First to see the sun each day

Here on the east coast of New Zealand, we're the first to see the rising sun of a new day, and it's a beaut. Paul snapped these outside our apartment.

About those trees, those are what pine trees look like in NZ. At first I mistook one for a cell phone tower as they tend to be very sparse, perfectly symetrical and all the needles stand straight up.

The "beach" in the photo at isn't really a beach at all. It's made of smooth black stones that get progressively smaller as you get closer to the water. The sandy beach was lost in the 1931 earthquake and replaced by the stones, which are expected to turn back into sand in another couple hundred years or so.

Meeting the neighbors

Mornin' mates. Paul took the camera this morning to capture the sunrise over the ocean that he sees each day on the way to work, so I'll try to post that tomorrow.

Meanwhile, I thought I'd catch you up on our activities to date. Over Memorial Day we went on a day sail on the "Spirit of Adventure," a tallship operated by a non-profit group that teaches young people about sailing and the sea (http://www.spiritofadventure.org.nz). We got to help out raising the sails, but our work was cut short when an entire school of young dolphins came to play. The local sailors say they're regulars and like to play their own version of "chicken" by swimming full speed at the boat and waiting to see who turns first. It was amazing to see such beautiful animals up close and their playful spirit was contagious. Of course they moved so quickly that it was difficult to get a good picture of them, but Paul snapped these. The bluff in the background is Bluff Hill where we live in Napier, which makes us and the dolphins neighbors.


I thought this would be as close as you could get to dolphins in the wild, but now I'm told that on the South Island you can swim with the dolphins in their native, natural habitat as well as go whale watching. We definitely plan to do that soon.

Fire and water

Here in the Southern Hemisphere, we celebrated the winter solstice on June 21 to mark the shortest day of the year. A bit of a change for us who are used to celebrating it as the first day of summer. In Napier, the locals celebrated the event with a fire fest at the beach, including flame throwers, fire dancers, music, and this fire sculpture representing the sun. Even though it was damp and rainy, the constant supply of fire and hot coffee warmed up the night.

A few days later when the skies cleared, I couldn't resist taking a picture of the full moon rising over the ocean from our window. On a clear night, the moon and the stars light up the sky in a way you never see through the haze of NYC. For the first time, I understood what standing beneath a blanket of stars felt like.

Tramping in NZ

Next to rugby, tramping (hiking) is second-most popular sport in NZ. Lately we've been exploring Te Mata Peak nearby. We think the views are pretty amazing, but apparently they're nothing compared to "The Great Walks" of New Zealand, which we hope to do in the spring.

Standing behind the AllBlacks

Have I mentioned yet that rugby is a way of life in NZ? The AllBlacks are the country's all-star rugby team and just beat the British and Irish Lions in the first of three "test" matches here. The Lions tour NZ about once every 10-20 years and bring an entire "Barmy Army" of supporters. It's a bit like the Superbowl and March Madness all rolled into one, as the tour lasts about a month. Prince William is on the way this week to watch some of the games. The entire country is having regular "blackouts" in support of the team.

Thanks to a copy of "Rugby for Dummies," Paul and I have learned all about the "scrum" and how to watch a game on the telly (pints obligatory). Statues and signs like this are all over the country in support of the AllBlacks. Here we're in front of the Te Papa Museum in Wellington (the capital) when we visited two weeks ago.

BTW-The best part of watching an AllBlacks match is watching the whole team do the Haka to the opposing team. It's a Maori war-like dance, which involves a lot of chanting, muscle slapping and sticking their tongues all the way out (a sign that they're prepared to eat the opposing team apparently). For a great demo of the Haka, see http://www.newzealand.com/travel/app_templates/haka/index_content.html.

Learning the lingo

Sure Kiwis and Americans speak the same language, but that doesn't mean we use it the same way. Here are a few gems I've recently added to my vocabulary:

Good on ya, Mate! (good for you/congratulations)
Whadya reckon? (what do you think about that?)
That's flash! (That's chi-chi/stylish)
That's brilliant! (That's great/ok/whatever)
I'm good as gold. (I'm fine)
I'm right as rain (a step above good as gold)
You're a prat! (You're a jerk/cad)
Stockcount sale (inventory reduction sale)
Letterbox (mailbox)
Cheeky (sassy/smart alecky)
Candy floss (cotton candy)
Dairy (bodega/convenience store/where you buy lotto tix)
Heaps (a lot, as in I've got heaps of work to do)
Tramping (hiking)

Genius!

Chocolate-dipped HARD ice cream cones, not just that oozy, melty soft-serve stuff, but a scoop of cookies and cream encased in a crispy chocolate shell. Why hasn't the world caught on?

Getting started

Been in NZ nearly two months now and thought it was about time I found a place to write down all the bits and pieces that make up our new life here. Rather than clog your inbox with mass emails, feel free to visit here as often as you wish for updates. We look forward to hearing from you!
Jen and Paul