi time) put in large baking tins and covered with earth. Left for 7 or 8 hours and then delish tender food comes out. It was a celebration for the Maori new year.

Saturday
Got my hair cut ( a bit short).
Afternoon - Our first bike race. The first of the winter series. It was about 70km long. Lisa and I went in the E grade with about 20 others. Lisa won (it was a sprint finish with a photo finish) and I came a distant 7th.
Evening - Off to the rugby match. Great atmosphere in the local stadium that has lots of temporary seats put in, in preparation for the world cup matches being held here. Our team (Crusaders) won. Lots of all blacks play for the team, so it was good to watch fast rugby (but still not as fast as netball !!)
Got home happy but very tired ( Lisa exhausted).

Sunday
Up early to skype the Welshs and mum.
Due to sore legs we take it easy and go for a walk along the beach (a sunny, calm day).
Afternoon - wearing shorts and t shirts (and gumboots) we help Roger and Adele with cutting and pruning the trees and bushes around our cottage.
Evening - Go next door for dinner and watch 'Doubt ' on TV

A lovely day and a great NZ weekend

Week 7

Monday 13^th June

A gentle start to the week with an easy cycle which included a stop at the Wharfside for our usual trim flat whites. It was a calm sunny day so we sat outside and watched the (very srtong) tide go out. In the afternoon we headed into Richmond to see a planner at Tasman District Council. We wanted to check out what you could or couldn’t do with a property we might want to buy. She was very helpful and she gave us lots of useful information. We then went to Rabbit Island on the way home and went for a walk along the beach. There were about six other people on the beach.

Tuesday

Went into Tasman Sport to work.  Almost did a full day….need to be more careful in future!!! In the evening I put some more photos on flickr and wrote my blog.  A very productive day

Wednesday

Did a hard bike ride in the morning, with lots of hills. It was cool in the morning but then became  mild and sunny later in the day, so wore shorts and  t shirt in the afternoon (less than a week away from mid- winter). We then went to see a house in the afternoon. I think we get withdrawal symptoms if we don’t view a house at least once a week.

Thursday

Had a coffee with Lisa at the wharf, before going in to work. Another busy day at the office. Today I was chasing up sports clubs who are organising events for the masters games but who haven’t collected any promotional material yet.

On the way home I stopped at Rabbit island and went for an hours run on the beach. This time I didn’t meet anyone else on the beach. It was quite mild with some sunshine and if it was a day like that along the north coast, Portstewart Strand would be busy.

Friday

An almost cold start to the day. We met up with Tasman Wheelers for the coffee ride. They thought it was too cold to go up onto higher ground so we stayed by the coast. We ended up going through Rabbit island (my third visit this week). When we got to the road by the beach on the island everyone just stopped. We all just admired the beauty of the sea and the beach and the general peacefulness of the location. Sometimes there is a need to put your head down and work hard on a bike, other times it is beneficial to enjoy your surroundings.

Lisa spent the afternoon chopping wood for the fire. We then went to the wharf for the NZ tradition of a Friday evening drink.

Saturday

Heavy or very heavy rain all day.  I saw an ad for a pair of second hand gumboots (weillies) in the paper, so I had arranged to call in to try them for size. When we got to the house no one was in but the gumboots were left with a note for me to try them on. They were my size and were like new, so for $10 (£5) they were a bargain as they cost $75 new. My last Huntress weillies were 30 years old and they didn’t get packed. They are now retired from use and are the centrepieces of Regis’s floral arrangements (probably not all the time). I think my new Skellerup gumboots will last 30 years, but I might stretch them out for a bit longer if need be! I almost needed to use the gumboots to do the shopping and go to the library, but I don’t feel native enough to carry that look off. I did however count several pairs of gumboots being worn in the supermarket.

Sunday

After a night of torrential rain and storms, we were glad to see some dry weather by morning. We went for our compulsory trim flat white at the wharf. Many others were doing the same. After lunch we then headed off on the mountain bikes. We explored some unsealed roads nearby and found some long steep hills. Landslips had closed one of the main roads and we saw lots of smaller landslips as a result of yesterdays weather.

We got back before it started to rain. Lisa then did some homework and I applied for a job.

Another busy week over.

THIS WEEK’S NEWS

This week the media is hyping up mid-winter. I think as a marketing opportunity they are promoting mid- winter Christmas !!!! The 25^th June is winter xmas. Bars/restaurants are advertising events and are taking group bookings. TV ads have snow, snowmen and ho ho ho sounds. I am not a big fan of Christmas so I hope I haven’t ended up in a country which promotes it twice a year. From what I remember from before, they are too busy enjoying the summer in December, to get too involved in the Christmas thing. In June we have short days and we are in our houses for longer so we are at the mercy of the marketing campaigns. At least it seems to be targeted at adults so there are no toy ads. I will watch with interest next week how it builds up to the 25^th. I’m not sure yet how we will ‘celebrate’.

