I feel like I have been in Wellington longer than a week (in a good way) and keep feeling like I should have achieved so much more already but then remind myself this is not the mad lifestyle I aimed to leave behind! To be honest I am proud that I have managed to set up a blog in the first week of arriving let alone do other important things. One day I may even great video BSL blogs too but not yet! If you get bored of the ramblings just look at the photos!
So I arrived in Welly ready for 2 luxury nights in the Base hostel dorm. I felt so old arriving and getting invited by my drunken roomates to the bar below (the same bar I visited 7yrs ago when I was not t-total!) Lets say - sober it was a very dull bar! It was weird being a fake backpacker. However, I soon moved in with Helen and Trish which was a leap up in the comfort and homeliness (wow i sound so old!). Helen and Trish have 2 adult dogs Sam and Poppy and a recent arrival of Wilfred the mischeivous puppy! They are also triathalon racers and generally super fit which is making me even more keen to get some trainers and a bicycle!
Moving is not a cheap undertaking. Wellington does not sell cheap shoes which was a problem as I threw away my normal shoes and trainers. Immigration is also cheeky and offers a 23 not 24 mnth working holiday visa so you cant qualify for normal deals on phones, contracts and oh yeah subsidised prescriptions. So multiply the cost of a prescription in the UK by 20 and you have the cost of the life saving stuff! However enough negativity - rent isnt bad especially with the views. Fun realisation over veg prices - a kg of tomatoes in the summer may be $2 but in the winter could be $14! Brilliant incentive to eat seasonal veg.
So for the red cross people reading this - Yes the Johnnys are running the ambulances alongside the Wellington ambulance service which is predominantly crewed by volunteers! So guess which charity I may be emailing you for sponsorship in the future ;-). Not yet met the NZRC yet but only been here 6 days so cant get everything done!
Im sure some of you were annoyed that I boasted about summer - well those comments have to be on hold for a while - It is still cold here! I didn't pack enough winter clothes so had to invest in a good windstopper to keep me warm. As I have mentioned it is windy - no joke - one night I couldnt sleep because I wasnt sure if it was the wind or an earthquake ratteling the window lol! It is also hilly. You can feel how the volcanic activity has scrunched the land into some amazing valleys. I am getting fitter just walking around the city. Then the other major thing is the 4 season days. Today it was a miserable rainy (warm) morning, then cloudy and then lunchtime it was sunny and hot like summer then cooled off again in the evening. So bad weather doesnt last long (but neither does the good stuff at the moment). It is also so so bright here nearer the sun - even in on a cloudy day I need sunglasses! I am doseing my skin with sun cream too!
I met a few of the Wellington interpreting crowd this week. They were all very welcoming and we shared some lovely homemade cake. I observed 2 of the girls interpret a sun protection awareness talk at the deaf club on friday night. Some of the vocab is distinctly different but I am understood and picking up the signs well enough. The Wellington Deaf club were also very welcoming too.
I have been looking at flats and after a rubbish flat and 2 no-shows, I found a lovely place which I am considering in Brooklyn, Wellington with 2 kiwis fellas my age. Very tempted by this one and Brooklyn is a nice little district in the hills above Welly - again with the hills. It is a 40min walk downhill to the city centre but yes the homeward trek is less inviting lol (there are buses).
Today i visited a friend's mum in Lower Hutt which was lovely, with a lovely hot choc and scone (see photo) and a stroll along the shore. Then I walked out of Welly for a while as well.
I hope this has been interesting and I will try and improve the coherence and reduce the ramble as I continue to update this blog but I wanted to get something out to people as a start.
