Rubgy & Rangitoto

If there is one distinctive thing about Kiwis, it is their intense passion for sports.  They follow all the English rooted strange-but-familiar sports like cricket, netball, croquet and field hockey, as well as horse racing, yacht racing, and more.  It seems no sport is too insignificant to escape their enthusiasm.  For those of you watching America's Cup during the last two weeks (if you're an American and have no idea what this is, don't feel bad), know this: when the races begin each morning production comes to a grinding halt as the entire office flocks to the big screen to watch the race. But of all the sports kiwis love to play and watch, none is more dear to their hearts than rugby, and just as many people who visit America flock to see a baseball game, so we decided to attend a rugby match on Sep 14th when the All Blacks faced off against South Africa.  

South African cheerleaders doing a traditional dance

When we found our seats in the stadium I was sure that there had to have been a mix up, as they were far too good for the price we paid for them.  We were sitting right on the center line, almost field level, and perhaps four rows from the front.  After watching the pre game Hakka, the violence began with an intensity that took me off guard.  There is something about hearing the smack of two bodies colliding in mid air only a few meters from you that makes the whole experience so much more, I don't know…visceral.  I managed to get a few decent pictures of the action when it came towards our side of the field. 

The scrum!

In the end the All Blacks walked away victors by a comfortable margin.  They haven't lost a game this season, and apparently that's not uncommon!

The following day we decided to explore another of the Hauraki Gulf islands, Rangitoto.  This is the volcanic cone island that you can see from nearly every beach in Auckland - undoubtedly you've seen it if you've seen any of our photos.  After spending so much time staring at it, it would have been a shame not to check it out. So after disembarking from the ferry we started the trek and were treated to some nice views of the harbor and city along the way to the summit.  The views from the top were what we've come to expect from NZ: gorgeous water view panoramas.  After soaking them in we started a side trip to the lava caves which were pretty awesome, and as Kayleigh was stumbling through the darkness she found a pair of Ray Bans someone apparently without a flashlight had dropped.  No one reported them missing, so she claimed them as the "spoils of war".  

Land Ho!

Oh, and go Team New Zealand! 

Connected

Recently I discovered a new social networking site called Meetup.com that allows you to make and join groups catering to a particular demographic or interest and setup meet-ups where you can go and socialize and do some activity together.  It seemed like a pretty good tool to meet people in an area you're new to, so this weekend I decided to give it a shot.  

Saturday night I met up with one such group to go play a game of laser tag.  I don't remember ever having so much fun playing laser tag (probably attributed to the fact that we had the arena to ourselves and there were no children).  The arena itself was pretty cool, with two stories and plenty of areas to cover and snipe at people.  We played two games (of which my team won the 2nd, go blue team!) before heading over to feed at the Ponsonby food court and doing some socializing.  As it turns out the organizer of the event was an amateur comedian whose act I happened to see on an open mic night at the local comedy club.  Small world eh? Aside from that, my choice of dinner sparked a conversation about spicy foods and as it turns out another of the attendees also loves spicy dishes and has a family member who owns an Indian restaurant in Auckland.  He is going to organize an event for spicy food lovers at his family's restaurant with real authentic Indian food and real authentic Indian spice.  I can't wait! 

Sunday I ended up going indoor rock climbing with another fella I met from the meet-up.  He's an interesting guy with an obvious passion adventure.  He had just finished hiking the Kepler Track a week before in the dead of winter, battling the snow and wind on a high mountain ridge for the sheer challenge and love of solitude.  His enthusiasm was sort of contagious.  The way he spoke about rock climbing painted it as a mental exercise of will and courage, and after giving it a shot I'd have to say that that is a pretty apt description.  I had never tried it before, but it is definitely a sport that requires 100% focus and constantly redefining your limits.  There are some moves that there is no easy way to make and it forces you to reach a little farther (and sometimes a lot farther) than you thought you could.  If you lose focus even for a moment, you'll slip have to start over.  If you do it right, it's an addictive feeling.

Let's face it, breaking into pre-existing social circles can be tough, if not near impossible.  Even if you can manage getting your foot in the door, finding someone who shares a similar interest or passion can be rare, and making lasting connections is like panning for gold.  While I can't say for sure if any connections I made last weekend will stand the test of time, it was nice getting out there and sharing something with new people.  Meetup.com has turned out to be an awesome opportunity to connect with people and I'll definitely be attending more events in the weeks to come.  

Working and Waterfalls

It's been a while.  A while since I have last blogged, a while since we have touched American soil, and far too long since our last summer.  I'm glad that the last month of what has turned out to be nearly a yearlong winter has finally come to a close.  August has flown by and we have been working our butts off to save enough cash for our epic road trip.  Come December the sun will be shining and we will be living it up in backpacker style, i.e. absolute freedom.  It'll be amazing to finally have a birthday on the beach instead of indoors running from rain and cold.  In the meantime, here's the lowdown on what we've been up to in this relatively uneventful month.  