We are also having a James Nesbitt onslaught (as if Christmas wasn’t bad enough). He was interviewed on TV last week as he is living in Wellington for a year. He is playing the part of a hobbit in the hobbit film they are making. He then  featured in the film on Sunday night TV (Five minutes of heaven). I fear that as NZ TV is several years behind, and buys a lot of UK TV programmes, we are about to relive the glory years of James Nesbitt, appearing in every other drama. He was not the only Northern Ireland TV ‘personality’ on TV, as the news programme reported on a cow from N Ire that has become an internet hit as she has been videoed letting herself out of her pen, buy undoing the bolts with her tongue. 

What a week…… Christmas hype, James Nesbitt and a cow…that is what they would call a mighty triple ‘combo’ in these parts !!

Week 6

Monday 6^th June was a public holiday. We met a classmate of Lisa’s in Nelson and cycled around the port and marina. It was a bit overcast with some rain, but mild (16°C)

Tuesday 7^th We went to the swimming pool in Richmond in the morning. The centre was a hive of activity with little rippers doing all sorts of aquatic activities. Due to the facilities, we can get on with swimming without any ripper interruptions. A quick spell in the spa pool and sauna, then we headed off to the library. More job application stuff and then we came back to Mapua and went for a walk on the beach.

Wednesday 8^th First day volunteering  at Sport Tasman. Only an introduction session so stayed from 11am to 1pm. Collected the mountain bikes from the shop on my way home, as the first two services are included as part of the deal. The shop is one of about eight bike shops I have counted in an area which has about 90,000 people. Not a bad ratio and there are probably others I don’t know about!  In the evening I watch paint dry, otherwise known as uploading photos onto the flickr website.

Thursday 9^th In the afternoon we went out on the bikes and did a new route. It was beautiful and it followed the Motueka valley for some of the way. The scenery is very dramatic with large mountain ranges in the background. Large rivers, river valleys and pancake flat plains with orchards or vineyards. The scenery changes with every corner you go around. It also means the cycle routes can include lots of climbing and/or really flat roads.  In the evening we took possession of the rugby world cup tickets !! we see that the price of the ticket includes the ‘free’ use of public transport  to get you to and from the stadium. We need to book flights to Auckland and sort out accommodation.

We then watched our first netball match, live on TV. It was a revelation. It was very fast and exciting and was played in front of a crowd of about 8000. OK it was the Silver ferns playing the diamonds (Austalia)) . The ferns narrowly lost, and we cant wait to see the return match at the weekend. We are now netball fans and I never thought I would say that!

Friday 10^th I went for a quick swim before going to work at Sport Tasman. A good day for going to work as it rained all day (temps still mild, probably just like a wet summer’s day in Portrush).

The main TV news each evening is at 6pm. It is one hour long and includes several lengthy weather reports as well as many sports reports.  That is my perfect combination. This evening I counted six different sports being reported on. There are as many female sportspeople reported on as males. There is so much more equality, to the extent the often say men’s football, not assuming we will automatically think it is men they will be reporting. The same thing happens in the press. It is also noticeable that the reporters who interview the athletes, ask the women the same type of questions they would ask the men. There is no Chris Hollins asking a female some flippant question he would never dream of asking a guy. Perhaps this is just another reason why, a country with only 4 million people produce so many world class athletes in so many sports.

Saturday 11^th I went for a run around Ruby bay and Mapua and Lisa went out for a cycle. In the afternoon we went for a drive to find the infamous Takaka Hill. It is the only category one ‘hill’ in NZ so we thought we would better take a look before we would try to cycle up it. It turned out to be a monster of a mountain with a climb that goes on for over 9km, some of which is steep. It looked so much harder than any Spanish route we had ever done, but Lisa is a veteran of the French Alps and she thought she had done worse!  We stopped at a lookout point, which was a platform that sits out high above a valley. Breath-taking view. It would be a ‘breath-taking’ and leg-breaking climb if you  cycle up here. We drove home a decided we would attempt it some day, date not yet specified!

In the evening we went to see the film Catfish in the little Gecko cinema. We sat in our usual sofa and had our usual hot chocolate. Four other people were also there and we all enjoyed the film. A great film, should be watched by anyone who uses facebook !

Sunday 12^th after a few cloudy days, it was great to waken up to a sunny morning.  It was sunny but cool. We waited for it to warm up, so went to the Wharfside for coffee.  Lots of little rippers turned up with their parents to fish on the wharf. Lots of small children, with small fishing rods, all catching each other’s lines as they stood shoulder to shoulder. We got bored watching them and many of them got bored fishing.

It warmed up to about 13°C, so we headed off on another new route. The Neurdorf road was beautiful, surrounded by hobbit like rolling hills, with trees still showing autumn colours. The route included quite a bit of climbing and we were quite tired when we got home, but it is a route I think we will use a lot.

The big news this week was the death of Shrek. Shrek was a large Merino sheep, who enjoyed national celebrity status.  He had fans all over Asia. He had avoided capture for years and lived in a cave. He then was caught and somehow turned into a household name. When he was shorn, it was televised live and it got over 1 million viewers including viewers in Japan! A day or two later other stories were reported that Shrek would continue to release more children’s books…. special powers indeed. Shrek is also going to be stuffed, but I’m not sure if that will happen before or after he writes his next book!

Week 5

Monday 30^th May

The week started with a skype call to the Connell  household (including mum). Then went to the aquacentre in Richmond  for a swim. Spent about 4 hours in the library, putting together  a job application. I went and did some gracery shopping while Lisa finished off her CV. Just as I was leaving the supermarket I noticed I had a text message to say that a rare white heron was being released at Mapua wharf at 4.30. I quickly collected Lisa from the library and got to Mapua with a minute to spare. The press where there and so where a lot of seagulls, who weren’t impressed with the new arrival. It was being released here because it was eating prize goldfish from a pond in a nearby town. It was also going to replace a heron called Hamish who, for the first time in 18 years had not returned to Mapua for the winter. The new heron however winged it back to the other town. I don’t know what has now happened to him/her.

Tuesday – Went to a job consultancy company, who charged me money to tell me I was doing everything right and make a few minor changes to my CV! – easy money for them.

Viewed a house that was for sale on Trade Me( a bit like ebay, specific to NZ). Later in the afternoon went out on my bike and did a ‘proper’ training session.

In the evening we went to the Mapua and District Business Association AGM. It was very interesting and welcoming. There were at least 50 people there and at least half of them were really switched on, competent females. There was a very positive feel about what they want to achieve in the next year and beyond.

Wednesday 1^st June – Officially the first day of winter  Sunny, no wind and approx 16 – 18 °C

Wharfside Restaurant & bar

Another view of the area around the wharf

A winter view around the local estuary

Had a coffee at Wharfside before going for a cycle (another proper training session, only this time longer and harder) Lisa stayed at home and did her homework for her class tonight.

In the evening Lisa went to class and I wrote up last weeks blog.

Thursday 2^nd June  Sunny and warm

In the afternoon I met the events manager from a local sports trust. I sent her an email last week, asking about the possibility of getting some work experience with them.  We discussed some options and we agreed that I would do a couple of half days as a volunteer, helping out in her office. I start next Wednesday.

Friday 3^rd June - a bit overcast and much cooler, 9°C.

The start of a long weekend as they get Monday as a holiday to ‘celebrate’ the Queen’s  birthday ! There is an even more important holiday TODAY...Lisa’s 40^th

Lisa's birthday lunch (complete with candles!)

The day started with our coffee ride with Tasman Wheelers. We then went for a late leisurely, lunch at the Apple Shed at the wharf.  We then went to Motueka, where we went into a large shop  called Warehouse, which we had passed a few times. It turned out to be a shop which is a cross between Lidls, Woolworths (that brand still exists here, but no shops)B&Q  plus more. You could buy everything from a pint of milk to a surf board, live bait or any household item.  We dragged ourselves away, knowing that it was the first visit of many. We were very restrained and came away with a CD. I noticed there top 20 CDs. The royal wedding is at number 16 and at number 17 is......Daniel O’Donnell.  We bought neither (tempting as it was).

In the evening we were joined by Adele and Roger from next door and had a few glasses of NZ bubbly, while listening to our new (and at the minute our only) CD. The CD is Adele 19 (just to clarify that we didn’t buy Daniel. If they sell his CDs here I wonder does he ever come here ? The answer to that question  I can live without.

Saturday 4th June

The day started wet and got wetter (but nothing like last week’s storms). We went to Richmond to use the internet as the hub in the house is broken and won’t be replaced until next week. We then went and viewed a house.  We had never visited the library on a Saturday...it was packed with adults and children, some  where having coffee and a chat and some where even looking at books!

We have decided we need to buy gumboots as we are now in winter mode and they are a must in these parts (including in town, cafes and anywhere else).