My position working for the Unitary Plan Feedback Team of the Auckland Council has come to an end last week and before I even had finished Friday out I was offered a role with another branch of the AC processing building consents.  Not the most thrilling of jobs, but hey, that's data entry for ya.  The office is across the street from my old high-rise and the view doesn't match the magnificent one of the former, but overall it's the same deal.  

August has been a dreary and grey month with plenty of rain, so hiking hasn't always been an option on the weekends.  By the latter half of the month I was quite cabin bound and decided I was going out anyways.  I ended up at Fairy Falls in the Waitakeres and it made me question why I  don't know why I don't go out in the rain more often, as the waterfalls are flowing heavily and you often have them all to yourself.  

The only downside is a little bit of mud, but it didn't bug me when I was 6, so why should it bug me now?  Getting to the falls was all downhill, and I did run into one odd couple and their dog once I reached the main fall.  The dog was friendly enough, but the man was pretty creepy and looked about with what seemed to be barely contained disgust and contempt.  He sang a song to the waterfall, made some angry comment about the pollution in the water and walked off.  I waited around to put some space between us before slogging back up to the car.  

Today Kayleigh and I shared a mutual day of leisure for a change, and it just so happened to be one of the only beautiful sunny days this month.  We loaded up the car and headed west, back to the Waitaks.  When we first arrived in New Zealand we met an Irish couple in the hostel who gave us a book called NZ Frenzy which is an outdoor guide to some of the North Island's off the beaten track destinations.  After flipping through the book we decided to head back to Bethell's Beach in order to find Lake Wainamu, and find it we did.  Lake Wainamu is a beautiful lake created by the natural damming of Wainamu Stream by some massive black sand dunes.  

Once we found the trail head we followed the stream to the lake and after coming to the conclusion that the water was too cold for a swim without the towels we left at home, we relaxed on the dunes for a while before venturing onto the track around the lake perimeter.  Given all the rain from the week, it was a muddy disaster of a trail.  Luckily I had chosen to wear my water shoes to the lake, while Kayleigh had, more regrettably, chosen to wear her running shoes.  She is a trooper and we pushed on anyway.  I'm glad we did because as we rounded the far end of the lake we were pleasantly surprised by the presence of a waterfall.  After washing off our feet and shoes we headed back down the other side of the lake, and when we came upon the dunes again there was a group of people body boarding down the steep side of the dunes into the stream.  While we had originally planned to camp out, we decided to head back home due to the dubious legality of staying in the carpark overnight.  It was an absolutely fantastic day, so thanks for the book Ryan and Laura.  We'll definitely be putting it to good use come December.  

Between the rain, the work, and our gradual acclimation to life in New Zealand there hasn't been very much to report on.  As it turns out, the daily grind is pretty much the same regardless of where you're doing it, but having so much natural splendor all around sure as hell makes every weekend feel like a vacation.  

P.S. The well has been running dry on original kiwisms, so I'm going to introduce a new way to close out each post, I just haven't thought of it yet :)  

The Sound of Muzack Part I

This is a post I have been looking forward to for a while now.  I'm going to tell you guys a little about kiwi music.  I have been listening to a lot of it ever since a friend from work hooked me up with a full thumb drive, and I'm completely blown away by how amazing it is.  With that said, let's begin…

First and foremost, stop reading this and listen to Shapeshifter immediately.  This is arguably the biggest kiwi band and is beloved by virtually the entire youth population.  They are a very interesting group from Christchurch, with a mix of reggae, hip hop, and rock undertones fueling their huge, synth based electronic sound.  What really makes the group unique is their vocalist, whose soulful melodies and inspired lyrics bring everything together in a remarkable way.  What's more is that they've pushed themselves into new territory with each album, reinventing themselves each time.  Their latest album, Delta, was released May 31st, 2013 and I absolutely cannot wait to see this band live.  I'm hoping to catch them at an outdoor festival on New Years Eve.  Here are a few YouTube links to get you started:

In Colour - Delta - This is their latest hit off of what, in my opinion, is their best album

Dutchies - The System Is A Vampire - This is the song that originally grabbed my attention before throwing me down the wormhole

In The Rain - Solstice - This showcases their more mellow side, and is a good representative of Solstice as an album

Next in line to be mentioned is Six60.  Six60 was incubated in the legendary Dunedin Uni scene before reaching international fame with the release of their debut self titled album in 2011.  This band sits comfortably somewhere between Incubus, 311 and Shapeshifter for their rock/reggae influenced good times sound with an occasional synth swelling at just the right moment.  This band shows a lot of promise, and I'm really looking forward to their sophomore release.  To get you started:

Forever - Six60

Run For It - Six60

This last artist for today is a bit more underground than the previous two, but that is part of their appeal.  @Peace is an emerging Auckland based hip hop group with an incredible MC.  This isn't the sort of hip hop you dance to, as the groups self titled debut album deals with some somber topics ranging from homelessness to death.  The lyrics are clever, poetic, and at times deeply profound, leading you to walk away from the experience with a fresh perspective and an odd sense of zen.  They remind me of q-tip and The Living Legends with their enlightened, boutique style rap.  The group is currently working on their first major release and it's bound to be evocative if not anything else.  Unfortunately due to their obscurity there aren't many YouTube videos containing their music.  I encourage you to just spend the $9 on their self titled album, as I can promise it will be worth your while.  

Nothing - @Peace - This song is sheer poetry

The City of Sails Part II

As Kayleigh can attest, much to her displeasure, I'm not the biggest beach person.  I love a beautiful beach as much as the next person, but when it comes to lazing and sunbathing all day long I just can't sit still.  I prefer more active pastimes, and Auckland seems like the perfect place to pick up a new water sport.  I've seen tons of people out on stand up paddle boards and kayaks, and New Zealand has a pretty big surf culture and some killer waves.  I'm quite partial to kayaking, and just seeing all the bays, beaches, islands and mangroves has really got me in the mood to give it a shot. If you find the idea of self-propulsion repulsive however, there is the ever-present motorboats, sailboats, and yachts.  Auckland is known as the City of Sails, and I can't think of a better place to own a boat.  The Hauraki Gulf is loaded with islands giving you endless destination options (I think I should start asking Tourism New Zealand for a check), or you could just lay anchor in the middle of the sky blue gulf and drop a line or go for a dip.  Either way, just make sure to get out on the water and enjoy the scenery and the sunshine.

Given the plethora of bays and points along Auckland's pock marked coastline, I've been doing a lot of shoreline walks lately (if you haven't noticed).  For city beaches, they're shockingly clean and uncrowded.  Mission Bay puts San Francisco's Ocean Beach to shame, and a lot of the suburbs adjacent to the beaches have a quaint village feel.  I've actually seen a few older people whose trip to the grocery store is walking along the beach.  Lucky them.  During a recent walk along the north shore, I happened across an awesome man made soaking pool carved into the lava rock.  When the tide comes in, the pool is filled with water and a "natural" pool is created.     

Mission Bay

I may be one of the only people to say Auckland makes a good tourist destination, but certainly not the only one to claim it's a fantastic place to live (Aussies might find this to be contentious, but they're wrong).  At 1.5 million people, it offers many of the advantages of a big city without the crowds.  Combine that with the amazing natural amenities and mild climate and it should be no surprise why Auckland is consistently ranked amongst the ten most livable cities in the world.  Kayleigh and I like it so much that we've decided to stay put until November and lump all of our travels into one wonderful summer.  This will give us a chance to crystallize some budding friendships and avoid the hassle and cost of finding new jobs and a new place to stay elsewhere.  After what has essentially been a yearlong winter (we flew south just as it was getting warm), I can't wait for spring.  And this summer is going to be epic.  

Kiwisms:

gobby = blow job

lost the plot = gone crazy

tea = dinner/snack/lunch/breakfast

vivid = highlighter

gutted = upset

The City of Sails Part I

Many travelers will tell you that if you go to New Zealand, fly in and then get the hell out of Auckland as soon as possible. Having lived in the city for nearly 3 months now (crazy right?), I'm here to tell you that Auckland is much better than it's given credit for.  I have been taking every chance to get to know the city and its surrounds, and while it may not have the cultural opportunities of international cities, it most definitely has a healthy nightlife that is more focused on having a good time than the pretentious show that is common in more glitzy destinations.  There are also some amazing outdoor opportunities here.  There is a massive mountain range covered in native rain forest 30 minutes drive from the CBD for peat sake!  

Just last weekend I went for another trip to the Waitakeres and ended up at Whatipu Beach which lies at the mouth of the Manukau Harbour where it meets the Tasman Sea.  After driving over the pass the road descends into a beautiful valley before ending at the car park.  From there the walk to the water takes about fifteen minutes over cabbage tree and shrub covered black sand dunes and marshland.  Emerging onto the beach, I was floored at the sheer primeval look of it.  It was like stepping back in time, before man.  The blue waves were furiously crashing against the black sands that seemed to stretch forever down the coast before disappearing behind large dunes.  To my right stretched an endless marshland dotted with more shrubs and cabbage trees and permeated by streams that carved out pathways in the sand.  To my left, a large rock outcropping and some sandstone formations reaching out into the sea, and behind them you could see the cliffs of the Awhitu Peninsula disappear into the misty horizon.  The whole scale of it can't be described, only experienced, and I witnessed it alone.  To compliment it all, the dimming light and clouds created a sort of eerie, alien like ambiance.  It's a feeling you'll never experience so close to any other major city center. It was about this point when I realized that I just drove an hour into the mountains by myself, half of which was on unsealed roads, in a 18 year old minivan just a couple of hours before sunset, with no cell service and having told nobody where I was going.  I don't want to end up inspiring sequel to 27 Hours, so I probably won't do that again.  