Sunday 5^th June wet dull and mild

I have a head cold so not bothered about the weather. We had coffee at the wharf and read the weekend papers. I say weekend as they come out on a Saturday but have both Saturday and Sunday’s date on them, so no separate Sunday news.

In the evening we finished off Lisa’s weekend birthday with a trip to Nelson in the evening to go to a Thai restaurant which had been recommended. It was good, portions were huge and the place was packed.  They still allow you to take home your leftovers, so went away with enough for a second meal.

This weeks vocab lesson.....

Little rippers = small children

Flick over = what you do when you send someone information via email

Sweet as = said when agreeing on an arrangement, eg “can I get my hair cut at 2pm?” answer “yis, sweet as” or used to replace OK

This week in the press.......

Hard to follow last week’s story, but I have become fascinated with the lost and found adds. This week one of the found adds was....Sheep. It said that they had wandered onto someone’s property and if they were not claimed they would be ‘either sold or go into the freezer’.

Week 4

Started the week with business stuff, ie apply for a job, get car insurance and contents insurance. Insurance for the car is cheap because there is no litigation to speak of as everyone pays into a government insurance which is what pays out if you have an accident.
We got offered rugby world cup tickets, through a friend of a friend. We have reserved tickets for the Australia v Ireland  game in Auckland. Our Irish rugby shirts are in transit, so all we need to to is book flights to Auckland.
In the afternoon we went over to Judith's and had a walk around her farm. She breeds black sheep and they were very friendly. Unlike Rupert the Alpaca ! He came over to see us and Lisa looked into his lovely big brown eyes. Then he started to hiss and spit......we kept our distance. Then Judith tells us not to look them in the eye or put your hand out infront of you because he sees it as a challenge !! Alpacas will not feature in our future home.
On tuesday the weather continues to be coolish and a bit overcast. We went to Richmond to use the library and bought a printer to get our CVs printed etc. In the afternoon we went for a cycle.
Wednesday - We used the pool at Richmond for the first time. A complex with a pool that always has lanes for proper swimming, hydro pools, spa pools, kiddie pools, a wave pool (you can surf in it) and infra red saunas. It costs £3 per visit and you can use as many facilities as you like.
We then collected our new car. It is starting to feel more real as we get into all the everyday stuff.

Our new car !!!!!!
The average age of cars in the Nelson region is 14.3 years, one of the oldest in NZ. This is partly due to the kind weather and the fact that nobody is bothered what car you drive. Car type does not equal bank balance, more likely lifestyle.
In the evening Lisa went to her business class.
By evening the most extreme rain had started to fall. It continued all through the night and it made the national news the next morning. There was flooding and some people were evacuated from their homes. May has since been declared the wettest on record.
Thursday -  Went for a run around Mapua then went to library and applied for another job.
Fiday - cycled with Tasman wheelers. The weather is sunny and mild again. In the afternoon had a drive around some other parts of the area. Some great views (will see about posting all the photos on another site)
Sat - went to nelson market in the morning. Bought some veg of enormous proportions. A leek was the same size of my arm and cost 50p. In the afternoon we went on a trail using the mountain bikes. We followed one of the roads I run along and then it went off road. Great views again.

A typical view looking across the rolling inland hills of the Ruby Bay area. The tasman sea is in the background.
Sunday 6.15 AM alarm goes off...Champions league....being shown in one of the local pubs. We go down for kick off, with about 20 others. We get a cooked breakfast at half-time. watch a couple of goals go in at the wrong end and go home. Then off we go on our bikes for a long (and hilly )ride. Get home 3.5 hours later. with tired legs we then go to have a look at a  local house that has an open viewing. we crash into be that night early as we have a skype appointment with mum and the connells in the morning.

What have I learnt this week ?
Weather is a big news topic. the evening news spends a good 5 mins going over the weather we have had as well as a forecast. The newspapers dedicate at least two thirds of a page to weather info, including isobar maps, stats, tides, winds, all sorts...its great.
New vocab this week
pikelet = pancake
stubies = boxer shorts
judder bar = speed ramp

The local daily newspaper carries lots of lost and found adds. the nelson airport puts a found add in every week, with the smallest of items listed.
A news item caught my eye this week 'Compressed air inflates man'.... a truck driver fell onto a compressed air pipe, it stuck into his buttock and it started to pump air into his body. He said he thought he was going to explode from his foot! " In a matter of minutes my body had gone to twice its size"  ( but his mother said he tripled in size!)When the paramedics tried to put a drip in, his body spat out the needle. He survived but the article didn't say how they got the air out.
We used to have a scap book of rediculous stories or letters from the Coleriane Chronicle ,which we will use if we ever forget why we left. I think we have just found our first cutting for the Nelson Mail scrapbook!!