Before I left I had to try a quick hike I had read about previously.  It's a quick but arduous hike to the top of one of the nearby mountains nestled against the valley.  It was projected to take 30 minutes to get to the overlook at the top, but given that it was already 5:00pm and sunset was at 5:22, I gritted my teeth and double timed and made it up in 15.  There was a bench at the top where I sat and soaked in 360 degree views of the valley and everything described above.   I made a peanut butter sandwich using the best peanut butter ever made (Pic's) and watched the sunset cast a red glow on everything before hustling back down.  I made it back to the car and out of the valley before dusk.  The whole day was magical, the hike was amazing, and since Kayleigh wasn't with me I have an excuse to go back.  Don't know if she'll like that hike as much as I did considering it's straight up hill, but if the pictures are any testament, it's totally worth it.  

To give you a sense of scale, that little spec in the water is a ship 

Um, Where's the Check?

Eating out is one of Auckland's favorite pastimes, with every major road being lined with a diverse array of cafes, bars, and restaurants.  Despite the sheer volume of choices, at the right time of the day (or night) most of these places are packed and lively places to be.  It reminds me of a college town, and like college students, kiwis have a voracious appetite for beer; it's not uncommon for an entire office to go out for a beer together on Friday nights, and bars are generally packed from Wednesday to Saturday night.  As such, in the spirit of (camaraderie( and making friends, I have decided to do as the Romans…ahem, Kiwis do.  Luckily for me, I have found New Zealand brews more agreeable than American beer (and Kayleigh loves the NZ ciders).  The NZ flagship brews are Lion Red and a variety of beers from a local microbrewery called Mac's, which to my surprise, I actually liked. 

New Zealand is also surprisingly devoid of the slew of fast food chain restaurants from America.  Don't get me wrong, they have McDonald's, KFC (coincidentally nicknamed K Fry), and a few others, but their market penetration and is low and people generally don't support them.  What with kiwis being raised on less processed foods combined with having no shortage of better options, it doesn't surprise me.  In their place, many New Zealand chains have arisen which is much less boring for a traveling American :).  The Noodle Canteen (variety of Asian cuisines) has been our go to cheap takeaway when we don't want to cook.  Casa Del Gelato has amazing and unique flavors of ice cream.  Hollywood Bakery makes an excellent mocha (yes, I'm a sellout and have started drinking coffee as well).  There is also a sushi chain here called St. Pierre's that I haven't tried because it is owned by a Greek guy with a french name selling Japanese food.  Also, as mentioned before, Mac's has some awesome beers, and the Doolan Brothers (Kayleigh's company) has a great atmosphere and good food, especially the meat pies.  

Unfortunately our three favorite types of take out from back home aren't well represented here.  Chinese food is done differently here and is looked at sideways by kiwis similarly to how Indian food is (unfairly) looked at back home.  Pizza is pretty popular, but so far we haven't found a place that makes a good one.  Most places offer gourmet style and make pizzas with all different kinds of sauces and loads of toppings.  There is a high end chain here, Sal's, that sells American style pizza, but it is unpalatably greasy.  And then of course, there is Mexican food.  We have searched high and low, tried many of the popular "Mexican" restaurants and come away with only one place that sells legitimate Mexican food.  It's called Mexican Specialties and only serves food from 11am-3pm Thursday-Saturday.  Outside of those hours it functions as a shop selling various food products and novelties from Mexico, so at the very least we've been able to get some authentic ingredients to make home cooking.  Other than that we've just had to make due with the California Burrito Company that does their best to imitate a California style burrito, and our stand in Mexican substitute, Indian food.  Nite Spice is quite a good little franchise and we've been slowly working our way through the menu.  

One more subtle difference between eating out in NZ and back home is that the service is a bit more hands off.  Your waiter isn't hovering around checking in on you at all times; you pour your own water form a pitcher, and if you are expecting them to bring you your check at the end of the meal then you'll be waiting for a long time.  It may be because NZ doesn't have a tipping culture or it may just be that they kiwis view that sort of behavior as pushy.  I'm willing to bet it's the latter given that retail service similarly hands off.  So here's your warning: if you're finished eating and you intend of leaving, ask for the check.  

Kiwisms:

arvo = evening

manky = raunchy (this one may be used in America, but I've never heard it)  

wees = pee

bumwees = diarrhea (These two I think are more likely unique to Ryan and Eden's vocabulary)